Riverdale throwing game

[ecu]

Remember what happened to Bruce Pearl when he lied instead of just admitting his mistake?

Ask Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Alex Rodriguez how those lies are working out for them.

 

Mr. Nolan is going to be put in a situation real soon that he will not be pleased with. Guess who will face the brunt of that?

 

You are a NATIONAL DISGRACE this week.

Well said.

[troyh]

kids know coach B believes in them. That is off the table. If they beat Tullahoma and Oakland they would have to play Blackman anyway to win the Region. Top 2 teams in each region advance. Gives Riverdale a different direction to advance to state tourney. Strategic planning. Business leaders and Generals at war do it all the time. Im sure you guys have heard the phrase "Win the battle but lose the war". No rules broken.

Maybe no rules broken but what kind of example are we setting for these young girls in life.Doing the rite thing sometimes is hard.The coach should have looked at doing the rite thing instead of taking an easy path. Nothing in life worth anything is easy  

[Talisman]

If you can't beat the best you don't deserve to be there.

I'm sorry. I have tried for a day to figure out what this means. Are you saying that if you can't beat the best team, you should not even  be allowed in the tournament?

[10W40]

Thank you, Riverdale and Smyrna, for finally getting some activity on the message board.

[tradertwo]

I totally agree. Next year when this is what happens, all Riverdale needs to say is we play to win! The

misconception here is that the girls knew they were going to be coached to lose the game. I know for a

FACT this is not true. The girls didn’t know “they were supposed to loseâ€. The coach decided that it

would not be in the team’s best interest to win that game. Coach Barrett has taken full responsibility.

Our girls follow their coaches to victory and sometimes defeat. Whether intentionally or

unintentionally……either way it’s not the girls fault. I was in disbelief that Childress held the girls

responsible in the news report. He should have made sure he had the facts before making such a harsh

judgment. Anyone that believes the girls should have over thrown the coach, in the middle of a game

situation, that they unknowingly walked in the middle of…. is delusional and unrealistic. If there is

blame, it needs to be placed on the coaches, AD, and principals who didn’t stop it! Not the girls, who in

my opinion took the brunt of the punishment so far. These girls worked years for this moment.

Now I say it’s in the hands of all those who hooped and hollered for “justiceâ€, because it has not been

served. But why so quiet??? Did you get what you wanted? To be honest, most of the fuss was from a

school, if Riverdale is out of the tournament, they have a cake walk to the state. T$$AA can you judge

yourself as harshly and swiftly as you judged these girls? Stop allowing pointless games for money? Will

the AD and principles take as much responsibility or be held accountable like the girls?

Parents were at Riverdale supporting our girls. The way all parents would. Most of us also showed our

support for our coach! He didn’t lie, cheat, or steal…..didn’t put his hand on either one of our girls. He

just made a call that he thought was right for the team. Everybody makes mistakes and has short

comings. Americans are always ready to crucify someone…nail them to the cross!

 

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the

measure you use, it will be measured to you.

3 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own

eye?

 

Yes we support our coach and yes he made a mistake, but at the end of this I want to teach my child

forgiveness as well as sportsmanship!

 

I agree with one point you make. When my girls played, I had two rules for them...finish what you start, and never question the coach...no matter what. I don't like the kids (especially the seniors) having their season/career ended in this manner for following their coaches direction. I'm satisfied that they knew on some level how wrong it was...I'm equally sure that they probably didn't like it, but followed the order anyway.

   For you parents to support the coach(s) who brought this situation about is absurd...he stole the greatest opportunity that your child will have in sports from them in a cowardly fashion. Either Riverdale or Smyrna (we'll never know) had the opportunity taken from them to knock Blackman out of the tournament. Take a minute and imagine the pride you and your child would've felt. The TSSAA was absolutely correct in swiftly and severely punishing both, but I'm disappointed if they were presented an option that didn't punish the players and rejected it.

[FridayMainEvent]

 Riverdale played Blackman close twice.  By losing, they would of put themselves in a bracket with Oakland and Tullahoma.  Oakland actually beat Riverdale in the district semi-final game so I'm not so sure the decision to throw this game was a sound one anyway. 

 

Bottom line is, if Riverdale was indeed the second best team in that district, they never would of been in that situation.   The whole format is set up so that if you happen to be in a district with a "national power", that one team CANNOT prevent you from making the Sectional provided you are indeed the second best team.   The one and two finishers in district and region are never bracketed together.  The system works if you win the games your suppose to win!

 

Riverdale needs to look no further than the loss to Oakland in the District Semi-final to establish why they were in that position anyway.   THE SYSTEM ISN'T BROKEN IF YOU WIN THE GAMES YOUR SUPPOSE TO WIN!

[ecu]

I am amazed at the national attention this story has received. PTI, Mike and Mike, USA Today, Fox News, and many others. If I were the principals I would be furious at the negative light their schools have been put under. I am glad the TSSAA finally made a decision that showed some guts.

[QuatroQuatroDad]

Total chess game. No rules were broken. The goal is to win the state tourney, and if not, to go as far as possible. There are several roads that lead to the championship game.

This statement embodies what is wrong with high school sports and youth sports in general. The first goal of youth sports should be to teach integrity, hard work, team work and how to succeed in life. If you do all that right in the context of teaching the sport specific skill winning will happen. The right way. This was disgrace. I'm glad the teams were disqualified (proper consequences for the actions) and the coaches should be fired for the same reason. Those coaches, IMHO do not have the student athlete's best interests in mind pulling crap like this.

[Wheels1166]

Were I the principal of either of these coaches, it would have taken me 10 minutes Monday morning to have removed them from their coaching positions.  No discussion, no argument, nothing long and drawn out.  Only this:  

 

"You're coaching days at this school are over.  If your vision toward your educational responsibilities isn't any broader than that, then you are obviously teaching at a grade level far above your intellectual capacities.  Thank you.  This meeting is over."  

[devilsden]

Wheels, good point, but I have an additional question for you.  What happens if the AD and Principal were all in for the action took by the head coaches?  Do you fire all involved?  Just asking.

[Wheels1166]

Without hesitation.  This is as much a test for the principals involved as it is the coaches and athletic directos. 

[Wheels1166]

But remember, they are not being fired as teachers, whatever classes those poor students might be taking under them, they are being removed only from a supplemented position.  It doesn't affect their tenure.