Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Apparently, some parents don't quite understand bullying.........

Four days ago, a Texas high school football game ended with Aledo defeating Western Hills by the score of 91-0. Such blowouts are commonplace for Aledo, which has a 7-0 record this season, and averaging 69 points per game.

Yahoo! is reporting that a parent of one of the Western Hills players decided to file a bullying report the next day because of the score. Texas state regulations require Aledo High administration to conduct an investigation.

Where I have a problem is that there are blowouts in high school games across the country every week. My alma mater, Troy High, for example, blew away one opponent, 55-14, a week and a half ago, and earlier this season dropped 62 on another opponent. The parent in this case is overreacting, in my opinion, especially when the coaches of both Aledo & Western Hills agreed that there was no intention to run up the score to ridiculous levels. Consider Western Hills coach John Naylor for a moment:

"I think the game was handled fine. They're #1 for a reason, and I know Coach (Tim) Buchanan. We're fighting a real uphill battle right now. We ran into a buzzsaw, you know. Aledo just plays hard. And they're good sports, and they don't talk at all. They get after it, and that's the way football is supposed to be played in Texas.", Naylor told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

And here's Aledo coach Tim Buchanan, in an interview with the same paper:

"I'm upset about (the bullying report). I don't like it. I sit there the whole third and fourth quarter and try to think of how I can keep us from scoring. I looked around (after Friday's victory) and asked, 'Is there anyone here that feels good?'".

What that says to me is that Aledo simply tore the Western Hills defense to shreds, and Coach Naylor gave Aledo's players their props out of respect. Western Hills tried, but they couldn't stop the opposition. One parent throws cold water on the whole thing because in that person's mind, Western Hills didn't have a chance. This isn't even worth handing out a Dunce Cap.


No comments: