Don,



It is amazing that people only see what they want to see, hear what they want to hear. DO NOT be mistaken that our coach Craig Morgan is an amazing man, doing amazing things for our kids. I will not take this time to slander and throw mud. It is pointless. We are all adults, start acting like it. People are responsible for there own actions. We dont have to throw stones at each other. We are not whiners. We are all very proud of what our children have learned in the last 2 years. My son will never forget stepping onto the field at Lakeside last year and excited to have the chance to return. I will not allow him to participate in the garbage being slung. He only wants to play football!!! But I will say, run your league fairly, by the rules and it leaves no room for question.



Braves

(posted on starbeacon.com)



Don,



Well, I think that we can all agree the weather was great!! The kids played great!! The girls cheered with heart!! The coaches on both teams worked hard all season. The Badger Braves were so excited to get football started in our community finally. However this constant battle over who said what, who did what, who has more class, and whose coaches are better has put a cloud over all that excitement. The Braves are the new kid in the neighborhood, and I suppose this kind of stuff is to be expected, from the kids, not the adults. Taking on a Presidents position, coaches spot, or concession team is not a job that is part time or taken lightly. Your heart and soul is dedicated to making your team, the best it can be. Remain professional and have no regrets. From what I’ve seen, no one is perfect, and sarcasm and criticism is not helpful. We need our kids to see us at our best,and these blogs are not our best. I was at all the games this year, and the comment regarding drinking at a Braves home game was slightly dramatic, sorry. Unfortunately incidents like that happen everywhere. At an Ashtabula game, some parents were partaking in some ‘illegal’ smoking in the parking lot. It happens, and it’s unfortunate, but we strive for better. Let’s end this season, and move forward with less frustration and more encouragement for our kids. Badger has tried to run a successful program, and I feel they have succeeded, just as I am can tell the other teams have as well. If anyone blogs regarding this whole thing from here on out, can we make it about how great your own team did, not how you feel another team didn’t do what you thought they should. It is about the kids. Good job to all the kids and the hours they sweat, and worked to make the team all that it could be. Good Luck to all in the coming year!!



Mom/Coach/Fan

(posted on starbeacon.com)



n Folks, about all I can say is wow. Just wow. In case anyone ever wonders why it’s difficult to get people to volunteer their time to coach, officiate, be a league commissioner, work the concession stand, etc., the majority of you have provided concrete evidence. The same goes for getting a newspaper correspondent to sit there for four hours. You can bet you will have a difficult time finding anyone to perform any of the above-mentioned tasks next fall. In closing, usually, I try to clean up spelling and grammar problems, but I believe printing your comments as they were written (with personal attacks deleted) offers a bit of an explanation for your perspective, or lack thereof. After reading all of this, it’s obvious the infamous “Little League parents” of days gone by having been getting a bad rap for years — they have been passed by. —DM



Ashtabula County

Conference?



Don,



I was just curious, has it ever been mentioned, or even attempted, to assemble an Ashtabula County Conference (ACC)?

I am from Andover and went to PV. I have family that still attend Pymatuning Valley and play sports, so I pay close attention to the athletics there, as well as all the other programs within the county. This football season, PV only played one other football team that hails from within the county (Grand Valley), and I find it somewhat a shame that all of the county squads have to leave our county for half or most of their games.

Wouldn’t it be nice to see Conneaut, Edgewood, Lakeside, Geneva, Jefferson, Pymatuning Valley and Grand Valley all playing for outright county bragging rights? This would make it possible for all seven teams to play at least six games on Ashtabula County turf, not to mention the rekindled rivalries that would come from this.

I know that the argument could be make about team strengths, and having one or two dominant teams within this hypothetical conference, and that the possibilty of weak schedules could marr playoff berths. My rebutle would be this: It would force the smaller schools to step up their game if they wish to compete and have a chance to win within the conference.

Lets face it, there isn’t a school in the area that has not spent some time at the bottom of their respective conference standings, its just how it is. Given time, though, these squads bounce back to make a legitimate run at a conference championship, and put together teams that can compete with the others in the area.

Such is the case with Edgewood this season. The Warriors were 0-10, and dead last in the NEC last year, and this year, they are rolling right along. So people can throw that excuse right out the window (thank you, Edgewood).

This county is full of people who live in one community, and work or have family or freinds in another town within the county. This fact alone would make the games more interesting and possibly get more people within these communities more interested or involved in their local high school sports programs.

If I live in Andover and work in Ashtabula, I will be counting the days until PV plays Edgewood or Lakeside, and I would be more likely to come out and watch the game knowing that some of my co-workers are sitting on the opposite side of the field rooting against my team.

The same goes for families and friends as well. If I am from Conneaut and have a brother, sister, aunt, uncle, cousin or buddy that lives, lets say down in Orwell, I want to be able to talk some trash to them in the days leading up to when the Spartans play the Mustangs. And it would be all the more intersting if that game actually mattered as far as conference play goes.

Or lets say that it is Week 10 and Geneva and PV are both 4-1 in conference play. This game goes from a cross-county, run-of-the-mill game, to an instant championship game, and the rights to say that their team is without a doubt, with a trophy to prove it, the BEST in Ashtabula County.

Like I said earlier, this is just a hypothetical theory. I would, however, like to hear what you, and others think about this idea, and if it would actually make sense to anyone else but me.

I would furthermore like to thank you for your time, and your Monday Morning Quarterback column.



Wishin’ for an ACC,

Kirk White



n Kirk, I apologize for your letter having to follow that mess, but I wanted to end this one on a good note. All of which you suggested has been brought up many times throught the years and, unfortunately, egos, selfishness, old grudges and, yes, flat out poor judgement, has gotten in the way. I wish I could opine differently, but unfortunately, I don’t see that coming to an end anytime soon. Perhaps reading it from you perspective will prod someone to be able to bring everyone together but, please, don’t hold your breath. Thanks again for the commmon-sense thinking, — DM