Society has competed in sports ever since the Greeks took part in the first Olympic games in 776 BCE.
Of course, those competitions took place over much different rewards and gratification as athletes competed to honor the gods. They battled for the worship of Zeus without longing for money and notoriety. Our society today has seen the uprise in athletics and the notoriety of those who succeed, and the surge for greatness and riches has driven athletes to compete on a personal level. When winning becomes everything, the dormant aggressive nature becomes the driving force of play.
When bringing up the mental stability and composure of athletes, it is important to note that these issues can have nothing to do with the sport itself. Athletes are ingrained to be passionate and fueled up for a game, even at most practices. They are required to show up and give 100% at all times.
When that standard is applied to college and even high school athletes, it may be asking too much. Student-athletes are concerned with much more than sports: such as schooling, social life and time spent outside of organized events. Having to show up for a practice or game fresh off of a bad grade or negative social interaction is a recipe for disaster. Being in a bad mental state is where fights and minor tussles often arise as athletes are already so on edge.
That aspect of collegiate athletics can even be broken down into another category of what kinds of athletes are competing at the college level. Within the last two years, DI has seen a complete change to the way athletes are compensated for their play. The NIL ( Name, Image, and Likeness) wave going through the top of college athletics has seen college athletes receiving millions of dollars through sponsorships and ads.
This both adds and takes away the desire to show up and perform exceptionally on a regular basis. Exceptional DI athletes are compensated no matter how they do, but that is only a little pressure taken off. They are also now expected to go out and play well no matter what, because of the pay. It also raises the point for how determined athletes are on the DII and DIII levels.
When addressing a player’s aggressiveness and mental stability, noting what these players are receiving in return is important. If an athlete is so focused on winning because that is all that is at stake, the emotions can take over and spill into on-field confrontations. No matter the actions of their opponents, they are so on edge because they need this win. No one shames passion and the love of success, but when that overshadows the success and happiness of the team it becomes a problem. Athletes become great when they are determined to win and not put those emotions over a win for the squad. But when winning becomes the sole producer of success and happiness, it can mislead actions over built-up emotion.
Fights most often happen during a game and can occur at almost any point in the game. A large part of those scuffles can be blamed on the referees, just as much as the athletes in many situations. If a referee crew is sloppy with their calls, then it can lead to both teams boiling with anger. There are some sports such as soccer, basketball and field hockey where physical contact is allowed within some sort of rule set.
Players are allowed to lean or utilize momentum to get physical with the opponent, and the referee knows where to draw that line. Whenever that sloppiness occurs and the physicality gets excessive, the athletes are essentially left to endure the unnecessary contact. The speed of some of these sports can lead to heavy impact plays, creating opportunities for injury and “dirty” plays.
Enough consistency with bad refereeing causes players to take action and use that pent-up anger. Athletes have so much adrenaline and emotion flowing through them that they lose sight of the team and its goals to correct the bad officiating. While all athletes should keep their composure and focus on winning, bad officiating can lead to players taking unnecessary action to correct those mistakes.
Unwanted aggression in sports is something that no fan wants to see. Not only can it put your team in peril with a foul or penalty, but it can also lead to serious injury. There are sports involving heavy contact, and a fight or scuffle just increases the percentage of someone being hurt. It also decreases the already beat up mental stability of athletes, taking their focus away from sport and more on toughness. There will always be a place for talking trash and showboating because that is where those players can get out that aggression.
Keeping referees consistently good, and making sure athletes are driven by more than wins limit the amount that athlete’s aggression is carried away. Athletes need to play the sport, not beat the sport.
Jacob Enscoe can be contacted at
jesnscoe@kscequinox.com
