Tells about over-zealous sports parents

Have you heard about the parent who sent his 8-year-old boy to 17 basketball camps--all in one summer? Or the mom who spent thousands to create a personalized bobble-head doll of her daughter while she was still in high school?

A book of 200 of these sometime humorous--but sometime tragic--stories about parents who get over-involved in their kids' budding sports careers has been published here by a well-known local sports journalist.

The book is titled: "You Might Need a Jacket: Hilarious Stories of Wacky Sports Parents," by Earl Austin, Jr.

Mr. Austin has been a newspaper, TV and radio journalist in St. Louis for over 20 years. He has specialized in youth sports, involving college, high school and younger kid athletes in the metro area.

Most of his media work deals with the games kids play. But, he said, "I've also talked with lots of parents who are at the games to see their kids play."

He said sometimes parents behave "outrageously" when they think the referees, other players or other parents have been unfair to their offspring. Some of those over-reactions "are really scary," he said.

And then there are the parents who get overly involved in trying to make sure their kids get a chance at a pro-sports career, whether they have the talent or even the desire to be a pro athlete, he said.

The title of the book came from a suggestion by one of Austin's friends. Lou Potson, who has run youth leagues in the area.

Austin said Potson call the most zealous of those adults "straight-jacket parents." He said that's what they should wear when attending games in which their kids play.

Austin said, "I wanted to write a book about hilarious incidents involving over-zealous parents that adults and their children could read together. Then, they could have family discussions to put youth sports into perspective.

"For parents and their kids, participation in youth sports should be about the process of sports, not just about the results of the games they play."

Sports can teach a lot of life's lessons and build character in many ways, he said.

The games can teach how to handle adversity and setbacks. Also, the parents and kids can spend time together and learn from those experiences, he said.

But, this learning can be hampered if the parents get too involved in the process.

One of Austin's stories involved an "out of control" dad who had to be arrested, tasered and taken away in handcuffs when he got in a fight during this 8-year-old son's football game.

Another father knocked himself unconscious when banging his head on a door while trying to enter a referees' room for a confrontation after a youth hockey game.

Or even the mother who always wet her pants whenever her son trotted onto the field to try a field goal.

"Parents should be supportive and loving in youth sports situations. They shouldn't let their kids see them out-of-control," Austin said. Such situations can cause long-term psychological damage for the kids.

He said overly-aggressive parents also can cause physical damage by pushing their kids to excel at too young an age. For instance, Little League baseball recently has put strict limits on the number of pitches a kid can throw.

Another restriction involves throwing curve balls. Too many curve balls can cause permanent ligament damage in young elbows.

Elbow ligaments are attached to soft "growth plates" at the end of arm bones in young kids. Twisting pressure of throwing curves can tear a ligament from the bone. Such tears often can't be repaired.

Such injuries can result in permanent damage that continues through a lifetime.

Another result of parents pushing their kids too much too early is that the child may "burn out" on all sports, Austin said.

Austin's "Jacket" book is the second he has published. Earlier, he published a history of junior football in the city, entitled: "The PHL in the STL."

He said he's now compiling a second book of anecdotes about over-zealous sports parents and hopes to have it published in a year.

He said he's gathering information about parents acting badly outside the St. Louis area. "I hope to have a series of such stories from across the country," he said.

(If you'd be interested in buying a copy of "You Might Need a Jacket," they are available at local book stores or you can order from Amazon.com by clicking on the Amazon logo on the home page of Young Saint Louis.com to place your order.)

Austin was born in Milwaukee, WS, and has been in St. Louis since 1980. He attended McClure North High School and then Lindenwood College.

At Lindenwood, he set scoring and rebounding records during his four years of basketball. His rebounding record still stands.

Austin's basketball prowess came from within the family. Hall of Fame pro basketball player Wes Unseld is an uncle. Unseld was known for his rebounding and his outlet passes.

Austin said, "I was a good rebounder and had a good outlet pass. But, my passing was nothing like my uncle's."

After college, he stayed in the sports field. He is the sports editor for the St. Louis American newspaper and has been broadcasting Saint Louis University basketball for 19 years. He also has a website, www.earlaustinjr.com.