CELESTE ON SOFTBALL

by Celeste Knierim

Working with Younger Players: Are They Early or Late Maturers?

I have been watching younger player's practices; also, I have been hearing that some middle school coaches and summer coaches of players under 12, have been having tryouts and cutting players from their teams. I don't think any middle school player should be cut from the school team. If you have too many, then maybe have a 5/6 grade team and a 7/8 grade team. Some summer coaches, even with 10 and younger teams, seem to care only about the very coordinated/talented player and wins than developing players.

One thing a coach of younger players needs to realize is that there are early maturers and late maturers. An early maturer has the coordination and the natural ability to look really skilled at a young age. Sometimes these players stay on that path and become exceptional athletes and have a tremendously successful career become pros, go to nationally ranked colleges, star on their teams, and even go to play on their national teams in their respective sports. However, a lot of them who are early maturers seem to stall at some point, which is usually during their high school career. At that point, the others who are late maturers catch up to them. This can cause a lot of frustration within the early maturer and even more within their parents who see dollar signs in their future whether from the colleges and pro sports. A late maturer seems to be extremely uncoordinated in their younger years and then they seem to "take off" during usually their high school years.

So, what happens to these players when parents and coaches do not realize or know about children being early or late maturers? More and more coaches are not physical education teachers who have gone through classes that teach them this in college. A lot of books about coaching do not cover the subject either. Physical education in the elementary books do cover early and late maturers and a lot of other useful things for coaches.

The whole subject of early and late maturers can lead down many roads.

1. What happens when you cut a young player under 13 years old from teams because of lack of skill? Does your child's school have a policy that no one gets cut in middle school? They should!!! These are the "growing into their body" years. These are the years that their coordination goes from inside to out (their body core develops coordination before their extremities.) That's why when you watch a young child catch a playground ball, they catch it in their arms trapping it against their chest not solely with the hands. As they mature, the coordination goes to the arms and then to the hands and fingers. Catching the ball solely with the hands is called-stage four of catching.

   Coordination also goes from top to bottom. This means that a child's hands become more coordinated faster then their feet. That's why children can throw but they may stumble or their feet/legs will look uncoordinated. So, a child develops faster from the inside out and faster from top to bottom.

   If a middle school or a summer team with children who are around 10/11/12 years old and younger cuts them too early, they may be missing out on an excellent athlete that just matures later than others. Psychologically, this could be devastating to the child and they may never play the sport again. I understand those who want to be on a "select team" whatever the sport. But, when the children are this young, I question if select teams are good for the kids. I also question how good it is for the kids when the parents push them to be on a select team and jump from team to team because either they get cut, or they don't start every game.

   I recently watched a practice for players 11 and 12. One parent went to a sporting goods store known to be more expensive than others. The parent paid $500 for new equipment including a $300 bat. I didn't buy a $300 bat when I coached a nationally ranked college team. Anyway, when a lot of money is put out on younger players, some parents will push the player to succeed at all costs. Even some who don't spend a lot of money may push them passed the point. How can that be good?

2. What happens when pressure it put on an early maturer under 13 to succeed when they level off? They usually are very unhappy and quit as soon as they can. Thus, we lose another player who may never have reached their full potential. I have seen coaches and especially parents who think their child at a young age is going to be the next Division I star or next Pro player making tons of money.

   I have to admit when my niece was 10, she was tall for her age and also had big hands. Right away I thought that she would be a top volleyball hitter or top softball pitcher and, yes for a brief moment, I was very excited. Did I take her and try to teach her the sports and push her to become those things. No, not at all. She stopped growing and is about 5'7" and informed me when she was around 12 that she did not like to sweat. I laughed and that was OK. She now has a double Masters Degree in business and International Studies, works for the government in Washington D.C. and I am very proud of her.

   I cannot tell you how many players that I have talked to through the years, especially the last fifteen years of my coaching career, that quit playing after they graduate from high school instead of playing in college. Others who did go on to play, wanted to go away to college versus going to a school close to home to get away from their parents. Parents can and do push young players too far in a lot of cases. There is a difference in pushing a player in a positive way through practices to become better and badgering players in a negative way especially when they are not being taught to be better by quality coaching and practices.

3. What happens when too much pressure is put on the early maturer to obtain that Division I scholarship? I understand that a college education costs a lot these days. I was at a college for thirty years trying to recruit with very little scholarship money. But there are other avenues to get money to go to college besides a full athletic scholarship. They are grants, financial aid, work study, academic scholarships, scholarships from various community groups, the A+ program like in Missouri and more. It seems like the players and parents have to have the words "full athletic scholarship."

   It also seems like they think that if you do not go to a Division I school then it is not a good school or program. I have seen players sign with a weak Division I program over a nationally ranked NJCAA or NAIA program just because of the DI label. In many cases, the nationally ranked teams then beat that DI school. There are five divisions: NCAA I, II, III, NAIA and NJCAA. There are excellent programs in each division and many times they play outside of their division with the DI schools not always winning. Not all DI teams are the best teams or programs. Look for the nationally ranked programs not matter what division.

   But here again, some players who are being pushed from a young age to succeed and get better and better in order to obtain that full athletic scholarship, are quitting when they can or they are not happy players. Some turn to steroids to get an edge on the competition and obtain that big scholarship or paycheck, some take money under the table as a bribe to attend certain universities. None of these are good options for any age players.

4. What happens when the pressure is put on the early maturer to turn Pro and win at all costs?

   So, your child/player is a young phenomenon who is playing circles around all the other children in grade school. I can remember a couple of female tennis players who turned Pro at very young ages maybe even during their very early high school years. Both of those players did not maintain the excellence of play through the years. It seemed that they both were pushed and pushed and pushed to become the best at their sport. They lost their childhood because someone wanted them to be on the fast track to stardom. One quit at an early age and one turned to substances which kept her out of the game for years. She tried a comeback as an adult but didn't last too long. Some seem to make it but how many fail?

   If you would like to know more about early and late maturers, look for a book/website on Physical Education in the Elementary. That will cover everything that elementary age children should be taught and explain more about how a child develops. Take a hard look at the kids in middle school or on the young select teams in regards to making a team, being cut at an early age, playing a lot of games during the summer, playing more than practicing, being pushed by the parents and coaches who are positive in their coaching technique or negative to the players. What do you see and what do you think? Every action has a reaction. What type of reaction do you want from your child?

Good Luck!

Look for Cheleste's article next month.

For more from Coach Knierim click on Coaches Corner on the JUGS® website.