# Sports coaches as jerks **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [April 8, 2000, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-coaches-as-jerks/18003 "2000-04-08T20:02:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Sledman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/839c29/32.png) [@Sledman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sledman)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2000, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-coaches-as-jerks/18003/21 "2000-04-19T21:15:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Originally posted by Bucky: > \*\* > > At this point, I’m really not debating–I’m genuinely looking for a reason why we should alow something as trivial as sports to cross ethical boundaries that other educators cannot cross. > > Bucky\*\* Why will be a tough one. However, define hit. That is the grey area. I have seen teachers when I was in school employ a wide variety of physical contact to students. In these cases I would say the student had it coming. Today I am sure they couldn’t get away with it, probably not with any physical contact. Coaches do though, but again define hit. However you are correct, they get away with contact other teachers would not be able to get away with. They are involved in physical sports so that may be the reason. The sport itself requires contact so a coach having contact with a player is not seen automatically as crossing a line. At that point what crosses the line, certainly choking does(Did he or didn’t he?? We may never know). ---
**Author:** ![shalomy91](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e5b9ba/32.png) [@shalomy91](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shalomy91)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2021, 9:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-coaches-as-jerks/18003/23 "2021-04-18T09:30:34Z")
Ok so I am curious how many people here are actually coaches? I used to whole-heartedly agree with everyone here. I hated my coaches as a kid, teenager and in college, who had temper issues. I thought it was completely unnecessarily and detrimental, both to people and the team. But the better argument than winning, which really only is passable at the top levels, is that at bottom levels, kids goof off. When you coach, you learn this. At first you’re like why are my head coaches such an asshole to these kids, but then so nice to me and other adults. It is giving me flashbacks and making me uncomfortable. Then you realize, you’re not being respected by the players because you’re a pushover. And suddenly, I am a bit more neutral on this issue. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2021, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-coaches-as-jerks/18003/24 "2021-04-18T23:32:44Z")
I’m afraid that most of the posters you are responding to are no longer here-This thread is from over twenty years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2021, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-coaches-as-jerks/18003/25 "2021-04-19T00:08:36Z")
This is a common thought. But I played on dozens of sports teams growing up. House league, competitive, regional, high school. I also refereed soccer games at most levels for almost a decade. This was in Canada. Yes, a few coaches said stupid things. I could count them on one hand. The vast majority were dedicated volunteers, receiving little praise for a fair chunk of work, doing it for their kids. Undeserving of the calumny given to the over dedicated, sociopathic or personality disordered stereotypes often thrown around. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2021, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-coaches-as-jerks/18003/26 "2021-04-19T05:00:12Z")
The reason is that we consider jerkishness to be a winning attribute. It’s also why we tolerate asshole CEOs. His/her cruelty and psychopathic behavior must be translating to results, so goes the logic. Ignoring, of course, the many winning coaches and CEOs who are decent and kind people. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2021, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-coaches-as-jerks/18003/27 "2021-04-19T15:17:59Z")
Gee-- a 21-year-old zombie thread! I had to go through to be sure I hadn’t made the following comment before. One of my junior high coaches had a saying “Happiness is when you hit yourself over the head with a hammer fifty times, and then stop.” We all thought he was maybe a little bit too happy. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2021, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-coaches-as-jerks/18003/28 "2021-04-19T16:24:41Z")
> [@system](#): > > I think it’s a “guy thing”, like “are you tough enough?”, “are you man enough to take it?” “If you can’t stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen”. And yet you aren’t allowed to leave the kitchen, because schools require you to take PE, “taught” by those mouth-breathing, knuckle-dragging shit-stains. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2021, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-coaches-as-jerks/18003/29 "2021-06-15T19:37:16Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Gee-- a 21-year-old zombie thread! I was confused to see that @Satan had started it. I thought we had gotten rid of him. What is worse is that I remember having read it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-coaches-as-jerks/18003.md?page=1)