Other coaches mention simply asking for extra protection before the team heads out to engage in a violent sport. I'm not as scared to go out on the field. Rosetti, like many football players, appreciates the prayer. At Camden High School, if head coach Mark Pease forgets a prayer after games or practices, his players remind him, Pease said. Other players say it's not a big deal to them at all, that it's just a part of the pregame routine.
Many parents also say they like the tradition of prayer in the locker room.
It shows that the coach is a good role model, they say, or it gives the boys an opportunity to be thankful. And . . . we wouldn't be here if it wasn't for God, so we need to thank God for all our successes or failures. Coaches and athletic directors insist that no one complains about team prayers. But that doesn't necessarily mean that everyone is comfortable with the practice. When Susan Murawczyk's son, Mike, played football at Haddonfield High School, she didn't particularly like it that coach Jim Horner led the team in prayer.