The purpose of coach evaluation surveys that are submitted by players at the end of each season is to provide the administration with information about the effectiveness of the coaching for the various teams in the hopes that measures will be taken to address these concerns. In the three years since the men’s varsity tennis team began logging serious complaints about their coach, nothing has changed in their eyes; in fact, the situation has worsened.
With this in mind, the recent actions taken by nine members of the team to quit altogether, though they appear extreme, are warranted by the circumstances of the situation. The members believed that leaving the team was their last available recourse to protest the inaction of the administration, after years of having their complaints neglected.
It should be the primary goal of the Athletic Department to improve every student athlete’s overall experience at UR. A problem in which several players quit their team because of unresponsiveness on the part of the administration, especially when in regard to objections to their coach, is a failure of the latter to reach this goal.
The administration was right to hold meetings with the players – one in May 2006 and one Wednesday morning – but the fact that the players still find it necessary to sit out this season is a clear indication that not enough has been done to rectify this problem.
Though these players were not mistaken in taking such drastic measures, this should not set a precedent for other players and teams as a way to leverage the Athletic Department in the pursuit of superfluous goals or registering grievances. Sitting out is not something to be taken lightly and should be treated with all due caution and respect by both the players and the organization.
While we support the cause of the nine student athletes, we would also like to wish the new spring team good luck toward what we hope will be another winning season, continuing to live up to the high standards set forth in previous years. Hopefully they can remain competitive in University Athletic Association tournament play.
