Coaches need to keep away from crossing lines

After a game recently, I saw two coaches sit on the ground and have a conversation with one of their players for an extended period of time.

The player was troubled and having a bad run of fortunes that a lot of teenage boys deal with, and he was needing some guidance.

Scenes like that play out in our local field houses, locker rooms and coaches’ offices more times than probably a lot of people realize because being a high school football coach isn’t just about Xs and Os on a marker board and developing a depth chart.

They’re playing a role in the development of our young people and the next generation of our society, and coaches need all the help they can get in being positive influences on those people.

Here’s an idea to help you might not expect to read in a sports column.

But at least on a weekly basis, I say prayers for our local coaches and athletes. I pray for safety during practices and games and travel to those games. I pray for wisdom for the coaches in leading those young people.

The wisdom prayers have become more frequent, as they probably should’ve already.

The influence of a high school coach in any sport is felt by a student more than any other influence besides parents or other close guardians or family members.

I know school system administrators are looking for those quality role models when they hire the people to fill these roles.

There have been a number of headlines locally in recent weeks that prove those role models are under attack.

This world is full of temptations of every sort that come from an enemy that seeks to do nothing but steal, kill and destroy, and that enemy aims for targets that will cause the most damage. Bringing down role models that could have ramifications for years on the next generation would do that.

And as much as I believe in prayer and the power of God to keep us from evil, refraining from giving in to temptation is still a matter of one’s own decision.

You may disagree with me and not believe in prayer and the existence of a God who loves us and demonic influences that try to keep us from living in God’s will.

But there’s one Biblical principal that I think all of us can agree on for coaches. Stay away from even the very appearance of evil and don’t cross any lines or gray areas that most school manuals prohibit you from crossing.

Coaches have varying degrees of how much they’ll interact with their students outside of the class room. Some won’t friend them on Facebook or even follow them on Twitter, while others will engage them on social media to keep a watch over what they post and how they are in that environment.

Please coaches, draw those lines for yourself and don’t cross them. Hopefully the headlines about you will remain about stuff that happens on the field.

Brandon Shields is the high school sports columnist for The Jackson Sun. Contact him at 425-9751 or at bjshields@jacksonsun.com. Follow him on Twitter @JSEditorBrandon or on Instagram at jacksonsunsports.