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Zack Dulski
Mr. Newman
English 101: Rhetoric
01 December 2014
What Defined High School for You?
One aspect of high school that college students remember the most are the sports they
were involved in. No matter the sport, students remember their experiences as a high school
athlete. In recent events, these memories are in danger of not being around for future athletes.
Football is in jeopardy because of concussion issues, baseball has the concern involving pitchers
being hit by a 90 mph ball and the list goes on and on for each sport. With progressively more
players getting injured and a great deal of lawsuits from former players claiming they were not
properly informed of the risks, high school sports are in jeopardy of being erased. On top of the
injury risks, there are countless more incidents involving hazing and harassment from high school
players. These occurrences are growing rapidly and cause people to fear joining a sport. Although
high school sports involve injuries and severe events involving criminal activity, the experience
of being part of a team and competing outweighs these rare incidents.
As an athlete myself, competing in football was the highlight of my high school career. It
took my mind off any problems I had and made me focus on just football. Balancing school,
work, and football is a challenge but it is a challenge that prepares the athlete for life and football
did that for me. In regards to the argument that high school sports should be banned, I believe that
it should not for numerous reasons. As Donte Stallworth, an 11-year veteran of the NFL, said in

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the New York Times, Looking back, I've come to realize that the best times of my life, when I
was playing high school sports, also provided beneficial life lessons. Stallworth goes on to talk
about how football helped him out of his rough neighborhood and his journey to a first round
prospect. This situation applies to many athletes in sports, not just in football. High school sports
provide a family that will look out for the athlete, no matter the circumstance. Though there are
the rare cases that this does not happen, there are enough instances to believe that these are
incidents that are by chance. These rare incidents include harassment and hazing. Hazing has been
a growing problem in our society and is even a problem at Joliet West. These occurrences happen
rarely and do not affect the athletes that make the most of their sport. Kevin Kniffin, a Cornell
University professor, writes in the New York Times ... ask them [college students] for memories
of competitive sports they played when they were younger and suddenly youll hear stories about
when they pitched for their school baseball or softball team. This suggests that high school
sports sticks with the athletes all their life more than anything else. Both these sources agree that
high school sports stay with the athlete all their life and prove to be helpful in regards to their
future.

In all levels of sports, injuries are part of the game. More recently, the concussion issue
has grown in football and many are calling for the sport to be banned including parents and
former players. What these people do not understand is these injuries are preventable.
Concussions are blows to the head that could potentially damage the brain permanently. In
football, these blows are caused by players who lead with their head. This is why the USA
football association created Heads Up Football. This movement teaches players how to protect
themselves when playing football and make sure the coaches enforce these rules. After this, it is
up to the athlete to protect themselves.

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Another complication of high school sports is balancing school with sports. Earl Smith,
the author of Race, Sport and the American Dream, suggests that sports be downgraded to
extracurricular activities. He says, Let's return high school sports to the simple after-school
activity it once was, like the drama club or the science club. Smith wants sports to be less
emphasized so athletes can focus on more educational activities. He also wants sports to be less
competitive to make more time for school. Another author that has the same viewpoints as Smith
is Amanda Ripley, the author of The Smartest Kids in the World and How They Got That Way.
Ripley posted an article on The New York Times Room for Debate titled, School Should Be About
Learning, Not Sports. In the article she discusses the difference between the United States and
other countries regarding school and sports. She even says, By mixing sports and academics, we
tempt kids into believing that its O.K. if they dont like math or writing that there is another
path to glory (Ripley). In other words, athletes believe that they have a fallback plan in sports if
school does not work out. This all may be true regarding both authors arguments, but these are
instances where it all depends on the student-athlete. Student comes before athlete and many
coaches in my experience have stressed this. The Joliet West football programs first two goals of
their program does not even involve football. They are centered on your personal life and
graduating and going to college or finding a job. So people can argue that sports overwhelm
students, but in the end, most coaches stress the fact that they are students before athletes.

High school sports are part of a student's life. High school sports involve injuries and
severe events involving criminal activity, but the experience of being a part of a team and
competing outweighs these rare incidents and should not be banned. Though not all students play
sports, it is not fair to get rid of them due to a select few who do not follow the rules and balance
school and their sport. To prevent these occurrences from happening, coaches should monitor

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their players more and in Illinois case, have the coaches report their findings to officials. This
would provide students more structure that would prevent them from filing in school and
participating in questionable activity.

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Works Cited
Stallworth, Donte. Lessons in How to Live. New York Times: Room for Debate. New York
Times Company, 22 Oct. 2014, Web. 13 Nov. 2014
Ripley, Amanda. School Should Be About Learning, Not Sports. New York Times: Room for
Debate. New York Times Company, 22 Oct. 2014. Web. 13 Nov. 2014
Smith, Earl. Make Sports an After-School Activity, Not a Competitive Team. New York
Times: Room for Debate. New York Times Company, 21 Oct. 2014 Web. 13 Nov. 2014
Kniffin, Kevin. High School Athletes Gain Lifetime Benefits. New York Times: Room for
Debate. New York Times Company, 22 Oct. 2014. Web. 13 Nov. 2014.