Coaching changes - D3/ past experience with a change?

When an AD releases a statement like the one for this change, it is very hard to know how this will end:

 

""We would like to thank Steve Duncan for his five years of service to Washington University.  We have an aggressive vision for the future of WashU Baseball, including early plans for sweeping facility improvements, enhancements to our coaching staff, and a strengthened commitment to our students' personal and athletic development," said Whitman. "Ultimately, our goal is to compete on the national stage in baseball as we do in so many other sports at Washington University. The timing is right for new leadership to help us usher in this new and exciting era in the baseball program's proud history."

 

My impression of this statement is the AD has a big vision and did not believe the head coach was a fit for that vision.  Why not is clearly for speculation and that is probably intentional.

Taken literally, my sense of the vision is they want to compete in baseball with programs like Emory, Trinity, Tx., Amherst and a very few others who are consistently top 20 ranked programs. One other impression is the new coach better be a fundraiser if "sweeping" facility and coaching enhancements are to be made. He also has to have a breadth of skills if a "strengthened commitment to our students' personal and athletic development," is also part of the qualifications.

While the AD's vision statement sounds promising, and the site suggests they intend to have a coach in place by the end of Summer, it seems like some element of  baseball  uncertainty would be prudent for any student-athlete with the ability to get through admissions, compete in the classroom and succeed in baseball. Even at a University with a reputation such as Wash U, one could expect it would take 3-4 years for a new coach to "begin" to make a dent of significance in  some of the expectations. Implicitly the AD seems to suggest the current performance and results are  not at the level needed to compete nationally at the highest levels.  I would have a tough time with the idea they would turn over a roster in ways similar to the happenings at many D1's who change coaches to upgrade.

 

I think infielddad hit the nail on the head.  When I read the AD's statement, I was immediatley drawn to the vision and having the new Coach be able to "fulfill" (euphemism for bringing in lots and lots of money) that vision.  Someone cue the sound of cash registers and alumni opening fund raising letters. 

 

For many high academic schools each sport is self-funded.  So, not only is the coach helping Johnny with batting practice but he is also soliciting alumni and "boosters" for short term and long term contributions.   You can be a great game coach but that may be not enough if you're not bringing money into the program.  I've heard of cases where a high academic coach with great fund raising skills/terrible coaching skills will remain with a program just because he bring in money to the program, and they don't want to lose that money.

 

Truthfully, if I was in your shoes I would not be deterred with these events at WashU.  WashU is a great academic school set on a beautiful campus.  If they want to take their athletics to the next level it is going to require money and lots of it.   This may be a great opportunity and time to be recruited there.  The tough part will be meeting their academic standards. 

 

As always, JMO.  Good luck!

I'll echo Fenway (as usual) in saying this should not keep you from considering Wash U.

 

While employers will love interviewing a college athlete, they probably aren't going to care who the coach was right?

 

The College I attended is 322 years young.  They've had lots of coaches.  They will have many more.  If you are picking a college "just for a coach" I think you are missing the point.

 

Rich

www.PlayInSchool.com/bus_tour

The culture goes beyond athletics.  Wash U wants to be seen as the equal of any school in the country in terms of academics.

Well, here's the new hire.  Any insights?

 

http://bearsports.wustl.edu/sp...eases/20150616a9bl7n

While I could envision that many things, off the field, are quite different between Wash U and Stevens Point, this seems like a solid  hire, looking at the baseball program and  the vision the AD has expressed. The AD vision seems to require a coach with some big shoes. Stevens Point competes at a high level, in a top conference and region. This is a proven coach in a top league.

To me, if someone is toward the top in the classroom, test scores and baseball field, they will be challenged at a school like Wash U but also have a major upside potential in terms of the classroom and baseball experience,  looking out 4 years. If this were our son, I would have no reservations. There are some posts on the D3 board that any issues might be with the new AD.  Posts from Wisconsin seem to think this is a  good coach.

thanks, infield....was just checking their schedule.  The conference they play in has a weird structure:  all the conference games this year were played in about ten days in March, in Florida.  The rest of the season looks like out of conference games in the midwest.

 

http://uaasports.info/sports/b.../schedule?confonly=1

I would say this.  I have no clue how the guy is as a coach.  His record suggest he is pretty good.  However, he is dealing with a different pool of talent at UWSP than he is at Wash U.  The Wisconsin state schools typically pull athletes who can't get into (or play at) the big U.  Wash U's academic standards may be more of a challenge.     

I would completely agree the academic standards of WashU will change the approach to recruiting from Stevens Point. That is what I meant by the comment about many things, off the field being quite different.

If the vision of the AD is to be approached, the recruiting may well have to be national, following approaches done by Emory, Amherst, Pomona-Pitzer, Trinity, Tx. and a few others.  As part of that approach, the academic selectivity won't give him margin for too many errors in his assessment of talent. On the other hand, he is starting with a team which won 34 games and was in the Regionals.  I would agree, though, that until the new coach proves he can effectively recruit within the academic selectivity of Wash U, which will be very different than the large school approach at SP, some questions will exist.  From the comments on the D3 board, it sounds like the newer AD is pretty aggressive. 

 

       
       

the UAA has always done this. They do not have enough teams in the conference for an autobid, so the conference championship, is for pride and bragging rights. All the schools spend their spring break playing at one site. Chicago is a member of the UAA but their spring break is at a different time than the other members so they dont compete in the UAA. They compete as an independent. The UAA does not get a pool A bid. So the schools in this conference are competing for a pool B or C bid.
Any young man that has the Academics to get into Wash U should seriously consider it. I know a couple of young men who were recruited by Wash U. And I got the impression that the coach did not have much pull with admissins. A young man had to get in on his own, against the others applying. Maybe they were not priority tecruits. But niether got in.
Head on over to D3 boards there is some discussion going on about this very subject.

Where's the D3 board?

d3baseball.com

SORRY!!   D3BOARDS.COM