That's a great point. Where are our studs from that team? Mcdonough, Metcalf, Borschel? All got ran off. But our genious coaches keep M*. A guy that took 1 or 2 shots a match and NEVER won an individual title.
Fire Brands
- Thread starter Drake__Mallard
- Start date
No apology needed. I get it. I guess I’m just trying to help restore the sanity here. Any one that wants Tom fired is an absolute short sighted moron and I will die on that hill.
McD most certainly has not been ran off. Metcalf is a drunk, and Borschel and Tom never had great relationship. Many of his ex teammates don’t think too fondly of him.
Metcalf has shown his true colors since going to ISU. Same with DSJ and his entire family.
Borschel has turned into a complete ass hat on social media over the weekend as well. I used to enjoy some of his posts, but you can tell after reading his thoughts why he didn't last long in the coaching circuit.
Sure things in life. The Sun rises in the East and .....
"Fire Tom" threads around NCAA times.
This is an underappreciated post. SL is an all time great who's opportunity was compromised by his knees. It didn't start in IC. I know I'm in the great minority here, but I don't really see him having a great Olympic career either, and it has nothing to do with his ability, mental toughness, or coaching. His body has just let him down.
If he can make the senior team, and then get a few world medals over the years will be a great accomplishment. The fact that the olys are next year doesn't help his olympic dream. Will he be healthy enough to make the team? Will he be healthy enough to take on the worlds best? Then four years later will his body be able to overcome all of the young lions coming up who may have idolized him over the years?
As far as firing TnT, the age old question stands who can you get that's better? I love their passion, and coaching acumen. But it can't be a secret by now that something has to change regarding strength, conditioning and style on the feet.
All wrestlers are banged up over the course of a season, but because the microscope is so focused on Iowa & the fanbase is so ravenous the lack of nattys is exponential. Am I the only one who looks at Real and thought why does he look so thin in the shoulders compared to nearly everyone he wrestles? He is an absolute better wrestler than everyone he took on this year. He just got out horsed by Alirez. As is the case with most top tier wrestlers that Iowa takes on.
Why were so many Iowa wrestlers wearing the forehead wrap on Sat? The style of just leading with your forehead, tying up and working your position from the collar needs some tweaking. These are legit questions that should be addressed. And by addressed, I mean by Tnt. They are great, great for wrestling, and great for the state of Iowa.
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I get what some of you are saying about Star’s wrestling and maybe not being the best at it but without him we have 1/2 the wrestlers we have now. He is phenomenal at reading people and he is VERY easy to talk to. Maybe I am bias because I have known him and his family my whole life. He’s one of the most honest and humble guys I have ever been around. He is somewhat the glue that holds it all together. Just because he was not a Metcalf, McDonough type Hawkeye does not mean he is an invaluable piece of the pie.
It’s time to make tough difficult decisions. Time for Star and Telford to move on. Have to start somewhere.
I think they forgot Cael used to coach at ISU but couldn't beat Brands with the level playing field.
How was it more of a level playing field then than now? ISU couldn't out recruit Iowa. Now we can't out recruit PSU (keeping fingers crossed with current class). The unspoken rumors about slush funds are now moot.
The truth is the truth. As in football, basketball, and every other sport it's more about the jimmy's and the joes than the x's and the o's. Be real and recognize Cael just won his 10th natty, and it wasn't by accident. We need better recruits & we need to develop them in to champions.
Only Assad, Cobe was clearly injured going into ncaas. The not showing up at ncaas doesn’t apply this year.
Brands aren’t above criticism. But let’s be accurate when you criticize them for things. Back in 2015 it was for not recruiting the right guys, they changed that and Iowa won a team title, should’ve been two in a row. Iowa is spending more money now, new facility etc. circumstances and basically being snake bit over the last four years has taken its toll. It’s also fair to say having zero individual titles between DeSanto, Eierman, Marinelli, Kemerer, Warner, Woods, just ain’t gonna cut it. That’s the main gripe for me, all of those guys combined are too good not to get over once or twice. Is it philosophy, training, S&C, strategy? I think strategy is part of it, putting guys on the bottom when it’s unnecessary or proven they can’t get out. Not enough of your good guys sticking around in the room afterwards is a big one. Wrestling the best guys day in and day out eventually puts you over the top.
Unless you have someone that is proven that can do a better job, moving on is crazy. People love to bring up Dake, Taylor, Nolf, those guys aren’t coaching right now. And why would even of them want to come to Iowa?
Unless you have someone that is proven that can do a better job, moving on is crazy. People love to bring up Dake, Taylor, Nolf, those guys aren’t coaching right now. And why would even of them want to come to Iowa?
Spencer would disagree.
Ouch on your statement of "Not enough of your good guys sticking around in the room afterward"
DT has said on multiple occasions he would take the Iowa job. I think you guys are forgetting that Iowa is still Iowa. In terms of resources and history - EVERYONE would want the job. Hell, Casey applied for the Michigan job (no way he was getting it over Bormet).
I'm a lot more calm then I was Friday evening/Saturday. Fine. Brands won't get canned. He's absolutely doing the right things in terms of off the mat stuff. The fundraising has been tremendous. But like you said, the lack of titles is getting a bit infuriating. Marinelli never made the semis. That's just a wild and unacceptable stat. DeSanto never changed tactics, Kemerer got out-strategized by a freshman, Eierman got out-strategized.
What makes me worry is Tom's on-record words that college guys don't need to worry about recovery and rest. The training HAS to change. The practice style or technique has to follow suit as well. Heavy hands ain't cutting it. Not being able to scramble is just criminal. It has to be taught. It's a big reason Warner struggled with his offense - you could tell he was worried about being out-scrambled. I'm just not sure Tom is willing to do it. If so? Then yes. We'll be back to winning titles. That might require new voices in the room.
Spencer’s loss just amplifies things. He should’ve had four and a gold already. Instead he got three and nothing and double ACL repair. It’s just cruel really, the entire last four years, canceled ncaas, dream of four is gone. Chance is reinstated, tears good ACL, wins title with no ACLs, surgery, comes back, looks great, maybe reinjures and loses in semis.
When Brands came to Iowa, in the previous two years Iowa finished 42nd and 29th. Within four years Iowa had won 3 national titles and has never finished below 4th since. Can he coach? Of course. He now is up against an excellent coach, Sanderson, who recruits in the best wrestling backyard in the country, Pennsylvania. Check the P4P ratings with Iowa and Pennsy high schoolers...not close. My guess is if you flipped Brands and Sanderson, Penn State would stay right where they are.
Just an opinion from a MO guy here. It looks like over-training in the Iowa room, coupled with having wrestlers in year 6 or 7. I think the intensity of the training in the Iowa room has a shelf life. What we've seen recently is that these older guys' bodies break down in the end; Kem, Marinelli, Warner, Eierman, Lee. If anything needs to change I would say it's the training philosophy. You won't find a better HC out there, that's looking for a job.
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