Clash of absolutes

Most "absolutes" are artificial. Whoever is setting them generally can find some gray by stepping back out of the situation.

I'm lucky my son (2016) doesn't have that problem.  They'll work with shells during the summer and full gear in the fall. The head strength and conditioning coach for the high school is also a Soph DLine coach and Varsity pitching coach.  He has the good sense to encourage multi-sport athletes at the school and keeps the Football HC from going off the deep end. 

Matt -- come on man. Are you sure most absolutes are artificial? Are you absolutely sure? This is not helpful. Of course there are absolutes. But that's NOT an argument I'm looking for. I want input from parents who've been there.

Yes, I'm sure. I've talked about my role in teaching LE and military mental skills to be more productive and to better deal with adversity. This exact skill, regarding absolutes, is something that is a primary part of that instruction. This isn't an argument. Think about what I said. Think about what these absolutes mean, what they are trying to accomplish, and who is creating them.

If we were having this discussion in person, I'd pull out the "and then?" chain, but we aren't, so I can't...

Ugh. Last response Matt. Sometimes in life, people who feel differently really cannot find common ground. Sometimes it's just too consequential for either side to change, and the outcome is separation. That's life. If as a trainer you can't see that, I can't help you. But if you want to debate it let's take it offline. I really need experienced input here. Not about words but about the reality I'm facing with my son.

You're asking for experienced input, and I'm giving it to you.

A. This isn't about compromise between two sides. This is about what you can affect with your decisions. You have ownership of a limited amount here, and that's all you can look at.

B. Ask yourself as to why you view this as being so consequential.

Maybe the Football HC is not aware of the way baseball is being recruited now a days.  He is used to his players being seen during their season.  Maybe a nice long conversation with him about how important summer baseball is to your sons baseball recruiting process will help him understand.  At least it wouldn't hurt to try.  Instead of focusing on "absolutes" at this particular moment, maybe searching for middle ground would prove more fruitful for both.  Good luck to your son.

Matt, you have a PM.

LHD -- that is indeed part of the conversation I will have. Thank you.

Your son has decide where the lines are for him. He needs to decide if he's going to stick to them. My son quit football heading into high school. He found the banging in football on Friday didn't mix well with fall ball on the weekend. Since he never quit travel soccer he returned to soccer in high school. Then the basketball coach cut him soph year after being the freshman point guard. The coach decided my son didn't have time to practice three sports. My son missed all the off season "optional" basketball workouts and scrimmages. There were some shocked players he was cut including my son.

Amen, RJM. He's decided. It's tough but that's ok. It's firm. Thanks for the examples from your experience. I get why coaches make the decisions they do -- even in the case of your son in basketball, even if it hurt the team. Ironically, this reminds me of that silly thread about "selfish" teams vs. "selfish" players. They are both selfish, as they should be! As you say, it's all about where you draw the line.

We'll see what happens. FB coach said he'd call me in an hour

This could be absolutely true. Football is the one sport where HS is the main venue for recruiting players. In most other major sports club teams have become primary. 

that's so true Birdman. I think it's the ONLY sport where HS matters most.

jp24-

I feel for your son. For most kids this is a tough decision. Something most of us didn't have to experience. 

I know my friends up in Nebraska have a hard time relating to this issue. They can't seem to wrap their heads around the concept of athletics class as a academic period for an hour and half everyday. Meaning if you play football you go to football class everyday for most of the year.  It isn't just practice after school. 

A primary baseball kid loses out a ton of reps by being in football class while the others are in baseball class not to mention they love to play baseball but spend majority of year with football. 

I had a conversation with head football coach at our school's athletics' open house for 8th graders. He said he released boys like my son to baseball as soon as football was over. My son knew otherwise and decided he was going to focus on baseball. Thankfully he did as others experience indicated the coach was being less than truthful. 

Good luck to you in this conversation. If your son wants to hopefully some common ground can be found and you can work it out. 

Had the call. Tough but honest. FB coach can't budge. Neither can we.

On to year-round baseball. Onward. 

Good call jp. 

Thanks, Coach, Means a lot.

jp24,

Just catching up on this thread...I think your son played that about as good as any young man can play it.  

In today's world it seems that young folks are having to make adult decisions at a younger and younger age.   My two oldest kids where given two absolutes in 8th grade:  their neighborhood high school with their friends or another high school 20 minutes away with an academic ciriculum that interested them.   Tough choices.  Your son should be congratulated for sticking to what is most important to him now and possibly in his future.  There will be other tough decisions coming up, but your son is prepared to handle it.  Good luck in his year round baseball experience.

Agree with Coach...good call by your son.  It shows great conviction on his part to stick to his guns.  Best of luck to him!

BTW, could you share the FB coach's thoughts on the recruiting aspect of the conversation, if you're comfortable with that?

LHD -- the FB coach totally agreed that football is about the only HS sport recruited at HS. When I told him how it works in baseball, he ageed and added soccer, volleyball, basketball and hockey. So he gets it.

Thanks jp...maybe he has taken a few too many shots the ole helmet himself...you know football guys can be brick heads sometimes..lol

Nothing to do with any decision, but it is astounding how many American born MLB players also played football or other sports in HS.  What really stands out is the NBA. Seems like the best basketball players tend to play basketball year around and seldom play other sports. Using that as an example, and the high numbers of MLB players from Latin America, guess there might be something to specialization.

I hate to hear this coach took this stance with you guys on this.  I don't care what state it is or how much football is revered.  I've coached football for 15 years and while it's not my favorite sport I love what it offers kids to help them develop in all sports, not just baseball.  I've seen guys who played other sports rather exclusively but not be very successful (or could be more) come out for football and then take off in the other sports.  I've seen kids never play any sports come out for football and then end up trying out for multiple sports.  It has so much to offer but any coach of any sport - high school, travel, select, AAU, whatever - takes this approach ruins the youth experience.

It is very possible to work things out so all parties can benefit if the people sit down and communicate with an open mind.  I have no doubt that specialization can be a good thing but there's no guarantees that go along with it.  Just boggles my mind why people have to be so closed minded.

JP if the coach was willing to sit down and talk about sharing what would be the middle ground you would find acceptable? 

I'm with you Coach. As to the conversation, that's exactly what we did last night. Had a long talk. No hard feelings ... but FB coach's position was firm. Here's his point of view:

"I can't let your son miss practice with the team for the next three weeks, and that includes daily full-contact-with-pads. If I did I would lose credibility with other boys. Where does it stop?"

My son suggested he would do conditioning and learn the plays, participating with the team, butto him, it just wasn't worth the injury risk since there's not enough time to heal before summer ball. It was his decision, and I don't disagree with it. But to be clear, this was a VERY difficult decision for the coach. He said he had agonized over it for two days ... and even reahed out to other FB coaches for advice. ONE told him to work it out ... the rest said he had no choice.

What's really unfortunate is that Texas even has this spring football thing. Coaches can either do spring and a lighter August schedule, or a heavier August schedule. Makes it tough in these kinds of situations (of course, if the varsity baseball team had gone deeper into the playoffs, this would all be moot ... but they didn't .

All that said, this was likely to be his last year in football anyway, because God willing, he goes to Jupiter in 2015, there's just no way the coach would go along with THAT! So as others have said, the time does come. But I'm with you ... it's unfortunate it has to be this way.

And one more piece of info: Two players have broken bones in these full-contact practices already. It's offense vs. defense scrimmages, and they go HARD.

Thanks for the reply and like I said I've been a football coach for 15 years and I see the benefit of spring football but full boat 100% contact in the spring doesn't make sense if they go lighter in August.  Why prepare your body for hard contact 3 months before it's needed when you will eventually take a break from it?  To me I could see having tops (helmets / shoulder pads on) to do some thudding (working on form and technique with minimal contact) to train them to do things properly to help lessen the chance of injury.

How long does this spring period last?

It goes a month -- late April to late May, culmimating in an intersquad full game. I shouldn't have said they go "lighter," they definitely go LESS!

JP, how did your freshman son finish up the year on varsity?  And am I understanding your original post, he will be playing for team USA this summer? If so,  kudos to him. 

He did well on varsity, thanks for asking. Don't have his actual line, but after starting a little slow, ended up with seven home runs in I think 48 at bats -- five in the last four games and a slugging percentage somewhere north of 900. Summer can't come soon enough for him.

He's not playing ON Team USA ... he's playing in the 17U East Championship. He's eligible for the 15U 2013 team, so that's a possibility if he performs.

Great post.  My son will be starting high school in the fall and I know the football coach will be pressuring him to play.  Although I know my son would enjoy playing football for his high school, baseball will be his main sport.  He will also try out for the basketball team.