Sportsmanship
by Thomas M. Reid on Jan.18, 2010, under Parenting
The Vikings beat the everloving snot out of the Cowboys yesterday. They didn’t just win, they dominated. I watched for a while, and when it became apparent that the conclusion was foregone, I decided to turn the game off and spend some quality time with my kids. It wasn’t until later that I found out that some of the Cowboys were incensed that the Vikings went for, and got, one last touchdown at the very end of the game. They had the option of kneeling down and letting the clock run out, but chose not to. In the old days of football, this was called Running Up the Score, and it was considered a no-no. In today’s game, it’s apparently called Keeping the Momentum Going For Next Week.
I think it’s a pretty classless move, but I’m not deluding myself; the business of football has changed so much since the days of my youth, and what was true back then is considered weak and wimpy by today’s standards. Tom Landry would never have padded the score at the end of a game, but then again, players barely earned enough to make a living and there was no such thing as free agency back then. Nowadays, if you want to win, you’ll sign any ass you think can make you better, even if that player danced on the star at midfield to mock you only a few seasons before. Victory before all else is the mantra.
The truth is, I don’t really care. As much as I am not surprised that the Vikings chose to rub the Cowboys’ noses in it, I am surprised that certain Cowboys players got upset about it; it comes off as foolishly idealistic to me (and that probably says as much about me as about them). No, the point I’m getting at here is that sportsmanship is in large measure an empty word these days. From the pros down to peewee football, the message is trounce or get trounced; win or go home. And don’t look for moral victories, respect, or anything else in defeat. Sports has become the last place you’d expect to find sportsmanship anymore.
This is nothing new. I’m not making some grand revelation. But man, I’ve realized, finally, that I’m very glad none of my kids actually likes watching games with me. And that makes me really sad.
January 24th, 2010 on 4:04 pm
Hi, Thomas — Nice site revamp! I’m sure a football post is the last one where you’d expect to see a comment from me, but I’ve been pulled into the sport because Trevor (just turned 12) is really into it at the moment. Anyway, I don’t think that scoring even when your victory is already assured is bad sportsmanship. It’s just playing the game and seeing how well you can do. On the contrary, I’d say that taking a knee is bad sportsmanship, because you’re denying the other team a chance (however slim) of getting another shot at the ball. You’re also boring fans who probably don’t enjoy watching the teams stand around and do nothing while a clock ticks down. I’m sure you’re right that sports overall don’t embody much sportsmanship anymore, but I don’t think this particular example makes the case.
January 24th, 2010 on 7:47 pm
Hey, Ray.
I’ve heard other people make that argument before, and I can understand the viewpoint; taking a knee does, in some respects, appear to be the weeny way out. But there’s a difference between running out the clock by handing the ball off and throwing passes with the clear intention of trying to score again.
The definition of sportsmanship is certainly subjective; I’m drawing on my memories of how the game was played a loooong time ago, whereas you’re observing it as a parent only recently paying attention (I think). Regardless, this is just one example of an ongoing trend I’ve observed over a period of time. There are a lot of other examples I could throw out there, but the point is, I came to the conclusion that I don’t want these sports figures to be “heroes” for my kids the way they were for me.
January 26th, 2010 on 9:27 am
Okay, I agree that most sports figures today don’t even come close to qualifying as heroes to be looked up to. But I still say that I don’t consider trying to score in the last moments of a game, even when you don’t need to, an example of bad sportsmanship. That’s what the teams are there to do. I suppose if the score were 56 to 0, the winning team might look jerky by going for another touchdown, but in a normal game, let ‘em play.