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Topic: If I were a high school principal

Topic: If I were a high school principal

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Alan Swank
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Location: Athens, OH
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If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/14/2011 9:44:33 PM

This sort of thing would not result in an assembly at our school where a student lays a bunch of hats on a table and then picks one to put on his head. Why do schools do this? What message does this send to the student body? When a kid gets accepted at Yale, why doesn't it result in a similar assembly? Why do schools in SE Ohio pose pictures for the local paper for "signings" at D 3 and NAIA schools who don't have signing requirements? Sorry to sound such a negative note but it just doesn't make sense.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/recruiting/football/news/s...

Last Edited: 2/14/2011 9:45:49 PM by Alan Swank

SBH
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/14/2011 10:50:01 PM

Love his name...Clowney.

I have a friend who covers high school sports for the Plain Dealer. On signing day, a father drove his son to the PD's offices to have him sign his LOI at the sports desk. Of course, no one was there, so it didn't get much attention.

Alan Swank
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/14/2011 10:51:27 PM

SBH wrote:

We're on the same page SBH. If we're lucky enough to get to Cleveland, I hope to see you there. Dinner is on me.

Mike Johnson
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/15/2011 12:28:17 AM

Agree completely with you, Alan.

In 2001 I founded something called the SHS Alumni Email Network and every few weeks write a newsletter that lives on input from alumni and goes to some 2,000 SHS grads. I make a point of giving equal "billing" to academic and athletic honors and awards. For example, in the most recent edition I cited two seniors who just accepted football scholarships from Ashland and Morehead State AND a grad who just had an award named after him by a national organization that funds leukemia research. For nearly 20 years he had headed cancer research at OSU's James Cancer Center.

Your reference to D3 and NAIA reminds me that a few weeks ago the owner of Legends Sports Pub & Grille in the old hometown asked me to spread the word that he wants to begin displaying in his establishment photos of alumni who have played D-1 sports. I replied that I would do so - only if he pledged to display alums who had played collegiately at ALL levels. He declined.

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Jeff McKinney
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/15/2011 12:20:06 PM

I agree with you Alan, especially regarding the Div. I signees. This just feeds into the egos of some of these kids who already have an inflated sense of entitlement.

Don't have a problem with recognizing kids' achievements in HS, but agree with you that athletics shouldn't be elevated above academics in this pursuit.

Bobcatbob
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Location: Coolville, OH
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/15/2011 12:38:09 PM

Careful with that axe, Eugene.

A glance at our Message Board front page shows two forums devoted to some level of fawning over HS athletes who MIGHT matriculate at the old U. There is also a recruiting database maintained and updated here regularly.

If there is a societal problem in elevating youngsters to levels of adulation that they may or may not have "earned" we are right in the thick of it.

LoganElm_grad09
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/15/2011 2:54:09 PM

Jeff McKinney wrote:

I agree with you Alan, especially regarding the Div. I signees. This just feeds into the egos of some of these kids who already have an inflated sense of entitlement.

Don't have a problem with recognizing kids' achievements in HS, but agree with you that athletics shouldn't be elevated above academics in this pursuit.

Three letters... SEC.

bobcat695
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/15/2011 3:08:02 PM

I don't really mind the signing photo and a nice write-up in the local paper for a kid that makes it to D1. Maybe it's because we do not have that many locally and it is a nice accomplishment for them. In a larger city, D1 offers are more plenitful, therefore not as newsworthy as they might be in smaller communities. There are only 4-5 kids each year from our region that get D1 offers across all sports.

I do not really care about the DIII and NAIA offers because they don't really impress me. It is only slightly harder to make those teams than making the varsity squad in high school. I also think academics are just expected to be strong. A newspaper is not going to report on kids getting accepted to college based on academics if that is the minimum acceptable standard. Recognizing run-of-the mill academic acheivments is not really newsworthy either. I was, however, impressed that The Parkersburg News ran a front page story about a kid from Parkersburg High School that got a perfect score on the ACT this year. That is impressive and he got his due credit.

"You can't un-fist a fist pump." - Saul Phillips 1/24/15

anorris
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/15/2011 4:34:01 PM

FWIW, my rural local weekly does run short (couple-line) things in a group every now and again for major scholarships and such, as well as printing honor rolls, etc. each quarter. Granted, I'm only aware of one person I went to school with who competes in DI (wrestling).

Athens Block
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/15/2011 6:09:14 PM

Alan Swank wrote:

Why do schools in SE Ohio pose pictures for the local paper for "signings" at D 3 and NAIA schools who don't have signing requirements? Sorry to sound such a negative note but it just doesn't make sense.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/recruiting/football/news/s...

Good Lord Alan... Heaven forbid a local paper try to give some publicity to kids who are going to college. In many cases that's some of the only positive publicity these schools and kids get.... If a school wants to pose a photo cause some senior in high school is going to play softball at Shawnee State then so be it. If it bothers you so much, it's really really simple for you to just skip over that story...

Saying that these signings don't matter is akin to an OSU fan complaining that Rivals or Scout lists our recruits... "I mean nobody cares about MAC recruiting..."

Sorry for the rant, I just see don't see any logic in complaining about something like that...

Monroe Slavin
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/15/2011 9:46:15 PM

Sports Fans, you missed the premise: If Alan was the high school principal.

What would that be like.

First, attendance counting would be rigorous.

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Jerry86
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/15/2011 11:23:12 PM

Athens Block wrote:

Alan Swank wrote:

Wake up call to you. When did Clowney announce where he was going? He strung it out 2 weeks. Next, look at his academics. Not impressive. I live not far from where he is. How much focus has been on academics lately? Not much. He plays cards and other nonsense in his off period.

"I don't see no big deal like everybody else," Clowney said. "They'd say, 'He's the king of all of football.' The guy ain't nothing but 5-5. He's a short guy. Everybody's going crazy on Nick Saban."

I'd say he needs to work on grammar/English.

Athens Block
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/16/2011 10:06:18 AM

Jerry86 wrote:

Athens Block wrote:

Alan Swank wrote:

I think you missed my point....Let's back up a second.... Clowney is an asshat of the first degree.... Waiting until this late to pick, when he probably knew weeks ago, is ridiculous... I'm sure there's 1 kid at South Carolina who now lost his scholarship and has nowhere else to go thanks to this idiot...

I'm simply arguing that there's no reason to be annoyed when the Messenger features a photo of a kid from Fed Hock going to run track at Rio Grande...

There's a big difference there...

Football Jim
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/17/2011 12:54:29 AM

I agree with the original post. It seems odd that a player (Kansas State salute) gets flagged on the field for "calling attention to ones self" but it is acceptable for the huge grandstanding circus that some of these kids stage at signing day.
I am old school.
Shut up, suit up and let your performance on the field do the talking for you.

Hanging in there!

GO BOBCATS!

C Money
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/17/2011 9:51:25 AM

Athens Block wrote:

Clowney is an asshat of the first degree....

Completely off topic: My wife and I were talking last night about the use of the word "douche". My point was that "douche" is over-used, and if we want to get our point across, we need to come up with a new word for it. "Asshat" was the word I suggested.

Just thought it was funny that's the word you used to describe Clowney.

bobcat695
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/17/2011 11:43:06 AM

I agree with douche being overused. A while back, I told a guy at a poker table he was an assclown after he berated me for calling his bluff and breaking him. That was effective in making him even more upset. Douche is classic, but I'm using it more sparingly now also.

"You can't un-fist a fist pump." - Saul Phillips 1/24/15

KyleWvr13
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/17/2011 12:39:52 PM

The whole thing is baffling to me too. I can understand if high school football was the biggest deal in town, and it turned into some kind of event, that schools would do this. But back in my town in eastern Pennsylvania, we've had our first Division 1 signee (to EMU, poor soul) in well over 10 years come from our school, and it wasn't a big spectacle. He just signed the paper infront of the local newspaper and that was it.

Mike Johnson
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/17/2011 1:50:13 PM

This thread is jogging the dust from plenty of memories. Numerous of my HS teammates went on to play college ball at all levels - Purdue, Morehead State, Defiance, Iowa State,Vandy among them. I recall zero publicity, even in the hometown daily.

A "big deal" each year was bringing together all senior lettermen - from all sports - for a group photo that was published - in the school yearbook.

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mcbin
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/17/2011 10:42:55 PM

Mike Johnson wrote:

A "big deal" each year was bringing together all senior lettermen - from all sports - for a group photo that was published - in the school yearbook.

Certain principals might not like that.... Too much attention to athletes...

OUcats82
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/19/2011 6:03:08 PM

Princeton High School here in Cincinnati ran a program a few years back where the top 10 individual students in the Senior Class academically had a signing ceremony similar to what a lot of schools do for athletes. Not sure if it has become a regular event or not.

Ohio-The State University

T-Rodge
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/20/2011 2:39:31 AM

Jerry86 wrote:

Athens Block wrote:

Alan Swank wrote:

Sorry to be that guy, but really....

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Deciduous Forest Cat
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/22/2011 2:48:43 PM

So... do we have a problem with sports reporting going overboard, or news reporting not caring about the academics side of things?

We can blame ESPN for apparently not having enough sports to fill 8 separate networks, but we can't blame them because they don't televise the Academic champion signing with MIT to become an engineer (but they would if they figured out how to make a buck from doing so; maybe they could have Jim Gray do a live interview right before he announces his decision, asking the signee really stupid questions for the sake of contriving drama and pi$$ing off the audience.

OUPride
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/22/2011 3:00:07 PM

ESPN is only trying to fill what they perceive as a market. I don't blame them. I blame those armchair recruiting gurus that create that market. Honestly, the whole thing as always struck me as a little creepy. Middle aged men sitting alone in a room pouring over the lives of some kid across the country who they've never met, trading shirtless muscle pics and workout videos of seventeen year old boys with like minded "men" on message boards.

It's almost as though they're trying to channel some rather unhealthy urges into a socially acceptable format. Creepy.

Alan Swank
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 2/22/2011 9:19:28 PM

OUPride wrote:

In reality, they're no different than what you say about ESPN. They perceive there is a market. When I go to the grocery store this summer, I'll see a whole bunch of "prediction" magazines. They wouldn't get printed if someone wasn't buying them. i wonder how many on this board and other boards are part of that market.

Alan Swank
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Location: Athens, OH
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RE: If I were a high school principal

Posted: 3/25/2011 10:25:51 PM

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=6259409

How are you "wrongly allowed into a bar?"

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