Sports go green too

I have been told by semi-reliable sources (yes, you Carrie) that green is neutral for our school district.

I will explain further because that statement is probably a bit confusing.

The Encampment Tiger’s colors are red and black; the Saratoga Panthers are zinc and amethyst … oops … purple and yellow (wasn’t that the same somehow?); and the Hanna Miners are blue and orange. When fans here go to a game they may well be rooting for both teams. Around here it is entirely possible that the rooter may have relations (sons, daughters, nieces, nephews and the like) on both of the opposing teams.

In that case you will want to wear green. That color allows you to “safely” cheer both teams on.

Of course, this only works if two teams from our school district are playing. If we are playing Farson-Eden (whose color is green) that might not be a good thing.

I have actually seen shirts from both of the teams competing sewn together in a Frankenstein’s monster of a shirt with half being the colors for one team and the other half comprised of the other’s colors and logos.

I have also heard that there was, once upon a time, a section in the stands designated “Switzerland” for folks who want to encourage both teams or particular players on opposing sides.

Of course this might just be Carrie Craig getting revenge on me for scaring the living daylights out of her once.

If so, touché.

But I like the idea anyway.

As an impartial observer and journalist (it’s true whether you believe it or not), I root for good plays.

If there is a good block in a basketball game, I cheer .

If there is a sweet bump in a volleyball game, I find myself saying “yes.”

I encourage our athletes whenever possible.

I know kids and coaches from pretty much every team in eastern Carbon County and they are all worthwhile individuals.

I like to wish the teams good luck before games because I am usually standing on the sidelines with a camera when the games start.

Since I am now on this subject, I want you to know I try to make it a point that the Saratoga Sun only highlights the positive sides of our schools’ athletic events and athletes.

There was, several years ago, a story published by a competing paper that called out one of our teams during state play.

The article mentioned (and I am paraphrasing since I don’t have it in front of me) sloppy passing, poor defense, bad shot selection and a general lack of effort.

As editor, I will never let a story like that past me.

Why?

Because I know our kids are always trying their hardest.

These sports are also not the kids’ jobs.

They are not professional athletes who get paid to only practice one sport.

I feel no regret for calling out former professional basketball player Shaquille O’Neal for his extremely poor free throw shooting.

And Lord, that man was bad.

But that was part of his job.

He got paid tens (if not hundreds) of millions of dollars to perform on the court.

Our kids main focus should be their education.

They play these sports because they enjoy them.

They take the time out of their lives to practice and go to games to show pride in their schools.

If a student has a bad game, they have a bad game. I am not going to say anything about that because I have been there myself.

If a team loses every game, we have to report that.

But the story is going to be about what the coaches see as room for improvement, what they look for in the next game or what needs to change in their game plan.

We are also not going to “pile on” the coaches. These are people whose main focus should be teaching.

When they come up with game plans and try to have those executed, I try to remember they are dealing with small-town school age kids.

There is only so much an individual can do.

I want you to remember that these kids are playing to the utmost of their abilities and that they are learning team-building skills that should help positively shape their lives.

At their best, school sports are a chance to learn leadership traits and teamwork, make lifetime friends and keep in good physical shape.

Some may even have the opportunity to get a sports scholarship and, possibly, make a career.

At their worst, sports have the ability to negatively impact a person’s outlook far into their future.

I am not the kind of person who thinks that everyone should get a trophy for just participating.

Winners should be acknowledged as such.

But let’s not forget that our school-aged athletes are leaving it all on their particular playing field.

I know this sentiment is often taken politically, but I hope you will get what I am really saying when I encourage you to “Go Green.”