Come playoff season, parents and alumni turn local high school matchups into all-out culture wars on social media and in the bleachers. Is fierce school-sport rivalry a healthy community tradition or a sign that too many adults are living through their kids?
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Add your commentBorn and raised in Newark, class of 2003. I'll tell you exactly what this is — it's grown adults who peaked in high school desperately trying to relive glory through teenagers who honestly just want to play ball. Watched a dad get escorted out of a sectional game last fall because he wouldn't stop screaming at a 16-year-old ref. A CHILD REF. That's not community pride, that's embarrassing.
My daughter plays for the Reds right now and I can tell you — the kids themselves are fine. They shake hands, they laugh with opponents after games, they're genuinely good sports. It's the parents in the stands texting each other inflammatory nonsense and posting clipped videos out of context that turn it ugly. Let the kids own their own games please.
Healthy tradition?? I had to mute fourteen people on Facebook between October and November because my feed turned into a full-time sports argument channel. My cousin — a grandfather by the way, his grandkid isn't even in school yet — was posting at 11pm about a JV soccer call from earlier that day. JV. Soccer. There's healthy and then there's whatever this is.
i moved here from rochester two years ago and honestly the first time i saw the parking lot situation at one of these games i thought someone was getting arrested lol. like there were actual arguments happening before the game even started. over high school volleyball. i love the community spirit but that particular friday night was A LOT
The social media part is what's genuinely new and genuinely worse. The games themselves are mostly fine — spirited, loud, fun. But there's this whole parallel universe happening online where adults are litigating every penalty, every coach's decision, every roster choice, and it poisons the actual experience for everyone. Disconnect from the group chat and just go watch your kid play. Revolutionary concept apparently.
Actually the Lyons dynasty thing is wrong — Williamson won back-to-back sectional titles in football in 2014 and 2015, not Lyons. Get your facts straight before you start talking dynasties on a public forum.
To everyone saying this is harmless: come sit in the visiting bleachers at one of these games and tell me how harmless it feels when grown men are jawing at you for wearing the wrong sweatshirt. I'm serious. Anyone from Clyde or Sodus who wants to weigh in here, I'd love to hear it.
Hard disagree. Rivalry is the whole point. You think Green Bay fans are "too serious"? Come on. Small towns NEED this kind of energy or everything just gets quiet and dies. Newark vs Sodus, Newark vs Williamson — these games matter to people and thats fine.
Okay but can we talk about the fact that Wayne County hasn't had a legitimate rivalry with Newark since Lyons had that dynasty run in like 2009? The other schools know they're playing for second place most years and the adults from those towns are the ones who get the most unhinged about it. Sour grapes is a powerful motivator.
rivalry builds character. always has. my dad talked about his games against marion and red creek back in the 70s like they happened yesterday. thats community memory. thats roots. not everything has to be a problem that needs fixing
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