Extracurriculars ARE important, and here’s why

Last week, I had some comments on the participation levels that PCS is experiencing this year. I had some readers make some comments to me about what they thought the reasons were for the lower numbers and had some comments that too much emphasis is placed on activities and they are not that important. 

Everyone certainly can have an opinion and that is fine. The ones who mentioned that activities were not that important, I will just have to say to you that we are going to have to agree to disagree on that statement. 

There are a number of studies that pretty much prove that students who participate in extracurricular activities in school are prone to stay out of trouble and their grades in most cases are better. The reason for the grade status is that in most cases, extracurricular programs have requirements for grades, attendance and conduct and that has a tendency to help encourage and guide students. In many schools, the student athletes often do community service and are role models for younger students.

Also in extracurricular programs, the students come into contact with people who serve as coaches. The situation here isn’t necessarily whether the coach is ‘good’ or ‘bad’, but whether the coach makes an impact on the student athlete. 

I think I stated in an earlier article that I was not close to a couple of my college football coaches. I will say when my Dad passed away, those coaches made an effort to help me make some adjustments in my classes and in my job at college which was in the athletic department so that I could get away a little easier and get back to help my mother in the months that followed Dad’s passing. 

They were good men and they made a difference in my life. 

Coaches in high school and college often bond with their players and that relationship is never really seen in any other type of situation.

So in most cases, going out for extracurricular activities can help a student with their grades, give the student a purpose and teach teamwork, expand leadership skills and probably help the fitness level of most students. It might be a good thing to become involved with while you have the opportunity. 

I would hate to think that for all the good things that have happened to me because of sports participation alone, and then throw in band, chorus, FFA and any other activity that I did, if I would have said no, what I would have missed and what the result of not participating might have done to my development as a person. 

There were too many positives in the activities to not have spent the time and energy that I did. It was a darn good time.

Husker football

This past weekend was originally planned as a bye week for the Cornhusker football team, but because of the rain-out on the first weekend of games, the Huskers were able to schedule a scrimmage with Bethune-Cookman University in front of 90,000 people. 

Usually there are not that many people at a scrimmage, but this is Nebraska and things have not been going well for the Huskers, so the scrimmage was a lifesaver for coaches, players and fans, plus Bethune Cookman went home with $800,000 large for their trouble. 

The Huskers looked just like they should look in playing BC and should probably have gained some confidence in their abilities, even though they will be back into the thick of things this week with THE OHIO STATE team. 

The starting teams for the Huskers got some time in plus a lot of other players got on the field in the second half, and that could prove to be very beneficial down the road in building depth for the remainder of the season. 

Let’s hope this week things will go very well for the Huskers on the road. 

No, it wasn’t a scrimmage but it didn’t really have the ring to it of a real game, but I am sure Bethune-Cookman played it hard and so did the Huskers and the season moves on.