Politicing for kid to be selected on a certain team...

My boy is starting 5th grade and starting his second flag football year. He's not the fastest, the biggest, does not have the passion for the game, just chose it and seems to enjoy it. Unlike LL or soccer, there is very little regulation of playing time, so he played WR and CB and rarely got a pass thrown his way. Nevertheless, he wanted to play again this year, now with 5th and 6th graders.

I saw my buddy was going to be an assistant coach for a team; then met his friend who would be head coach. Both are great guys who are not in it to solely win. My buddy is one of the warmest people around and always makes sure to make my boy feel included.

Well I asked him to try to pick my boy when the bottom picks started just to make sure my boy would have coaches who at least recognized him as a human being, not just another body who had no potential and would not be a star.

Was this wrong?

 

Nah. Being a good dad is never a bad thing.

RB

 

Your intentions are noble, so no. You're politicking is alright in my book.

 

Agreed. You're just looking out for your son. It's not like you're trying to get some sort of competitive advantage. Nothing wrong with it at all, although someone will probably be along shortly to tell you that there is.

 

qt--I'm sure you'll get lots of comments about how kids have to learn that everyone doesn't play, everyone doesn't get the ball, etc, and to some extent that's true. But he has plenty of years ahead to learn about that.

Agree with all above...you sound like a caring dad, and it's 5th grade flag football. Maybe a good coach can show him how to improve so you won't have to worry about him in the future.

 

Hell, how's he gonna get a scholarship if you don't get him on the right team?


(Kidding...Just kidding...you done good dude.)

 

QT-

You might consider doing some coaching yourself. My sons, frankly, are mediocre baseball players. I coach the younger one's team, and help coach the older one's team. It's the most fun we have all week, and it takes my mind off work for hours at a time.

 

As a league coordinator of our local baseball leagues let me tell you this - OntheRiver has the best suggestion of all.

We have to, every single year, BEG parents to get involved with coaching, even to the point where we have started to threaten to not have teams because we have no volunteers and it is getting worse, not better.

I know coaching requires time, commitment and it also requires you to put up with some shit from parents from time to time (though it is not as bad as some people make it out to be) but damn, why is it so hard these days to fill all the volunteer coaching spots.

And I know this is not unique to our organization because I talk to people all over who have the same issues.

 

I coordinate the younger one's league, so I know about the desperate search for coaches.

But here's the thing: A lot of times, the parents are simply intimidated by the *thought* of being the head coach, but once they get going, they actually enjoy it.

Then they get intimidated by the move to an older league, etc.

It's a tough cycle to break.

Still, I have a ton of fun with the kiddos.

 

A lot of parents can't commit the time to coaching, either.

 

That is probablty the saddest commentary on our society today -- parents must spend so much time trying to make ends meet that they aren't as involved in things they should be.

And I'm guilty of that some, too, so I am not pointing the fingers but it is so hard to find people who are willing to commit what little free time they might have.

 

When my son was six he started playing t-ball. He loved his coaches and I wanted him to play for the guys (and with their kids) again. But the baseball people weren't taking requests from parents so we were trying to figure out how this could happen. As the adults were going around in circles, my son piped up and said, "Dad why don't you coach with them?" Problem solved.

My job precludes me from having the time to be the head guy but I have been an assistant on his team's for the last three years. I like it, it's fun to get out with the kids at practice and I have had no problems with parents (again this isn't minor hockey or soccer which produce big problems up here). My kid will be moving to the rep level next year so that'll be the end of my coaching days.

Our local baseball orgainzation is always looking for parents to coach too but some of them have little or no background in the game, and while that doesn't mean you can't coach, some of them make up for their lack of knowledge by yelling at the kids and the umps. Those were the coaches you hoped your kid didn't get (which is another good reason to get involved).