"What's best for who?"

The coming weeks will feature both the Coaching and the Parent blogs mirroring the same subject and material: specialization. It’s become such an important topic that we feel both Parents and Coaches should have a chance to give us feedback.

            For the purposes of this blog, she calls herself by her tongue-in-cheek track pseudonym, “Jaxon Flash” but she is a good runner:  her long legs covering much ground with every stride. As a freshman she impressed the track coaches at her high school so much that she was asked to run Varsity.

            “Jaxon” tired quickly of the boring practices but hung with it. She ran despite sore knees and shin splints. She ran in the rain and the cold. She didn't want to let her team or her coaches down. At her first official meet, she took a first and a second. She then went up to Coach V. and asked if she could leave a little early. Her events were done and she wanted to get to her volleyball team’s practice, knowing she was already late.

            Coach V. told her in no uncertain terms if she left, she was off the team.

            His threat went unheeded and “Jaxon Flash” went to volleyball practice.

            She went back to track practice the next day but was ignored by her coaches. She knew then that her track career was over at her high school.

            Coach V. lost a potential rock star for his track team, “Jaxon” lost an opportunity to become a more rounded athlete, and for what?

            Take two: a successful high school basketball program saw two of its players venture over to play sand volleyball for their high school. The duo quickly established themselves as a force and moved up the rankings pretty quickly. After two weeks of practice, their basketball coach pulled them into a quick meeting before their sand practice. When they came out, they informed the sand coach that they had to leave the team; they didn’t have time to play sand anymore and club basketball was more important.

            Two basketball players had a chance to become more rounded and better athletes and a sand coach lost two players that could have helped her team immensely, and for what?

            Coaching egos, the Us v. Them mentality, the thinking that the ONLY sport that matters is the one they coach: these prima donna attitudes are an impediment to the phrase so often tossed around but rarely lived up to: “it’s all about the kids.”

            Although the two examples above saw volleyball taking a hit, volleyball can be just as irresponsible.

            Coach L. was a prized 6-2 middle going into her senior year of high school. She picks up the story from here.

            “I remember exactly when I was being recruited by my first big club.  We were at the Greenway tourney and we were outside on the grass and my mom and I told the coach that I am a big part of the basketball program at my high school and that I wanted to do both. He said that it would not be any problem if I did both he actually said that he encouraged me to play basketball to help keep me in shape.

           
            During season when I was late to volleyball practice because of my high school basketball practices I would have to run extra and then jump into practice. When we would play matches I would ALWAYS sit the bench. Whenever there was an opportunity to call me out or to make me look stupid the coaches seemed to take special pleasure in doing it. I expect that the coach did not say very positive things about me when I was there because the team did not seem to respect me. They would always call me out and intentionally make me look stupid.

            One time I had a college come out to see me at practice and our setter intentionally set me bad so that I didn't look good to the coach. The coach left the gym because I started crying in the middle of our hitting lines and I never heard back from him again... one of the worst days of my life. I came to find out my coach was telling all these college coaches that I was not dedicated to volleyball because I played basketball as well as volleyball. So instead of the D1 school’s offers from those that I visited I ended up at a local Community College which was the best path for me in the end.

            Before that season I was really excited to be able to play both sports. I really enjoyed both and really was successful at both as well. During season I would have to take heat from both coaches. I would have to lie and make things up to leave a practice or to be late to the other. One time I had to tell my basketball coach that my great grandma had a heart attack and I had to go visit her so I could go to a club practice with the hopes to play that weekend. To no avail... I didn't play again... 

            I learned a lot from that experience, what to do, what not to do. Being a high school and club coach I know NOT to EVER put my athletes in the position that I was in. If they want to play another sport, I WANT to share because in the end it will make them a better player. Every sport needs athletes. Being active helps develop those athletes and in turn will make them better. I think some times coaches forget that their team should be made up of athletes who want to be there and to get better. We should not force or belittle or demean a CHILD to be or stay on a team for more checks in the win column.”

            “What’s best for the kids.” It shouldn't be the closer of a club sales pitch and it shouldn't be the wavering mantra until choices have to be made. It should BE what youth sports are about.

            We will talk more about specialization in the coming weeks in the Az. Region blogs. Please share your experiences or comments with us at Outreach@azregionvolleyball.org.