Michael Swickard
Years ago a rather petty moment came and a sports official changed a high school game by taking the victory from one team and giving it to another. I was standing right there watching, and saw the smug smile on the official’s face as he stole our victory.
It was the first time such had happened to me so I was confused. My coach said, “Forget it; it is just the way things happen.” I could not then and have never had the ability to ignore injustice.
What brought this to mind is that three times this fall I have had the distinct feeling that an official took victory from one team intentionally. And nothing can be done since there is no mechanism to correct such injustices. More later.
Table tennis
At a national table tennis tournament years ago I was far ahead of my opponent. My opponent did not take the realization that I had the match well in hand very well. He called me foul names several times and was incredibly rude.
In tournaments I never showed any emotion. People could not tell by looking at me if I was winning or losing. Inside I was not taking a cussing well.
The third time my opponent used a bad word upon me I turned to the referee and protested that I would not accept that kind of language used upon me. It involved words that cannot be said on the radio. The referee was from that same town as my opponent and shrugged, “Play on.”
My opponent continued using four-letter words. I continued winning. The fifth time he unleashed a string of nasty words upon me I walked away from the table, got my bag and went to the tournament director to tell him I would not be verbally abused. He also shrugged.
It was my last match in that sport in which I was fairly good but would not take the dishonor of verbal abuse. The long drive home from Lubbock to New Mexico gave me time to reconsider, but I resigned from the sport as soon as I got home and have never competed again.
The WAC
A few years ago New Mexico State University joined the Western Athletic Conference. The first year or two officials took several football and basketball games away from NMSU in what I considered “intentional mistakes.” I am not an expert, but have attended college games for decades. I was left sputtering each time, angered that the replays showed these “intentional mistakes” by the officials. The WAC even apologized, but nothing otherwise was done.
After several times of being mad, my reaction to the WAC not caring about the integrity of their sports was for me to likewise not care about their sports. I do not go to college games often. Some people say, “Oh well, it is his loss.” Perhaps so, but these sports depend on fan support, which I no longer provide.
The NMAA
This brings me to this year in New Mexico high school football. In three games this year it appeared to me that “intentional mistakes” gave the win to the other team. The first two times I just sputtered and muttered and tried to hope that this could be excused by a mantra of “Win a few, lose a few” with the hope that the “intentional mistakes” by the officials would balance out by season’s end.
Saturday in Albuquerque there was a high school football playoff game in which the contest did not rest upon the actions of the student athletes. Rather, it rested upon one official. In this world of YouTube videos it is now obvious that an “intentional mistake” was made and the game given away. And there is no mechanism to correct this injustice.
The integrity of the sport is under the direction of the New Mexico Activities Association, which did not perform their duty to have a mechanism for integrity. So I will turn my back upon that sport because they do not have integrity.
The NMAA may be glad to see me go like the Western Athletic Conference is glad I do not care any longer about them. But if enough people join me, where will these sports be without fans?
Swickard is a weekly columnist for this site. You can reach him at michael@swickard.com.
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