Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Daily Pooch Punt: 4/15/08
What happened to sports? What happened to wanting to drag your competition in the dirt, kick them while they’re down then, after the final out, final buzzer or final whistle, walking over to shake their hands, let them know they got you this time (if you lost) and next time, their butts are yours?
What happened to all of that? Where has it gone? Has the white-washing of all things competitive gone this far? Must everything be vanilla? Guess we don’t trust our kids like we trusted ourselves back in the day. We knew we weren’t going to punch someone in the face in the handshake line after a football game. Can we not expect the same of our kids?
Then, when all seems lost and high school sports appears on the cusp of becoming a home-economics class, a coach drops a line your way that makes you nod your head, sigh in relief and say to yourself under your breath, “Yes, someone still gets it.”
That’s why Stuarts Draft baseball coach Josh Podgorski’s line during a phone interview Monday night is going to highlighted here in a second folks. “I want the boys to enjoy high school sports,” he said. “And you’re going to have your rivals.”
Not the first coach to blurt that out, but just the latest in a thankful resurgence of school-color-lust rivalry that made the recent crop of young coaches so exciting. Don’t get us wrong, it’s not an age thing. Heck, I know plenty of grandmothers who are as feisty as a Blue Jay at a bird feeder (and just as maligned), but in coaching there was a bridge of nicey-nice coaches over the crevasse from the kick-butt old guard (think Jim Critzer, Steve Isaacs and the like) to the fiery new guard (Secrett Stubblefield, Jeremy Hartman and, of course, Podgorski).
There’s no smack talk in Podgorski’s quote, just a simple, truthful observance from a guy who’s around kids most of the time (he helps with the football team too) and knows how they work. Give them an end goal and let them get there. If it means beating your buddy in a different jersey, so be it because, and let’s be honest here, your buddy wants to do the same.
It’s the second straight season that this new guard of coaches have provided the lines. Pick anything that came out of Stubblefield’s mouth during Waynesboro’s girls basketball team’s run to the Group AA championship game. Or take a look at Jeremy Hartman, the R.E. Lee girls coach that not only appreciated the fun rivalry he had with Stubblefield and the Giants, but provided his own zinger after his team, in much the same situation as Stuart Draft baseball is in, lost it’s first go-round with the Little Giants.
“You know that they say,” he said, watching his girls walk out of the locker room in tears that early in the season. “Familiarity breeds contempt and that’s what this is.”
Hartman easily won the quote of 2007 contest with his line. Podgorski’s is the early favorite for 2008.
And another thing: OK, let’s talk about this game tonight. Podgorski, not one to keep secrets (and also no dummy either) is well aware that everybody is expecting him to throw ace Cameron Cook off the mound. So he plans on doing so.
Now who Critzer puts on the hump is another story. The veteran ball coach (from the fiery old guard, not that nicey-nice crop) wouldn’t clue us in, opting to say it’s going to be a left-hander. That points the finger squarely at Joseph Lucas and Jeremy Hahn. I got to think Critzer is going with Hahn. The senior is a savvy veteran who’s pitched in the big games before and while this isn’t some win-or-go-home contest, it’s big game.
Hahn also has that swagger that Critzer’s been looking for this season, cut from the same pitching cloth as Jake Peeling before he left for Virginia Tech. The kind of swagger you need in a big rivalry game, like tonight.
Zac Marion, your table is ready. (Though he sets it pretty well for Mickie Holbert.)
Jay Thompson, your table is looking ready too.
Heck, the tables are set for the Little Giants against the Cougars tonight at the KC. And everybody seems to know it.
You know, because like Podgorski said, Waynesboro is Stuarts Draft’s rivals.
And you always want to beat your rivals.