Losing With Grace?

Some players and coaches don’t know how to lose, but fans are much worse. These days fans think wholesale changes must be implemented if a team is losing, not thinking about preseason expectations and long-term contracts and goals. There is too much rejoicing when a team merely does what they are supposed to do (like when Clemson beat lowly Wake Forest Thursday night).

There is often too much knashing of teeth when a team loses. This week all UGA fans have been talking about is that the #10 Dawgs will lose to #2 Florida. UGA lost to SC, and Florida has already beaten highly ranked LSU and SC. Should Florida go on and beat UGA, how should the fans react? Should fans be mad when their team loses to a team clearly superior to theirs? Or should they be able to take away positive aspects from the game? Wasn’t it the 2011 SEC Championship Game when UGA played a great first half against the overwhelmingly favored #1 LSU Tigers, who went on to win the BCS National Championship?

In the youth baseball that Will played, from 6 years old and up, it was evident that some boys didn’t know how to lose. Likewise, it is evident that many do not know how to win.

When Herschel Walker came on the scene and started scoring all those touchdowns, it was refreshing to see him casually flip the ball to the referee…acting like he’d scored before. Now you see defensive backs, after being badly beaten on the previous play, taking part in elaborate celebrations for merely doing their job: breaking up a pass. Or pleading innocence to a referee about the pass interference call when millions watching on national TV can clearly see he was guilty.

Of course, in today’s world these concepts are considered “old-school”…just like the bizarre uniforms teams wear for two main reasons: (1) to attract 17 year old recruits and (2) to make more money for the team. All this goes hand in hand with the “win at all costs” theory.

NOTES: After work Thursday I met C and M at the Chattahoochee National Forest parking lot off Lower Roswell, not far from the Fulton County line…just 2 or 3 miles from our house. We hiked through the woods and along the river for several miles. Saw a multi-point buck, that didn’t seem too afraid of us. C brought along our dog Barney, and he had a grand time. Matthew loved it as well, so we’ll probably be going back.

Watched the Clemson game and some of the World Series. The Giants look hot, but things could change back in Detroit. Still, I’m expecting the Giants to win the Series.

Not much going on this weekend. I’ll watch GT/BYU, GA/FL, OK/ND, & some of the Series. Sunday afternoon I’ll pick up Will at the airport. We’ll all eat somewhere after the 4 pm Passion service, then I’ll take him back to Athens.