Public school football coach leads 50-yard line prayer meeting, which the Supreme Court now endorses

Coach Is Coach Is Coach

Have the Justices of the Supreme Court never played any type of organized school sport?

If you weren’t absolutely convinced the Supreme Court is just pretty nakedly right now approaching rulings from the perspective of Christian fundamentalist zealotry, Monday’s ruling involving a public school football coach should leave no doubt.

The coach claimed he was fired because he wanted to do private, silent prayer. That happened to have to be on the 50-yard line after games. And in the locker room. Welcoming news crews along when it started becoming a big deal.

The coach insists he never forced any team member to participate.

But anyone who’s ever played any type of organized school sport damn well knows the outsize role “coach” plays in the lives of student athletes.

There’s no “on-off” switch.

If coach wants you to do something, you do it. Whether it’s on the field, or in the locker room, or in his or her office. Whether it’s before, after, or during a game.

So if coach starts making a big show of praying, I’m going to join him whether I want to or not. Especially in high school, where my status on the team connects directly to my social status in the school, and where I’m also thinking about…