What Would Dan Do?

     What would Dan Campbell do? For those unaware, Dan Campbell is the head coach of the Detroit Lions who has impressed his fans with his team management.

    I have five six grandsons who all play football right now. Only my youngest who is two years old doesn't play. My second youngest, Lewis, turned four years old in May and now plays flag football. His dad, my son Scott, is coach.

    Both my wife and I wondered how Lewis would do playing football. He's not great at following directions, he certainly doesn't understand the rules that govern football, and he is prone to major temper tantrums. But his dad would be the coach and his older brother would be on the team too, so Scott hoped all would be well.

    Lewis embraced the chance to play on a football team. He put on his team jersey many days right after school. He smiled as mom took a photo of him complete with his uniform, wearing his belt with his yellow football flags attached. Afterall, this would be flag football.

    But then Lewis said something that raised another type of flag, a red flag. “If someone takes my flag,” he told his dad, “I'm not going to play.” His dad, the coach, explained that in flag football, someone taking your flag is part of the game. But Lewis repeated, “If someone takes my flag, I'm not going to play.”

    Lewis was still very excited to be playing football. He showed up at his parents' bedside at 4:30 in the morning on opening day. “Football,” he announced to his mom when she was awakened. . That's how excited he was to play. And the first couple games went fine. He was proud of the touchdowns he said he scored though he really had run out of bounds. But since nobody had taken his flag, it was a touchdown in his mind.

    Then his dad the coach had to go out of town and the assistant coach had to manage the game this past weekend. When Lewis got his turn running the ball, he ran out of bounds again to avoid getting his flag pulled. He continued going out of bounds all the way to the end zone.

    When the teams assembled for the next play, I saw Lewis talking to the referee, almost certainly telling him that he scored a touchdown. I saw the referee responding back to Lewis, almost certainly telling him that he ran out of bounds. I could have told the referee something that I've known for quite a while. You are not going to win any arguments with Lewis. In fact, when Lewis came to the sidelines he told us that he indeed had scored a touchdown.

    Then in the game's waning moments, it happened. Lewis was handed the ball and before he could run to the sideline, somebody pulled his flag. Lewis threw a full blown tantrum, falling to the ground, kicking and screaming. Neither the coach nor the referee could console him. The tantrum continued.

    I saw the coach look pleadingly to the sidelines for help as that's where his mother and both grandfathers were sitting. But we stayed put. I'm sure Dan Campbell in his coaching days had learned how to manage a misbehaving player. So here's a similar teachable moment for the assistant coach.

       And it got worse. When Lewis wouldn't at least get up and go to the sideline, his teammates started heading to the sidelines themselves. The game clock was ticking too. When the coach tried to coax his players back onto the field, only a couple responded, the others taking a rest or a water break.

    Again, I'm thinking Dan Campbell would know what to do when his players decide to take an unscheduled mid-game break. Lewis's coach took a time-out. Good call. We got Lewis off the field and, true to his word, he said he quit. Fortunately, it was almost the end of the game anyway so it didn't matter.

    My son Scott will be home for Lewis's next game. Will he be able to coax Lewis back onto the field? To be honest, knowing my grandson, I'm not even sure Dan Campbell could talk him back onto the field. We'll see.