No plan means confusion. It is worse when a thought-to-be plan is nonexistent. So it appears in hiring a football coach at Sequoyah High. I’m not privy to inside information but do know some about the process in the past. From that perspective it appears Sequoyah Principal Maurice Moser and Athletic Director David Gregory would complete the process.

But no matter the history that didn’t happen this time — and confusion reigns. Ugly, embarrassing confusion that reflects badly not only on Sequoyah but on the whole of Monroe County.

Now I know most of the people involved in this process and I can assure you this mess is not what they had in mind. If they could back up and start over most would.

Sequoyah Principal Maurice Moser and I go back a long way. Many years ago I was conscripted to chaperone dances at Madisonville High. And in jest was told, “Watch out for that Moser boy and the Swabe girl.” I kept an eye out, but saw just one thing, they were high school sweethearts.

Yes, they were together as sweethearts then, and they are together as sweethearts today.  And as parents and grandparents too. And they are two of the most dedicated employees in our schools. A devotion not to the system itself nor to other adults, but rightly placed in the students, the children of Monroe County entrusted to their care.

The fact is Maurice Moser is so devoted that he will subjugate his own will and privileges, such as making a hire, to others simply to make the path smoother for the students. I can hear him say, “Yes, sir. We’ll do it your way.”

I’ve had a passing acquaintance with new coach Bill Satterfield for a number of years. And if you know anything about high school football in East Tennessee you know his record leaves no doubt he is an outstanding coach.

My biggest disappointment is for the young men on the team. They are very young and young folks sometimes make critical decisions based more on emotion rather that what is ultimately best for themselves. I hope they soon realize that loyalty to their team and school, no matter what mistakes the adults make, is the most important thing for their own lives.

I don’t blame the kids for their actions; the fault lies with the adults involved; administrators, coaches and parents. There was too much “it’s my way or I’m taking my ball and going home” in all this. It’s time for forgiving and forgetting at Sequoyah. In this whole mess the School Board did a foolish thing by banning volunteer coaches where their children play. In one single overzealous moment of “look at me, I’m the boss,” devoted fans and parents were told to get lost. Thrown out the window with the volunteers were thousand of hours of work and thousands of dollars of contributions in many forms. Hope the board has the money to replace that.

By the way, if coaches can’t coach their own kids, why should teachers be allowed to teach theirs? Oh, but in sports a coach’s kid might get an unfair advantage. Do you think there’s no competition in the classroom? No vying for honors, for homecoming queen or king? Just go to scholarship night every spring and try not to get upset.

But if you are upset, you will probably be wrong. For the teachers’ kids are often the best scholars, but so too are the coaches’ kids often the best athletes.