[magic_beans]

Plenty of men with single mothers* learn to play sports just fine (see many NBA and NFL players).

*This is not to say that women don't play sports with their sons, but to say that it's silly to assume that all young fathers play sports with their sons.

[awkwarddaturtle]

Having a single mother would means kids are by themselves and playing with neighborhood kids. Having an older father means being at home more.

[mmmpop]

> Plenty of men with single mothers* learn to play sports just fine (see many NBA and NFL players).

True but I'd bet that many of these men came from urban areas where the community had services in place for younger people to find older mentors, and generally stay out of trouble.

I'm from eastern Kentucky originally and was lucky to have a fantastic stepfather, but I watched a lot of kids grow up with not much support past their single parent of either gender, and only a few of those I knew made it to 18 going anywhere near the correct trajectory. Outside of churches, there wasn't a lot of taxpayer-funded support for kids with single parents as it was probably a "moral" issue to the local politicians who still find the idea of a single parent family abhorrent and prefer to ignore it.

[Retric]

All is not necessary for statistical correlations.

[tnecniv]

I also know plenty of geeks who played sports through high school.

[imatworkyo]

that might be comparing two different things. In a single parent household (which I'm sure is heavily swayed towards single mothers) kids may be out playing with other kids.

In families with older fathers, [assuming] there is a higher percentage of dual parenting ... which could mean more attention at home = less time playing sports with the neighborhood kids