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Hooray, It really is "how you play the game!"
Posted by Marc Robbins on September 20th, 2006 at 01:35:19 am
I must admit, I didn't think the CIAC would use proper judgement and rescind the automatic suspension of Bridgeport Central Football Coach Dave Cadellina. You see on Friday, Central beat Bassick 56-0. In May the CIAC came up with a ridiculous rule that suspends a coach for one game for any win of 50 points or more.
But kudos to the 3 man appeals panel who, after hearing from Cadellina and George Loughery, the Bassick coach, agreed there was no malicious intent on the part of Central to embarrass Bassick. There is a huge amount of irony to this situation. Before Coach Cadellina took over, Central was a program that could have easily lost a game by 50 or more.
I've known Dave Cadellina for the better part of 10 years. You'd be hard pressed to find a coach who is more dedicated to the education and fulfillment of his players on the field, in the classroom and beyond.
I'm thrilled the CIAC showed understanding and restraint in this situation. Now if it will just drop this silly rule altogether. Maybe we can play games without a scoreboard? Nah, we could never live our lives without knowing who wins. Or maybe we could? Give it some thought...
6 comments
I think that because the target of the stupid rule is now out of the picture, perhaps there's a chance that it will be dropped. 
Scrooge McDuck,sits and counts.I don`t keep score.Playing for fun puts the slayers sword to the throat of the competition.I`d much more rather play for fun than win, everybody loves eachother,no bloody noses.Its always my initial thought to enjoy life.If someone wants to win there is always someone that loses that is the price you pay for playing the game.Now some love that feeling (sporties) feeling.Too much adreniline for me.Somehow I win when I lose I try to keep a low profile.Some talent scout friends of mine have draged me out on the playing fields,playing well but never knowing the game to their embaressment after telling the coach look what I found for the team, that I am Bi-lingual and dyslexes,or so they say.I do fine abroad....You drive on the wrong side of the road.And I never know what your going to say.I still love Gomer Pyle,to the left!~Peace Glenna~ 
It's a nice idea, Marc, to eliminate the scoreboard and play and watch sports simply "for the love of the game," but in the good ol' U.S. of A., where knowing who wins and who loses is so ingrained in us, eliminating the scoreboard is just a utopic fantasy. Ah, well. We can dream, can't we? 
My 7 year old plays soccer. There is no scoreboard. Just 40 minutes of running back and forth on the field to get the ball in a net. It may be the other teams net, but it's just a game. The children have so much fun and at the end they all shake hands and say they had FUN!!!! It is so nice to see him come off the field and not be sad because his team "lost" but happy that he played with his friends and maybe kicked the ball really far. I would really hate to see him lose that feeling when he gets older. 
Humans are competative animals by our very nature... needed to be to survive in the past and now in modern society that competivness translates directly into opportunity and educational, occupational, and financial success. Do not suppress your children in this regard because the benefits are lifelong... and the alternative is stagnation. 
I feel sorry for teams that are being humiliated in any sport. I have worked with high school coaches who did their best not to embarrass another team. I know that there is a mercy rule in baseball. It would be beneficial to institute a rule in football so that no school would ever lose by more than fifty. In basketball, if a team is behind by more than thirty, use running time in the last quarter. 
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