WIAA’s next rule, require home team to take visitors out for ice cream after game

Guidelines bring tee-ball
mentality to high school sports

Kids are creative. Kids are smart. Kids are smartasses.

Kids are going to find a way to make a mockery of the WIAA’s latest attempt at the tee-ball-ification of sports.

Recently, the governing body of sports in Wisconsin sent an email to high schools advising them how crowds should cheer – or, actually, should not cheer.

The email used specific examples on what is now to be frowned upon during a game.

Locally, Logan High School boys basketball coach Andy Fernholz wasn’t thrilled about the reiteration of the WIAA guidelines or the specificity of them. He does, however, look forward to what students will come up with now.

If students can’t yell facts like, “You can’t do that,” or point out that there are inanimate objects in the gym, like chanting “Scoreboard,” – also a fact – or reiterating what just happened in the game, like, say, an “Airball,” then perhaps crowds will just have to get sarcastic with their cheers or use reverse psychology.

Those were just some examples specifically used in the WIAA email, along with others like, “We can’t hear you,” and “There’s a net there.”

“I do think we have some creative fans and have some creative students and they’ll find ways around this,” Fernholz said. “They’ll find ways to get into kids’ heads in different ways. To use that home-court advantage and their ability to affect the game in more creative ways.

“Instead of chanting, ‘Airball,’ maybe our kids can get creative and come up with some other way to let him know his shot was a little bit short or didn’t quite connect on the rim.”

The story has since gone national, as Sports Illustrated picked it up and ESPN’s Jay Bilas went hilariously off on Twitter at the WIAA, adding to its set of guidelines with some of his own.

Fernholz believes athletes can handle the crowds, can take a ribbing. He even believes it to be a good thing.

“As an athlete, you know that you put yourself out there a little bit,” he said. “You know you’re going to be susceptible to some of that criticism and some of those harsh remarks. And, as an athlete, I think you accept that and, maybe it even motivates you a little bit – brings out the best in you.”

What it all comes back to is the tee-ball mentality.

“It’s kind of an interesting direction of where we’re going,” Fernholz said. “We’re going to give that award for participating. It’s feel good for everybody. It’s nobody gets left out and nobody gets left behind and we’re including everybody in a positive way.”

Next up for the WIAA, requiring the coaches of the home team to, not only take their players out for pizza and ice cream after the game, but to invite the opposing team, as well. As of right now, it’s not in the association’s 40-page online PDF called the “Sportsmanship Reference Guide,” to be passed out at all sporting events until the office runs out of paper.

“Some people will argue that we are moving in the direction that’s too soft and maybe we’re coddling kids a little bit too much,” said Fernholz, who had just taken his team out for some pizza (Just kidding. Actually, I don’t know.).

Last Friday, Fernholz’s Rangers took down the previously undefeated city rival, and 8-0, Central on their home court. It was a game where the crowds went back and forth, a battle as heated in the stands on each side of the court as it was on the court itself, on who had the best chants.

And, Fernholz pointed out, “We did have some students that did have 8-1 taped across their bare chests,” Fernholz said.

Something that, after the Rangers 68-66 win over the Red Raiders, was, yet again, another fact.