The Evils of OneSport Participation in High School

“The Evils of One-Sport Participation in High School Athletics” WIAA Coaches’ School July 29, 2011 Coach Don Papasedero

They call me “Coach” I have been blessed to have been in this profession since 1974. I have been prodded, pushed, and mentored by some of the most skilled and passionate coaches our state has ever produced. I consider myself a life-long learner. I am fortunate to be asked to speak on the unique and rare knowledge I have accumulated…I have personal involvement and passion for this subject.

I have coached baseball, men’s and women’s basketball, women’s golf and especially football. I wish I could say that I have “seen it all”…but I am damn close to cataloguing the entire spectrum of what high school sports has entailed and offered.

“ I do not get ulcers…I give them” Coach Don Shula

Why do kids participate in High School Sports? To have fun To do something that I’m good at To stay fit To be part of a school activity (team) My friends do it My parents want me to do it To keep improving and using my skills To make new friends It is “cool” to be an athlete in our country I want to learn more about the sport It may be a way to go to college

Why this Topic? …we all have a problem Kids are dropping out of sports at an alarming rate. In Washington, the “numbers” have decreased 1 -2% per year since 2005. The reason? What is this “Problem”? One sport athletes!

Why this Topic? …we all have a problem Our programs no longer hold interest Too hard! too much time! Problems with coaches Peers quit…all sports Not fun unless I start. . . or “I am really good” D+A rules… “Why do I want more restrictions in my life? ”

Why this Topic? …we all have a problem Parents want a singular focus to insure “what is best. ” Financial boundaries, either real or perceived, are keeping players away from sports (gear, camps, out of season teams, fees, etc. ) Misguided adults encourage kids to “Specialize” in a single sport. The pressure is intense! The “big” sports are the hardest hit as they demand the most time…

Why this Topic? …we all have a problem The off-season is clouded. “Isn’t basketball a winter sport? ” Programs are competing for the athlete’s time, commitment, and money. “Why do we compete against ourselves? ”

Two Schools of Thought: “…I need better players…I have found that my prayers work best when I have better players. ” Rockne Knute Or… “If I knew for sure what this kid was going to do in the future, coaching would be easy… This is what I DO KNOW…. he is 18 and in a few years he has a great chance of being 20. ” Lou Holtz

Why are kids choosing to “Specialize? ” They are convinced that putting all of their athletic efforts into one sport will deliver them a scholarship, all league honors, and a long term future in a single sport. However, only 1 in 100 football players earn scholarships! (CU 2008 study) American culture has shifted. High school sports seem to be becoming devalued. The media has a huge effect on this. We are finding high school sports are not as “sexy” or attractive unless the athlete is a “stand out”.

Why are kids choosing to “Specialize? ” “Our team”. . . “Us”. . . Our familiar, local teams are diminishing in importance when faced with the flood of media coverage of the pro and college game. Parents are guiding their teenage athletes to ignore the whole context of “youth” as an experimentation time of life. They are brainwashing their kids into viewing the teen years as “production” years that will ensure their athletic future.

Why are kids choosing to “Specialize? ” Out of season, club sports, can recruit and instruct without regulations. Emotional blackmail… “How badly do you want that scholarship? ” Reluctance of teens to embrace a physical challenge. Tougher sports like football, swimming, cross country, and wrestling are really suffering.

Fueling this issue are some of the “adults” in our schools and community… phony coaches! Real coaches, (like us) regard our profession with dignity. We recognize that there a myriad of hard earned qualifications, experiences and merits needed to call yourself “Coach. ” What are the qualifications of these club “coaches”. At what level? Training? On field as a coach? Explayer? Dad?

Fueling this issue are some of the “adults” in our schools and community… phony coaches! MOST “coaches” that encourage kids to play one sport are imposters! Somehow they manufacture credentials, create situations that force kids to make tough decisions, and fail to consider the impact on other programs. These same misguided, phony coaches totally fail to see the negative impact on the athlete as a person. Our athletes are constantly evaluated by non-experts who think they have the knowledge to judge…

Do you think that your choice to have kids “specialize” is so superior? These are the “good old days” Take a careful look at what the very best programs in Washington are doing. With very few exceptions, they encourage kids to play in other programs.

Hey, genius… you only get one shot at High School sports…what if you, do specialize and… You fail to win, improve your standings, etc. The athlete does not letter, start, make allleague, receive recruitment, etc. All of your rhetoric about “ 110%”, “get better or they will”, working from negative results in the past to inspire, etc. FAIL!

Hey, genius… you only get one shot at High School sports…what if you, do specialize and… Playing on more than one team and more than one sport offers critical life skills instruction to high school students. As a high school coach you are accountable to teach: • Leadership • Respect for authority, rules, opponents and others • Sharing • Loyalty • Tolerance • Sacrifice-Risk-Reward-Celebration of honest effort

Hey, genius… you only get one shot at High School sports…what if you, do specialize and… If a kid misses an opportunity to REALLY LEARN any one of these concepts…because he is only on one team, with one philosophy, I view this as an inestimable loss…and it is on YOUR head!

There are only 3 ways to have a connection with competitive athletics. Which are you? a) Active participants b) Fans…all they do is “share air” c) Fans. . . who have some sort of playing experience “when I was playing…”

“One of the greatest disappointments of a football game is that the fans never seem to get injured. ” Woody Hayes

The benefits of playing more than one sport in High School seem obvious…but, let’s review… Overuse injuries will decrease Involvement in many activities and sports supports the educational direction of most schools, encourages academic effort, and diminishes discipline issues. When kids are on teams, drug and alcohol violations drop.

The benefits of playing more than one sport in High School seem obvious…but, let’s review… Improved athletic performance Players need less time to learn new skills Transfer of athletic skills is evident, especially balance, eye-hand, coordination, appropriate CV levels, flexibility, footwork, and spatial awareness Mental approach…expectation to succeed?

The benefits of playing more than one sport in High School seem obvious…but, let’s review… Students learn different styles of leadership and teamwork. They are given different roles, positions, focuses-of-concern and athletic challenges. Goals change! Finding a niche, making the team, starting, etc, can be learned in other sports. Every company in the world is screaming for young people who are proficient in many different things.

The benefits of playing more than one sport in High School seem obvious…but, let’s review… Can you remember the benefits that most of us (adults) received? Our teams, coaches, variety of teammates, competing with confidence…even failing, taught us sooooo much! Success, traditions, high expectations, and winning games are contagious.

The benefits of playing more than one sport in High School seem obvious…but, let’s review… The first 3 questions a college recruiter asks: 1) GPA/SAT? 2) Character? 3) What are his other sports?

Papasedero’s 2010 College Football Players Survey Thank you to all of the coaches, GA’s, directors of football operations, secretaries, and media specialists for helping me with this survey.

Athletes on the rosters who played another sport in addition to football while in high school. Northeastern Assumption University Colby Humboldt Central Washington UPS PLU Montana State Willamette Eastern Washington Linfield University of Washington Carroll College Total 76/88 66/76 46/51 77/89 63/78 85/94 80/102 44/102 85/87 88/97 80/82 96/118 46/69 932/1132 82%!

Where Do We Go From Here? Hire coaches in your schools who are committed to the health of the kids in addition to the health of his program. (Note…any “coach” that is leading a “club” team, summer AAU, “select, ” etc. should be thoroughly vetted. ) Meet within your schools and create a summary of qualifications needed for your fellow coaches. (AD’s would love to share this responsibility. Try to hold a “Summit” meeting with the “club” coaches to educate, investigate, and proffer willingness to work together.

Where Do We Go From Here? Invite club coaches to collaborate. Let’s try to create community partnerships. If these phonies won’t cooperate…take away field and gym use. Starve them out!

“…we should have invited all them %@!!*s to that gun show we had last year. We could have arrested all of them before they did their crimes! I would show them what MY gang is like and how to behave around here…” Sheriff Joe Arpaio (Arizona’s Chain Gang Sheriff)

Where Do We Go From Here? Find ways to celebrate and honor kids who play more than one sport. Try to wipe out the “scholarship” fallacy. Use yourself as a positive example of having played multiple sports. Tell your kids all that YOU gained.

Where Do We Go From Here? Here’s a sure fire way to bolster the attractiveness of YOUR program…be VISIBLE! Visibility and active support for the other sports is an easy way to show your players that we care about them Players that recognize truth, empathy, honest support, and acceptance of them as “people”, not just “your” players will excel for your team.

Where Do We Go From Here? If you are modeling leadership correctly, then you need to “BE THERE”. The other sports’ coaches will see you attending…. and supporting! They will reciprocate! The community will also “see you there” and celebrate your dedication to their kids.

Where Do We Go From Here? Here’s another sure fire way to bolster the attractiveness of YOUR program…be organized and exacting! If you want to make your program as attractive as the sports that are drawing kids “away”… you need to be definitive about what you can offer them…Success! It should be part of your own job description is to set exact commitment levels for your athletes. • In-season • Out-of-season

Where Do We Go From Here? • Offer exacting ways to make commitment! • Commitment to your athletic program is a direct result of how attractive, honest, challenging, empathetic, and fun the atmosphere you have created “around your house. ” Commitment to your program comes from your athletes understanding that what you do everyday has MEANING! It should not always correlate to your sport, but it should always correlate to how being in a competitive environment is the single greatest gift you can offer to them.

“…. do you want to know how you get your team committed? The best way I know how to get my guys committed is to win their hearts…teams with a lot of heart usually have another name…. Winners. ” Coach Lombardi

“Shame to him that finds evil here. ” From Sir Gawain and The Green Knight

Contact Information • Coach Don Papasedero • dpapasedero@gmail. com • don_papasedero@misd. wednet. edu • (cell) 206 -719 -0492 • (work) 206 -230 -6347