One of my classmates answered like this:
Biggest problem in high school sports:
High schools are getting too involved with the media by having high school games broadcast on national television. In a news release from 2008, ESPN announced ?This season, ESPNU, ESPN and ESPN2, will combine to present 19 live high school football games (ESPN, 2008)?. I believe this is going overboard. It is one thing to nationally televise all star games at the end of the season or broadcast regular season games on local stations but broadcasting games during the regular season on national television seems a bit too much for me. By national television stations broadcasting high school games it can get high school athletes to stop focusing on the game at hand and more about how they are going to look on television. A distraction that most high school athletes can do without.

Remedy:
My remedy to fix high school games being televised nationally is to get state governments to prohibit schools from signing agreements with television stations that are going to broadcast games nationally. If state governments don?t have the power to do this my second course of action would be to discourage schools from signing agreements with national television stations by threatening to take away government funding from the schools that enter agreements to have games nationally televised.

I happen to disagree with my classmate and am posting today. I am curious what this community thinks. Answer by using the Problem: Remedy: format You can expand the discussion by answering the same question for collegiate sports.

I think the biggest problem in high school sports is parents, coaches and athletes losing sight of what their goals should be and the role of sports in their lives. I won't beat this horse to death again because I've expressed my opinion on this many times before, but if you don't get anything out of your participation beyond some medals or trophies, you've wasted your time.

I take it any team your friend has been on has never been nationally ranked. If you talk to the kids before the game, they are excited to have the chance to prove themselves worthy of a higher ranking, if not the No.1 spot. ESPN generally broadcasts games with nationally ranked teams, be it football or basketball. It seems to me the ones griping tend to be those looking from the outside in.

To say national televised games is the biggest problem in HS sports demonstrates a bit of ignorance of the real issues.

parents who think they know everything are a HUGE problem with high school wrestling.
There was a kid on my team who was undefeated (14-0) when his dad wasn't there
but (6-12) when his dad was there, with one loss coming in the district semis and
2 others coming at regionals against kids he beat when his dad was absent.

Just to follow up, I am including my response to my classmate's post (above) and my posted discussion on the topic.

RESPONSE: I found your viewpoint on the high school sports subject interesting.
I take you to mean that playing in nationally televised games distracts players from focusing on the game at hand. I believe the concern should be for impact on their education not the impact on their on the field performance. That aside, we can presume that teams that are televised nationally are already televised locally and state wide, not to mention garnering visibility on the internet which is global. This exposure prepares teams for a bigger stage; as an athlete there is value in stretching yourself mentally and physically. The impact of being in the "big game" is mental and, I believe, one of the contributions athletics make to the "whole high school experience". High school should prepare young people to successfully overcome the social, mental, physical, and ethical challenges in life. Playing at the national level is just another opportunity for growth.


MY DISCUSSION:
Biggest problem in high school sports: I found this a difficult question to answer because as I read the examples presented by Coakley, contradictory examples from my children’s high school immediately came to mind. Additionally, I found many of the presented arguments very one-sided. This subject is so broad and deep that I think an entire book could be written on the topic. It certainly provides a departure point for further study for those looking at a career as a high school athletic director.
The three primary problems in high school sports presented by Coakley are certainly valid. However, I think the real problem lies in how those that study, present, discuss, contest, and advocate them perceive these situations. I believe that rather than looking at high school sports and trying to determine the problems with them, it is far better to look at them and determine the conditions that the sports exist in and how those sports affects the overall conditions in the school and the community as a whole. This is the biggest problem in high school sports, that sports are looked at individually and compared variable to variable as opposed to looking at a school or group of schools and determining the affect each variable has on the mission and goals of the school. There are repeated examples of this in our text, comparisons of athletes to non-athletes in graduation rates. Where are the comparisons of athletes to drama student, forensic club, cheerleader, and band member graduation rates?

Remedy: Commission studies to conduct research on the affect of all extracurricular activities on the achievement of high school mission statements and goals. Educate district and school staff on the importance of viewing situations not problems. This paradigm shift will facilitate identifying and accurately articulating the situation that needs to change vice incorrectly identifying the source of the problem.
An example: Our text identifies the following as one of the most three serious problems with high school sports. “Athletes Are Privileged Over Other Students.” The recommended paradigm shift and focus will result in a more accurate description of the situation. “Administrators, teachers, and staff consistently demonstrate favoritism towards students they identify as being more worthy than other students.” Which of these two statements, if addressed, do you think will result in a long-term behavior change that helps achieve the school mission statement and goals?

that too, haha

I don't think this can be the biggest problem in HS sports. About this problem. I am in your classmate's team.

TV exposure may be a problem, but it effects too few schools/teams/students for me to classify it as the "biggest" problem. Certainly, problem parents can be a headache - but again, too small an effect to be the "biggest". Drugs can't be ignored, but within the athletic community, I feel that they fall within the overall problem that Spider has presented, a societal loss of focus.
Learning discipline, fair play, the rewards of hard work, the joy of competition - all of these seem to have taken a back seat to "What is in it for me?" Without the lure of a college scholarship, or a pro contract, what is the value of participation? Do you have to have the 15 minutes of fame of major television exposure to make playing worthwhile?
As Spider said, it is a horse that has been well-flogged. While you are thinking about it, somebody explain this to me:

http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-...0,143788.story

A star running back from Lakewood High was charged Tuesday with two counts of attempted murder in connection with what police described as a gang-related drive-by shooting Friday afternoon in which no one was injured.
Law enforcement officials privately confirmed that Jerry Stone, a senior considered among the best tailbacks in the state, was allegedly driving the vehicle involved in the shooting, which occurred in the 1100 block of Acacia Avenue in Compton. Because Stone is a juvenile, authorities are not allowed to identify him publicly.
Stone, 17, is being held in Juvenile Hall and is scheduled to be arraigned today in Compton Juvenile Court. In addition to the attempted murder charges, he faces two counts of assault with a deadly weapon, two counts of permitting another to shoot from a vehicle, one count of permitting a loaded firearm in a vehicle, one count of residential first-degree burglary and one count of hit-and-run.
The Los Angeles County district attorney's office has filed a motion to have the juvenile involved in the case tried as an adult, according to spokeswoman Jane Robison.
Steve Lawrence was also arrested and charged with assault, according to Los Angeles Sheriff's Department spokesman Steve Whitmore. The investigation is being handled by Operation Safe Streets -- the sheriff's anti-gang unit -- and according to sources involves a Compton gang.
Lakewood Coach Thadd MacNeal would not confirm that Stone was allegedly involved in the shooting, but he did say the 5-foot-10, 200-pound running back would not play for the Lancers this season.
Lakewood forfeited four early-season games last year after it was determined that Stone was academically ineligible. However, he returned in time to help the Lancers reach a Southern Section Pac-5 Division semifinal, where they lost to rival Long Beach Poly.
Stone finished the season with 1,450 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns while averaging about eight yards a carry. MacNeal said his players were shaken by the loss of a star player less than two weeks before their season opener at Crenshaw on Sept. 4.
"Kids are pretty resilient, but they love Jerry and they're saddened by it," MacNeal said. "At the same time, I know they're excited about their own season and it gives opportunities for others to have a chance to contribute."

ben.bolch@latimes.com