treadlightly wrote:I used to do sideline photography at high school football games. At many games there would be at least one instance of a coach bellowing in a player's face, with airborne spittle, and just about everything to qualify as verbal assault. I never heard serious cussing, but there were often words not welcome here.
The officer's actions and the Police Department's Facebook embarrassment sound unjustifiable - but there may have been a wee bit of mud on the other side of the fence, too.
I never said anything about the student abuse I and everyone in the stands continually witnessed because coaches ride so high. I would have gotten nowhere but unwelcomed from the games.
High school sports are great. Wish they were more diverse, though. Maybe when high school physics is as well funded as high school football, I'll become a gridiron fan.
Oh I'm certain that there was a lot of mud on the other side. Passions run extremely high at kids sporting events.
When I lived in Seattle, I was the coach for my daughters under 7 co-ed soccer team. The players on the other team were getting a bit physical. Parents started getting in each other's face, and I decided to pull my team off the field at half time for fear of a full on brawl on the sidelines. And that was 6 and 7 year old kids soccer, in Seattle.
I was also recently challenged to a fist fight (for the first time in 20+ years) at my daughters soccer game (she is now 15). A girl on the opposing team shoved her, and I used the word "thug" when complaining to my wife. Unfortunately, that girls mom and her mom's boyfriend were within ear shot. I was at fault and I apologized.
I don't fault the police captain for getting upset at the game. I have done it myself. I do fault him for putting his hand on the coach, and I definitely fault him for using his public office in an apparent vendetta against the coach. He was not at the game in an official capacity. If he had an issue he should have addressed it with the official, or better yet, let his teams' coach handle it. It is never appropriate for a parent to confront the opposing team's coach.
In this case, it appears that the parent called the police, and that the police responding determined it was a non-issue. It should have ended there. IMHO, unless something is missing from the stories linked, this guy does not belong anywhere near his kids sporting events, and he does not deserve a badge.
