Are There Benefits To Playing Multiple Sports Versus Concentrating On One Sport?

What do Tom Brady, Patrick Mahomes, Aaron Judge, Travis Kelce and Caitlin Clark have in common?

They all played multiple sports throughout their youth and into high school.

With the dream of attracting college recruiters and being offered scholarships, parents and players have always asked, “Is playing multiple sports or concentrating on one sport better for young athletes?”

“Great coaches like Bill Belichick, Mike Krzyzewski and Nick Saban always preferred players who had a background of competing in multiple sports,” said former Severna Park High School boys basketball head coach Paul Pellicani. “Belichick had a former college lacrosse player, Chris Hogan, be a very successful wide receiver for him when he coached the New England Patriots.”

Belichick also played multiple sports at Annapolis High School and one of Krzyzewski’s standout guards, Severna Park’s Steve Wojciechowski, played multiple sports at Cardinal Gibbons in Baltimore.

“When a college recruiter came into my office to talk about a player, he always liked when a player competed in multiple sports because it added to his versatility, athleticism, and developed different muscle groups, and in my opinion, reduced overuse injuries,” Pellicani said.

Playing multiple sports also gives players exposure to competing before different size crowds and improves the chances of them playing in district or regional championships.

“Playing multiple sports for multiple seasons increases a player’s chance of gaining playoff experience and learning how to compete when so much is on the line is key to an athlete’s confidence when playing at a high level,” said former Broadneck High School assistant baseball coach Neal Herrick, a former Baltimore Orioles minor league outfielder and member of the Anne Arundel County Sports Hall of Fame.

Other coaches encourage their athletes to play multiple sports to avoid “burnout” from playing one sport throughout the year.

“I personally find it incredibly important that student-athletes participate in more than one sport as long as they can,” said Severn School’s varsity girls lacrosse coach, Kathy Rudkin. “We live in a world where there is so much pressure to specialize in one sport and the pressure and demands of club and travel sports have made it harder to play multiple sports. Here at Severn, I highly encourage our lacrosse players to play more than one sport. This helps prevent burnout.

“The cross-training aspect oftentimes makes an athlete an even better and more effective player in their main sport because the skills learned in other sports usually translate well. College coaches love to recruit multi-sport athletes.”

Broadneck varsity girls head lacrosse coach Katy Kelley, who stepped down from her role after her team won a fifth-straight state championship in May, echoed that opinion. “One of the main reasons multiple sports is beneficial is from a mental burnout perspective,” she said. “Student-athletes learn to navigate different coaching styles and get a ‘change of scenery’ mentally, keeping them fresh from a mental standpoint. They aren’t always focused on one sport, or they escape from that main sport and the pressure that comes with that. From a skills standpoint, focusing on one sport has its benefits. But placed in the grand scheme of sports teaching life, I feel multi-sport athletes reap greater rewards.”

Coaches look at the mental aspect of burnout and many worry about whether the players will lose their love of the game because they have practice and games six or seven days a week.

“I firmly believe that there needs to be a day off each week, regardless of what day it is, to enable rest and recovery and to help avoid overuse injuries and mental fatigue,” said Anne Arundel Community College women’s soccer head coach Jim Griffiths.

Pellicani also worries about these young athletes having time to do activities other than sports.

“When are these players allowed to be kids?” Pellicani said. “There are so many camps and showcases out there that these athletes are traveling on weekends with games and practices during the week. My generation had pick-up games that were unstructured and fun. If you moved into a new neighborhood, sports were the ice breaker to meet new friends and be outside and have fun.”

Other coaches have thoughts on some players specializing in one sport, especially if the player is passionate about one sport and not interested in other sports.

“I advise athletes to do the activity that gets them excited to get out of bed each morning,” said Archbishop Spalding football head coach Kyle Schmitt. “If it’s lifting weights in the offseason, hitting a baseball, or shooting a basketball, that’s the right place to put their energy. One reality that often is forgotten in the debate is that some athletes specialize because they aren’t good enough to compete in other sports at the high school level, so it makes sense to put their time into one sport.”

Many coaches are also parents who use the multi-sport philosophy when raising their children.

“My own kids were encouraged to play a sport every season, and my husband and I always felt strongly about the benefit of that,” Kelley said.

For parents who are concerned whether their child is getting noticed by college recruiters, coaches state that through relationships with colleges and the use of video footage, the recruiters are evaluating talent throughout the season and offseason.

“If you can play, the recruiters will find you,” Pellicani said. “Just look at all the National Football League rosters and how many players are from smaller colleges, and when Major League Baseball conducts its draft, so many players are from small towns, including our own Jackson Merrill from Severna Park High School.”

One of the greatest small-town athletes in the last 20 years was NFL wide receiver Randy Moss. He attended DuPont High School in Rand, West Virginia; played four sports; and was West Virginia’s player of the year in football and basketball, a state champion in track and field, and played center field in baseball.

All the coaches agree that sports play a vital role in the development of children and teenagers, as well as teaching so many life skills that they will use the rest of their lives.