Fly4Fun;918088 wrote:It won't screw up a kid... but I also think it's a shame to hold anyone back. Imagine telling the child prodigy piano player he can only practice once a week or telling the child genius he can only go to class one hour a day.
There is no reason to hold a kid back in anything they excel at... unless it's excelling at something inappropriate, like hooking up with teachers.
That's apples to oranges. They aren't telling the kid he can't practice. They aren't telling the kid he can't play. They are telling him that after his team is up 14 points, his touchdowns don't count anymore.
We are talking about fifth and sixth grade football here. It isn't like he's in junior high where winning starts to matter. At that age, it's about laying the foundation and teaching the kids the fundamentals to get them ready for the next year. Nobody is saying the kid can't run the ball. If the coach wants to, he could hand it off to the kid all day long and let him run forever. Let him run to the one and go out of bounds. Hell, let him take it to the house...it just won't count.
At that level, there are all kinds of rules that are there for safety, and to keep the kids interested in the game. Like I said, it's all about teaching the kids the basics, and getting them excited about football. I coached in a league where a player wasn't allowed to get the ball two plays in a row. Another rule was that the clock went to continuous if the winning team was up by 21 at any point in the game.
I don't have a problem with this. And it's pretty obvious that the kid doesn't have a problem with it.
But clearly, moving him up a level would have been the best solution. Then, this wouldn't even be a story.