Who's Watching?

So, you're running a practice & things get heated.  Your players aren't working very hard.  Mistake after mistake is occuring. Everything they do is "flat"  with no emotion or real attempt.  Maybe you're getting 50% effort. So...you decide to liven things up.  You usually yell but today, you throw a ball at a player to get their attention.  Not hard & not somewhere on their bodies where they will be hurt. You get in a players face.  You scream.  You call them a name.   An insensitive name.   Practice intensity improves and effort rises.

Someone is filming practice.  They share their film with the powers that be.  Long story short.  The film gets u-tubed out of context with no supporting facts. When viewed it is outrageous.  There is a nationwide uproar.  Why wasn't this coach fired?    Eventually Public Opinion wins out or at least the opinion of those outraged by it, and the coach is fired.  Later on the AD who had viewed the tape earlier & decided to fine & suspend the coach instead of firing, resigns under public pressure.

This type of conduct should not be tolerated. Coaches & anyone working with students should be expected to conduct themselves in a respectful manner. But, when you talk to players, most just say that the actions are motovational & not personal. That after practice, everyone leaves friends. Yet a man has lost his livelyhood  & another is forced to resign because he didn't do enough.  Heck, even the college president is be called out.  All because a camera was at practice and the tape U-tubed nationwide. 

Shouldn't the people involved be allowed to decide what should be done without all the public pressure ?  Do we get a second chance?  Do we get a chance to fix things?  And if we lose our jobs anyway, don't we deserve a chance to move on?  In today's world of high tech & the time it seems so many have to keep an eye on things, we aren't given that chance. The coach fired due to his poor conduct is still being hounded as he coaches his 12 year old daughter's AAU team this spring despite the fact that he has total support of players & parents.

The message here is simple........watch out.  You never know who may be watching....& filming!!!!!  If public opinion gets involved, forget any second chance.