Wait for it wait for it ... It being the part where Cam jumps in and drops jems about how/where/why coach JPM has underachieved.
@CamrnCrz1974, your on!
As requested...
Comparing predecessor Gail Goestenkors' last seven years at Duke with Joanne P. McCallie's eight-plus years (including this year) at Duke produces the following:
Overall record:
Goestenkors: 220-25 (89.79 percent)
McCallie: 243-64 (79.15 percent)
ACC record:
Goestenkors: 98-8 (92.45 percent)
McCallie: 107-30 (78.10 percent)
NCAA record:
Goestenkors: 23-7 (one NCAA runner-up, three Final Fours, five years at least making the Elite eight, all seven years at least making the Sweet 16)
McCallie: 18-8 (zero Final Fours, four Elite Eights, six years at least making the Sweet 16, two second round losses)
Against Top 5 Opponents:
Goestenkors: 14-14 (50.00 percent)
McCallie: 7-28 (20.00 percent)
Against Top 10 Opponents:
Goestenkors: 25-14 (64.10 percent)
McCallie: 19-36 (34.545 percent)
Against Ranked Opponents:
Goestenkors: 60-20 (80.00 percent)
McCallie: 58-49 (54.21 percent)
Against UConn:
Goestenkors: 2-1 (2-2 for her career; 2-1 against UConn over her last seven years; both wins in the State of Connecticut)
McCallie: 0-8 (and only one loss was less than 22 points, and that was by 16 points)
Against Tennessee:
Goestenkors: 4-3 (5-4 for her career; 4-3 against Tennessee over her last seven years)
McCallie: 1-1
Against Tennessee under Coach G, Duke won twice in Knoxville. And though it was not in the time frame discussed above, Duke defeated three-time defending national champion Tennessee in 1999 to reach the Final Four, ending the career of Chamique Holdsclaw and ending the seasons of Semeka Randall and Tamika Catchings.
Against UConn under Coach P, Duke has scored over 52 points in only one of those eight games, while scoring in the 40s in five of the eight. Duke has allowed between 74 and 87 points in seven of the eight games. Duke has lost those eight games by an average of 29 points, notwithstanding the fact that Duke was ranked in the Top 10 for every single one of those games (and in the Top 5 for four of the eight).
What was Coach P's solution to UConn? She decided to take the Huskies off the schedule!
As for recruiting, here is the list of Duke's McDonald's All-Americans from 2010 through 2014:
2014 - Sierra Calhoun, Lyneé Belton
2013 - Oderah Chidom, Kendall Cooper, Rebecca Greenwell
2012 - Alexis Jones, Sierra Moore
2011 - Amber Henson, Elizabeth Williams
2010 - Chelsea Gray, Richa Jackson, Haley Peters
Out of 120 MCDAAs from 2010-2014, 12 have gone to Duke - 10 percent.
*
Note that this does not include players who were named Parade All-Americans or WBCA All-Americans.
Coach P inherited a roster with eight high school All-Americans (MCDAA) - Wanisha Smith, Abby Waner, Carrem Gay, Krystal Thomas, Jasmine Thomas, Joy Cheek, Bridgette Mitchell.
Since McCallie took over, Duke has had at least five recruiting classes (counting 2015) ranked #1 or #2. McCallie has led her teams to four Elite Eights in eight-plus seasons. In two of those Elite Eight games, her teams scored in the 40s; three of the losses were by 11+ points. By contrast, Duke made the Final Four four times in the ten previous years under her predecessor, while Duke has zero Final Four appearances during Coach P's tenure.
Since Coach P took over for the 2007-2008 season, here is the list of schools to have made the Final Four:
Multiple Appearances in the Final Four (since the fall of 2007)
- UConn (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016)
- Notre Dame (2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015)
- Stanford (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014)
- Louisville (2009, 2013)
- Oklahoma (2009, 2010)
- Maryland (2014, 2015)
- Baylor (2010, 2012)
- LSU (2007, 2008)
Single Appearances in the Final Four (since the fall of 2007)
- South Carolina (2015)
- California (2013)
- Texas A&M (2011)
- Tennessee (2008)
- LSU (2008)
- Washingotn (2016)
- Syracuse (2016)
- Oregon State (2016)
The overwhelming majority of these schools have had fewer McDonald's All Americans than Duke has had. In fact, some of these schools had either zero MCDAA players or only one such player. Yet their respective results have been significantly better.
With the elite talent being brought in, one would expect the results on a national stage to be better, even significantly better. And the overall records against Top 10 and Top 5 teams are
frightening, to say the least (and even worse when factoring in the talent).
Now, injuries have certainly played their parts in recent years (2013-2014 and this year especially). But injuries are just used as excuses. Three of the past eight MCDAA players at Duke have transferred, which is a concern. This season, Duke lost to Wake Forest (after 44 straight wins) and to Georgia Tech in Cameron (last time was 22 years ago). Duke had more MCDAA players and more elite talent on their respective rosters. Both Wake and Georgia Tech lost their best players (Dearica Hamby and Kaela Davis, respectively). And both games demonstrate a Duke coach who is willing to do more with less (in terms of talent), who will not make adjustments, and who puts a product on the floor that very few people want to watch.
And the coaching staff turnover has been an area of concern, especially when you consider their respective destinations:
- Samantha Williams (Assistant Coach, Louisville)
- Joy Cheek (Assistant Coach, Ohio State)
- Shannon Perry (Assistant Coach, UCLA)
- Trisha Stafford-Odom (Assistant Coach, UNC)
- Candice Jackson (Head Coach, College of Charleston)
Five African-American female assistant coaches have left in eight-plus years, but only one left for a head coaching position. And one was a former McCallie player at Duke who chose to take a lateral position at a school to which she had zero ties, rather than enduring Coach P. If Al Brown is gone as an assistant coach after this year as well, that would make six assistant coaches in nine seasons. And this is not counting the departures of Lauren Rice, Robert Brickey, etc.
Our once proud program has gone from national title contender and perennial Final Four participant to a national punchline.
