Zorro
Nuestro Zorro Amigo
- Joined
- Aug 26, 2011
- Messages
- 17,920
- Reaction Score
- 15,759
Looking at the LV situation rationally; except for certain rabid UT fans, who shall remain nameless because their parents never married, and for whom, as Housman proposed for his protagonist with the abominable red hair; "...hanging isn't bad enough and flaying would be fair...", the situation over yonder is an ill wind that blows no one any good. Holly Warlick is, by all accounts, a very decent human being, who tries her best to coach the LVs as she observed PHS coach them for what, thirty years? She can't do it, because she lacks the one absolutely necessary characteristic, which was Pat's iron will and ability to impose that iron will on just damned near everyone, and especially on her players. A player who dared disobey her instructions did so at great peril, and few did. Human failings on the court were not acceptable to Pat, any more than they are to Geno. As a result, regardless of the soundness of Pat's strategy, every player followed it or sat. And even a flawed strategy can work, if everyone on the team sticks to it AND if you have the other team out-talented.
From what I have seen and read, Holly's xs and os are no different from Pat's. BUT, it is still a flawed strategy and the current crop of players is smart enough to know that and independent enough to feel entitled and obliged to ignore it. And when they do, Holly does not have the forceful personality necessary to bench them or even suspend them. As a result, rather than a flawed strategy agreed upon and followed, they have no cohesive strategy at all. Meghan Simmons caught all kinds of flak for shooting too much; I always thought that this was largely unjustified. What the hell was she SUPPOSED to do, when there was no established strategy to direct her actions? Somebody had to eventually shoot the damned ball, and she was as good at doing it as anyone else. Now the Tennessee fans, or many of them at least, are on DeShields' case for the same supposed fault, and it is no more her fault than it was Simmons'.
This situation is tragic for Warlick, who is doing the best she can with the skills she has, which are not good enough, it is tragic for the skilled players, who want to win just as much as our kids do, it is bad for the majority of LV fans who are not warped Geno-conspiracy theorists, and it is bad for wcbb in general, which used to derive a pot full of good publicity from the Clash of the Titans. What is most discouraging about the whole mess is that the UTAD, Mr. Hart (sometimes referred to Mr. Hartless over yonder) seems not to give a shade of a damn about the situation; he seems quite satisfied with things as they are. And it seems unlikely that under the current coaching staff things are going to improve, judging from the recent lack of success in recruiting players.
It is bad for UConn too, although far from tragic. Notre Dame and now SCar have stepped up to take the LV place as games to get excited about, the Huskies are far-and-away the best-known and most popular team in the country, there are many up-and-coming coaches who are eager to try their kids against the Huskies. And to re-establish the rivalry under the current conditions, bad feelings aside, would be a travesty. Still, I can't help but feel a certain nostalgia for all the tradition that surrounded the Clash. The incredible non-call at the buzzer when Tamika got mugged and the zebras swallowed their whistles, the "mooing" at Thompson-Bowling, the "punching of something orange", DT's incredible 3 that kept the streak alive, the shattered clipboard, many other unforgettable moments, unforgettable because they were the best vs. the best. Sic transit gloria mundi, eh Kibs?
From what I have seen and read, Holly's xs and os are no different from Pat's. BUT, it is still a flawed strategy and the current crop of players is smart enough to know that and independent enough to feel entitled and obliged to ignore it. And when they do, Holly does not have the forceful personality necessary to bench them or even suspend them. As a result, rather than a flawed strategy agreed upon and followed, they have no cohesive strategy at all. Meghan Simmons caught all kinds of flak for shooting too much; I always thought that this was largely unjustified. What the hell was she SUPPOSED to do, when there was no established strategy to direct her actions? Somebody had to eventually shoot the damned ball, and she was as good at doing it as anyone else. Now the Tennessee fans, or many of them at least, are on DeShields' case for the same supposed fault, and it is no more her fault than it was Simmons'.
This situation is tragic for Warlick, who is doing the best she can with the skills she has, which are not good enough, it is tragic for the skilled players, who want to win just as much as our kids do, it is bad for the majority of LV fans who are not warped Geno-conspiracy theorists, and it is bad for wcbb in general, which used to derive a pot full of good publicity from the Clash of the Titans. What is most discouraging about the whole mess is that the UTAD, Mr. Hart (sometimes referred to Mr. Hartless over yonder) seems not to give a shade of a damn about the situation; he seems quite satisfied with things as they are. And it seems unlikely that under the current coaching staff things are going to improve, judging from the recent lack of success in recruiting players.
It is bad for UConn too, although far from tragic. Notre Dame and now SCar have stepped up to take the LV place as games to get excited about, the Huskies are far-and-away the best-known and most popular team in the country, there are many up-and-coming coaches who are eager to try their kids against the Huskies. And to re-establish the rivalry under the current conditions, bad feelings aside, would be a travesty. Still, I can't help but feel a certain nostalgia for all the tradition that surrounded the Clash. The incredible non-call at the buzzer when Tamika got mugged and the zebras swallowed their whistles, the "mooing" at Thompson-Bowling, the "punching of something orange", DT's incredible 3 that kept the streak alive, the shattered clipboard, many other unforgettable moments, unforgettable because they were the best vs. the best. Sic transit gloria mundi, eh Kibs?
