Deseret News | Reducing game time a laughable solution

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Amy Donaldson: Reducing game time a laughable solution

What it all comes down to | 9:36 p.m. Nov. 8, 2009

Is parents living vicariously through their kids. The kids want a balanced and varied life. The parents demand their kids become a star athlete so they can be the proud mommy and daddy.

Gretkzy | 10:04 p.m. Nov. 8, 2009

i agree. we should adapt the european model in sports...CLUB teams. we should not have state school sponsored teams for college athletics. make it a club basis paid for by free enterprise. we could bring down the cost of education remarkably by eliminating the upkeep of stadiums, costs of fielding teams (of course the BSC conferences get a lot of money to support their teams and multiple sports but this is not uniform throughout the country) and depriving more deserving young people of college educations b/c the schools have to make room for athletes who may or may not have the appropriate GPA and study habits from high school.

What? | 10:14 p.m. Nov. 8, 2009

You might need to know what you are talking about Amy before you write an article. Club volleyball tournaments start in January and end in the spring. Most of the clubs don't have tryouts until after the State Volleyball tournament and the few that do have it on a Saturday for 2 hours.

Comments continue below

Clubs and super leagues | 11:46 p.m. Nov. 8, 2009

Are all bad for kids. Robs them of a normal childhood.

How? | 11:53 p.m. Nov. 8, 2009

What is normal? And really all are bad?

As a runner | 11:58 p.m. Nov. 8, 2009

I definitely understand the need to train year round. I'm not a collegiate athlete, but I still train day in and day out 365 days a year. If I didn't, I would stay at the same level and never improve. Ran year round in high school too, and was a region champion and top 5 at state in multiple events for my trouble, when others who didn't train year round never got any better. If you want to excel at anything, be it sports, music, academics, or anything else in life, you have to devote a significant part of your life to that thing. Taking one game out of the season will do nothing because of this concept. These athletes will do what they love to do (in this case, their sport) whether there is one less game or not.

Runnin' Black | 3:21 a.m. Nov. 9, 2009

Gretzky,

You have no clue what your talking back. I am a current college athlete at the University of Utah (football) college and high school athletics are what make this country great. Without a football scholarship I never would have had the opportunity to attend college. Eggheads don't realize we should not have to have the grades that you need in order to have a scholarship. We put all of our time into our sport. We earn our education. And the money that our sports bring in pay for your academic scholarship. Nothing is handed to us. You need to think about what you how wrote cuz it makes no sense maybe you should move to europe.
On the record: Were gonna murder TCU just watch!!

VB fan | 6:27 a.m. Nov. 9, 2009

Wow, Amy! You turned an article about college basketball into one of your favorite rants--some misguided knock on club volleyball. It is one of the most popular sports in Utah--participation-wise-- and yes it is competitive. It has improved the level of volleyball skill in this state astronomically! Try covering more than one match on the final day of the 5A state tournament. Oh, I know. The radio show must be your priority.

forge club | 7:53 a.m. Nov. 9, 2009

play with your highschool, club is lame.

LaVar the Utah Cat | 8:10 a.m. Nov. 9, 2009

Is there any reason for this article to have been written? I don't think so. . .

thumbs down. | 8:15 a.m. Nov. 9, 2009

lame article.

KOY | 8:30 a.m. Nov. 9, 2009

Great article. Amy and Doug R. are awesome. Club coaches who make kid choose one sport early are selfish. Let the kid choose. If they are scholarship material they will find there way into one. If not it's not the end of the world. They can pay for there college like the rest of us and or send their kids to community college where it costs half as much as the universities. Heaven forbid the kids might have to live at home and go to college.

Educator | 9:03 a.m. Nov. 9, 2009

Gretsky is right. Many educators know that tying sports to schools is one part of the ruination of the public school systems. Communities should sponsor club teams (some athletes bilk HS teams for club teams anyway because they are better run and more competitive). Let schools focus on education, and by stripping away the unnecessaries, schools will be leaner and more efficient. Universities could still offer scholarships to kids out of club teams.

There are many HS coaches that are great teachers, but it is true that it is very common to have coaches teaching who should never be teaching in the classroom at all. They want to coach, not teach, and it shows and pity the students in their classroom. That's not the case with all, but it is true of many.

Have club sports separate from schools. Pay the club coaches, and let them come from any profession---schools or otherwise. Focus in schools on hiring the best TEACHERS you can and focus on TEACHING and nothing else.

good ol' days | 9:08 a.m. Nov. 9, 2009

when i was a kid i played several sports. it was fun. one of my sons is a very promising athlete that excels at several sports but is being forced to choose one. unfortunate to say the least

Idahoan | 9:35 a.m. Nov. 9, 2009

Ms. Donaldson made some fine points. Rather than acknowledging any of them, some (LaVar, thumbs down)are just claiming ths article was stupid. What about the burnout? The injuries? The expenses? Is all that really worth it for someone to earn a scholarship? What if the scholarship is for something they don't want to do anymore? Does a scholarship mean anything if someone doesn't want to keep playing?

Something not addressed in the article is the type of athlete sometimes targeted by colleges. If the NCAA really wants improved academics from the athletes, raise the standard for incoming freshmen. Mr. Runnin' Black provides a great example. He stated that he shouldn't have to be as good academically as a student because his athletic skills earn his education. He wouldn't have gone to college without his scholarship. You know what? It's a privilege to earn a scholarship and play college sports. Why shouldn't he and all others who play have to abide the same academic rules and standards as any other college student? If someone's grades preclude them from college, it doesn't matter what athletic skills they possess.

indirect-taxes pay for clubs | 9:54 a.m. Nov. 9, 2009

Here is the catch. Club teams use the school's facilities. Therefore, all club teams should not have their training or schedule conflict with the school's season. If they do, they should not be allowed to use any of their facilities. Maybe the school's athletic governing body (USHAA ?) should step in, and tell the schools that if a corresponding (vollyball for vollyball or soccer for soccer) club team infringes upon the agreement, they would be in violation and could risk losing the privilage. Sadly, I don't think there is much we can do for people having to choose which sport to play. So if a club vollyball team asks a player to skip her high school soccer season, I guess that would be the player's choice. But for a club soccer team to ask a player to skip her soccer season, the USHAA should tell that club team they can't use ANY school faciities.

SilverFalcon | 11:34 a.m. Nov. 9, 2009

Having been a softball coach at all levels including college division I, I am aware that from age 12 on, pitchers residing in areas with mild climates are pitching a least 10 months a year to remain competitive. The desires of the academic community and the individual athlete are taking a back seat to the economic considerations of college scholarships. We are a society driven by money and are simply willing to sacrifice even our children's welfare to gain financial reward. We reap what we sow.

better solution | 11:47 a.m. Nov. 9, 2009

i think a better solution about be to reduce the schedule by a half a game!!

it must be the school's longest road trip, end the game at half time and then head home earlier!

coach | 2:55 p.m. Nov. 9, 2009

I have been in schools where the athletics were the pits; and the school moral was terrible. We were able to turn things around in athletics and the attitude in class changed also. Students who were failing before were now passing and paying attention in class. Club soccer is has really hurt our Track program. Girl who in the past would come out for track now say they can't because there club coach would be mad if they miss practice or a game. Some try to do both but then we can not rely on them for a relay team. It's more fun to run around and kick the ball than to learn how to run faster and be a better well conditioned athlete. we have several students from our school playing college athletics right know and all but one or two played multiple sports. most of our coaches work multiple sports so we know how important it is to share the athletes. My sons all went to college on basketball scholarships and every one of them has said they miss football the most(they did have that option)Let them enjoy High School!

re: Runnin black | 3:06 p.m. Nov. 9, 2009

Now that IS a laugh!!!!!!! Thanks for pretending to be an athlete at the u and pretending to slaughter TCU. Name me one team all year that has done that?

Why would the author laugh? Is it a sin to want students to do better academically?

DHS DARTS | 6:35 p.m. Nov. 9, 2009

School sports were the greatest part of my high school career. I only did track my senior year, but supporting basketball, soccer, and football were the most fun part about high school. It's kids that play out of boundaries that water down sports now. If you play for your school and are homegrown, then success is that much more rewarding. Sports also motivate kids to keep their grades up. It's all about community and school pride.

Anonymous | 7:10 p.m. Nov. 9, 2009

Lay off the kids. It's the good ol boys making the decisions here. Let's be honest, universities and colleges are around to create revenue. Yes I know that may be hard for some of u to accept but it is the truth. Talk about Europe and the way they run club sports well they do the same thing wig academics. If there is a 7 foot tall athletic young man who has a nice jumper they don't polite his mind with u must be a doctor or an engineer. They put him in a school that stresses basketball and provide him with the necessary tools to manage life as a pro athlete. That's why u don't hear of European players getting into trouble here. They r in schools teaching them how to handle money, media and such. The also do the same with those who excel in other areas like math and science. Here we make e erybody complete gen Ed requirements claiming it makes a wellrounded student. No the reason why is universities here r in it for the money

Anonymous | 7:28 p.m. Nov. 9, 2009

Sam Bradford the qb for ou cost himself millions and millions of dollars by returning to school and not going to the NFL. He hurt his sholder and it cost him dearly. He has made millions of dollars for ou. Now the NBA says that u can't enter the NBA until u r 20 so it forces kids to go to college but only for one year. How does that benefit the student? It doesn't. It makes march madness better which make schools more money. Now kids r getting smarter and going to Europe to play professionaly and make millions until they r 20. Our public education system is the worst in the developed world because it is about making money not educating. Anyone can go to college. It's not hard to get into most schools in the state wether u r an athlete or not. So lay off the kids. Besides the schools where it is hard to get into r typically schools who make a killing off of football or basketball so in reality not only do the scholarshipped athletes pay for themselves, but they pay for
hundreds of others.

Anonymous | 7:37 p.m. Nov. 9, 2009

When was the last time the art dept at the u of u earned 15million dollars for the school? Not just a donation to the program but actually generated revenue for any need the school has? The fball team has done it twice in 5 years. That's 30 mil in two years. Not to mention over 40 million in private donations from bogut, miller, smith, smith, and gross. Oh and by the way to all the negative nellys out there not only did they earn millions for the u of u but they also earned 30 million for the other schools in the conference to split among themselves. Seems like that athletics program is pilling it's weight and then some. Most kids in my community can't afford club sports so highschool is the only option.

re;clubs and super leagues | 1:30 p.m. Nov. 10, 2009

really .. normal childhood... i for one want my child to have better than normal now a days is drinking ,partying ,etc... if they have a sport that keeps them focused and driven it is less likely they will be bored after homework and get into trouble just talk to your child about if they love what they are doing ... they have to love it to spend all that time and commitment to it and any club or super leagues,private coach,dance studio etc. that will help them get where they want to take it to good for them !!!!!!!!

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Amy Donaldson: Reducing game time a laughable solution