Tuesday, September 22, 2009

When Sports Can Be Great ... another small story

OK … to start off … I love sports. Always have … always will. But, I also realize that the importance of sports is so overblown that we have reached comic proportions. All you need do is look at the Dallas Cowboys new stadium: Originally estimated to cost $650 million, the stadium's current construction cost was $1.12 billion, making it one of the most expensive sports venues ever built. Not "the most expensive" ... at $1.12 billion - it's "one of the most expensive" ... Holy Crap!!!

Well, it’s in these ridiculous times that I need to find the true spirit of competition to put my faith back in the goodness of sports. Lucky for me, the internet gives us all the ability to find stories that go beyond the cuddled professional athletes of today – and lets us find stories the remind us that, in the end, it’s game … where the true joy should be in the ability to compete.

That’s why, when I read this story, I felt great!!

The Maryville Spoofhounds could have shut out the St. Joseph Benton Cardinals 46 - 0 at last week's game. But they let the other team score a touchdown.

They did nothing to stop freshman running back Matt Ziesel from running more than 60 yards to put the Cardinals on the scoreboard. Cardinals Coach Dan McCamey asked the Spoofhounds for their cooperation because Ziesel, 15, has Down syndrome and spent the entire season on the bench -- begging the coach to let him get some action on the field.

Hats off to both teams for showing classy levels of sportsmanship and compassion. The rival high schools are about 42 miles apart. Both are north of Kansas City near the Missouri/Kansas border. The Cardinals still lost the game but won a lot more.

Follow this link for the story – and the video of the play!!

http://www.parentdish.com/2009/09/21/rivals-give-last-touchdown-to-player-with-down-syndrome/?icid=main|main|dl1|link3|http%3A%2F%2Fwww.parentdish.com%2F2009%2F09%2F21%2Frivals-give-last-touchdown-to-player-with-down-syndrome%2F

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