Tennessee goes down to... wait for it... Virginia Tech

[VAMike23]

If, and this is a BIG IF, Tennessee AD really wanted to fix the program, then entire coaching staff needs to be shown the door. They are all Pat disciples and Pat's style doesn't cut it anymore. A new staff will have to completely change the culture of the program if they are to regain any semblance of their glory days.

To his great credit (from my POV at least), their AD seems happy to keep the LV rudder in Holly's hands for the foreseeable future.

I'm delighted !!!!!

 

[RockyMTblue2]

the players on the floor are amongst the best in America

Not by any objective measure. High school is over. In the "big time", for whatever reason, they are not performing well, either individually or as a group.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

My personal fav from Holly today. She regularly admits she doesn't understand. Now she is admitting the obvious - the painfully obvious.

"We have to get some kind of discipline in our game and in our heads. I don't quite understand it, but it is my job to figure it out."

 

[huskeynut]

Just came back from VolNation. OMG - they are calling for Holly's head now. Some want the entire coaching staff gone. There are some real angry posters down there.

And some of the posters are saying who should be the next head coach. All have ties to the Tennessee program - Carolyn Peck, Kara Lawson, Kyra Elzy (sp?), Matt Mitchell and others.

Many also realize the AD is not really concerned with the LAdy Vols, only restoring football to its former greatness.

 

[Tenspro2002]

Holly has to go. This is another story in a long line of legendary coaches whose deputies couldn't hack it as the lead dog.

Her performance is basically a clinic in how to run a storied program into the ground.

 

[Gus Mahler]

Just came back from VolNation. OMG - they are calling for Holly's head now. Some want the entire coaching staff gone. There are some real angry posters down there.

And some of the posters are saying who should be the next head coach. All have ties to the Tennessee program - Carolyn Peck, Kara Lawson, Kyra Elzy (sp?), Matt Mitchell and others.

Many also realize the AD is not really concerned with the LAdy Vols, only restoring football to its former greatness.

Carolyn Peck? Matt Mitchell might do well.

 

[sarals24]

Let's start a Keep Holly Warlick campaign. I say extend her contract another five years!

 

[Kaizen]

Just came back from VolNation. OMG - they are calling for Holly's head now. Some want the entire coaching staff gone. There are some real angry posters down there.

And some of the posters are saying who should be the next head coach. All have ties to the Tennessee program - Carolyn Peck, Kara Lawson, Kyra Elzy (sp?), Matt Mitchell and others.

Many also realize the AD is not really concerned with the LAdy Vols, only restoring football to its former greatness.

From another board, they called her b---h, a-----e. Gee, I really love The BY board.

 

[Gus Mahler]

You have to score to win and you have to shoot to score. And Tennessee doesn't have enough players that can shoot, especially not from any distance. Sometimes it's as simple as that.

Maybe they should get rid of Lady Vols and change their name to "Bricklayers"

How about "The Lady Moles"? [I'm sure that's not original.]

 

[Geno-ista]

Whether or not one feels some level of sympathy for Holly, as one might for any head coach who is tapped to succeed a legend, I'm beginning to think it is now too late for her to save herself. Tenn is simply not well-coached, especially on the offensive side. No flow whatsoever. Six fourth quarter points at home vs an unranked team. I know there are a lot of Tenn haters here, but this is a sad fate for a once-storied program that has amassed lots of talent but can't do anything with it. Doug Bruno and Muffett have demonstrated what we already knew...one's name doesn't have to be Geno to qualify as a top-flight coach. They can do a lot better, and doing so would be good for WCBB.

Geno was lambasted for his coaching vs DePaul and ND by many on the BY that are supposedly UC fans. Tenn has had top recruits every year. Nor sure how long they or she will wait to make a chg. The coaches of Dayto, Green Bay & Marist and Princeton would be improvements. They just look terrible.

 

[VAMike23]

I think Niele Ivey would be the best choice out there -- but she's entrenched at her alma mater and has a middle-school aged kid so she might not want to make any moves for a few years no matter how good the offer was. (OK - maybe if it were *really* big money but from all indications Hart is not going to be throwing big money at anyone if he even thinks replacing Warlick is a topic worthy of discussion.)

Also, she may very well be aspiring to the HC position at Notre Dame after MM retires, and she's probably got as good a shot as anyone at it. Just saying she'd be the best choice that's even theoretically possible. MM herself is not going anywhere, Mulkey seems to be where she wants to be and I don't see any other HC that would meet their requirements. Ivey is a proven recruiter (problem #1 for the LV's lately) and has also shown ability to work with and develop guards (problem #2) like Diggins and many others who aren't at that talent level but nevertheless grow and compete at a very high level.

I shall pray the rosary and recite 100 Hail Marys in hopes that Ivey never sets foot in Knoxville except on ND game days

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

If, and this is a BIG IF, Tennessee AD really wanted to fix the program, then entire coaching staff needs to be shown the door. They are all Pat disciples and Pat's style doesn't cut it anymore.

A new staff will have to completely change the culture of the program if they are to regain any semblance of their glory days.

I know UConn fans wouldn't think of it as better, but Jolette Law, one of the asst. coaches, is not tied to Pat, she is tied to Coach Stringer. She was a star at Iowa, played for the Harlem Globetrotters, a long time Associate Head Coach at Rutgers, Head Coach unsuccessfully at Illinois, and now at Tennessee. But no Pat ties that I know of.

 

[DobbsRover2]

In fairness, Tech is now 7-1 with wins over Charleston, GMU, and Penn State. I would expect Tenn to drop to about 13-15 and Tech to enter the top 25 at about 23-24...

Cooper has been removed from the starting lineup and went 1-6 scoring 4 points. Tennessee went basically 7 deep with Cooper and Jackson off the bench starting Russell, Deshields, Graves, Carter, and Reynolds. At this point, Tennessee is no longer fighting for a 1 or even a 2 seed. they are about a 4 seed fighting for a 3 seed.

Long season to go, but given they've lost to the only top 25 team they faced, and just lost to an unranked team, the future looks bleak for them...

Also, finally the refs seem to be getting hip to their grab and hold defense - instead of moving feet, Tenn players seem to want to play physical to disrupt the other team. Glad the refs aren't letting them get away with it...

ES, c'mon, VTech was rate at #96 by Sagarin going into the game, and a win over the Vols doesn't mean that much anymore. If VTech is ranked for wins over UTenn and #227 Charleston, something is very wrong with the people who do the voting.

 

[Biff]

something is very wrong with the people who do the votin[/I]g.

Hmmmm. Are you making the mistake of ruling that out?

 

[msf22b]

The issue for possible replacement (if that is being considered) is that it is very unlikely that any seated head coaches would migrate during the season.

So if a replacement is needed instantly, even on a interim basis, it would have to be from the ranks of the retired (Van Chancellor et al) or the media...Carolyn Peck (Columbia's gain is America's loss), Kara Lawson...would be great in my view...or a retired player, most likely with a Lady Vol pedigree.
Tamika Catchings comes to mind but also Lisa Leslie, Tina Thompson or the best catch (coach)of all Becky Hammon.

 

[DobbsRover2]

Hmmmm. Are you making the mistake of ruling that out?

Nope, I checked out their credentials, and they all claim to have watched at least one WCBB basketball game in the last few years, so that should do them kind of okay. And they all know that losing to a #119 rated Georgetown and beating a #227 Charlestown and Little Sisters of the Hospital UTenn is not a reason to get ranked for VTech. The Hokies are unlikely to even be cracking the top 60 in Sagarin by the next update.

Sorry, but any time your superstar player is shooting 38.8% on the season and you have to post a "We Lost to the Hokies" headline, you aren't a "big win" that a team can get ranked off of.

 

[bballnut90]

At this point I almost hope Tennessee continues to tank so there's a chance they bring in a top-flight coach who can teach some offense. Tennessee's offense is absolutely dreadful, the fact that they only put up 43 points against Virginia Tech is atrocious. People here rip on Pat's offensive ability as a coach, but Pat's teams were not nearly this awful offensively and this team has as much, if not more offensive talent than a lot of Tennessee's good teams when you consider Cooper, Deshields, Russell, Graves, etc as individual offensive threats. There is zero team cohesion on the court, and you can tell the players don't buy into Holly's philosophy. Even dreadful Duke's offense today looked like it had some ball movement and screens. After watching Notre Dame yesterday and they were able to put up 81 points against Connecticut with an entire roster of players ranked in the 20s to 50s, that was a team that was well coached and knew how to play offense. Tennessee's lineup is littered with high school All-Americans and they can only put up 43 today against a mediocre Virginia tech team. There is a reason why ND has played in 5 straight final fours and why Tennessee was a dominant program for 30+ years--coaching. Time for a change.

 

[huskyd]

If they had been playing UCONN they would have connected on over half of those.

Ah, the whose side is God on issue. We see athletes pointing to the sky with increasing frequency in many sports to indicate either 1) God gave the athlete his great powers and accomplishments and all the glory is His, or 2) God takes sides in sporting events and has Skin in the game. Maybe the idea of the 3-pt. blitz that UConn has been suffering under derives from one or both of the above. The Husky opponents have been endowed with special gifts (for a limited time) of making 3's OR God wants UConn fans to squirm and suffer like Job (without actually killing us or causing us to lose the game). The message of Job is: don't ask why things happen; accept the wins and chill.

 

[EricSD]

College of Charleston is 4-2, GMU is 3-5, and Penn State is also 3-5. VA Tech's other wins are over Presbyterian, Wofford, and Providence. Sagarin has them at #96 and Massey at #108. I'm not seeing a top 25 team.

But.. they b eat Tennessee and are 7-1... I'm thinking sweet 16 calibur...

 

[Kmoney]

I am curios. Does Holly have a buyout clause? Is Tennessee Womens Basketball considered a revenue sport?

 

[EricSD]

ES, c'mon, VTech was rate at #96 by Sagarin going into the game, and a win over the Vols doesn't mean that much anymore. If VTech is ranked for wins over UTenn and #227 Charleston, something is very wrong with the people who do the voting.

I was only being slightly facetious. Do you think the voters look at Sagarin or any of the other ratings? I think Va Tech is pretty awful, but according to the lazy eye test, they beat the #8 team and are 7-1. I don't know that they make the top 25 but i bet they at least are also receiving votes...

 

[Boxerpups4me]

As a lifetime Lady Vol fan, I'm embarrassed honestly. To have so many highly ranked recruits, and still look this awful is just wholly disappointing. If we didn't have Diamond, I'm afraid we would have lost the Penn State, UTC and Syracuse games as well. I'm thinking now maybe 12-13 regular season losses and possibly missing out on the tournament..things will get worse before they get better I'm afraid

 

[Boxerpups4me]

I am curios. Does Holly have a buyout clause? Is Tennessee Womens Basketball considered a revenue sport?

Yes, she received a contract extension last year I believe. I think all of WCBB, even the big names like UCONN, ND and Tennessee end up in the red every year, but it's still in the AD's best interest to not let those programs totally sink into oblivion

 

[Boxerpups4me]

At this point I almost hope Tennessee continues to tank so there's a chance they bring in a top-flight coach who can teach some offense. Tennessee's offense is absolutely dreadful, the fact that they only put up 43 points against Virginia Tech is atrocious. People here rip on Pat's offensive ability as a coach, but Pat's teams were not nearly this awful offensively and this team has as much, if not more offensive talent than a lot of Tennessee's good teams when you consider Cooper, Deshields, Russell, Graves, etc as individual offensive threats. There is zero team cohesion on the court, and you can tell the players don't buy into Holly's philosophy. Even dreadful Duke's offense today looked like it had some ball movement and screens. After watching Notre Dame yesterday and they were able to put up 81 points against Connecticut with an entire roster of players ranked in the 20s to 50s, that was a team that was well coached and knew how to play offense. Tennessee's lineup is littered with high school All-Americans and they can only put up 43 today against a mediocre Virginia tech team. There is a reason why ND has played in 5 straight final fours and why Tennessee was a dominant program for 30+ years--coaching. Time for a change.

Holly will end up losing the team, if she hasn't already. I wouldn't be surprised to see players transfer out if this continues to get uglier

 

[HuskyNan]

As a lifetime Lady Vol fan, I'm embarrassed honestly. To have so many highly ranked recruits, and still look this awful is just wholly disappointing. If we didn't have Diamond, I'm afraid we would have lost the Penn State, UTC and Syracuse games as well. I'm thinking now maybe 12-13 regular season losses and possibly missing out on the tournament..things will get worse before they get better I'm afraid

I'm sympathetic, boxerpups, because while some of the loonier fringe LV fans can't suffer enough losses for me, you (normal) LV fans don't deserve this. It must be especially disheartening to hear how clueless H. Warlick sounds in the pressers.

 

[Boxerpups4me]

Geno was lambasted for his coaching vs DePaul and ND by many on the BY that are supposedly UC fans. Tenn has had top recruits every year. Nor sure how long they or she will wait to make a chg. The coaches of Dayto, Green Bay & Marist and Princeton would be improvements. They just look terrible.

I think you would see an immediate improvement in the NEXT game if we had any of those said coaches..

 

[Boxerpups4me]

I'm sympathetic, boxerpups, because while some of the loonier fringe LV fans can't suffer enough losses for me, you (normal) LV fans don't deserve this. It must be especially disheartening to hear how clueless H. Warlick sounds in the pressers.

It really is Nan. On the one hand you have Holly, who stutters and stammers through press conferences like she doesn't know a thing about basketball and on the other hand you have someone like Geno who just has a presence about him. He is very confident and you can see that same confidence in his team and players. To me, great coaches like Geno and Pat just have that air of confidence about them and they also are able to instill discipline into their teams. That's probably an oversimplification, but it's the best way I can describe it,,

 

[Kaizen]

I'm sympathetic, boxerpups, because while some of the loonier fringe LV fans can't suffer enough losses for me, you (normal) LV fans don't deserve this. It must be especially disheartening to hear how clueless H. Warlick sounds in the pressers.

I remember last year when UConn lost to Stanford. I was so heart broken that I did not want to watch any news related to women basketball. After 1 week I told myself, this is not the end of world.
May be the worst is over. Tomorrow will be another new day ......Cheer

 

[DobbsRover2]

I'm sympathetic, boxerpups, because while some of the loonier fringe LV fans can't suffer enough losses for me, you (normal) LV fans don't deserve this. It must be especially disheartening to hear how clueless H. Warlick sounds in the pressers.

One thing Holly is adamant about is that she'd stand on her head to get the answer to fix the Vols' problem, a funny put pathetic image of someone who at this point is in over her head with a team she has lost, and I think the coming of DD has if anything exacerbated the problem. When the two players chucking up the most shots on the team are shooting 37%, and only 28% from 3pt area, you have a gigantic problem, and it's way too late to start saying, "Maybe we should have some type of good strategy on offense."

I'm guessing that Holly does of her own accord decide to step down after a trying season "for health reasons," which would be perfectly true and understandable.

 

[Gus Mahler]

How much does Holly get paid?