Even Teachers Can't Seem to Follow the Rules

I have been coaching middle school sports since I began teaching back in 2001. I love coaching kids. I love the relationships we build and how I can show different emotions on the court vs. in the classroom. I love showing my passion for playing. I love sharing my knowledge and giving tips on how they can become better servers, passers, hitters, shooters, ball handlers, rebounders. I love the excitement of the game. I love teaching girls how to be role models to others, leaders on the floor, and all around responsible student-athletes. And most of all, I LOVE winning. When life became too busy, I gave up coaching basketball. It wasn't something I necessarily wanted to do, but felt it was time for me to move on and focus on things that were a bit more important. But I had to keep at least one sport, so I chose volleyball.

Each fall, volleyball begins the second week of school. We have intramurals for 3 weeks when anyone can try out or just play. Kids who want to work hard and compete to try and make the team must show up to at least 90% of the practices, have some sort of knowledge of the game, and have some skills. We get to pick 18 to be on our team. This year, we had a FULL gym of girls trying out for both the 7th and 8th grades. The district rules state that intramurals are to last 3 weeks and then lists the exact date that cuts are supposed to happen. Not any sooner. So when I find out that a HUGE RIVAL of ours made cuts at least a week earlier than they were supposed to, it pissed me off. Why? Because this coach is not playing by the rules. This coach is one of the reasons I stopped coaching basketball. I can't stand him. He's a punk. He's a weasel. He's greasy. He's a jerk. And he walks around acting like his shit doesn't stink. And he has ALWAYS been that guy who tries to read between the rules or cheats. He always tries to find loopholes in the rules or claims he doesn't know the correct rule. And now he's picking his team a week earlier so he gets 2 FULL weeks to get them to gel? F to the NO. IT just makes me so mad. This is the same guy whose team we beat a few years ago in basketball, killing their undefeated season, who wouldn't go through the line at the end of the game and shake hands. This is a guy who used to get technical fouls every single game we played against him. Sometimes he'd get kicked out. He is a terrible role model for our students. For our girls. And now he's figured out a way to pick his team much earlier than he should have been able to do.

How did I find this out? Girls from that school are friends w/ some of my girls on my team. They told me. I was so pissed. I went to our VP and talked to him about it...how it's unethical, how it's unfair, how they should not be able to count their wins when they can't follow the rules. And he tells me I need to let it go. I don't need to go to the Athletic Director and say anything. We don't need any bad blood between us. And now here I sit boiling mad about it still. To me, being a good person and a good role model COMES FIRST. Not winning, not showing everyone we're the best team, not being cocky. But being a good person and showing our kids how important it is to follow rules and find rewards in doing what's RIGHT. And all I am supposed to do is sit back and watch some yahoo do whatever he pleases and get away with it. SO. NOT. OKAY. I don't want to be quiet about this. But what can I do when our VP tells me to walk away?

I guess what gets me is he does not see his coaching experience as one where he is building relationships with kids and establishing a sense of pride, responsibility, and citizenship. Instead, he's treating it like it's the NCAA. I tell ya what, if it was college ball, and he was not following the rules, he'd sure be fired by now.