Age is Honorable and Youth is Noble

An inspiring event took place in Oregon this week which reminded me of the old Irish  Proverb:  “Age is honorable and youth is noble.” The event- for those who missed it, took place during a NCAA Division II woman’s softball game between the rival teams from Western Oregon and Central Washington universities.

Sara Tucholsky, the 5-foot-2-inch right fielder with a .153 career batting average hits her  first home run, a three-run blast, to help Western Oregon move closer to a spot in the  NCAA’s Division II softball playoffs.  Unfortunately, in her excitement she missed first  base.  Upon returning to the bag, her knee collapsed, leaving her unable to walk. If a pinch runner were to be brought in, Sara would only be credited with a single, and the runs resulting from her blast would be taken away.  Rather than allow that to happen, two members of the opposing team; Mallory Holtman, and Liz Wallace then came over to Sara, picked her up and carried her around the bases to complete her home run!  READ STORY/VIDEO

Just as I was thinking to myself that I had never heard or read of such an incredible display of sportsmanship, I was reminded of a similar fantastic event that took place last year on a soccer field all the way across the country in Framingham Massachusetts. 

During a game between the Framingham State women’s soccer team and rival Bridgewater State College, all the Framingham State team needed was a win to solidify the Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference regular-season title and advance to the postseason tournament. Framingham State appeared to take a 1-0 lead in the 59th minute of the game, but several players knew the goal had actually entered the side netting rather than the back of the goal. When play resumed, Framingham State coach Tucker Reynolds told his squad to allow Bridgewater State to score and tie the game! Bridgewater State ultimately won the game, 3-2.

After the match, in addition to receiving positive letters from the Bridgewater State coaches, players and parents, the Framingham State players were ultimately honored by the NCAA with the prestigious 2007-08 NCAA Sportsmanship Award.  READ STORY.

Congratulations to the players and coaches from both Central Washington University and Framingham State College for their spirit, and courage to do the right thing!

We invite your thoughts and comments as well as similar stories that you would like to share with other Goodfans.

From the Sidelines

I encourage everyone to take a few moments to read Grant Wahl’s excellent article on SI.com entitled: Over the Top.  He writes about the extreme and vulgar behavior being displayed by college basketball fans this season, including death threats to athletes as well as homophobic sideline taunting.  His words will leave you feeling angered, disgusted and hopefully….embarrassed.  Embarrassed, that as a society, we even have to ask ourselves if we’ve gotten so tainted that we simply shrug off this outrageous behavior as “part of the game”?   

Whose responsibility is it?

Similar to the crisis of global warming, the responsibility for poor fan behavior and sportsmanship lies at each of our doorsteps. Stemming the tide requires not only an adoption of a “zero tolerance” attitude by the organizations that sponsor and support sporting events, but more importantly by each and every one of us individual sports fans.

Below are some recent news articles about the excellent efforts being put forth by several universities in encouraging good sportsmanship amongst their students.

 UCLA Asks Own Fans to Refrain from Taunting Oregon Athletes and Families

 IU Issues Plea for Good Sportsmanship

Fans Encouraged to Clean It Up- MSU taking steps to curb crude behavior at athletic events

Finally, a story under the category of “what planet are we on?” entitled: Kansas HS Refuses Female Official. It tells of some brave individuals who stood up against a Kansas religious high school that refused to allow a female referee to officiate a boy’s basketball game due to their beliefs that a woman could not be put in a position of authority over boys.

We invite you to share your stories, thoughts, and comments about what’s being done to help improve the level of sportsmanship in your school or community.

That’s all for now.  Remember- the sounds of chirping birds and cheering fans are just around the corner! Think spring!

Go Texas Tech!

Texas Tech Athletic Director Gerald Myers has had a long standing concern for the overall decline in sportsmanship across the country. It’s just when he heard his school’s traditional fight song reworded to include foul language, he decided he’d had enough!

On Thursday, speaking at a Raider Power luncheon, he announced what he and the University are going to do about it. Known as the “Raider Power Spirit and Sportsmanship” campaign, its goal is simple: rather than shaming their fans into doing something or to stop doing something, they are simply appealing to them to cheer “with class”. In other words, they are asking fans to eliminate using profanities at the opposing team, throwing objects on the basketball court or football field, and begin treating officials with respect. READ STORY

Goodfans is proud to acknowledge and congratulate the Texas Tech Athletic Department on its bold and exciting new campaign to encourage better behavior during Red Raider sports events!

Tell us what you think about the Texan Tech campaign. Do “over the top” fans need this kind of reminder or should they be free to act any way the want?

Keeping our “GoodFan” Perspective

A few recent events in the sports world we should all be proud of:

Utah Jazz guard Derek Fisher who has decided to retire from the NBA so he can concentrate on finding the best care for his 11-month-old daughter, who has cancer in her left eye. The thoughts and prayers of Goodfans everywhere go out to Derek and his family.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/basketball/nba/07/02/bc.bkn.jazz.fisher.ap/index.html?cnn=yes

The 35th anniversary of Richard M. Nixon’s signing of a 37-word piece of legislation known as Title IX and its positive impact on all sports.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2007/06/24/EDGLJQIV3R1.DTL

And one not to be proud of:

A-Rod’s wife’s clothing choices. She definitely should have opted for a Goodfans t-shirt.
http://www.sltrib.com/sports/ci_6287608

We invite your thoughts and comments.

Step Up To The Plate Mr. Commissioner!

Sports and celebrity love affairs… They make for great headlines- especially if they involve a high profile athlete from the pristine world of America’s national pastime, coupled with the proverbial “bad girl”.   Perhaps the most memorable involved Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe- over fifty years ago.

Today, we are once again captivated by a love affair between a baseball icon and a “forbidden fruit”.  What makes this romance even more tantalizing is that sometime this summer, the two lovers are going to pull off an illicit crime that although we know is coming, we are powerless to prevent.

The lovers of course are Barry Bonds and steroids.  The crime: passing the great Hank Aaron on baseball’s all-time homerun list. 

As distasteful as the inscribing of Bonds’ name in the record books might seem to many of us adults, there are a number of more substantial and troubling messages that this “achievement” sends to our young people. Namely:

• - Steroids are a great way to excel on the athletic field.
• - Cheating is an acceptable way to reach your goals.

As concerned fans, parents, mentors and coaches we already know that this milestone represents an opportunity for us to “step up to the plate” and communicate directly with our kids about the harmful effects of steroid use, as well as the negative impact cheating has on all of society.

Having accepted that challenge, as spring turns to summer, and Mr. Bonds and his sweetheart creep closer to the record, it’s time to look toward Major League Baseball and its commissioner, Bud Selig to do the same.

We invite your thoughts and comments.

What Kind of Sports Fans Are We?

Welcome to the inaugural edition of the goodfans blog!

Last month, in the town of Westborough MA, a hockey dad was charged with kicking and punching a 10-year-old hockey player after a game.  READ STORY

Although the police are having trouble finding witnesses to the alleged attack, unfortunate incidents like this seem to have become almost commonplace in our sports culture today.  For many of us, each new story often reminds us of similar occurrences we’ve read or heard about, or perhaps even observed first-hand in the past.

More importantly however, these incidents also provide each of us with an opportunity to stop, reflect, and ultimately take responsibility for who “we” are as sports fans:

   As individuals…

• If caught up in the “heat of the moment” out of frustration or anger, or in an attempt to support our child, are we capable of similar violent acts?  If so, what can we do about it before something happens?
• If, in the future, we are a witness to a similar assault on a player, coach, referee or fan, what would we do?

   As community members…

• How can we work together to forge a plan for preventing similar incidents from happening at future sporting events?

Although not always simple, the answers to these questions can go a long way toward helping to preserve a safe and fun sports culture for our future generations.

We invite your thoughts and comments.