There is no question in my mind that the most underrated job in our country and the profession that many parents take for granted is the responsibility that comes with being a teacher.  Each day, we send our kids off to school with the hope and expectation that they come home smarter, wiser, and more prepared for the peaks and valleys of life.  

Not every teacher is the same and not every parent has the same feelings or opinions, but the objective is still the same and that is to have an enriching year of school and move on to the next grade. 

Another job that parents often have a love/hate relationship with is a youth sports coach.  Unless a coach shows malice towards a child, is generally not a good person, or always seems to do a half you know what job, I think a parent needs to feel fortunate that there are people that are willing to lend their time and efforts.  Not everyone has the ability to teach your child about a sport, prepare them to play in a game, and in turn use sports as a vehicle to teach kids about the things that can also help them in life.  

I’ll admit it right now that I don’t think I’ll ever serve as a youth sports coach again and it’s not because I don’t want to.  I love working and playing with kids and not just my two boys.  For my older son Bradley, I was an assistant coach on one of his football teams and a coach on one of his baseball teams.  I was also a soccer coach for my younger son Jared on two of his soccer teams to make things even.   

I loved it, but there are two reasons I stopped. 

One was because I just wanted to be a dad and the other was that it was very hard to make all of the parents happy.  The latter is something that’s very hard to do and I think it needs to be the responsibility of someone that had a lot more patience than I did.    That’s why I’ll never criticize any of my kid’s coaches or meddle in the coaches business unless there is a real reason to like what I mentioned at the beginning of this story. 

Keeping things to football specifically, a coach makes a tremendous commitment to the kids that make up a team.  Whether it’s registration or other program duties, putting together plans for training camp and practice, ordering uniforms and equipment, and teaching the kids the proper fundamentals of the game, the job is both difficult and challenging and is really met for someone who has a special skill set. 

My son Bradley has played seven years of youth football and I can only think of a small issue or two that came up when either my wife or I had to talk to a coach off on the side.  We saw several occasions when parents or other family members took things way too far in terms of complaining or conflict, so my wife Sheryl and I feel fortunate that we’ve been a part of some really good “football families.” 

Every sport has issues when it comes to the relationship between parents and coaches and I’ve seen it in football, baseball, and soccer.  But when you sign your child up for football this fall, have an open mind going in about the coach because he or she deserves that right up front.  Not everyone gives up time and effort to do this and those people should command some respect for what they do. 

There certainly could be issues and there should be steps to take, but for the most part I think every volunteer coach should be commended for their roles in helping kids learn about the sport they love, especially football, and for taking care of your children during the training camp, two or three times a week at practice, and at the games. 

They are our boys and girls out there on the field, but for 10-12 hours a week, they are in the capable hands of volunteer coaches who deserve a big round of applause and a standing ovation.  

In most cases! 

Check out the USA Football's Youth Football Parents 101 course with Christine and Mike Golic here.

Peter is a sports anchor for the CBS Sports Radio Network and WCBS 880 Radio in New York.  His son Bradley plays youth football for the Levittown Red Devils in the Nassau-Suffolk Football League on Long Island while his younger son Jared will begin playing flag football this coming fall.  Peter, his wife Sheryl and the boys are busy cheering on the New York Jets when they’re not at a youth football field.