Merely one season ago, the Tennessee Titans were atop the NFL, sporting a respectful 13-3 record. Fast forward nine months, and they can barely score a touchdown, let alone get a win. What a difference a year makes. With no ill-intention, the Titans serve merely as an example; numerous other teams have and could be the goat in this situation. Athletes and coaches alike—within the professional ranks—are merely a commodity. They are one loss or injury away from being traded, released, or discarded as a “wash.” Many dismiss this as merely business.
Athletes are paid outrageous amounts of money, so shouldn’t they be held to an elite performance expectation? I’m not going to argue this position either way, but I will suggest that many of our amateur sports are being treated with the same scrutiny. Whether it is the increased emphasis on winning, on extrinsic rewards (i.e. college scholarships, potential lucrative contracts, media exposure, etc.) or the increase of bureaucratization, an activity originally intended for recreation is no longer treated and viewed as such.
Now, being a former college athlete myself, I understand the dedication, hard work, and character it takes to ready yourself for competition. As a believer, I firmly grasp the spiritual parallel that the Bible offers in 1 Corinthians 9:24-25, “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.” I’m not discounting the need to be ready “in and out of season,” both in a spiritual context as well as a sporting realm, but I am questioning individuals’ motivation in enduring the physical regime that sport specification requires. Is it solely for the love of the game? I cannot answer this question for everyone.
In a day where athletes are specializing in single sports to gain an edge on their competitors, and local high school coaches receive threats from fans when their teams don’t beat their rivals, I fear that the art of “having fun” through sport participation has lost its luster. Maybe when parents quit vicariously living through their children to achieve accolades that they never were awarded, or maybe when youth coaches realize that their ability to coach their child’s teams to undefeated seasons will not result in NFL coaching position offers—maybe, just maybe then—our kids won’t experience “burnout” from having fun.