By Zach Persing ’15, Staff Writer

In recent years, college athletics has become rampant with major scandals and investigations. Whether it be USC, Miami, Ohio State, or Penn State, some of America’s most prestigious athletic programs have come under fire for wrongdoings of one kind or another. This time, the new NCAA controversy has arisen in our own backyard as Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, has come under serious fire in recent weeks. Rutgers was recently forced to fire head basketball coach Mike Rice for physically and verbally abusing players during practices. His actions included hurling basketballs, kicking and shoving players, and using homophobic slurs. Athletic Director Tim Parnetti subsequently resigned under pressure from both New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, as well as members of the State Senate, who publicly threatened to defund his salary in the next state budget. In addition to Rice, the University as a whole has been ridiculed for failing to fire the coach immediately, and waiting until the video of his horrible actions was released to the public by ESPN months afterward.

The seemingly nonexistent institutional control at Rutgers has caused many to ask two main questions that were previously unthinkable. First, if something this horrible happened at a school like Rutgers, what is stopping it from happening at a school like Newark Academy?  Soven Bery, a member of the Newark Academy football team and a featured columnist on the sports website Bleacher Report, thinks this type of event is unlikely to take place at Newark Academy.  Bery said, “Coaches are meant to be mentors, teachers, and someone who builds you up. I think Newark Academy coaches fit into that definition. All the coaches I have had at Newark Academy are respectable and comforting, as well as being disciplined and tough in the correct ways. I don’t think something like that could happen here because of the character of the coaches, because of the relationships they have with their athletes, and because the administration wouldn’t stand for it.” Soven highlights the fact that while Newark Academy coaches care about helping their players reach their full potential, they are all high character people that recognize that high school sports are not a life or death experience. Bery’s view supports the assertion that Newark Academy coaches are much too concerned about the well being of their players to put them in any sort of physical or mental harm from coaching abuse.

The second question stretches far beyond 91 South Orange Avenue. Is there a line between motivation and discipline, and abuse?  If so, where is that line and how is it defined?  Jay Torson, a painting teacher and girls varsity soccer coach at Newark Academy weighed in on the topic.  Torson said, “It’s finding that balance between motivating your players, having high expectations and not putting them in an environment where they are not safe.”  Torson went on to say that one mark of a great coach is being able to motivate your players without having to get violent.  Bery agreed with Torson adding, “The line between motivation and going too far is very thick. Any time you put a player in danger, whether that be physical or emotional, you have gone too far.”  Soven and Mr. Torson both agree that coaches certainly have the right to question the work ethic or the play of their team. However, if a coach is using hurtful language or violence to communicate his or her message, it crosses the line. A coach should try to find a happy a medium between criticism and praise in motivating their team.

Ultimately, the Newark Academy community can take comfort in that if this type of atrocity were to occur at our school, the situation would likely be rectified far quicker than it was at Rutgers.  After every season students-athletes at Newark Academy are given the opportunity to evaluate their coaches anonymously via an online survey. In contrast to students at Newark Academy, who are much more open with their opinions and would likely report a coach if any wrongdoings had taken place, student-athletes at Rutgers, or any other university for that matter, may not have that same luxury. NCAA athletes compete with pressures everyday that include maintaining their scholarship, preserving their playing time, keeping the respect of their teammates and their coaches, and not compromising their chance at a future big pay day in the professional ranks. All of these circumstances could become exploited and jeopardized by “ratting out” a coach.

Perhaps the only way to prevent more coaches from acting like Mike Rice is for the NCAA to institute stricter and more concrete penalties so coaches are aptly punished with a zero tolerance policy before a video of their wrongdoings is being shown in living rooms across America. The best way to prevent coaches from exerting unjust violence and using offensive criticism towards their players is to use severe deterrence at all levels or sports. While some coaches may feel that they can abuse their players, with more severe consequences, they will likely think twice before crossing the motivational line.