If Not Now, When?
October 2, 2012
The greatest disappointments I experience in the administration of educational athletics are when I observe the program miss the opportunity to educate students in ways that will instill positive character traits. It happens in little ways every day; and sometimes it happens in really big ways when we fail to require people to accept the consequences of their actions.
During and immediately following a Regional Tennis match several years ago, a student displayed the kind of sportsmanship that offended everyone’s sense of appropriate behavior. There was no question he behaved badly, although the student and parents had many excuses for the behavior.
While the player was not disqualified at the time, his coach, athletic director and principal agreed the player should be withheld from the Final tournament, consistent with suspensions applied to other students in other sports at other times. The parents appealed the decision and the central office overturned the building level decision because “missing the Final tournament was too severe a penalty.” If it had been a regular-season contest, not the MHSAA Finals, the student would have been suspended.
So, what’s the lesson here? There are consequences for inappropriate behavior so long as it’s not an important event for the student and school. What kind of lesson is that?
And what a problem! For this lesson teaches that exceptions will be made for better players and bigger events, that standards of acceptable behavior are related to the persistence of the parents and the prestige of the competition.
The problem is that if people are not held accountable for their behavior in high school athletics, whenever will they? The problem is that if people are not held accountable for their acts – i.e., fail to develop character – a world going bad is going to get there faster.
A Temporary Fix
December 8, 2017
After six months of effort, there is only a 12-month solution for issues affecting the girls and boys basketball seasons and Michigan High School Athletic Association basketball tournaments.
On Dec. 1, the MHSAA Representative Council approved switching the girls and boys basketball calendars for 2018-19 only. Boys basketball adopts the regular season and tournament schedules that have previously been in effect for girls, and girls basketball adopts the regular season and tournament schedules that have been in place for boys. The Semifinal and Final venues will continue to be Van Noord Arena at Calvin College for girls and MSU’s Breslin Student Events Center for boys.
Decisions regarding schedules and sites for the 2019-20 season and beyond will be determined by the Council at a later meeting.
The MHSAA’s hand has been forced by NCAA Division I women’s basketball tournament conflicts with the traditional dates for MHSAA basketball tournaments. That changing NCAA schedule and other factors have combined to limit venue options for MHSAA tournaments. Just one facility large enough to host the MHSAA boys Semifinals and Finals is available in 2019 and 2020. That’s MSU’s Breslin Center.
Many other basketball scheduling options have been studied during the past six months, including moving both tournaments a week earlier or later, separating the girls and boys tournaments by an additional week, or conducting both tournaments over the same three weeks with only the four championship games for each gender at MSU.
However, because 2019 is not a typical year for how the NCAA and MHSAA calendars relate to one another, (2018, 2020, 2021 and 2022 are typical), more innovative changes in formats and schedules made for 2019 would have needed adjustment again for 2020.
The decision to switch seasons and tournaments for one year only allows a test of the opinion that the transition from fall to winter sports might be better if boys basketball started before girls.
The decision also provides Calvin College the opportunity to host the girls Semifinals and Finals at least twice at Van Noord Arena, which has twice hosted NCAA Division III championships in both women’s basketball and women’s volleyball. Two years is our usual minimum; and tournaments almost always run more smoothly in the second year than in the first year at a venue. Van Noord is the largest NCAA Division III arena in the country.
In any event, more time is needed to further study and explain more innovative scheduling and tournament formats, and possibly gain better understanding and greater support for grander plans.