Boys Need More Football, Less Soccer

Off Topic
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[quote]flyboy51v wrote:
When I was a kid … every guy wanted to play football … now kids are playing soccer. Soccer is NOT a tough, aggressive sport. I’m sorry all you soccer fans. I’ve played a lot of soccer. There’s a reason mom’s all want their kids to play soccer so they don’t get hurt.
[/quote]

I have actually heard a mother at one of our high school football games cry and freak out because her 3rd string son got into a game. She didn’t mind practice but he might get hurt in the game.

Kudos to some other moms for actually laughing at her.

And no, it wasn’t my wife doing the lamenting.

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Yee haw

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[quote]pushharder wrote:
My opposition to soccer is based strictly on its political correctness connotations here in the U.S.. You boyz from Europe and elsewhere probably just don’t understand what I’m talking about.

If you haven’t lived in America and understand American political/social history then you’re going to sit on the other side of the pond sniveling that we don’t like your national pastime, completely clueless as to what all the rhetoric is all about.

We (our ancestors) came from where you’re at to get away and start a new nationality, a new culture, with new customs and that includes sports. We (maybe just ‘I’) see the ramrodding of soccer as some insidious plot to meld the U.S. with the rest of the world. Make us like everyone else. To that I say, “Fuck off”.

In all fairness maybe that’s how you feel in reverse with the huge flood of American culture/media that engulfs the world. If you feel that way then maybe you might just understand where I’m coming from with the soccer thing. In some small way.[/quote]

I see what you’re saying, Push, but soccer has been present in North America longer than American football. I think soccer has just been slow to catch up to the level of competition elsewhere in the world, which is probably the reason the United States has many bad youth leagues.

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[quote]pushharder wrote:
Flow wrote:

I see what you’re saying, Push, but soccer has been present in North America longer than American football…

That may be true on some technical level but come on man…don’t even make me address this, for crying out loud.[/quote]

Do you think America’s participation in Greco-Roman originating sports (track and field, weight-lifting, wrestling) represents another attempt by Europe to ‘ramrod’ their culture into our own?

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Soccer is the most physically enduring sport. Whats harder then constantly sprinting? Motocross is the second.(these are both statistical facts) Girls do both.
I mountain bike and i’ve had worse injuries then any football player I’ve known. Oh and girls do that too. Guess what, i like them doing it and all the guys at downhill races like it too.

My anatomy teacher’s sons were 2 of the fittest guys in the entire school. They didn’t play football and were bigger and stronger then any football player I’ve seen. They did rock climbing and looked at football as a sport for weaklings.

Now I’m not saying contact sports are for sissies or anything like that. I’m just pointing out that playing them doesn’t make you a man and not playing them doesn’t make you soft.

I’d like to also point out the fact that I’ve seen plenty of fat asses who only watch football, never play it, and act like it is the worlds greatest thing.

People can play whatever sport they like. Let them it doesn’t make them sissies.

Also you mentioned fishing. I like the idea of fishing dieing. It wont stop me from going. Nothing like casting out and having a tasty trout on the line in 30 seconds.

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[quote]pushharder wrote:
Savvy?[/quote]

Yeah, I understand your perspective.

Parents that don’t allow their kids to play football when said child is actually interested in trying it are incredibly close minded and overprotective.

I guess we’ll just have to agree to disagree on the prospect of soccer melding into American culture.

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Soccer can be quite brutal, especially for the keeper. I played as a kid and took balls in the face (You can kick a ball harder than you can throw one), had my legs taken out under me, got kicked in the balls (with cleats), and got my head kneed into a goal post.

Any sport can be pussyfied or played to the limit. Which depends on the players and the coaches. Also, simply getting hit dosn’t make a kid any manlier. It is the competition itself and playing as hard as one can that makes a sport manly.

On a side note: I also did full-contact karate as a kid and have moved on to BJJ. I am pretty sure I took more and harder hits than I would have playing football.

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[quote]MtbKid wrote:
Soccer is the most physically enduring sport. Whats harder then constantly sprinting?[/quote]

I’m pretty sure you sprint more in basketball. In soccer when the ball is off on the other side of the field you get a break. In basketball you always have to run.

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Nobody ever defined what manly is so we won’t ever agree when we don’t even know what we are trying to agree on.

Here are a few reasons why football would be considered manly.

First of all, injuries are happening every game, shoot almost ever practice. I’m not saying that getting hurt is manly. I’m just saying that football players have to play through a bunch of pain and play a sport that is extremely hard on the body. When you sprain an ankle you aren’t expected to miss any games or practices. You aren’t even expected to take it easy. It isn’t just ankle sprains that was just one thing that popped into my head right away. The way you are rewarded for getting hurt is getting to get up and go to practice at 8 in the morning and go through a 3 hour practice. A practice that has a very good chance at getting you hurt again.

You can’t forget that football has the biggest, strongest, and even sometimes the fastest athletes. What is more manly? Lining up against a 6’5 270 pound man planning to run you over or a 5’6 135 pound guy that might bump into you when you have been running a lot and might be tired?

Also, isn’t it kind of a manly characteristic to be able to provide for your family? I mean, is Ronnie Coleman all that manly if he is off lifting weights while his children and wife are starving at home without any good clothes to wear? Football doesn’t exactly feed your children, but it gets you a a scholarship far more often than any other sport. That means that you, and not your family, are getting yourself into college and putting yourself into a good position to get a decent paying job.

I’ll admit, you don’t have to be tough to play football. There are always those kids who can manage to hide for over half the practice and never get involved in the scrimmaging and never get in games. However, when you are the toughest kid in the football team you are a man. When you are the toughest kid on the soccer team, well…you are a soccer player. It isn’t to say you can’t be manly and play soccer, but there are a lot more manly people playing football. Baseball is not a tough sport, either. Baseball doesn’t even have hard conditioning.

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My son is playing freshmen football this year. I wouldn’t allow him to play it before now for a few reasons. One was this 7-13 year old football reminds me of those old electric games that would vibrate like hell in a lot of different directions.

Another was getting him hurt while he was playing crappy ball that vibrates in a whole lot of different directions.

He’s also a little undersized yet. He’ll be 14 in late august, didn’t hit puberty yet, and goes about 5’2-3" and 105 or so pounds. He’s strong and fast, with a 200 pound deadlift and a 4.8 forty.

When I talked to Jim Wendler and Eric Cressey a few years ago, they both thought if he really wanted to play, wait until he was older. Let him play a variety of sports like soccer, baseball, basketball and develop a lot of different skills.

I’m not one of those nervous moms and do love the game, but now I almost wish he would run cross country instead. however, I do believe every boy should get a shot at football if they really want it.

Now why the running? He did a 10 K race two weeks ago and finished 45/135 and 2nd in the 13-18 year olds. He did a 52:36 in one of the toughest 10 Ks in the country. The Shenandoah Mrs. T’s Pierogies coal Cracker run is a very hilly course, with about 3.5 miles of steep grades. A part of the run goes through a local “Death Valley” , a few mile stretch of road that runs between old anthracite coal banks, which are as black and how as you’ll see in Pa. on a 90+ degree day in june, with high humidity.

Here’s the kicker, Tom did the fun run 2-3 years ago, which is about 1 mile or so, so I called him up the day before the race and asked if he would like to give it a shot. He said sure, because he’s a little goofy and loves a physical challenge. And the kid was not running at all. He did not train for the race.He was just in shape.

Now some of this in shape came from his overall working out stuff, but I’m sure all the running he did in soccer helped him to build up his general fitness levels at his age.

I have no problem with a soccer before football approach before high school, but a kid needs to have a chance to play then if he wishes.

aAd I think soccer is stupid too, btw.

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[quote]FlavaDave wrote:
flyboy51v wrote:
Hey FlavaDave … what’s your feeling about badminton?

It’s riveting. Having played competitively in my youth, I can honestly say that I still have nightmares. It’s what has driven me to train. To get bigger and stronger. Because one day, I know, I will have to face down the shuttlecock. And when that moment comes, I will be ready. [/quote]

Do you 'roid up, to prepare for the big tournament?

Jeez, a bunch of fairies prancing around at badminton…on T-Nation yet…jeeeeeezzzzzzzz…

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[quote]Professor X wrote:
I would like to nominate the Brazilian/African fighting style of Capoeira as the next wannabe trend.

It should be way more interesting than skinny guys running around all claiming they can beat up everyone 50-100lbs bigger than them because of their mad MMA skilz.[/quote]

I’m beginning to think your folks got you that microscope so that you could see your penis.

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Hyperbole? I’ve known plenty of guys that were physically tough on the field but had the intellectual and emotional maturity of a Downs syndrome child. As has been stated already - the sport you play isn’t what makes you a man.

If you want to attach manhood to a sport let’s take it to it’s natural conclusion and at least recommend sports which require the participant to face death - free solo climbing, alpine climbing, anything involving an angry bull, maybe bowhunting big game.

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[quote]Headhunter wrote:
Professor X wrote:
I would like to nominate the Brazilian/African fighting style of Capoeira as the next wannabe trend.

It should be way more interesting than skinny guys running around all claiming they can beat up everyone 50-100lbs bigger than them because of their mad MMA skilz.

I’m beginning to think your folks got you that microscope so that you could see your penis.

[/quote]

They bought me a telescope too.

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[quote]Wimpy wrote:
Eielson wrote:However, when you are the toughest kid in the football team you are a man.

Hyperbole? I’ve known plenty of guys that were physically tough on the field but had the intellectual and emotional maturity of a Downs syndrome child. As has been stated already - the sport you play isn’t what makes you a man.[/quote]

A tough football player is going to be a tough person. Call them immature or whatever you want but they are still tough. The toughest soccer players are usually not tough at all.

I just love how somebody picks one line out of a 4 paragraph post and tells me why my whole post isn’t right because there might be an error in that one line.

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It may have something to do with the spiritual aspects but, as a high school teacher, it is the football players who have the most drive to succeed and the sense of accomplishment. As a group, the football players in my classes have been the best guys in the class.

It is no surprise that being a football player is a plus when a young man applies to one of our service academies. They have brains, balls, and wherewithal to keep going when the game plan goes to hell.

Football is, without a doubt, the greatest sport we have.

“I want an officer for a secret and dangerous mission; I want a West Point Football player,”
— General George C. Marshall during World War II