Navy Head Coach Brian Newberry is Getting Dragged for Not Letting One of His Players Skip Practice to Watch His Sister Win Olympic Gold

Manuel Reino. Shutterstock Images.

It's quite a thing, winning gold at the Olympics. Especially when you're talking about one of the events that truly require you to be faster and stronger than anyone else in the world. Like, for instance, track and field events. These aren't like some wealthy dowager winning a medal on the back of a horse who does all the work in some Equestrian event. They take hard work, dedication, and natural ability. And winning it all in one is not only the culmination of all your efforts, it's a source of pride for all your loved ones that nothing can ever take away. (Aside from a positive PED test, but let's put that aside.) I recently took top prize in a scramble golf tournament with a 10-under, and my brothers and sister will probably be positively beaming if I can ever get them to  show some interest in my amazing life of accomplishment. 

And so it was for the family of Thea LaFond of Dominica, who took Gold in the Triple Jump. LaFond's brother Chreign is a defensive end at Navy. And his coach Brian Newberry made sure to capture on video the touching, life-affirming moment when he stopped practice to deliver the great news in person for his entire squad to share in Chreign's joy:

But not everyone appreciated the heartwarming, beer commercial-nature of the gesture. When Navy chose to post the video on X, it became a social media dunk contest on Coach Newberry's head. With everyone pretty much making the same point:

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Despite the rhetorical nature of these questions, allow me to answer on Coach Newberry's behalf:

Let's get one thing perfectly clear to everyone questioning this move. Chreign LaFond doesn't play for a high school team. This isn't the Ivy League. This isn't even the NFL, where time off from practice isn't just allowed, it's required by the Collective Bargaining Agreement. This isn't football; it's football at one of the Service Academies. It's Navy Football. 

As the whole world - America's enemies, foreign and domestic - have learned by now, these guys are built different. You want to give Edge defender 15 minutes off to watch his sister's dreams come true? What happens when his ship is in some hot zone, facing down a hostile adversary? What if he's got some pirates in his crosshairs and they're refusing to let a guy like Captain Phillips free? If he's off the coast of North Korea and a cat-stroking crackpot is lobbing missiles into the Sea of Japan? Or, God forbid, Army is in the red zone looking at a 3rd & long with the game on the line? Does he get a break then? Hell no. 

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Navy men have been missing big moments in their families' lives since the first navy was invented. It's harder still for Navy football players, who have to balance the demands of an FBS program with their military training and are actually required to keep their grades up. All in the same 24 hours a day that God gives to Michigan and Ohio State and any other school where they never need to see the inside of a classroom. Something has to give. And in Chriegn's case, it was witnessing the greatest moment of his sister's life. I'm just guessing for the LaFonds as a whole, her winning Gold is tied with the day he made it into the Naval Academy as the greatest moment in family history. Bless them all. 

And thanks to Newberry for sharing this great moment with the world. It probably lasted 10 more seconds before they all had to get back to running Oklahoma drills and hitting the blocking sled. But it was special while it lasted. Go Midshipmen.