Varsity Letter Criteria Discussion

He letters plain and simple. How a young man doing what he is going to be asked to do would devalue anything is beyond me.

Every player that makes our varsity letters. Just because they are not as talented as the players who are in the line up everyday means nothing imo. They give just as much , they sacrifice just as much and they are just as much a part of the team as anyone. If those guys dont deserve a letter no one does imo.

Ask your son this question. If he was working just as hard as he is right now. Sacrificing just as much as he is right now. But he was not talented enough to make a significant contribution in games would that mean he is not worthy of a letter? And ask him how good his team would be if there were only 9 guys at practice each day. Ask him if it is possible for a player to make a significant contribution to a team without playing in the games or making a significant accomplishment in games. Guys like the bull pen catcher who gets the heck beat of him catching bull pens and bp. Or the guys that run the bags during situations practice. Or the players who shag bp while he is hitting. Or maybe those pitchers who throw the scrimmage bp for the live hitting. Do those guys contribute to the accomplishments of the team?

Just some thoughts for you and your son.

This can be anywhere from slam dunk easy or extremely tricky.

Does the team respect the player as a valuable contributor and a leader for his efforts now? If so, there might be no resistance to the "honary" letter.

Would he have lettered without the setback? Sometimes, if certain players are studs, this is a no brainer that they would have lettered. Other times, it's a marginal call. Of course, then a precedent gets set for future players with various setbacks and it becomes subjective. This may be an issue you want to avoid in the future?

Also, I am pretty sure that team managers for football and other sports wore lettermen's jackets in my day. If so, an "honorary" letter may be justified.

There are also other ways to recognize the player for his committment, dedication and loyalty to the team. If the consensus is that this "honorary" letter was not justified, you could create a new post season award that recognizes discipline, effort, team player and heart for this particular player instead.

Thanks Coach May. My thoughts exactly. I'm looking for as many of those that have been there and done that as I can to show my youngest that there is more to a team than the ability to hit, throw and catch. Teamwork and success requires logistics as well as player skills and none is more important than the other.

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My actual case is a dedicated young man who played a lot of baseball as a youngster but got delt a bad hand in life and needed a double hip replacement as a sophomore. He has had a rough recovery and post op rehab but makes every off season workout. Its clear he won't play Varsity in his remaining two years but exhibits all those characteristics that I believe HS sports are all about. I'd like to make him a "team manager/trainer" allowing him to assure equipment and practices are ready to go, as well as working out with the team as time permits, and make him eligible for a letter. But I don't want to devalue the effort of those guys who work hard to make first team and get it done on the field.

If your guys feel this devalues what it takes to get it done then I think there are serious issues with their character. If they can't see one of their peers and friends dedication to at least try and do the things they do equally while facing overwhelming odds then they need to get out of their self-contained cocoon.

I'm not a big fan of handing out trophies because everyone should get a snowcone but if you can't reward the ones who buy into the team concept and are willing to do whatever it takes, to overcome whatever it takes then why are we doing this?

This kid isn't earning an "honorary" anything. He's earning an legitimate and equal letter just like the other guys. Last time I checked it wasn't just the starting 9 or 5 or 11 that get varsity letters. The ones who show up everyday for practice, give everything they got and then get mop up duties in blowouts get varsity letters too. Not because they got mop up duties in blowouts but because they are dedicated members of the team. I don't see how this is different from the kid you describe.

I think my son was thinking along the lines of "PlayWithEffort's" opinion of a separate award. My concern with that is Colleges recognize the "Varsity Letter" for much more than being an athlete, the ability to work as a team memeber, the ability to work in a social environment, etc. "Admissions" recognizes a "letter" and awards admission points, College Coaches recruit athletes on entirely different criteria, much more indepth. College Admissions, on first glance, don't know what a local special award means without further explanation.

Ok let's look at it like this -

Is he a member of the team or not? If he is a member then he deserves the letter. If he's not then tell him and see what his reaction will be and then come back and tell us how that might have changed things.

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If your guys feel this devalues what it takes to get it done then I think there are serious issues with their character.

That sums it all up. Exactly the way I see it.
If the players are worried who gets a letter and why, then they never learned about sportsmansip and have no clue about teamwork or being a real teammate.

Sure, typically there are criteria involved in earning a varsity letter such as playing time etc but I've seen those players who may not have had as much ability manage to stick it out in a program for 4 years, may not have got the playing time etc.. get their letter their senior year for their hard work and perserverence.

Bottom line is they were part of the team and contributed to some level and those players who don't agree just plain don't get it and have a lot of growing up to do.

For example, the bullpen catcher works all the pitchers in practice but bullpen catcher is a backup with little play time.

However, how does the time that backup catcher spends in the bullpen with the regular players/pitchers get minimized? They contributed to making these pitchers game ready.

If my son ever told me this one or that one didn't deserve a letter because he was a bench warmer, I would've straightened his azz out and he would've changed his attitude.

However, when my kid played, he was a team captain in two sports, in HS and legion and being the consummate teammate, the last thing he would've done was belittle a teammates participation and wether he deserves a letter or not. If it were up to him, the whole team would have a letter because they were a team.

The dynamics behind HS sports is to learn that there are cuts, some make it, some don't, some play more than others but most importantly, they learn to acheive goals in a team environment. Just watch a typicl HS baseball game and watch the HC with all is team huddles outside the dugout as they go to the field each inning..You only see it in HS sports and no where else.

If the kid is working hard to ovvercome an injury and continues to work hard and love the game he's valuable to the team as a leader by example. That's worth a letter. At some point in the season he could start a non conference or meaningless game. There's always a blowout along the way he can get in the game. Are you familar with Jason McElwain?

I agree with others who say that if a kid works with the team he deserves the letter.

On the other hand do kids really care about varsity letters? To me it is just another participation trophy. Atheletes play sports because they enjoy the sport, the competition and the winning. Maybe some kids participate in HS sports to help their resume. If they do and do all the work the team requires, mission accomplished and give them the letter.

I never once had a discussion with my son about a letter. I don't even know if he got one. I played high school sports and never thought about a letter. And I especially don't think that most kids worry about who else got a letter.

I could be way off base with this opinion but this has been my experience.

lettering/playing on Varsity can be so subjective ......I have a good friend, who will tell you that his son was a four year starter on varsity and a 4 year letterman on his HS baseball team......and he was and he was a decent HS player...and now he is a fine young man....

Yet, the baseball team had 14 players in the program, not the varsity, the whole program.....

He deserved to start for 4 years and he deserved to letter...but it was not an indication of his teams success or the players on the teams abilities.....

It was representitive of the work and dedication the players put into the program......

Now at other schools with 125 kids trying out for 45-50 slots over 3 team (frosh-JV and Varsity) those things could mean other things....

as to HS letters,......in my sons old HS, they give letters to the band and choir, and service societies as well as to all the sports teams....its all about recognition of participation...and I feel rightfully so...

as to post HS.....no one cares about HS letters...not one kid on my sons college team, would EVER wear his HS letter jacket....

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not one kid on my sons college team, would EVER wear his HS letter jacket

When my son was about ten, he found my college warmup jacket in the back of the closet. He wanted me to wear it to practice. There was no way. My son wanted to bask in the glory of dad. I didn't want to be a d0rk. There are a adult men wearing their football letterman jackets to the high school games. My jacket sits in the back of the closet. I can't wear it. I can't throw it out.

I don't think letters were ever discussed in our house other than each kid's first one.

Let me give this perspective about what qualifies for a letter.

We had this kid this past football season who has cystic fibrosis. He is a senior and loves sports - especially basketball. He asked if he could help us out in someway this year. We told him he could videotape the games since that was his job for the basketball team.

He went to all of our scrimmages, away games and home games. He never missed a play thinking the record was off when it was on. Nothing is worse than seeing the stands upside down and then focus on the team breaking the huddle, lining up and then the shot ends because they hit the record button thinking it was off. Not one time this year did he do this. He stayed after games to make copies for each coach and probably didn't get home much earlier than me or the rest of the coaches. About halfway through the year we started carrying a chair to away games because his mom told us standing that long was becoming a burden to him because of his CF. We asked why he never said anything and she said he didn't want to come across as a complainer and that we heard enough of that from our players.

He never ran one sprint, he never participated in any plays or anything else that was physical because he couldn't. He would have loved to do it and would give anything if he could do something athletic like he used when he was younger before the CF kicked in.

Now understand where I'm coming from - this kid whose first love is basketball, helped out the football team and may just help out the baseball team. Gave up his Friday nights to help us out. He constantly was encouraging the coaches and the players with his words. He provided a valuable service that he did outstanding job where most people would think it's a bush job. The rest of the players made him wear a jersey because he was one of us. He was recognized as one of the team at every function. Kids in the hallways recognized him as a member of the football team. He was a member of our football team.

If that's not enough to EARN him a letter just like his teammates that's not "honorary" then I don't know of anybody that does should earn one. If the other guys on the team don't think he has earned one then I want out of coaching because the fight has been lost in developing character.

I'm proud that kid was a member of our team and I'm proud that our players saw him a member of our team and I'm proud that kid got a letter. He earned it just like the kid I spoke of earlier in another thread who was our leading rusher who turned his attitude around this year.

If people like this don't deserve to get something as simple as a cloth letter then why are we in the business?

coach

I'm not sure this is what you want your son to read, but it is my perspective. As an athlete back in the day, we only received a varsity letter if you excelled at the sport, not just participated. The other kids who were on the team received accolades just by being on the team, leaving school early for games, wearing the team jacket during game days, etc.
So as a player I would not have wanted everyone to receive the same honor of receiving a letter (we actually wore them on a jacket/sweater)since it would diminish it's special meaning.
Today as a parent I take a somewhat different view, but in this part of the country they don't even give out letters anymore. At the end of the season they hold a banquet and give special awards to the MVP, pitching ace, etc., but no one receives a letter. So while I see the need to acknowledge everyones contribution to the team, I also feel there should be a means to highlight the kids who rise above the others.

Baseball is certainly a team sport, and it is only as strong as it's weakest link. Everyone on the team needs to feel as if their contribution is appreciated and respected. So in places where letters are still given out, I would not see a problem with everyone receiving one so long as there was also something else to acknowledge individual achievement.

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this part of the country they don't even give out letters anymore

Correction - that part of the state. I think pretty much every high school in G'ville gives letters. And for all kinds of things - band, chorus, sports, etc. And those heavy letter jackets have come in handy during this cold winter! To me, that "special meaning" is that you are a part of something. You don't have to be a star to be an important contributor.

On our HS team in the past, a player had to log a certain number of varsity innings to get a letter. But over the last couple of years, it's anyone who gets on the varsity roster at any time during the regular season. I'm fine with it, and so is 2B. Individual accomplishments are acknowledged at the end of the season banquet, although I think I've heard every coach we've ever had say that they hate giving out individual awards. But they still do it.

Same around Ocala and Marion County Florida.

This is probably an area by area discussion as each area handles it differently than another one would.

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Individual accomplishments are acknowledged at the end of the season banquet, although I think I've heard every coach we've ever had say that they hate giving out individual awards. But they still do it.

This reminds me of what I did back in Kentucky. My first year as head coach at the end of the season I handed out some awards and I let the guys vote on them. The votes came out the way they were supposed to come out based on performance. I felt comfortable in handing out what I did and to who. You bet - I got calls upon calls from people upset that their kid didn't get this or that award. So for the next eight years I didn't hand out one single award to anybody. Amazingly nobody said one word about it.

Yep, coach I think you nailed it. There's no way to please everyone. I have to say though that they are appreciated.