Andrea Donoghue

Melinda Shroeder

English 101

11/21/16

Persuasive Essay Outline 2 of 2

Should There be Stricter Rules About How Coaches Treat Their Players?

    When it comes to sports, not everyone is naturally gifted. Some people have to work harder to get better at basketball or volleyball or track. Some people don’t try, don’t care. Others just don’t seem to have what it takes. But is that really the case, or do these people just need a little extra coaching? Where does the line between readying the varsity for state, and being unfair to the other players become blurry?

    Should coaches be allowed to decide who is worth coaching and who is not? In a large school, you have tryouts, but at a small school, anyone can play. You have the Varsity and sometimes the JV. When there is no JV, there’s those few players “second string” sometimes called that play at the end of games that go well. In a league game, only varsity is supposed to play. But does that mean that they are the only ones who should be coached?

  The question here would be; at what point does having certain kids on the sidelines during practice become okay? Anyone who has been on a sports team that does not have a JV knows that not every player gets to play in every game. Bu that just comes with being on a team. You need to work your way up and contribute what you can to your team. But how can a coach build a strong team, if he/she only coaches a select few? “...When I thought I did something right he thought it was wrong, and when I tried to work hard and gain his approval it was never good enough…” (anonymous 16 year old football player) this is an example of coaches being unfair on their players. There should be standards that coaches are held to. He/she should be trying to help every player willing to learn.

    This is not to say that there should be ‘one way or the highway’, there should be room for creativity, and technique. No one should be benched because the coach doesn’t want to take the time to teach, or is just plain bullying one or more players.  

    When it comes down to it, I strongly believe that every athlete should be given an equal chance to excel if they have the will and the patience to learn. Coaches should be held to higher standards as far as who ‘deserves’ coaching. Everyone should be given a fair chance.