Researching players or parents

[WARRIORMIKE]

Does anyone (coaches) use resources such as Facebook to find out about their players or parents??

 

[coach james]

Yep, all the time.
Who they are off the field is important too.

 

[GunnerShotgun]

Are we talking about players that are currently on the team or as a part of the team selection process?

 

[WARRIORMIKE]

Both.

Reason I ask is cause I have this girl on my rec team that is getting in trouble. Her mom made some comments on her FB that really weren't appropriate to discuss on FB.

I also had an inquiry from a girl that wanted to play with our program for Fall Ball. I was doing some investing with her to see who her friends were and stuff. She seemed like a good kid from what I could tell. I just felt like I was being sneaky though. LOL

 

[CycloneSoftball22]

Both.

Reason I ask is cause I have this girl on my rec team that is getting in trouble. Her mom made some comments on her FB that really weren't appropriate to discuss on FB.

I also had an inquiry from a girl that wanted to play with our program for Fall Ball. I was doing some investing with her to see who her friends were and stuff. She seemed like a good kid from what I could tell. I just felt like I was being sneaky though. LOL

Just about every time we get an inquiry , the first thing I do is look for them on Facebook.

 

[CoachKevin]

I have heard stories about college coaches looking at potential players FB pages and passing on them if there are inappropriate things on there (party pics, ect).

 

[James Smith]

I will look on the sexual predator database, that is about it.

There is no guarentte but we might have had 2 or 3 problem parents from their last years Team, they are coming back and strongly invited back.

 

[2ddsplayingball]

This is the reason my dd's nor my wife and I have facebook. We don't even have it for our home business.

 

[MsDinosaur]

[/B]

Just about every time we get an inquiry , the first thing I do is look for them on Facebook.

It seems entirely reasonable to me. You're doing yourself and the other kids and parents on the team a favor by exercising some caution. You're doing a favor to the good kid too.

 

[Easton33]

Wow! So, now a coach looks on facebook to decide who gets to play? On field behavior, athletism, and desire to be the best is what should dictate who plays. Who do some of you people think you are? You are judging kids based on their parents and their friends. If you feel guilty about doing it then you know it is wrong, if you don't feel guilty, you should. Kids do dumb things, we did when we were their age. The difference is we have social media and other avenues so nothing happens without everyone knowing about it. The most perfect part about the game is that the game doesn't care who you are, who your parents are, how much money you have, or any other social/economical identifiers. It's how you play the game. Coaches can inspire at risk youths and mentor them and they should! Not turn them away because their second cousin is a friend on facebook and she has had problems. I am not saying take kids with bad attitudes or drug habits, if their on field behavior is ok let them play. If their parents cause problems you will know in a game or two and deal with it then. Don't judge a kid until they have had their opportunity. You can be the coach that helped a child, or just another person that didn't give them a fair shot.