SEATTLE -- Jim Shapiro has been a high school football coach at King's High School for the last 22 years. He wants to make sure that you know his perspective on this topic comes from a coach at a private Christian school, but he is disappointed that Bremerton High School Assistant Football Coach Joe Kennedy has been placed on paid administrative leave for praying on the field. Shapiro says post game prayer has been around for decades.
"I've been doing it for 22 years and I've got to think that 99.9% of the teams have come to the center of the field afterward (for prayer)" Shapiro said. "We've had some kids opt out, say this is not for me. I've had some coaches opt out, but it's been a pretty rare experience."
"It's a blessing to go out there to play football, so why not take a moment, take a deep breath, and just go out there and reflect on that after a game?" Shapiro said. "Yeah, typically God is mentioned. You know, 'Dear God, thank you for giving us a chance to run and sweat and play the game and thanks for protecting us.' And that's it. It's really as simple as that."
"I've been coaching 22 years, roughly 10 games a year, that's 220 games that I've been a part of, not including playoffs, and I can mentally picture three teams, coaches, that did not want to come to postgame and it's mostly because of the outcome of the game," Shapiro said. "It's really less about prayer and more about giving thanks. And we should all be thankful. If we can't teach our kids to be thankful in our society, than we have a problem."
Shapiro said that he has reached out to Coach Kennedy in Bremerton and encouraged him during this time. Coach Shapiro says he knows it must be difficult for Kennedy to be away from his team as they near the end of the regular season. Shapiro says despite Kennedy's paid leave for prayer, he is confident that the post-game gatherings will continue.
"I know in the heart of the kids that we play, it is not a big deal," Shapiro said. "It is a time to celebrate the game of football and celebrate being together."
