The ABSOLUTE MOST IMPORTANT hire..replacing Jerry Martin

[huskymedic]

NHRJimFuller5:12pm via TweetDeck
#UConn AD discusses dismissal of highly-regarded strength coach Jerry Martin

"Change is never easy," Manuel said. "While you want to make things as simple as you can, change happens. People come in and you need to make changes. None of this has been personal, it never has been for me but I am going to support Coach Diaco and our new coaches and that is just the way it has to happen. There is no easy way to do it. You try to be as sensitive and professional as you can but there is no easy way to say to somebody that we are bringing somebody else in and we really appreciate you but what they hear is 'I am not going to be here anymore.' You try to do as best you can. We are thankful for all the work that he did and now we are going to move on and bring somebody else in."

http://runwayramblings.blogspot.com/2014/01/martins-departure-from-uconn-raises.html

 

[Hoophound]

Why would anyone want to live in Mississippi if you had a choice? The griping on that board over his leaving is music to my ears.

I spent some time in Jackson MS in the 90's for work and it wasn't the greatest place but it was kind of cool and it was full of nice people and absolutely gorgeous young women. Almost every conversation I had with a middle aged lady became a discussion about how fast they'd have me married off if I moved there. It was rather bizarre in that sense. In retrospect, every guy in the big bar/club I went to a couple times looked like a member of Rascal Flatts.

 

[Colt house75]

As long as we're cleaning house, can we please can the PA announcer ? He is the worst.

The PA announcer or the DJ or are they one and the same...guess I never paid attention.....too into the game.
I thought the appeal of the music selection was for the students and younger fans. Certainly not keen of the music selection, would prefer the Stones, Journey etc but given the STOIC nature of some of our "fans" who walk in 2nd quarter and leave in the 4th when we're down by 7, whatever can generate excitement and noise resulting in "false starts", etc I am all for.

 

[Colt house75]

Well at least one guy did make the point that they have to overpay assistants to come just to have to live in Mississippi in the first place lol.

Except for the heat, heard that most SEC venues were a great place to see a game. plus you Don't you need a winter jacket if you live there and they get no snow.

 

[Colt house75]

I spent some time in Jackson MS in the 90's for work and it wasn't the greatest place but it was kind of cool and it was full of nice people and absolutely gorgeous young women. Almost every conversation I had with a middle aged lady became a discussion about how fast they'd have me married off if I moved there. It was rather bizarre in that sense. In retrospect, every guy in the big bar/club I went to a couple times looked like a member of Rascal Flatts.

From above...Seeing that every guy looked like Rascal Flats plus you had all your teeth ....maybe that's why they had you married off....

 

[Nostical]

If Diaco has a say in it, I would be extremely surprised if DJ Dog pound ever does another football game."

I dont get the impression (though I may be wrong) that "old school" Coach P cared a lot about all the ancillary goings on in a football game. He seemed to treat them as none of his business and it never appeared he was trying to enhance the gameday experience for fans (memo to P: winning would have helped!). But this is a new day, and change of all types is occurring right before our eyes. The established traditions are being questioned, the coaching staff is brand new, and the enthusiasm and outreach are unprecedented. Whether it's the on-site DJ, the in-game music, the look of the team's entrance onto the field, etc., somehow I get the feeling Coach BD's desire to demonstrably change the football culture and fan experience will have him voicing his opinions and caring about the result. For starters, I'll be shocked if the spring game, at his insistence, isn't substantially amped up.

 

[MTHusky]

From above...Seeing that every guy looked like Rascal Flats plus you had all your teeth ....maybe that's why they had you married off....

How do you know he had all his teeth??

 

[rich1122]

Starkesville. Look for the sign that says the end of the world, then go another 2 miles.

 

[Hoophound]

How do you know he had all his teeth??

Well I did in fact have all my teeth. The culture down there is/was just obsessed with marriage. They have these huge, glamorous magazines that showcase every engagement and wedding in the state.

 

[storrsroars]

I read through the first five pages of that thread. And for all the "dumb Mississippi" jokes, in general the posters had better spelling and grammar than the typical BE forum, including this one.

Anyway, Diaco worked with Balis at Virginia, so seems BD has already proved himself able to get "his guys" regardless of what WM says or thinks.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

I read through the first five pages of that thread. And for all the "dumb Mississippi" jokes, in general the posters had better spelling and grammar than the typical BE forum, including this one.

Anyway, Diaco worked with Balis at Virginia, so seems BD has already proved himself able to get "his guys" regardless of what WM says or thinks.

What does WM say or think in regard to Diaco's ability to get "his guys"?

 

[storrsroars]

What does WM say or think in regard to Diaco's ability to get "his guys"?

Simply noting that unless there's something we're not hearing, Diaco had to make a case for removing a guy with a great reputation - and part of some championships - in order to get a new guy he worked with in the past (Virginia).

If you've ever been in a management position where you had to let go an employee without cause because of an internal shakeup, it's not fun. You don't do it just "for change". Somebody had to make a compelling argument to do so. In this case, that's BD.

 

[sportsart]

Simply noting that unless there's something we're not hearing, Diaco had to make a case for removing a guy with a great reputation - and part of some championships - in order to get a new guy he worked with in the past (Virginia).

If you've ever been in a management position where you had to let go an employee without cause because of an internal shakeup, it's not fun. You don't do it just "for change". Somebody had to make a compelling argument to do so. In this case, that's BD.

I doubt Martin is gone just from Diaco wanting his guy. I imagine it was just time, due to many little factors.

 

[Waquoit]

I have no problem with this at all. The new guy was said to have changed "twigs" to "redwoods" at his last stop. Sounds like the old guy wasn't all in with the new broom.

 

[storrsroars]

I have no problem with this at all. The new guy was said to have changed "twigs" to "redwoods" at his last stop. Sounds like the old guy wasn't all in with the new broom.

Reading the MSU forum, apparently MSU was the 4th "biggest" team in the SEC. But they also had a lot of injuries. That's about as far as I got reading.

 

[FAIRTIDES]

Simply noting that unless there's something we're not hearing, Diaco had to make a case for removing a guy with a great reputation - and part of some championships - in order to get a new guy he worked with in the past (Virginia).

If you've ever been in a management position where you had to let go an employee without cause because of an internal shakeup, it's not fun. You don't do it just "for change". Somebody had to make a compelling argument to do so. In this case, that's BD.

Once I got to the point, Corporation-wise, where I was working under an Employment Contract, it was very easy to fire me. Wording was, "for any reason or no reason at all." That was offset, obviously, by financial considerations which kicked in unless I was guilty of "gross negligence." Pretty typical, from what I understand.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

Simply noting that unless there's something we're not hearing, Diaco had to make a case for removing a guy with a great reputation - and part of some championships - in order to get a new guy he worked with in the past (Virginia).

If you've ever been in a management position where you had to let go an employee without cause because of an internal shakeup, it's not fun. You don't do it just "for change". Somebody had to make a compelling argument to do so. In this case, that's BD.

It would have been nice if you made it a bit clearer that you were guessing instead of framing it as if Diaco strong armed Manuel into canning Martin so that BD could bring in one of his guys.

I have managed people, likely for far longer than you have been an adult. I landed my first corporate supervisory position in the spring of 1985. My guess (I am framing this as speculation) is that it was WM who wanted to change things, very likely to bring in someone with far more of a football background to run the S&C show. It is also my belief that in the process of bringing in assistants WM asked Diaco if he knew anyone. WM wouldn't let Jim Calhoun force him into a decision. There is no way in hell he allows Diaco to.

 

[MattMang23]

Reading the MSU forum, apparently MSU was the 4th "biggest" team in the SEC. But they also had a lot of injuries. That's about as far as I got reading.

That would be fourth biggest in the country, which I'm not sure is a great thing. They're going by average weight of the player. Not sure I want 275lb wide receivers.

 

[storrsroars]

I have managed people, likely for far longer than you have been an adult. I landed my first corporate supervisory position in the spring of 1985. My guess (I am framing this as speculation) is that it was WM who wanted to change things, very likely to bring in someone with far more of a football background to run the S&C show. It is also my belief that in the process of bringing in assistants WM asked Diaco if he knew anyone. WM wouldn't let Jim Calhoun force him into a decision. There is no way in hell he allows Diaco to.

You may be right, but IMO, the anecdotal evidence thus far seems to support my conclusion better. WM's comments on the change seemed a bit defensive to me.

FWIW, I had my first supervisory role in 1980. I had to fire an entire sales force at the ripe old age of 24. And then tell them to file liens if they wanted to collect their expenses since the company was going bankrupt. Not that that has anything to do with this. But that was only the first five of about 30 or so I've fired.

 

[uconnfan68]

That would be fourth biggest in the country, which I'm not sure is a great thing. They're going by average weight of the player. Not sure I want 275lb wide receivers.

Can they play basketball? We could use a few extra pounds there.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

You may be right, but IMO, the anecdotal evidence thus far seems to support my conclusion better. WM's comments on the change seemed a bit defensive to me.

FWIW, I had my first supervisory role in 1980. I had to fire an entire sales force at the ripe old age of 24. And then tell them to file liens if they wanted to collect their expenses since the company was going bankrupt. Not that that has anything to do with this. But that was only the first five of about 30 or so I've fired.

You've fired more people than I have, bravo!

I'd like to see some of the anectdotal evidence that supports your conclusion. My evidence begins with the hiring of Kevin Ollie. Again, if Warde Manuel wasn't going to let Jim Calhoun dictate terms to him there is no way in hell he would allow Bob Diaco to dictate terms.

WM wanted a change in the approach to S&C, many had suspected this for quite some time. If we hired Narduzzi, retained TJ or brought in someone else as head football coach we still would be having this discussion. It would just be a different name in charge of S&C.

 

[pj]

You've fired more people than I have, bravo!

I'd like to see some of the anectdotal evidence that supports your conclusion. My evidence begins with the hiring of Kevin Ollie. Again, if Warde Manuel wasn't going to let Jim Calhoun dictate terms to him there is no way in hell he would allow Bob Diaco to dictate terms.

WM wanted a change in the approach to S&C, many had suspected this for quite some time. If we hired Narduzzi, retained TJ or brought in someone else as head football coach we still would be having this discussion. It would just be a different name in charge of S&C.

In truth, WM did let Jim Calhoun select his replacement, he just made the guy jump through some hoops first.

Why wouldn't WM support his own football hire more than he supported a retired basketball coach? Warde needs his football coach to succeed. He also wants him, if he does succeed, to stay. You don't advance either goal by denying him his desired staffing.

But I think it's likely you are correct, WM may have thought Jerry Martin's approach was better suited to other sports than football or was outdated. It is likely Diaco and Manuel were agreed on this one.

 

[huskymedic]

ShakPhillips_89:37am via Twitter for iPhone
... Hardest light workout I've ever done in my ENTIRE life coach Balis is no joke

 

[Waquoit]

ShakPhillips_89:37am via Twitter for iPhone
... Hardest light workout I've ever done in my ENTIRE life coach Balis is no joke

What did that MSU poster say? "He turns twigs into redwoods" or something like that.

 

[Husky25]

Once I got to the point, Corporation-wise, where I was working under an Employment Contract, it was very easy to fire me. Wording was, "for any reason or no reason at all." That was offset, obviously, by financial considerations which kicked in unless I was guilty of "gross negligence." Pretty typical, from what I understand.

Connecticut is an Employment at Will state. Either party can terminate their association with the other for any reason. Cause only come in to play when the person tries to collect unemployment benefits. Even in a contract situation (e.g. the former "coach") termination provisions prior to the conclusion of the contracted term are spelled out. Most time that includes a buy-out clause, which also determines eligibility for post-employment benefits.

Being a contractor is different than having an employment contract. A contractor is basically akin to being self-employed and you are a vendor of the company. At the same time, the company has little input as to how you do your job, only the end result. In other words, one agree to the goals. How one achieves those goals is up to the contractor. This is just one of the rules outlined by the DOL to determine employer/employee relationship. I doubt very highly that the position of strength & conditioning coach is subject to an employment contract or can be considered a contractor.