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I'd like to share an interesting point of view from Brian Grasso on his blog on the topic of youth sports today. Brian is one of the leading professionals in the field of youth fitness and sports training and has developed numerous programs to assist coaches and trainers train youth the right way based on science and research.

I met Brian a few years ago at a conference in Indianapolis and found him to be a nice guy and extremely passionate about the fact that youth should be trained differently compared to adults, especially elite, adult athletes. I think he's right on target and this is something being overlooked at the cost of our youth. He is sometimes outspoken, but I think we need a person like him to look out for the best interests of our nation's youth. Read the post below in his own words and finish reading at his blog at the link below.

"In recruiting, it's all about being first. If you get in on the kid in eighth grade, you're first".

That quote was offered anonymously by an assistant collegiate basketball coach to ESPN earlier this year.

The fact it was offered 'anonymously' is the only thing that makes sense, .

No one in a state of consciousness would put their name behind such a ridiculous and inflammatory statement.

And yet how many of us agree with what he said?

Sports is a business.

You've got to be competitive early to make a mark.

What a load of undeniable crap.

I'm sick of the BS, , and the gloves are coming off.

If I had a dime for every time a parent, youth sports coach or Trainer told me that they 'got speed and strength advice from a college coach, so it must be right' I would be a millionaire ten times over by now.

I'm not trying to condemn every single college coach out there by any means, because there are some great ones, but if nothing else, the quote above illustrates one important fact -

Even the almighty 'college coach' can be as foolish and ignorant as the rest of us.

Did you know that the University of Southern California offered a basketball scholarship to an eighth grader this past summer?

And as if that isn't bad enough, Arizona State offered a football scholarship to a local ninth grader this autumn as well...

... But unfortunately they were two years too late because the same kid was tendered an offer from the University of Arizona while he was still in the 7th grade.

Blame the parents because they should be protecting their kids.

Blame the coaches for being overzealous and being more concerned about the health of their athletic programs than they are about the health of the kids.

Blame colleges for being too expensive so that parents have to pull out all the stops just to get their kids into college.

I'm not blaming anybody.

But I am going to tell you exactly what is wrong with the current state of affairs and what's going to happen physically to a vast majority of these young superstars because of their 'unfortunate' abilities.

Click here to read more:

http://developingathletics.com/wordpress/