Posted on 09/30/2005 11:52:12 AM PDT by Macaw
A legless teen in Ohio who was told he cannot play during a game in Cincinnati because of a rule requiring players to wear shoes and knee pads will be allowed to play in future games, according to a Local 6 News report.
Bobby Martin was told at halftime of a recent game at Mount Healthy High School in Cincinnati that he could not finish the game because of the shoes and knee pads rule.
Martin said the decision made him feel disabled for the first time.
"That's the first time in 17 years," Martin said. "That's a landmark."
"Bobby was in tears about that, the whole team was mad," a teammate said. "The coach was in tears."
The Colonel White High School senior had played in all of the other season games as a member of the punt return team, using his arms to move down the field.
After checking the case, the Ohio High School Athletic Association said game officials made a mistake when they kept Martin from playing last week, according to an Associated Press report.
"The officials erred, but they erred on the side of caution," said Bob Goldring, an assistant commissioner with the OHSAA. "They did not want to see him get hurt."
Goldring said the association planned to send a letter Tuesday to the Dayton school district that reaffirms Martin's eligibility, according to a report.
Martin's story has drawn national attention. He has been encouraging others to live life to the fullest.
"Just go for it," Martin said. "Try new things in life, that's what life's all about. Don't look at me as having no legs, just look at me standing six feet tall,"
Martin is also on the school's wrestling team and is running for homecoming king.
I'm sorry for the kid, but really, what position could he function in. Kicking tee?
co-ed naked mudwrestling!!
Coaches are allowed to get a little misty at the end of a spectacularly good or bad season, but they can only cry if it's their last ever game coaching and they are being put to pasture.
Actually, it is true, there are 3 I am thinking of. I will not give names because one was recently not renewed on his teaching contract because of inappropriate contact with 3 female students, the 2 brothers that I am thinking of still officiate in the area and everyone in the area takes their officiating with a grain of salt. I am from a small town and the school I coached at was a aa highschool. The officiating was suspect to the point that our AD would only get officials from Pittsburgh at our school for home games. I also coached in Colorado at a 5-A school and the officiating was fine.
I played Division 2 in college and was an All American and am still in the top 10, maybe 5, I haven't checked lately, in scoring at my university, I was also an All American in highschool in swimming in 9th grade as well, along with my all state b-ball, and district champ in girls doubles in tennis, but I digress. I believe that is higher than juco. I have no motives, as you suggest and am more than aware that there are good officials. Heaven knows after dealing with parents, that I would not want to be an official. I did choose to be a stay at home mom 4 years ago when I began my family.
Now, you need to be honest and admit that there are bonehead officials more at the local level, I would venture. This was a bonehead call and any person could make a common sense ruling that the boy could play. Next time, don't attack me on something that you go on later in your post to admit that is true. There are bad officials out there with authority complexes.
"my college had a womens rugby team, those girls were just ruthless on the field"
Back when I was in college, there was an annual powder puff football game for charity. It was a big deal too. Maybe 3-4 thousand showed up to watch. They played rough. One trick used quite often was to pinch the breasts of the opposing pass rush. Quite effective at keeping their hands down. So I was told.
Can we just leave out the mud if that's OK with you?
The kid probably won't appeal. He doesn't have a leg to stand on.
Maybe... maybe not...
Ya gotta take into consideration: without legs, he must weigh 25~30% less than the other players.
I just checked, I am fourth in scoring at 1342 points at my university. Sorry to burst your bubble.
How great a story and country do we live in?
A young man can PLAY FOOTBALL...yet he has no legs.
Is there another country in the entire world where this could even be possible? The durability of our culture is simply amazing, there is NOTHING that can explain how this kid has a heart and mind so great that he overcomes everthing and plays FOOTBALL!!! Other countries, this young man would be in a hovel, begging for handouts...
To say that this country is a bad country and all that FILTH that the left spews out...just look at that picture...he's a FOOTBALL PLAYER...amazing what we can do isn't it????
Awesome isn't it!
Me too....
Actually, I had the same thought as Macaw on this. It's not a professional team. It's not even a college team. Gee, its high school. It is supposed to be fun and a school spirit thing. I know in Texas that football is right up there with religion but that doesn't mean its correct to treat it that way. I didn't pick up that the other team was even bothered by it. Just the officials.
How on earth can he play anyway?
Does the rule requires him to wear shoes on his feet and knee pads on his knees?
Because if it does he's ok because he has no feet or knees and if it does not then he can wear miniature shoes and knee pads on a string around his neck.... bottom line this is stupid if he can play, he can play
Congrats on your AA status. I was nowhere near talented enough to be AA at basketball, and probably not at the 6 or so other sports I played at one time or another. But you didn't indicate your record as a coach, and your comments did not limit themselves to 3 officials. Hell, I worked with 3 bad officials in the past WEEK, so I'm well aware of quality issues. If you reread your comments, you seem to lump ALL (or, a lot of) officials in as a group. And as stated, I knew many officials that exceeded your athletic acheivements by a LOT. I'm sorry I didn't, and even had I not been a state quarterfinalist in debate or had all-state band taking up much of my time, DI offers in football were about the best I could have done. At the very least, I far exceeded your assertion of what talent officials had, and you ignored my statement that athletic talent has little to do with good officiating.
Virtually all successful coaches I've worked with would never group or label officials as you did. In terms of calls, I've never trusted coaches and players to know what a "bonehead" call is, because, especially in basketball, the fact is that few know the rules very well. I will conceed that football coaches are better about that. Most of the things that I got screamed at on the court by coaches didn't make any sense, or they were clearly indicating a bias. That's OK; I understood what I was signing up to do. But coaches holding themselves out as an authority on what officials are doing right or wrong is borderline idiotic. Basically, the bottom line is: how many times have you worn a striped shirt and whistle on a court for a real game with yelling fans and coaches?
As far as this incident, contrary to what most think on here, what the officials did was reasonable. It was the school district that had the responsibility to notify the state association and ask for a waiver. What you don't seem to understand is that if the officials don't follow the rules, they could easily be sued if a player is injured. Can you specify what rules should be followed and what ones can be ignored? Are you willing to indemnify any official from a suit based upon your specifications in that regard? Finally, you complain about the supposed athletic prowess of officials you have had experience with, yet the key to good officiating is getting the calls right. I'll conceed being in shape is helpful, and I do my absolute best in that regard. However, my point is that you are either complaining about good officials making good calls, but not having been good athletes, which is totally stupid, OR you are asserting that their lack of athletic acheivement hinders their officiating. I believe the later to be wrong, but not stupid, and the key is that if they are wrong, they are not enforcing the rules correctly. In this situation, the officials enforced the rules correctly and you are complaining about it.
So which way do you want it?
I stand by my comments that based upon yours, that you have an apparant chip on your shoulder about something, as I've identified the contridiction (or at least, the inconsistentcy in your point. I just wish you would be honest about it.
I reread my post and I said that I knew some officials from highschool. That is by no means painting all of them or most of them with a brush that they are bad. My coaching record was 75-45. Not bad sonsidering that the last year I coached, we had 10 players and had to play both JV and varsity games despite me writing an appeal to the school board and AD for a cancellation of the JV season, so we had a considerable losing record. The girls were exhausted and we didn't have fresh subs obviously. We started out with more, but one girl had to stop with a knee injury, one girl quit when the winter track coach told her she had to choose a sport, even though I had been totally accomodationg and one girl had to have a lump in her breast removed, it was quite a scare. I have turned around and told my parents to knock it off, if it was a correct call, when my players deserved it, traveling, possession, etc. I even told my parents to stop coming to my college games because they yelled about everything, were usually wrong, and I was so embarrassed, it was distracting. The last year I coached, a new award was established by the conference voted on by the refs. Our team was voted as having the best sportsmanship. I take that as a compliment to me as well because I taught/modeled good behavior to my players, not to lip back, get the ball and hand it to the refs, etc. I know you don't have to be a great player to be a great ref, but the three peole I am thinking about definitely were suffering in part by "little man" syndrome. The one guy has more problems than that.
You can also tell if an official blew a call, the brothers were notorious for being "homers" so you had to have a big lead, cause if it was close, they made a difference. The sad thing was the team they did this for didn't really need it, they were tough. My sister is an amputee and I am sensitive to the issue (carbon monoxide accident.) If the knee pads and shoes are required to protect the knees and feet, then it would seem obvious or a rational conclusion, that if there are no feet and knees, the protective equipment required for them is a moot point.
Neg.
In fact if someone does not have feet you do not need a waiver to excuse their lack of shoes. I've been coaching for way too long (and been a reasonable person for way to long) to know this is the case.
A handicapped player would have to do something really egredious like drive a huge electric wheelchair onto the field before any reasonable official would say something.
I mean telling a blind person with a seeing eye dog "NO DOGS ALLOWED" is less offensive than what this guy did. He basically punished a kid for not having all the right body parts to host all the right pads.
I would also like to point out an inconsistency with you. You say on one hand that you don't even need to have played a sport or be good at it to be a good official yet you go to great lengths to talk about what you accomplished on the athletic field, and how you were undoubtedly a much better athlete than I. Could it be that your "attack" on me came in part because you read my post and saw I was a woman, therefore, what could this broad know about sports? I was not the first person to post a belief on the refs in question. I mean you are an evil republican, most likely male which can then be deduced to mean you are a chauvinist pig by default. ;) (joke, obviously) Or did you just want to try to embarrass me? Just wanted to point that inconsistency out since you are into them.
I do not think it would have been a misinterpretation of the rules (even in a liability issue) to negate the need for pads and shoes if there are not corresponding body parts for them. I would think that they are for that players safety, not the other guys.
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