Posted by glarson (Gwen Larson) on February 28, 2008 at 2:23 p.m. (Suggest removal)

The conversation continues.

Posted by uhhuhohyeah (anonymous) on February 28, 2008 at 4:42 p.m. (Suggest removal)

momoftwo - You really are righteous and if nicey-nice works for you G-R-E-A-T!! However, everyone has a style, thank God, so please don't be so judgmental when you have never walked in the same shoes as Coach Bloomquist.

Posted by SpanishPride (anonymous) on February 28, 2008 at 8:09 p.m. (Suggest removal)

She was only saying that you should not to degrade kids to get a point across. You cannot treat every kid the same. Some kids may come from an abusive family and then gets screamed and yell at the one person that they may look up to. Abuse is Abuse , emotional or physical . This can range from beating your spouse or vocally abusing your child. When and where does it stop.

Posted by uhhuhohyeah (anonymous) on February 29, 2008 at 9:24 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Apparently you, SpanishPride and momoftwo have never coached a sport in your life, or had an authentic passion to give little pieces of yourself . . . strength, energy, desire, belief in . . . to another to help them become all that they can be. That is what Coach Bloomquist is about. "Degrading" to the weak and insecure is apparently quite different from "Motivating" to those who want to be successful and the best they can be. The expectations you are placing on a high school Coach are extremely high it appears . . . even greater perhaps than those you have of yourself as a parent with your passiveness and inaudible voices. I would suggest that you NOT allow your own children to participate in sports and just keep them under your protective wing, unexposed to anyone who does not share your own standards or value system.

Posted by momoftwo (anonymous) on February 29, 2008 at 9:50 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Thank you Spanish Pride - amazing how I don't remember typing some of the things that others think they're reading!!! Anyway, @...yeah - No where did I say coaches had to be "nicey-nice". I don't have a problem with coaches getting upset w/players when they make mistakes - and yes, I know that coaches will yell at the kids (especially at the HS level). My point was, and is, that it is not necessary for coaches to cuss, throw things, or degrade players to get them to do what they want. There is a difference. And, BTW - never in any of my posts did I specify I was speaking only about Coach Bloomquist. This is a problem everywhere, not just at EHS.

Posted by uhhuhohyeah (anonymous) on February 29, 2008 at 3:13 p.m. (Suggest removal)

In response to momoftwo (who actually is the momofthree) . . . let's see, first you cannot decide how many children you have and next you just can't decide if it IS okay with you or NOT okay with you for coaches to get upset. And then it's conditional, according to your specifications, only when players make mistakes. There ARE various other reasons why a coach might, on a not-so-perfect day, be inclined to raise his voice. Or, possibly with your exceptional standards, maybe you prefer that the coach place a note on the door cancelling practice on a given day due to his frustration rather than facing his players and showing them that he is human, too. Obviously, in your opinion, coaches EVERYWHERE stereotypically fall into a category whereby yelling, cussing, throwing things and degrading players is the norm. And again, because of narrow-minded thinking and upbringing such as this, I reiterate that your two (or three) children should probably not participate in sports, fearing that they might get their feelings hurt by a coach whose style and approach simply could never meet your superior expectations and isolated standards. And frankly my dear, you go ahead and continue to hold onto your rigid way of thinking, because it isn't going to change a thing.

Posted by UsayULoveGod (anonymous) on February 29, 2008 at 5:52 p.m. (Suggest removal)

I think both Bloomquist and Lowe are good Coaches. I think people fail to realize the time and commitment it takes to be a coach. They are human and both will make mistakes , no one is perfect . I work with a lot of kids in the Community and I feel that we should focus on some real issues that are young kids are facing , here in Emporia . Drugs , Gangs , dropout rate having babies at a young age, Drinking . I beleive these issues far out weigh a screaming Coach. I played football and basketball in High School and college . I loved my Head basketball coach in High School , I did not have a true father so I looked up to my coach like a father . He did some crazy things in High School and I still love him today , but I found out he was not the perfect person I wanted him to be , Like all of us we are not perfect. But we should try to become better people in our short life. I think some kids respond well to Coaches who scream and yell , while others who are from those types of homes will shut down and you will not get any improvements from their play, So I hope that both coaches realize which players respond to certain discipline . If not we will never win a State Championship. These kids today are different they will quit in a mintue and without a second thought. We did not miss a pratice unless someone Died , this kids today the coach has to go looking for them !!!!!!!!

Posted by Bjnemp (anonymous) on March 2, 2008 at 6:36 p.m. (Suggest removal)

I played organized sports (football, baseball, track) through grade school, junior high, highs school, college, semi-pro and city league. ALL my coaches cussed, yelled, threw things, and kicked us in the butt, literally. That's their job. They are coaches. Their job is to make the athlete the best he can be to the maximum limits of his physical abilities, and to win. TO WIN means to engage and defeat. I have played three quarters of a football game with a broken wrist. I played a baseball game after having two teeth knocked out and my nose broken in the first inning. I caught a baseball game for 7 innings with a broken thumb on my glove hand. That is what sports is all about. If you want to win you need coaches who can make you tough enough to win. If you are not willing to pay the price, join the band or soccer team. The coaches I had not only taught me how to sacrifice and win on the field, but they taught me the discipline I needed to succeed in life and business.

Posted by open_eyes (anonymous) on March 3, 2008 at 11:30 a.m. (Suggest removal)

I think there is a fine line between tough talk to motivate and going over the line with vulgarity and/or profanity. I've played sports my whole life at many levels also, and although, yes, many - wait, I'll say ALL - coaches scream and yell at times, and many - wait, MOST - at times lapse into profanity and/or vulgarity, I can tell you that some of the most inspirational and motivational things I ever heard from a coach that pushed my hardest to do my best had NOTHING to do with vulgarity/profanity. If you TRULY believe that the ONLY way to motivate a kid to do his/her utmost best is to swear and curse, then I feel truly sorry for you, and for any kids that may be in your life.
I remember a tight game where the crowd was screaming so loud behind the bench during a time-out late in the game that we couldn't even hear the coach. He finally just looked at us and said, "no matter what happens these last 2 minutes, I'm proud of the way you've played this game". That was the single greatest motivational speech I've ever gotten. I'd have played those last 2 minutes with TWO broken wrists and ALL my teeth knocked out and a broken nose if I had to. Swearing and vulgarity, I guarantee you, would not have had nearly the positive effect on me that simple sentence did.

Oh, and by the way, we DID kick butt the last 2 minutes and win :)

Kids are kids. Yes, I agree there are plenty of times they need tough talk, yelled at, even screamed at, etc...... but profanity and vulgarity are not absolute requirements for motivation. It's nice you are dedicated enough, Bjnemp, to play thru all those injuries, but I've played thru many injuries as well, and I was tough enough to do it myself - I didn't require anyone swearing at me to do it. Did you?

Posted by UsayULoveGod (anonymous) on March 3, 2008 at 11:43 a.m. (Suggest removal)

I think you are 100% correct open eyes . I really think that Emporia can win it all . The key will be Brandon Childs. He is the best athelete on the Spartans team. I watched the Highland Park Game and he could have drove to the basket anytime he wanted to . But it seems he is so concerned with making a mistake and he is afraid to shoot the ball or doing anything that will upset the coach , if any player is a D-1 Player , it is him . If he had the confidence he could control the game tempo.

Posted by dillon (anonymous) on March 3, 2008 at 12:15 p.m. (Suggest removal)

I would have to say Brandon Childs has the potential to be the best athlete on the Spartan team. I feel that way in everysport he plays in but if you don't perform you can't be labeled the best athlete. I think he is a very nice kid and hard worker and hopefully he will go to the next level where he can turn that potential talent into something great.

Posted by UsayULoveGod (anonymous) on March 3, 2008 at 1:15 p.m. (Suggest removal)

I agree with you Dillion , You do have to perform , but on natural ability, he is far beyond any other player on the team. I think if he was able to shoot 20-24 times per game from the free throw line down he would have been a highly recruited player because he has a 38-40 inch vertical jump and he is about 6'3 . But I hope he realizes that he has to let it all go and forget about being stressed about mistakes and play up to his ability. Again I think he is the key to Emporia winning a 5A State Championship .

Posted by dillon (anonymous) on March 3, 2008 at 2:17 p.m. (Suggest removal)

I agree he might be the key. Bloomquist and Euler will get theirs but if Childs also has a big night then i don't think they can be stopped. But the 5A field is pretty D@@N good this year also.

Posted by UsayULoveGod (anonymous) on March 3, 2008 at 2:42 p.m. (Suggest removal)

So , who do you think will win it all ? Where will Bloom go to college ! D-1 or Juco ? I heard Troy will be going to Butler Juco, Very Good choice , I hope he plays some football. Someone told me that they won it all in Football !!!!!

Posted by uhhuhohyeah (anonymous) on March 5, 2008 at 10:29 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Straight from the horses mouth, Cayd will definitely go D-1. He's already had offers.

Posted by UsayULoveGod (anonymous) on March 25, 2008 at 9:08 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Heard Bloom is going to Juco not D-1