No sports parent enjoys watching his child’s coach get ejected from the game. We either feel embarrassed for him or angry that he let his team down. My own husband, who coached for 28 years, was ejected more than once from a game, but in his defense, it was for minor infractions. I’ll agree that some coaches deserve to be kicked out of the competition. They are the ones who take their anger and passion just a little too far and step over the line of respectful treatment of others. But let’s be honest about this for a minute. Sports parents have more in common with ejected coaches than you’d like to admit. Before you point fingers at your child’s coach the next time he gets himself into hot water, stop and check your own behavior:
- Coaches yell at the refs; parents do that and more. In fact, some parents are downright insulting and rude.
- Coaches get mad at the kids; parents in the stands and on the sidelines often express their anger at kids in the game and at the mistakes being made.
- Coaches fight an official’s call; parents boo and complain loudly all the time when they see a call they don’t like.
These observations are not to excuse a coach’s behavior. They are merely to point out that when you point the finger at someone else, remember that there are three pointing back at you. The behavior of ranting parents often mirrors the behavior of ejected coaches. Neither one is fun to watch. Neither one is good for youth sports. Janis Meredith, sports mom and coach’s wife, writes a sports parenting blog called JBM THINKS. 
