Youth Football Striking

Why?

It's one thing to have issues with a team. But what should never happen is to throw punches. I'll cut to the chase. There's a youth football coach in Savannah, Georgia, that is going to face charges of abuse. Thankfully, there is video of it being shown. This guy punches a nine year old kid a couple times. Obviously, the outrage has been seen. One of the people you wouldn't think would respond is Buffalo Bills legend Bruce Smith. The NFL's all time sack leader brought up moments of when he was abused by a coach and that he would have gone after the abuser, Gerrel Williams.

Some wonder why nothing was done. I would love to pin it on people being assholes and record the event rather than step in. There are times where I wish cell phones didn't exist just so there can be intervention. But the thing is, there could be legal ramifications. I'm not an expert on law, but if it got to the point where it escalated to a melee between parents and coaches, there would be lawsuits and lots of jail time. It could also be a situation where you have kids involved and there could be some long term consequences. Not every kid is a saint, nor is every one pure evil.

Football in the South has gotten very ridiculous. There was that Edinburg, Texas incident a week or two ago involving a high school player tackling a ref after getting ejected. The amount of worship for the sport has grown to an unhealthy level, and I say that as someone that likes the sport.  Whether its the South, North, whatever, coaches can't act like that to kids. I knew quite a bit of fucking idiots that coached youth football and a few at the high school level. Some of them didn't have any control though no violence occurred.  Part of me wanted to punch some of them when I was younger.

With it being youth involved, it's just a game. Nine year olds will learn from mistakes and if they really want to play, they'll develop into quality players that high schools will love to see. I got no idea what the jail sentences are for abuse in Georgia, but I think Williams will see a couple years at the minimum.