Athletic Support: Coach disappears after season is cancelled
eli.cranor@gmail.com

Dear Athletic Support: My daughter’s softball coach has disappeared! Seriously. As soon as it was announced that the season was going to be cancelled, my daughter hasn’t heard a word from this coach. And I really hate that. My daughter is still hurting from losing a whole season of her career, but now she can’t even talk to her coach? This coach is young. It’s only her second year as a head coach, and I can’t help but think she doesn’t have my daughter’s best interest in mind. Thoughts?

— Missing In Action


Dear Missing: You need to check in on this person. Look her up on Facebook. Pick up the phone and make a call. Do whatever you have to do until you verify that she’s okay.

I’m serious.

Once you find out that she’s fine, that’s when you can let her know how you really feel. I’d urge you to set up a call a few days out. This way it’ll give you time to really consider what you’re going to say.

You have to remember that this young coach has also been dealing with the pandemic too. She might have lost a loved one, or she could’ve been having to care for an elderly family member.

I think a phone call would help answer many of these questions. It also wouldn’t be a bad idea for your daughter to try and reach out to her, as well.

If, in the end, you simply cannot make contact with this young softball coach, then by all means, CALL THE POLICE!


Dear Athletic Support: My son is eleven. He’s played travel-league baseball for going on three years. This year, though, his season has been derailed by COVID19. My wife and I are reeling. We miss the bleachers and the road trips and the crazy passion that goes into youth baseball. Our son, on the other hand, doesn’t seem to care. He’s been perfectly content staying at home. He hasn’t mentioned quitting or anything, he just doesn’t seem to miss travel-league baseball at all. What does this mean? — Dazed Dad

Dear Dazed: It means your son doesn’t love baseball. That’s it. There’s nothing more to it. No coded signals. Your son just isn’t as wildly passionate about travel baseball as you and your wife are.

And that’s fine. It’s normal, actually.

What’s strange, though, is that it took a worldwide pandemic for you to figure this out. I’d be willing to bet your son’s lack of interest was evident long before COVID19. So why didn’t you notice it?

Because you love travel ball.

You have that “crazy passion” you mention in your question. Which is totally awesome. It’s a beautiful thing when parents are willing to invest their time and resources into their kids. But if the kids don’t end up having that same sort of burning desire — well — it’s time to rein some of that enthusiasm back in.

Now that we’ve all been blessed with more time than we know what to do with, take a couple minutes and talk to your son about baseball. See what his thoughts really are. Maybe he’s still interested in playing but just doesn’t want to have to travel every weekend. You’ll never know until you ask.


Eli Cranor is a former professional quarterback and coach turned award-winning author. Please use the “Contact” page at elicranor.com to send in questions for “Athletic Support.”

Previous Athletic Support Columns:

• What happens to the team if a player gets COVID-19?
• Will there be football in the fall?
• With sports gone, son’s grades tanking
• Lost without sports
• Teddy bears and tessellations
• Cornavirus? We’ve got games to play!
• Girlfriend getting in the way
• A parent’s role when sports are over
• Talk to your grandkids, carefully
• At what age should sports stop being fun?
• What ever happened to going door to door?
• Lack of respect for track
• Should my son take supplements?
• I need your help
• Help! My daughter wants to play football
• Transferring to a smaller school: the good, the bad, and the ugly
• What’s that smell? It’s not as bad as you think
• A break from school but not from sports
• Should a coach pray with his team?
• Coach tells player not to shoot
• Do nice guys (and girls) really finish last?
• Coach cancels post-season awards banquet
• No cellphones in the locker room!
• Fake scholarship signing?
• Withholding football as punishment
• Sick and tired of losing
• Late bloomer, a blessing or a curse?
• Scholarship hopes dead, now what?
• Is my son a butterfly chaser?
• Don’t force sports on your kids
• Hunting or Football?
• Beat the Heat
• Idle Hands
• Coach’s son gets special attention