Does it bother anyone that a coach may leave a program after their athlete graduates???

 

Williamstown loses Coach Walter after Michael graduates. Is that concidence??

 

Not just Baseball but other sports as well.

 

Opinions??

Not if their kid is going to play a sport in college. They only get that part of their parenting once in their life. They have the rest of their life to come back to coaching.

Well I dont think coach Walter left, I think he was forced.

Not at all.

Probably what I will do once my child moves on.

It would get in the way of watching my other child play sports.

Does it bother anyone that a coach may leave a program after their athlete graduates???

 

Williamstown loses Coach Walter after Michael graduates. Is that concidence??

 

Not just Baseball but other sports as well.

 

Opinions??

 

I would say so, it's a rather selfish move in my opinion and almost says "I'm only here to coach my kid to heck with the rest of the program."

Well I dont think coach Walter left, I think he was forced.

 

That's what I now understand. But I will leave the question out there as I know it has happened, as I said not just baseball but other sports as well.

Some coaches inform their employer from day one that they will resign when their child graduates. When schools continue to hire parents to coach and then pay very little for these coaches, this is to be expected.

Try this one on for size. My coach my freshman year, who is a legend in my hometown and has the field named after him, decides he's "tired of it all and if I can't give you all everything then I need to step down." Just a coincidence that his oldest son is entering the 7th grade the next year. We have a coach get hired from a different part of the state, an "outsider" if you may. The old varsity coach, and his head asst. for years who's son is entering the 7th grade also, attend all the middle school practices for two years, while at the same time criticizing everything the new varsity coach is doing. After two years the new "outsider" is let go, and guess who gets their job back? That's right, and his and his asst. boys both become four year starters at the varsity level. The coaches son won several awards his senior year and got a scholarship to UK so I guess it worked for that family, but it SUCKED for my entire class. And then to name the field after him was crazy. Almost my entire senior class turned out at the ceremony and stood with our backs to the field as a protest. We were asked why and told to get over it. But like we said, you never get over being screwed. So I guess you could say I don't like this situation of coaches leaving with their kids. The only honorable way of doing this would be telling your players a couple of years in advance, that way everyone can plan for it. But coming from a kids point, this kind of action hurts.

Coaching your own kids, is a tremendous and often unfair burden, for them. No matter what, there will be comments and dissension among parents/players. If a coach wants to leave after his son graduates, that is his choice to make.

 

Loyalty is a two way street, that often doesn't have many travelers. A coach gets the criticism often, when not deserving and the credit, when the players got the job done. The endless hours of preparation, practice, scouting, field maintenance and games, will/can take a toll mentally on any coaching staff. No matter when a coach leaves, he will be walking away from several classes of student-athletes, that he knows well.

 

The end is inevitable and stay too long, a group will form to secretly help you out. Leave too early and get criticized for doing so. To me, just another aspect of being a coach, some will like your decisions and others won't.

Try this one on for size. My coach my freshman year, who is a legend in my hometown and has the field named after him, decides he's "tired of it all and if I can't give you all everything then I need to step down." Just a coincidence that his oldest son is entering the 7th grade the next year. We have a coach get hired from a different part of the state, an "outsider" if you may. The old varsity coach, and his head asst. for years who's son is entering the 7th grade also, attend all the middle school practices for two years, while at the same time criticizing everything the new varsity coach is doing. After two years the new "outsider" is let go, and guess who gets their job back? That's right, and his and his asst. boys both become four year starters at the varsity level. The coaches son won several awards his senior year and got a scholarship to UK so I guess it worked for that family, but it SUCKED for my entire class. And then to name the field after him was crazy. Almost my entire senior class turned out at the ceremony and stood with our backs to the field as a protest. We were asked why and told to get over it. But like we said, you never get over being screwed. So I guess you could say I don't like this situation of coaches leaving with their kids. The only honorable way of doing this would be telling your players a couple of years in advance, that way everyone can plan for it. But coming from a kids point, this kind of action hurts.

 

 

Maybe I missed it in your story but how did this coach "screw" you?

I think he screwed my entire class. We were freshmen, had grown up hearing all the stories about how our coach was one of the best in Ky and how we were lucky to be able to play for him. To get the sob story about how he was tired of coaching and how he couldn't give us his all and that's why he had to step down. Then to watch him for two years do nothing but criticize and backstab the new coach and staff was pathetic. And to have to go to our practice and watch him and his head asst. coaching at the middle school level EVERY day told us that the whole story about being tired of coaching was a joke. Probably had more to do with the fact that we graduated a huge senior class and had nothing but freshmen and soph's coming back We took our lumps for two years and heard about how it wouldn't be happening if our old coach was back. Then after two years to watch the way the whole small-town politics played out and our new coach, who we are very loyal to and who's become our family, run out of town on a rail. Now this is a football tale so stay with me. Our starting QB for the two years "the legend" was gone was a returning senior. The coaches son was a freshman. Guess who started QB, the third year returning starter? Nah, let's give it to my son since I left all these seniors so I could make my son a better player, why not sacrifice their last year of high school. and yes it was sacrificed. The son got hurt and sat out a game. We won by 30+ against a very good team. Son returns, we start losing. We lobby to have the senior start, but this only make the coaches mad. It was the entire situation of knowing that I had been given a less of a chance to succeed just so his son could prosper. Just like most spoiled kids though he last about two months at UK before coming home and quitting the game. I love my son more than anything in life, but I don't think I could sacrifice others this way for him. Just one opinion though.

I'm not sure I'd want to coach my own kids (when I have them) to begin with. I love my dad to death, he's a great man, but as a coach, we did no see eye to eye. I couldn't take him seriously because he was my dad, he wasn't a coach to me, he was just dad.

 

I also think it puts the coach in some sticky situations with other parents. For example, I was good enough at baseball by the time I was a senior, I had a few scholarship offers. I was always on all star teams and played well when I was younger. I can remember on more than one occasion, my dad not playing me through little league and Babe Ruth ball. I was mature enough at the time to understand that it wasn't because I was a weak player or that I wasn't playing well, but more because he wanted the parents to know I wasn't receiving special treatment. In the end, that type of stuff was unfair to me.

When schools continue to hire parents to coach and then pay very little for these coaches, this is to be expected.

 

 

Good point

Coaching your own kids, is a tremendous and often unfair burden, for them. No matter what, there will be comments and dissension among parents/players. If a coach wants to leave after his son graduates, that is his choice to make.

 

Loyalty is a two way street, that often doesn't have many travelers. A coach gets the criticism often, when not deserving and the credit, when the players got the job done. The endless hours of preparation, practice, scouting, field maintenance and games, will/can take a toll mentally on any coaching staff. No matter when a coach leaves, he will be walking away from several classes of student-athletes, that he knows well.

 

The end is inevitable and stay too long, a group will form to secretly help you out. Leave too early and get criticized for doing so. To me, just another aspect of being a coach, some will like your decisions and others won't.

 

 

Well said:thumb:

It takes some careful planning to coach your own kid and be fair to him/her while being fair with other kids on the team. I admire coaches who can balance the two and still be successful and their kids and children still speak to them after four years. It is tough! Coaching is a thoughtless profession that often causes a lot of heartache but has the potential to be one of the most rewarding experiences in your life. Kudos to coaches who can balance the two. I would have done alot of things different but would not have missed it for the world.