Who is responsible for getting the kid prepared for the next level?

It’s a boy (or girl), there  you are smiling taking photos,  calling grandparents, family and friends making announcements.  That right,  you are a parent, you are so proud,  your baby!  FLASHFORWARD! Senior year is here,  questions are coming in faster than you can answer, most of them, you are asking yourself!  Did you prepare him for the next level?  Yeah, AAU, Pop Warner,  NYFL,  out of town tournaments,  high school sports, etc… ,  you dream of watching your baby during the BCS  season, and your child is plastered all over the television.  Then you hear a loud ringing noise!  It’s the alarm, you wake up to another hot summer day in Las Vegas, you get out of the bed, you leave your room on a repeated trip down the hallway to your baby’s room.  As  you walk past all the awards and trophies that your baby accumulated through the years.  You get to his door,  you just walk in frustration to find your baby sleeping, you wake him, and you ask him the same question you asked him yesterday, last week, last month, last year, ” did you enroll in college, or hear anything from the school today….. “  Did you fail?

Lets  review,  did you know that more than 50% of the programs (AAU, Pop Warner, NYFL, etc…) aren’t really teaching your child anything,   other than giving you that warm and fuzzy feeling on the weekend when you get to watch your child play his 5 minutes or 5 plays as required by some of the leagues. Let’s not forget the monthly dues, the tournament fees and the  cost of the beautiful uniforms and team attire.  Yeah, you have all those dreams in your head that your child is the next Micheal Jordan or  Adrian Peterson.  Parents its okay to dream,  it’s even okay to let your child explore his passion for sports,  in  his desired sport.   Your child  may not want to go any further than high school with it.   Understand that this article is directed specifically at the parent that has discussed this topic with the child and you both have agreed to pursue an athletic scholarship.

Let me get to the point, in these modern times of  the information highway, Mom and Dad you have the ultimate responsibility to prepare your baby, so  get on the Internet or ask the coach about training programs and camps and combines within the state and outside.  Preparation is the key to your child’s success, you don’t just get ready to play football or any sport 3 weeks  before the season starts and expect to be among the elite players in the country. Go to your child’s practice, stay and watch, see what’s going on, ask the coach about your child’s progress, has your baby become a student of the game?  Mom and Dad you study the position that your child is playing,  so you can know what he is supposed to do, or if he is mentally and physically fit to play that position.  Find out the coach’s experience, is just filling the position, or is he just the guy that needed the extra money to supplement his income.  Does the coach have a relationship with the local university coach or any others?  Is your coach committed to your child’s  success  or just his own?  Does your child have professional high light video that he can send out to the different Universities upon request or are you relying on the coach or the school?   Meet and establish a relationship with your child’s academic advisers,  make sure your child is on track to graduate, make sure he has taken all the entry exams.

Mom and Dad, again its your responsibility to monitor their academic levels and athletic opportunities, there are dates and deadlines,  find out what they are.  This is a never ending topic, and I will return to it throughout the year in my “Quest” to get Las Vegas athletics on the next level, with the idea and concept of PremierBall-Football, “no player left behind.”