No Trash Talking in New Jersey High School Sports

Question right out of the box: Isn’t trash talking part of the game in any sport?

Tom Hanks said it best in “A League of Their Own”. “There’s no crying in baseball!”

So now we have a rule banning trash talking in high school sports here in the state. Everybody must now make nice to each other; instead of instilling a healthy dose of “intimidation” against the other team.

All in line with the State’s guidelines on “anti-bullying”.

As a well-known talk radio personality has said on many an occasion: “…it’s sick out there and getting sicker!”

According to our report.

New Jersey high school athletes who talk trash could find their teams penalized and themselves under investigation by the state Civil Rights Division.

The New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association and the state Attorney General’s Office announced the new policy on Wednesday.

They say it brings athletic events into line with the state’s anti-bullying law for schools.

The sports policy goes into place this fall.

Participants could be in trouble if they make harassing statements related to gender, race, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation or religion. Referees would also be required to report incidents for possible further investigation.

To be fair, statements of the kind the NJSIAA mentions have no place on the field or in the locker room anywhere.

But given a policy like this, don’t you feel it could extend into other areas in which you call into question another team’s prowess.

If the “post Mike Rice” era has taught us anything, it’s that a good amount of what coaches used to “motivate athletes” is off limits.

Fine…but as far as I see, this is only the beginning.