WIAA bans AIRBALL chants at HS basketball games

[pacopete4]

http://espn.go.com/blog/green-bay-packers/post/_/id/27240/to-packers-rodgers-chanting-at-prep-games-is-one-of-the-fun-da-men-tals

 

Rodgers chimes in.

[LouisEly]

Fans don't chant air ball because they have something against that player personally. They do it because they want to remind the player that he or she screwed up, which will ideally make that person play worse and help their team win.

I think they do it because they see it on TV and subsequently think it's cool. If they didn't see it on TV they wouldn't do it.

 

Frankly, these kids get a lot more crap from fellow teammates, their parents, sometimes coaches. What is HE doing on the team? Why is Johnny getting playing time? This stuff goes on all the time, and is the real problem.

Now THIS I agree with, because it was the exact reason I quit playing basketball in middle school and baseball in high school. If you try out for the team, but you're not in the clique with the rest of the players, you're not wanted on the team and they let you know it.

[FVBrewerFan]

Back in high school the hoops coach during a pep rally took the microphone and commented "if you feel the need to come to our games and do all your chants, then please stay away because you're an embarrassment to the team." And this guy was as conservative as they come. I used to enjoy going to games but now with the increasing uncivil behavior displayed at games I've lost my appetite.

 

You hit the nail on the head. It's up to individual schools to police this, it just smells too much like big brother for the WIAA to tell everyone exactly what they can and can not say. Most schools do a really good job of this. They'll allow the "airball" chant or "we can't hear you" which are pretty tame. But if it gets beyond that, they shut it down.

 

The schools that don't police themselves are few and far between, and only hurt themselves because they gain a horrible reputation. One school in the FVA comes to mind, everyone knows who it is, and everyone thinks they're a joke. What's weird is the parents are just as bad as the kids at that school.

[NievesNoNO]

I think the intention was probably good but the presentation is awful. The chant's listed are harmless. There's a difference between targeting an individual and what they're talking about. There's a line that shouldn't be crossed and that should be addressed by the administration if need be not a blanket statement by the WIAA.

 

There are real problems with youth sports (mostly revolving around adults), but chants at (typically) a boys H.S. game isn't one of them. Honestly, when you're playing at that level do you really hear the crowd enough to affect you?

 

I'd also like to call out (not necessarily on this board) posts I've seen regarding the games being an extension of the classroom. I'm going to call BS on that. While it's not quite big business, many many schools run their hometown athletics like it is. They're recruiting kids at very young age to play on tournament teams and such and excluding others very early on based on a variety of factors, so please don't feed me the line that sports are an extension of the classroom.

[MKE81]

"...What are we telling our kids, that freedom of speech doesn’t exist? And any type of negative comment, you’re going to get somebody in trouble for? I just don’t agree with that." - A-A-Ron Rodgers

 

hilarious coming from someone who plays in a league that fines players for wearing different colored socks. apparently Berkeley didn't teach him what freedom of speech actually means either. based on his comment i should be able to just scream derogatory remarks toward anyone at any time wherever i see fit, because of freedom of speech, and nothing should happen to me. what an awful world that would be to live in. i could care less about this topic at the end of the day; it shouldn't even demand attention. like everything else in life, it all starts with the parents. as a fan, never once did i feel the need to chant/scream anything toward any player at any level of sport. i'm there to watch and enjoy. people who chant/scream nonsense (sometimes they're actually clever though so you get a chuckle out of it at least) at players are the absolute worst. it's so stupid and always has been.

 

and anybody who's coached within the past 5 years knows that chants, etc aren't the biggest problem. the parents are. parents nowadays are horrendous.

[DocLuna7]

Much of what I would argue has already been said but I will still chime in and say that this seems like a real overreaction on the part of WIAA. As others have pointed out, there is something to be said for facing some adversity and criticism in life, particularly when young. I know everyone reacts differently, but when I played high school sports I just assumed that some razzing was part of the experience. Perhaps the WIAA would like fans to stop cheering altogether and silently observe high school athletes so as not to hurt anyone's feelings by expressing a preference for one team over another? Good grief.

[nodakfan17]

Count me among those who think Wisconsin comes out looking silly on this one.

 

There needs to be some level of civility, but leave it up to the discretion of a teacher or associate principal to weed out the truly obnoxious students (or parents). In 99% of cases, these cheers are harmless. One of my best friends played varsity hockey in high school and I'd spend most Friday nights at the rink watching his games. Like most groups of teenagers, we'd crack our share of jokes, but in the rare instances where we'd cross the line, a parent was sure to remind us to be a better example for the younger fans. Afterwards, we'd usually go to IHOP. Life was good.

[TURBO]

but in the rare instances where we'd cross the line, a parent was sure to remind us to be a better example for the younger fans.

 

You are talking about an entire different generation of parenting though.

 

Today's parents might not even notice as they have their faces buried in their phones...

[AZBrewCrew]

Im so glad Menomonie changed their names to the Mustangs...one of the chants when I was in HS was "We are the Indians,the mighty mighty Indians". Im sure these days someone would be offended by the chant saying that Indians are a superior strength to other heritages.

[nate82]

I am just going to say this on this subject: