One recent afternoon, Dwayne Brown watched from the sidelines as his son Tyson played soccer at Cook field.
“It teaches them foot movements and coordination,” Brown said. “You do a lot of running, so you get a lot of endurance.”
Brown”s 4-year-old son, Taylan, also plays soccer through the Columbus-Lowndes Recreation Authority, and his oldest son, Tyler, 13, plays football for West Lowndes Middle School.
“It”s just a good outlet — teamwork, sportsmanship and it”s just a good way of keeping them busy, as well,” said James Rush, whose daughter, Maya, 9, also plays soccer.
In addition to coaching his daughter”s soccer team, Rush coached high school football for a total of 17 years. He also played the sport himself.
But team sports do more than help kids stay healthy — they benefit their mental health. A study released last month by Michigan State University”s Institute for the Study of Youth Sports found that children who play sports perform better academically, develop better social skills.
Those who continue learn discipline, responsibility and how to respond to adversity, often find a reason to work hard in other areas, experts and local educators said.
“How you respond out here (on the football field) is a good indication of how you”ll respond in life,” said James Richardson, assistant coach for football and track at Columbus High. “It helps you determine how you will handle the good and the bad.”
The performance of a school”s athletics program directly correlates to the school”s discipline problems, Richardson noted. As teams are successful, discipline problems decrease, he said.
“To me, it”s not all about the wins,” said Richardson. “It”s about preparing young men and young women to be better citizens.”
For Damian Baker, an 11th-grade Columbus High School running back, that journey already has begun.
“He”s probably the best little running back in the state,” Richardson said. “And without football, there”s no telling what he”d be doing.”
Many of Damian”s neighborhood friends dropped out of school and are doing “nothing.”
“They”ve encouraged me to stick with it,” said Damian.
His mother, Claudia Baker, is raising Damian alone, and he looks to his coaches as male role models.
“I see them as my father figure and as my role model,” Damian said. “They taught me a lot — to stay focused and to grow up.”
Football also forces Damian to keep his grades up.
“Without good grades, you can”t play football, and I love the game of football,” he said.
Practice and workouts also keep him so busy, he doesn”t find time to get into trouble. And Heather E. Webb of Mississippi State University”s Department of Kinesiology said this is a natural byproduct of athletics.
“Children who play sports are less like likely to use drugs or smoke, and females are less likely to become pregnant,” Webb said. “We also know that children who are physically active perform better academically and score higher on standardized tests, if there is the ever-important balance between sports and academics.”
“Athletes are usually in an environment that fosters self-discipline and teamwork,” said Mark H. Bean, chair of the Department of Health and Kinesiology at Mississippi University for Women.
“Most all athletes get pretty strong doses of success and failure, which I think helps the developmental process,” continued Bean, who coached youth swimming and other youth sports. Also, In 1974, Bean played for Columbus” Lee High School football team, which went 0-9. “I learned a lot about dealing with disappointment that year,” he said.
“About the only thing I can think of that is wrong with youth sports is adults: Parents tend to place too much emphasis on ”success” as opposed to the overall experience,” Bean continued. “But that is an incredibly difficult perspective to overcome.
“Now, it”s more high stakes than when I played,” said Rush. “They place importance on winning even at the (8- and 9-year-old) level.”
“When you play with your friends, you kinda feel pressure (to win),” said Maya.
“They get too competitive with it, because they feel like they gotta win all the time,” agreed Kaela Bowens, also 9, and the daughter of Tiffany Bowens.
“They love trying to win, (and) they don”t like losing,” Brown said.
“The pressure comes from the parents,” said Lloyd Bogan, whose son, Landen Bogan, 8, plays soccer through the CLRA. ”The kids, they”re not that serious, but the parents are. Some of the coaches also get overzealous, All they want is to win, win, win.”
“As they move up, every coach wants to win. Sometimes, it can go too far,” Brown said. “You can press them too much to where they”ll stop liking the game and quit the game.”
Webb encourages parents to allow their children “time off and the chance to try other sports if they want to.”
“I always suggest the rule that if a child asks to play a sport, they should complete the season, even if they want to quit early,” she added. “They can learn from this that joining a team or group is a commitment, which should be completed once started.”
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 35 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
