coach fired-field hockey
- Thread starter IamHawkeye
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I think the logical answer is that coach did something she shouldn't have (at least according to Barta), but the university can't prove it or doesn't really want it to get out. I suppose if it was a "for cause" termination they wouldn't have had to pay her off, but then they would have had to disclose the "cause'.
But it's Barta, so I'm not sure logic applies.
But it's Barta, so I'm not sure logic applies.
Or maybe things were getting a little Lickliterish with a lot of transfers the past couple years (about 6 I think from the Gazette article), and he felt he needed to deal with it quicker.
And Blevins retired and is still around, so how do you equate the two?
Whether the firing is justified or not - according to the vast majority of former players (according to the article) it was not justified), why wait until two weeks before the season starts to do it? Last season ended eight months ago. That's some slow-moving investigation.
Blevins wasn't ready to retire. She was forced out after a few pissy players and their parents raised a stink. She was not around for quite awhile I believe. To her credit she's making appearances at Pearl Field again.
So either both coaches got harder to deal with as they got older and been in place a long time, or--players nowadays are different. Which is it?
Blevins was forced out. Great coach, even better person. The softball program has went from a NCAA tournament team year in and year out to a 16-32 team with only one D1 pitcher on the roster. Great call on that one Barta!
Have heard this from a few people close to the program. A couple bench players parents complained and Barta folded and "encouraged" Blevins to retire.
Have heard this from a few people close to the program. A couple bench players parents complained and Barta folded and "encouraged" Blevins to retire.
1990, Hayden was still here. Before that, he'd commented several times on how great is was to work for an ex-coach like Bump who understood how things were. Then the UI hires non-coach Bowlsby. Hayden never came out and said "I'm not working for you, weenie-boy", but my impression was that he was seriously underwhelmed by the hire. I'd speculate he likely had his own favorite candidate who he pushed, and for whatever reason still didn't make it. Would be interesting to hear some inside stories from that time.
This post was edited on 8/17 8:02 AM by Row55
This post was edited on 8/17 8:02 AM by Row55
Per today's Gazette article, the Griesbaum investigation was handled by a non-athletic department and the decision seems to have had full administration support. This day and age, the universities are probably doing everything they can to avoid being a Rutgers.
Iowa's field hockey match against Stanford is on the Pac-12 network live on Friday this week. Damn, the Pac-12 network is putting Iowa women's sports on more than BTN is...
Either watch it on you provider, or watch online here...
http://pac-12.com/live?sport=field-hockey
Either watch it on you provider, or watch online here...
http://pac-12.com/live?sport=field-hockey
I agree with the first part of your post completely. Still to be determined if Starkenburg is D1. I hope she is. Looper has no one to blame but herself for the way she handled Micaela. If she wanted her to leave, she did a great job. I know Micaela wanted to stay.
In Gail's final season, during the after-game ice cream social, it was not only bench players who were vocally upset. There was a future all big ten performer who didn't keep her feelings quiet. She was still young, but her actions were incredibly immature. I got the feeling that night that something was going to happen.
Force out the coach who ranks #5 in wins in NCAA history and hire what has become a dumpster fire. It was obvious that none of the upper class players had the drive they had in previous years.
All coaches have there issues, but it is so easy to point out Looper's. I don't think she understands that it is not stats that count in softball, but scoring runs to win games. She took one of the only power hitters in the lineup 3 years ago and had her become a slap hitter. The average of this player went up considerably, but runs produced through RBI and runs scored diminished. Runs that probably would have won some more games.
Not to hijack a field hockey thread, but I have to disagree on a couple accounts.
1) Program isn't at dumpster fire level. If nothing else, from what I hear all the players really get along and like Looper. That obviously wasn't the case with Blevins. (A few disgruntled players/parents more to blame than Blevins.) Looper came into a VERY difficult situation. Probably one victory away from an NCAA birth last year. Before that a .500 season.
2) If we're talking about the same person, turning her into a slap hitter was an excellent decision. She was a two-time all B1G lead-off hitter. I'll take that any day. Similarly, coaching staff made a wise decision to turning a slap-hitting Megan Blank into a power hitter.
Difficult to understand how if Micaela wanted to stay why she still isn't on the team. Can't imagine Looper asked her leave given the situation it left the pitching staff.
The object of the game of softball is to score runs and win games. The move of the youhg lady to a slap hitter took 10-15 runs off the board the year you say they were one game away from the regional birth. Hard to argue that these runs would have not have won at least one more game. Especially on a power starved team.. Player recognition is nice, but winning games is better. She was a 2nd and 3rd team all conference centerfielder, not leadoff hitter. Big difference.
Meagan Blank is a stud.
You commenting on Micaela just shows you did not know the situation. Sometimes the best decision in life is not the decision that you want. Yes, it is hard to imagine that Looper asked her to leave, but I don't have to be told aloud when I'm not appreciated, common sense tells me.
I wanted Looper to succeed, still do, but i have seen little game coaching that leads me to believe that she is a competent Division 1 coach. Previous years, I chalked it up to a learning curve, but she continues to make elementary mistakes. Mistakes that lose games.
Gail Blevins never had a losing season in all her years of coaching Division 1 softball. Never.
I will admit I am wrong if Coach Looper succeeds.
I see you link the DMregister, which hardly even prints FH results (oh, a few times), but always have room for a controversy. I'm not saying they shouldn't have articles about the firing, but if it's worth printing those articles, how about a little ink for the wins and losses, and they have more than a few wins so far. Just listing them, at least.
