A Simple Plan

[TheEgoHasLanded]

Thanks CoachT...

 

Not only did you respond, you answered my question...wow who would have thunk it.

[panfan]

The reality is that CoachT's simple plan may be the one that pleases the most people. It is simple, and it leaves out bringing back in DII, but I think that may be reality. Like I have said b4, I'd be happy for a mult to keep us together. As ELA has said many times, change is probably coming one way or the other, so the idea would be to come up with a plan that pleases the most people that keeps us together. This simple one may be it.

[nonews]

... if you would be "fired" for fundraising, if you can't require your kids to work during the off-season, if coon-hunting interferes with your program, you need a different job! This situation is untenuable...

[Edited by nonews on 7/17/02 10:39P]

[ELA]

Today, we had all but three of our kids in weight training! Even all of the "coon hunters" were present. They play because they love the game, or because they like to be a part of something special on campus, but not for me, or my rules. I simply try to live by the established TSSAA rules and ethics governing this sport. I love this game and it is my driving passion! I work year round to be a better football coach and I think I know where to draw the lines! It is hard for some of you guys to talk about being a coach when you have never been a head coach. Even when I was an assistant coach, I thought I knew exactly how to do things "the right way," but things look a lot differently when you carry the clip board and wear the whistle. In my 45 years of life, I have found that to be true in almost every thing!

 

In regards to fundrasing... most school boards have policies limiting fund rasining efforts to those approved each year by the board, or DIRECTOR of SCHOOLS. I have to submit a form for every bus trip, and fund rasing program that takes place. The DIRECTOR can stop or eliminate any fund raising program he doesn't like for any reason! That is the reality of life in public education all across Tennessee.

[Edited by ELA on 7/17/02 10:50P]

[TheEgoHasLanded]

I am going to post this in regards to the dicussion about mandatory lifting, as well as address the "systemic" problems you spoke of.

 

By the way, I didn't find systemic in the dictionary, althought it could easily be a word...you might want to try, "systematic" which is "of, relating to, or done by a system,"

 

When I said Mandatory, I did not mean it as you thought I did...here is what I meant.

 

Football Coach-Ego, if you choose to go coon huntin, or play with dolls, instead of going to lifting, you are jeopardizing your spot on the football team. I can not have you on this team if you are going to put other things ahead of our program.

 

EGO-Coach, why can't I just show up the first day of regular season.

 

Football Coach-Ego, you can, but I do not have to have you on the team, if you choose not participaate when everyone else does then that is your decision, but I am not obligated to have you on this team.

 

That is not against the TSSAA rules...you can throw a kid off a team if he is being disruptive, detrimental, or you believe in the future he would do those things.

 

ELA if you choose not to do the speed limit and speed, tthen you will face consequences, like suspension of your liscense, or pay a ticket...if I choose not to go to practice in the offseason, and sit at home and do nothing...I will have to pay the consequences.

 

What is wrong with this situation ELA...

 

Basketball Coach: Ego, if you play aau in the summer, and choose not to go to our practices and tournaments, I can not have you on the team...I am sorry you like to coon hunt, but this is more important.

 

EGO: So you are telling me that if I choose to do something else, then you will ask me not to be on the team?

 

Basketball Coach: Yes I am.

 

If you say that is wrong, that is fine...but then you need to check out the basketball board, and go to the "Is AAU hurting us thread" and get every name of every coach who has threatend a player with that...

 

I mean the way you say it...no one has to go to anything until the season starts, and if that is true, thats fine, but the coach doesn't have to have them on the team.

 

In regards to "systemic" problems as you said...

 

It isn't my fault that certain administrators choose not to support athletics by having fund raisers or attend football games.

 

People hire principals and presidents for academic jurisdiction, that is why people go to school ELA, and if they choose not to support your football team I am sorry, but that is not my problem, your opponents problem, or the private schools problem, its your kids problem, and your problem.

 

ELA, you coach a small 1a rural school, and you told me that I am a private school kid...who probably does not konw much about RBS, and you are absolutely right, I don't.

 

But then again, I am a private school athlete who went to the same school for religious reasons for 14 years, and people on this board have many misconceptions about private school kids and parents as do I about public school kids, and that is a travesty into itself.

 

But you coach a small 1a rural team, and you want to completely change the face of high school sports in this state. I mean honestly sit back a minute and think about it... you do.

 

It's like I said before on the other thread, which you did not comment on...

You think a group of about 20 armed men is supposed to beat a legion.

 

I am sorry, but I have a problem with people who are small in number, like your school and your opponents, who try and change something that is much bigger then themselves. You make up a small percentage of 1A schools and an even smaller percentage of public schools!

 

Would the TSSAA exist with out your gate revenue? probably so...but when you try and tear apart teams so your school will succeed I just don't understand...it seems to me that the same 1a public schools would still continue to dominate your classification...

 

Please do not take this as a personel attack, I respect your hard work and dedication to this site, but I am against putting numbers or quotas on schools, and I am against a small group of individuals changing a larger body...I mean thats like Rhode Island trying to tell the East Coast what to do.

 

ELA-if you choose not to answer the questions about Red Boilings and metropolitan athletes and how schools like Tredwell, Westside, Southside struggle even though they have athletes...you also seemed to not say anything about certain "quotas" like Title IX or Affirmative Action, something that I could easily be in favor of given my unique lineage.

I answered your comment about "Work Harder" by simply explaining that privates would be forced to play schools that are larger, which is not the same as being forced to play a school that has as many boys as you. I completely understood your response, and although you might have said it tongue and cheek, I answered it honestly. I do not come on this board, purely for amusement, and especially this thread to sit back and bad mouth people or coaches...I come on here to see how teams are doing, get peoples opinions, and to see certain problems or solutions that might be brewing or arising. I will take it you sent us the answers to my questions through osmosis, telepathic link, or you didn't have an answer for it or didn't care...

 

In all practicality we can rule out the first two, I used to think you did not answer me because I was young and new to the site, now I believe it is because you simply have no answer.

[Edited by TheEgoHasLanded on 7/18/02 12:19A]

[TheEgoHasLanded]

on a side note ELA,

 

Reading your posts, it seems as though you hate being a part of public schools, you can't recruit, have a fixed stipend, and don't have much say so...do you wish to coach at a larger school? a private school? or never coach, in all honesty, it's sad as you say...you are dealt a hand of cards, and it seems as though you have no say so on whether you can leave the system.

[ELA]

In answer to your comments about the Metro athletes, I've seen some of what you are talking about. Teams loaded with great speed and athletic ability but no willingness to work together as a team. Metro and inner city schools have very unique problems that require a special kind of coaching staff (APPLES and ORANGES TO SMALL RURAL SCHOOL).

 

"Systemic" is a business term that is used to define problems that are innate within the "system" or structure of an organization.

 

I am one of only two head football coaches who posts on this web-site on a regular basis. I think many more read and enjoy looking at this site and I have no doubt that many others post without anyone knowing who they are or from what school they work at. My goal in talking about small school problems is to encourage other coaches to join in the discussion. Every profession has problems like mine and far too often we fail to "talk through" our problems.

 

I agree with your analogy about talking to kids and encouraging them to work harder, I have done this for over 12 years! Don't assume I don't do certain things just because I don't post them on this site. We use a point system at my school to encourage kids to show up for weight training with rewards for those who score the most points. The real problem with small school athletics is you don't have large numbers of athletes to "push" each other players at key positions (systemic). At a large high school (by the way, I have worked at 5A, 4A, 3A, and middle schools before taking this job at a small 1A school) you could have five talented TB's who could fill a niche, therefore, everyone has to work hard to compete for the position. At a small school you don't always have those numbers, therefore, when a kid looks around to "size up" the situation, he may think to himself, "who is going to take my place if I don't work hard this summer?" I try to show them the "big picture" but you can't force SOME kids to work hard if they choose to be lazy!

 

Every professional coaching class I have ever attended addressed much of what we are discussing in these threads. WORK ETHICS are not easily taught, in fact, most are learned over years of personal growth. Most teenagers don't have a clue about what it takes to succeed in life, therefore, their days are filled with video games, cell phones, and fast cars! Others are too busy trying to hold down a part time job to pay the car note and/or insurance. If a kid isn't starting by the time he starts driving a car, you may loose him all together unless he really loves the game and being a part of the team. These are problems every coach knows and deals with on a daily basis! We just don't make it a habit of talking about them to the general public!

[Edited by ELA on 7/18/02 9:12A]

[Edited by ELA on 7/18/02 9:15A]

[ELA]

systemic

Pronunciation: sis-'te-mik

Function: adjective

Date: 1803

: of, relating to, or common to a system : as a : affecting the body generally b : supplying those parts of the body that receive blood through the aorta rather than through the pulmonary artery c : of, relating to, or being a pesticide that as used is harmless to the plant or higher animal but when absorbed into its sap or bloodstream makes the entire organism toxic to pests (as an insect or fungus)

[Edited by ELA on 7/18/02 9:02A]

[CoachT]

Posted by TheEgoHasLanded:

on a side note ELA,

 

Reading your posts, it seems as though you hate being a part of public schools, you can't recruit, have a fixed stipend, and don't have much say so...do you wish to coach at a larger school? a private school? or never coach, in all honesty, it's sad as you say...you are dealt a hand of cards, and it seems as though you have no say so on whether you can leave the system.

 

ELA has been willing to share a coach's perspective of what it is like to coach at a small rural school. In doing so he has made it crystal clear he loves coaching and cares about the kids he is coaching. For the purposes of the public/private debate he has also made the problems known but, like coaches at all levels, there are things he loves about coaching high school football.

 

Please don't personally attack him for sharing his views. I wish we had some private school coaches, and more from the public sector, that would get on here and do the same thing. After all, some of these things are what separate public and private schools, at least to some degree. In order to debate the problems we must first understand what problems do exist, for both public and private.

[ELA]

Thanks CoachT... well said.

[swamp]

Excellent post, CoachT. We need a lot more coaches from both sides at this discussion!

[TheEgoHasLanded]

I'm not personally attacking anyone, if you feel the need to delete my question, then by all means do so.

 

I simply asked him if he was happy coaching at a rural school. When someone talks about systemic problems, lack of funds, small player turnout, pressure for school consolidation, and a slew of other problems like playing private schools who have athletes at their hands, and also having to teach, and having to make tough decisions, one could reasonably infer that they are unhappy.

 

I mow grass for the US Government and for numerous realtor companies within arkansas, tennessee, and mississippi, If I got on here and talked about how I have to go to Orange Mound or Whitehaven and evict people from their house, or wake up at 8 o clock, or mow grass when its 90 degrees, or watch my back for drug dealers, thieves, or prostitues, which is all true...you could infer that I was unhappy.

 

I'm sorry, but I don't see how asking someone a question about their job is a personal attack, but as I said earlier you can delete it.

 

ELA-I understand your example about kids not wanting to work out because they feel no need that someone will push them...that is a true statement, and I completely understand that...but that is true in all aspects of sports...College, Pro, or High School..Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe, Tiger Woods, Marshall Faulk, Manning...all could choose not to go to the OPTIONAL workouts, but on the whole they go. In fact it makes news when guys like Ray Lewis or Edge choose not to go to the Optional work outs.

 

Because I did not receive and answer about some of the questions I asked you, I will not ask you any more questions on this thread. I take it you choose not to care, which is perfectly fine, but I wish we could have established that on the front end.

 

As I said earlier, I said I couldn't find "systemic" in the dictionary, I didn't say it wasn't a word, I knew systemic was a word in regards to your body, but obviously that is not how I thought you meant it...Another example of you picking and choosing what you will answer, and then not commenting on some things that I talk about.