Traced back to the ancient days of the Roman Empire, warnings have existed to “beware the ides of March,” a saying forecasting troubled times ahead. Sports is but a mere sideshow to the more important segments of human existence we face these days, but if the post-game skirmish played out on television following the recent Big Ten basketball game between Michigan and Wisconsin is any forbearer, the very essence of athletic competition is headed for troubled waters.
In case you missed it, Michigan greatly needed a win over Wisconsin to have a chance at being included in the upcoming NCAA March Madness tournament. Despite a game effort, the Badgers prevailed 77-63. Michigan coach Juwan Howard became angered that Wisconsin coach Greg Gard called a late-game timeout with his subs in the game. Howard took it as a sign of disrespect and verbally confronted Gard in the handshake line. Things became heated, and the TV cameras showed Howard striking a Wisconsin assistant coach with an open hand as players pushed and shoved each other.
It was an ugly scene, and regardless of any perceived circumstances that may have triggered the confrontation, it left a black mark on the concept of sportsmanship.
Some have suggested that the history of the first formal post-game handshakes in North America, sports can be traced back to an Ottawa Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association game in 1908. But, the handshake gesture is a ritual dating back to ancient times.
Although its origins are somewhat murky, one popular theory is that the gesture began as a way of conveying peaceful intentions. By extending their empty right hands, strangers could show that they were not holding weapons and bore no ill will toward one another. Some have even suggested that the up-and-down motion of the handshake was supposed to dislodge and knives or daggers that might be hidden up a sleeve. Yet another explanation is that the handshake was a symbol of good faith when making an oath or promise. When they clasped hands, people showed that their word was a sacred bond.
In the days following the Michigan/Wisconsin incident, today’s most reliable conveyer of truthful communication (tongue firmly implanted in cheek) — social media — was full of comments from folks suggesting that shaking hands at sporting events is a thing of the past and should be done away with. For the sake of civility, I beg to differ.
With the exception of the NHL Stanley Cup Finals, there is no formal handshake policy in our major professional sports.
In the NFL, head coaches do a very quick ‘shake by’ at game’s end, opposing QBs exchange greetings, as do some other players.
Baseball players greet each other after wins, but there is no interaction with the opposition.
In the NBA, a league that lauds itself on promoting equality and brotherhood, most of its players run off the court as soon as possible at the end of the game.
To be sure, athletic competition presents some tense moments, and having to shake hands after a close loss or heated game may not be something coaches and athletes want to do. Throughout the many years I have been honored to coach young people, there have been those times when I may have preferred not to engage in the tradition existing in youth and high school sports.
Earlier this season, our then-undefeated seventh-grade basketball team was trounced by a mercy rule whipping at Muncy. We were overwhelmed and overmatched. At the end of the game, both teams lined up and shook hands, although those familiar ‘nice game’ greetings rang hollow in our minds. Weeks later, at the last game of the regular season, the teams met again at South Williamsport. This time the tables were turned as South came out on top. Although the roles had been reversed, both teams displayed sportsmanship as the ‘nice game’ greetings were exchanged.
Although the NCAA has spent millions to convince us otherwise as it labels its competitors ‘student-athletes’, big-time college sports are as professional as they can get without the term being used. Coaches are being paid millions (in many cases more than their MLB, NBA, or NFL counterparts) to win games and produce positive public images for ‘good old State U.’
By their very presence and as a symbol of ‘professional courtesy,’ they bear the responsibility to set the standard by which their teams and institutions are judged by their administrations and the general public. All too often, the TV cameras zoom in on coaches using foul language directed at referees or their players. While it has been said that words will never hurt you, slaps across the side of a face during a handshake line most certainly will.
In the aftermath of the Madison mayhem, Big Ten Conference officials ruled Howard was in “clear violation” of the league’s sportsmanship policy. He was suspended for the final five games of the regular season and was fined $40,000. Gard was also fined $10,000, and two Michigan players and one from Wisconsin received one-game suspensions.
Howard, who offered no post-game apology for his actions, later issued a statement saying in part, “I am truly sorry, this mistake will never happen again.”
Let’s hope he is true to his words. Let’s also hope handshakes or not, that civility and respect remain paramount to athletic competition.
