Running up the score

[skarke]

Congratulations to 'Bama, and Roll Tite!!!!  I am an Alum of Texas, and it was a great game, though we should all pray for Colt, his injury sounds like it might be extremely serious and career threatening.

On another note, we have all observed a growing trend in competitive sports to run up the score after the victory has been secured.  Girls basketball teams are winning 121-4, still pressing and fast breaking till the final click.

Though not as severe, I thought it was a little tasteless that Saban, victory secured, decided to push for another score.

Why do we now find it acceptable to humiliate sporting opponents?  For my entire life there has been an etiquette, an expectation that one should play hard, winning is virtuous.  But, inflating scores for the sake of belittling ones opponent is just plain poor sportsmanship.

I'm not speaking of the UT Bama game, but of the countless versions of basketball, football, and occasionally baseball scoring that is just stupid.


Do we as a society accept this behavior as normal, good sportsmanship now?  Should we ever take a knee?  Maybe I'm just old fashioned.

[mirage1988]

To me the difference is team sports vs. individual sports. In team sports you give it all you have for the good of the team, if that is what the coach tells you to do (as a good coach would). In an individual sport you can give your opponent leniency, but  that is like going into a job interview and saying that the guy in the hallway should get the job. The premise behind sports and games is that 'to the victor go the spoils'!

If you are afraid of losin', stay home!

[slim rem 7]

one explanation is bhe don t want them to come off the throttle..just to be sure they play as hard as they can on the field ,or court..still little johny ,or what ever could be given some playin time ..in these circumstances..slim

[blind ear]

Why do people shoot each other at McDonalds rather than having a fist fight and going home or apologizeing when it is over?

BCS standings can be determined by points total scored in the end I think.

 A different world and a different attitude. Humans are adapting the same social values as held by coorporations, the hearts of great white sharks. Chivalry seems to be a dyeing or nearly dead virtue.

eddiegjr

Have you noticed how many prooducts are labeled "Great Value" at walmart? Those once were large coorporate brands. When the mom and pop stores went so did the sub coorporatios ability to determine thier own fate. WalMart, lets play Monopoly and kill all the rest. eddie

[magooch]

Hey, the game ain't over till it's over.  Take no prisoners and all that.  A coach should, however know when the game is out of reach and not give the vanquished a ready made motive for the next go-round.  Put in the scrubs.

I didn't think the end of last night's game was out of line.

[skarke]

Thanks for everybodys comments. It is obvious that my views ar the minority. I guess I'll teach my youngest boy, an accomplished athelete, to pound the stuffing out of smaller, slower kids.  My son played in an All Star game where our team was clearly superior.  One of our players took an opportunity to take a clean hit on one of our opponents players, which he did. There was about 1:30 left in the game, we were up by 30.  Well, like I said, we were clearly superior in every way, and though the hit was clean, our guy broke both of the kid's arms and a couple of ribs. Our coach sat our player for the rest of the game, and had a long one on one talk with him about sportsmanship.  Was our coach wrong to direct our player to just make the block, which would have had the same effect on the play as we ran out the clock, or should he have high fived him, said "great hit, you still have a minute left, see if you can do it again"?  (We kneeled after the first down)

I know that I must be out on a limb here with my old fashioned view of sportsmanship, but I thanked our coach for responding the way he did, and used the event as a teaching moment for my kid about mercy.

[rex6666]

How do you know when the victory is secure, 2 touchdowns 20 points
lots of things can happen

[skarke]

BTW, it is hard to judge when a victory is secure, but up 30 with a minute and a half, or up 60 to 2 with a quarter and a half in basketball might indicate, in my view, the opportunity to stop running the two minute offense or full court press.

FWIW, IMHO.

[magooch]

My man, you are mixing apples and oranges.  It's one thing to keep playing and another thing altogether to take cheap shots, no matter what the score.  Everyone should know the difference between scratching your butt and tearing a hole in it.

[rex6666]

Thanks for everybodys comments. It is obvious that my views ar the minority. I guess I'll teach my youngest boy, an accomplished athelete, to pound the stuffing out of smaller, slower kids.  My son played in an All Star game where our tam was clearly superior.  One of our players took an opportunity to take a clean hit on one of our opponents players, which he did. There was about w:r0 left in the game, we were up by 30.  Well, like I said, we were clearly superior in every way, and though the hit was clean, our guy broke both of the kid,s arms and a couple of ribs. Our coach sar our player for the rest of the game, and had a long one on one talk with him about sportsmanship.  Was our coach wrong to direct our player to just make the block, or should he have high fived him, said "great hit, you still have a minute left, see if you can do it again"?

I know that I must be out on a limb here with my old fashioned view of sportsmanship, but I thanked our coach for responding the way he did, and used the event as a teaching moment for my kid about mercy.

I don't mean to start something.
to me this two different topics, yes by all means coaches should teach
sportsmanship. winning the game buy more than you abslutely need in points
is a different story.

[mirage1988]

My man, you are mixing apples and oranges.  It's one thing to keep playing and another thing altogether to take cheap shots, no matter what the score.  Everyone should know the difference between scratching your butt and tearing a hole in it.

I don't think anything more can be added after that one gooch!

[skarke]

Football is a violent sport.  So what if the kid had a plate put in one of his arms.  After this post, I'm going to hold the remaining comments I have, I hope that I have stated my opinion adequately.  So what if the player got screws and a plate in one of his arms, it was a perfectly legitimate and clean "block".  If a player isn't ready to compete, or a team, maybe we should just tell the inferior team to just forfeit.  That kid that got busted up should, I guess, expect to be rocked by another, as long as it is legal to do so.  Foul hard in the paint against somebody half the size, throw that inside pitch inside to the kid just learning the game.  It's legal, who cares if they bash their head on the court, or split an eyebrow, or hospitalize somebody.  We sure wouldn't want to only win by 22 runs when we could win by 26.  It is part of the game, or at least it is now.

I watched a girl last night playing on a losing team.  She made a good play and broke away with the basketball and was driving for a lay up.  The score was 52 to 16 with less than two minutes.  The winning team's post ran her down and body slammed her into the mat on the wall behind the basket, preventing her score.  It was a "good foul".  After all, we coach our players to make 'em earn it at the line.  God knows that the winning team shouldn't want to only win by 32 instead of 34.  Nobody was hurt.  It is just basketball after all.

Regarding humiliating the opponent, having been on the receiving end of a severe bashing in a basketball game in a church league of mostly old guys like me by a team of 20 somethings, it made me extremely angry.  In fact, I had anger to the point of hatred for one of my "Christian brothers" playing on that team.  It was aggravated by the obligatory full court press till the last whistle.  It was weeks of praying before I forgave him, though he never thought he did anything wrong.  Stirring hatred just because you can seems wrong.

[John R.]

If a team is up 30 with 1:30 to go, then yes there is no need to try and score again. This was not the case last night, Texas had already come back from 24-6 to make it 24-21. Saban was taking no chances, and besides Alabama recovered the ball deep in Texas territory.

[KB21]

Plus, Alabama wasn't going shot gun and passing the ball.  They ran a tight, power set and ran the ball on every play.  At some point, it is the responsibility of the other team to stop it.  The time on the clock and the time outs prevented Alabama from getting in victory formation at that time.  Plus, they were only up by 10 points at the time.  With the way their quarterback and special teams had been playing in the game, Nick Saban couldn't take any chances.  Texas was just physically overmatched in this game. 

If a team is up 30 with 1:30 to go, then yes there is no need to try and score again. This was not the case last night, Texas had already come back from 24-6 to make it 24-21. Saban was taking no chances, and besides Alabama recovered the ball deep in Texas territory.

[slim rem 7]

i think most understand your point of view skarke.. it has merit. slim

[John R.]

I think most anybody would agree with Skarke, because most of what he is talking about are one-sided affairs, but when you claim to be one of the two best college teams in the country, you better bring your A game.

[skarke]

I agree with everybody on UT Bama, that's really no biggie at all, and with UT and a time out, I'd probably done the same thing.  It is the other stuff.

[mirage1988]

I agree skarke- i reread you original post and you are talking about two very different points. To run up scores like in basketball is senseless when two teams are grossly unmatched in skill. Its never fun to lose, but don't you think it would be more humiliating if the winning team played their bench players and still kicked your butt? The hard fouls like you mentioned shouldn't happen, but aren't athletes taught to give it 100% on every play? I think coaches should slow their team down when the score gets out of hand, and that can be done by telling the players to pass at least three times before shooting for example. Some hockey coaches tell the players to try to hit the pipes instead of scoring when they get a big lead. Things like that can be done without the other team even noticing it is happening.

[skarke]

mirage1988, that is EXACTLY what I'm talking about.  These games are just that, games.  If we were talking war or politics, then by all means, step on their throat.  I've been beaten badly before, won a few games lopsided, but there ALWAYS came a time, save one game, when the contest was decided and we athletes just played remainder of the game for the game's sake alone.  We'd do our best, but pull the knockout punch.

At the end, we'd shake hands and go have pizza.  That is how it has been for my son.  I see them literally trying to kill each other when the game is contested, and he plays with GOOD athletes, but when it's decided, the kids all know each other, have been playing together for years, and laugh, smile, help each other up, and pat each other's back.  The parents all talk and have fun, the coaches are great mentors on and off of the field, and we are able to build fine young men.  I'm proud of my kids, and their friends.  I aspire to be as good of sports as they usually are.

It is pretty cool, really.