Youth Sports-Focusing On Negative Coaches

In class on February 18, 2016 we learned that a large number of children dropout or stop participating in sports. 1/3 of participants dropout each year and 70% of them quit by the age of 13. The main reasons are because of negative coaches and negative parents. We are going to focus on negative coaches. We all have had those coaches before. Those ones who scream and yell at every little thing we do and nothing is ever good enough for them. They drive us crazy and make us want to stop playing the sport completely. They do not make playing enjoyable and you always dread going to practice because you know that coach is always going to be there. For some children, the pressure is too much and pushes them so far to the edge that they stop playing sports and never give it a second chance. In the article I am going to share, it gives a real world example of why sometimes negatives coaches are even worse than injuries such as concussions.

http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Journal/Issues/2016/03/07/Opinion/Fred-Engh.aspx?hl=coaches%20are%20worse%20than%20concussions&sc=0

A coach yelling at a young player, this is slowly becoming the norm in youth sports today.

Mike Krzyzewski and Quinn Cook sharing a moment. What coaching should be.

In this article, Fred Engh explains how youth football coaches are extremely egotistical and will try to win at any costs. Engh says that these coaches frequently do not follow concussion protocols or any other injuries protocols which leads to further physical and mental damages. He gives the example of how a coach tried to fix a players arm after the player was complaining of discomfort in his throwing shoulder and when the coach tried to put the player’s arm back into the socket, the player passed out and had to be rushed to the hospital. It turned out that the coach had completely broken the player’s arm. The coach went through all of that just so the player could get back out on the field so the team would have a better chance at winning. These coaches believe they would be creating a “wuss” and not making the players tough if they did not fight through injuries and take the easy way by sitting out. Coaches believe they are helping the players but in the long run they truly are not. They believe they are prepping them for college and professional sports but in all reality they are prepping them to live a life filled with injuries and physical problems. And most coaches do not do it for the players, they do it for themselves so they can feel that sense of pride and accomplishment that comes along with winning that they had never experienced before in their lives. Which is extremely wrong on their part as it should be all about the players. The problem with coaches today is that they believe winning is the only option, which to a certain degree is not entirely false. You do not want to create a losing attitude and you always want to encourage getting the best out of your players but only to a certain extent. There comes a point where enough is enough. Coaching should be about teaching young children values, life lessons, and how to be a good person. If you look at some of the greatest coaches in sports they of course have many championships and wins but if you were to ask former players of theirs about their coach, more than likely nine out of ten of them would say their coach made them a better person. That is what coaching should be all about but unfortunately in todays day and age, that gets lost and coaches motives are in the wrong place.