Editorial -- Discipline Problems for Football Team

Normally, we write about the teams and the players. But unfortunately, the story in Worth County's season-ending 84-66 loss to North-West Nodaway is not about the teams and the players. The Tigers set a dubious school record to end their season when they gave up a school record in points allowed. The previous record was 75, in a 75-6 debacle against Cameron back in 1971. They set another dubious mark as well, posting their first losing season since 1993, a span of 21 years. They ended their season at 3-6.

The Tigers had seven players sit out the first half for disciplinary reasons. A combination of starters who weren't involved in the disciplinary incident and reserves battled gamely against North-West, even managing to take a lead at one point, driving down the field early to take an 8-6 lead. But North-West's passing game asserted itself as they took a 44-24 lead at halftime. The seven suspended players returned for the second half, but the damage was done; Worth County never got closer than two possessions and North-West's offensive juggernaut kept right on clicking. Worth County did better than they did the first time against the Muskets, but they could not buy a stop when they needed to and lost.

We're not blaming anybody for what happened this year. And we're not singling anyone out, because what happened is a team thing and a community thing. But there are serious discipline problems that need to be addressed by the school, the community (including ourselves), the parents, and the players. We have been following Worth County sports for over 30 years, and we have never seen so many players miss playing time due to disciplinary action.

Somehow, we as a community have failed our players. We had a very informative class with Mike Thomson, now our State Representative. He taught our Education Psychology class at Northwest Missouri State. One of the things he taught was that sometimes, we inadvertently send the wrong message out to our students. For instance, if a well-meaning teacher seeks to reward students with treats from Ms. Grinch and Ms. Grinch is well-known to the students as an awful cook, that is actually punishment, not a reward. The students might act up just to avoid having to scarf down the awful slop.

Somehow, we are communicating to our students that it is OK to disregard team and school rules. It all starts with the person in the mirror -- we may think nobody is watching, but it might turn out that we have numerous eyes on us whom we didn't know were there. We have to take personal responsibility and look at our actions and see how they might be affecting our young players.

The school has an obligation to prevent these sorts of situations before they happen. From personal experience, we student taught one time at Worth County. What we found is that when we set boundaries and were consistent about them, the kids got better at following them as time progressed. If the school and coaching staff feels something is important, then the kids will pick up on that. If the school and coaching staff feels something is not important, then the kids will pick up on that as well.

A few years ago, a group of Worth County students did a study on teen drinking. The results were startling -- most teens they interviewed admitted that teen drinking is a problem in Worth County. There were numerous attitudes that led to that -- like the belief that my daddy drank and my granddaddy drank when they were little and it didn't hurt them, so why should it hurt me? That is a common attitude that they found.

The students involved said that the best way to change attitudes was not preaching -- but showing why it inappropriate for teens to be drinking alcohol. There have been scientific studies done which show that the human brain does not develop fully until it is 25. For someone to drink alcohol at an early age inhibits brain development. And one of the last parts of the brain to develop is the part which establishes the relationship between actions and consequences. That is why, for instance, we see teens make strange decisions sometimes that we would never understand as adults. There is also a reason why teens should not be in the presence of alcohol -- because they are vulnerable to peer pressure which could induce them to drink even if that was not their original intent. And given that alcohol inhibits brain development in teens, it therefore follows that it will inhibit athletic performance as well, particularly decision-making on the field.

Being a minor in possession of alcohol has legal consequences -- the first offense can be a $300 fine in the State of Missouri. A second or subsequent offense can be 1 year in jail and a $1,000 fine. Prospective employers will ask on employment application forms if you have been convicted of a crime and they will be much less likely to hire you as a result. In their eyes, someone who has alcohol-related offenses on their record might be more likely to be drunk on the job, which can lead to termination. Insurance companies will raise rates for minors in possession of alcohol.

In light of this, the school needs to do alcohol prevention activities for all students -- not just the athletes -- on a regular and ongoing basis, along with other safety lessons such as seat belt usage, drug avoidance, and driving safety. Students need to know the reasons behind the rules when the reasons behind the rules are not self-evident -- like come to practice every day. Many of us are mistrustful of authority -- that is why we declared independence from King George. But when we understand why rules are in place, then we are more likely to follow them. The community, towns, and churches need to engage in an ongoing effort to provide safe places for our kids to hang out. The current Grant City Strategic Planning sessions have seen some good conversations on what more the city can do to provide activities for our youth. We went to Hopkins twice to watch their team play this year; in both cases, the community held a 5th quarter for their kids after the game where they could relax and unwind.

Each of us needs to look at the example we are setting for kids. Are we saying one thing and doing another? Kids can see hypocrisy in adults from a mile away. If we lecture kids about avoiding tobacco while we happily puff away, how does that convince kids not to smoke? Parents have an obligation to supervise their kids and know where they are at all times. When he was Presiding Commissioner, the late Kevin Austin encountered something that was deeply disturbing while campaigning against teen drinking -- he encountered parents who thought that the Hy-Vee parking lot in Grant City was a perfect babysitter for their kids because they knew where they were at.

When we student taught at Worth County, one of the things that long-time principal Dale Healy was very strict about with his teachers, ourselves included, was that we had to supervise our students at all times, even when it was not comfortable or convenient for us. If we didn't, that was when trouble started. And if people are aware of a teen party going on, they have a responsibility to call law enforcement -- it is against the law for anyone under 21 to purchase or consume alcohol. Sheriff Terry Sheddrick cannot be everywhere; he needs phone tips from the public in order to act. If it takes several calls, then it would be worth it.

And our students need to be able to police each other. Coach Chris Healy can't be expected to patrol all over the county and all over Ravenwood and Parnell looking for potential teen parties with football players. The players need to be able to step up and tell each other, "We don't do that sort of thing on this team," whenever someone is about to step out of line. Peer pressure is just as effective of a weapon as adult supervision.

And finally, our athletes need to understand that certain teams are good year in and year out for a reason -- their players understand that being an athlete means that you represent the team 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. That is why Jefferson's girls just won another state softball title. That is why Stanberry has had only one losing season in football since 1996. That is why Claude Samson's teams won over 1,200 games and six state titles during his tenure at Northeast Nodaway. That means constantly working at your craft and watching others play and staying in shape. It means setting priorities -- valuing family, school, and your craft over such things as girls (or boys), cell phones, Facebook, or some other newfangled gadget that Bill Gates can invent to keep people enthralled.

In previous years, Worth County might have been able to get away with this lack of discipline from its football team. There were usually only a few games in which they had to bring their best game; the rest were usually halftime blowouts. But now, the playing field has ramped up considerably. Newcomers Albany and Rock Port are powerhouses, finishing second and third in the 275 respectively. North-West Nodaway rewrote the recordbook in the passing department. The playing field was so tough this year that even Nodaway-Holt, which only won two games this year, came up with a surprise haymaker over Mound City during the regular season and threw a scare into Rock Port after falling behind 28-0, only losing 28-22. And Tarkio, whom Worth County beat in a halftime game, proceeded to throw a scare into Rock Port, leading them 12-0 at halftime before falling 16-12 in districts. The playing field has gotten significantly stronger in the 275 and in Eight Man football in general -- South Nodaway beat Mound City 34-0 in the regular season and managed to last the whole game against Albany in districts, losing 84-42. If Worth County is to regain its spot at the top of the field, their players will have to ramp up their game and make a year-round commitment. Coach Chris Healy can make them a better team during the course of the season -- the team got better during the season even with all the adversity they dealt with. But the players have to decide that they want to make this program work regardless of who the coach is.