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The 6 Key Components Of Commitment In Football

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Americans enjoy their sports. Watching, playing and cheering for a favorite team is all part of American culture. More than 36 million kids ages 5 -18 years old play an organized sport each year. Football being the most popular high school sport with more than 1.2 million players each year, while the number of high schoolers playing soccer is 286,000. With so many youth participating in organized sports each year, coaches are playing a key role in the lives of their athletes (Seth, "Youth Sports Participation Statistics"). Being successful in a sport does not just require work on the athlete’s part but also a coach willing to do what it takes to impact the player. Coaches have an opportunity to teach many lessons to their players including …show more content…

The desire for instant gratification and the entitlement of today’s youth and young adults leaves many athletes not knowing the important concept of commitment. Commitment is a serious, long-term promise you make and keep with yourself and others to fully dedicate yourself to your task, training and/or team, even when, and especially when times are tough. Further, commitment means not only promising to do something, but much more importantly, actually investing the necessary effort and actions to make it happen (Janssen, “The 6 Key Components of Commitment”). A serious commitment is a solemn promise, a full investment, willingness to sacrifice, long-term obligation, a pact to preserve, and an agreement to act (Janssen, “The 6 Key Components of Commitment”). The development of a player is a long process in which the player progresses from beginner to more advanced in the game and this development requires commitment from a coach. A coach should be committed to take on these seven responsibilities: provide a safe physical environment, communicate in a positive way, teach the fundamental skills, teach the rules of the game, direct players in competition, help players become fit and value fitness for a lifetime, and help young people develop character (Snow, 2-3). The progression of an athlete requires proper guidance and direction from coaches who are ethical, knowledgeable, and licensed. There is no guarantee that …show more content…

In order for coaches to model this behavior, a high level of ethical conduct is needed. The dictionary gives several definitions of the word “ethics.” It is the discipline dealing with what is good (virtue) and bad (vice), a set of moral values, the study of right and wrong, a system of accepted professional conduct of behavior, and the seat of ethics is in our hearts, not in our minds (Schum, 52). It is important for schools, clubs, and organizations to have coaches whose values are in line with what that group believes. American society has been greatly influenced by Judeo-Christian morality. These ethics provide guidelines for coaches. The soccer coach can be a significant educator in teaching ethical concepts. Athletes look to the coach to model the behavior expected or permitted (Schum, 53). This is why coaching is such a great responsibility and also a great opportunity. The truth is few players receive college scholarships for athletics and only a very small percent will ever become professionals in their sport, but all will need to know how to live as an adult, so character and values are extremely important

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