The two biggest news stories in youth sports in 2018: flag football participation surpassed tackle football for kids under 12; and the U.S. Gymnastics sexual abuse scandal.
But there were other stories and topics that captured your attention and inspired you to comment, like, and share. From an epic Fortnight email to parents, to a coach’s tell-all, these are the top ten stories from our Facebook page that engaged and inspired you in 2018.
10. What It Means To Be A Great Teammate.
This quote by college basketball announcer Jay Bilas pulled on the heart strings of our readers.
9. Confessions of a club soccer player. (Read Here)
Written by a 15-year-old elite athlete, it’s an eye-opening peek into the heart and mind of young athletes’ struggles. Many of our readers shared similar experiences and expressed regret they didn’t recognize the same issues in their own kids sooner.
8. High School’s “other” signing day. (Read Here)
Most high schools around the country announce an athlete’s college of choice with a hat and a signed letter of intent at a big assembly, sometimes even covered by the media. But one high school in Virginia made headlines when they gave equal attention to a different life-altering moment. Students who had accepted jobs right out of high school were given the same celebration with a momentous assembly, a hat and even signing a letter of intent.
7. The Equal Playing Time Debate. (Read Here)
This got everyone pretty heated on both sides of the argument. The main point most agreed upon is that it should be age appropriate.
6. Fortnight fever. (Read Here)
Fortnight was ruining this coach’s lacrosse team and he wasn’t going to have it anymore. Deadspin shared his desperate plea to his team’s parents for help, and our audience could definitely relate!
5. Ten things that require zero talent.
There’s not a parent or coach out there who doesn’t find this list totally spot on in trying to raise up great kids and athletes.
4. How adults are ruining youth sports. (Read Here)
Kids are quitting at alarming rates and the main culprit: over-involved parents. This topic always garners a lot of engagement, so much so, that The Today Show featured this post on their website.
3. Insight into a coach’s mind. (Read Here)
J.P. Nerbun writes about the anxiety and dread a coach has when facing parents post game. “I feel like I am in some zombie apocalypse movie, trying to escape an infested building. I am unsure of who to trust. Who is still human? Who has turned?” Most all of you agreed, that this was an important read and a game-changer for parents in understanding their coach’s psyche.
2. The importance of a good coach.
Coaches garnered 2 of the top 3 spots. This one was shared by thousands of parents to their coaches. Several of you did point out that the impact can sometimes be a negative one.
1. The high price of youth sports.
Thanks to @SportsDadHub for this one, it really got everyone’s blood boiling. It was funny, yet also struck a nerve, like every good meme will do. It reached more than 1,278,692 people and had over 184,500 engagements on our Facebook page, making it our #1 Facebook post of 2018! The 438 comments ranged from irate to quite funny.
We hope you enjoyed our 2018 top ten most engaging Facebook posts. Let us us know your favorites!
