I liked Tom's interview. He showed compassion towards his team but acknowledges the hard truth - there's simply things that need to be worked on to reach the expectations of BOTH the coaching staff and the wrestlers (and certainly the very large Iowa fan base). He acknowledged he didn't have the answers at that moment, and needed to do some evaluation and work some things out. Iowa will bounce back - the sky is certainly far from falling.
I agree and I like that he acknowledged right away that we need to score more points. I know that that might sound like "Captain Obvious" and it surely needs to develop into specifics, which he may not have had at the moment. But, hopefully he'll get them in a hurry. Definitely needs to if we're going to compete for the title anytime soon and buck the trend of six straight years not sniffing the top spot. But, recognizing point scoring as an issue is a start. I hope what he means by it is a whole-team, diversified ability to score in a plurality of ways in all positions, as well as increased ability to win scrambles in the big matches.
Again, it is one thing to say the right things, which I think TnT have done forever. It is quite another to garner results, which have been absent for the past 6 years (at least, compared to the standards of the program). Thus, the discussion of whether TnT are the best option going forward has gained legitimacy. Not saying it's time to move on from TnT. Just saying the discussion has become truly relevant and I believe results need to change quickly or else it really is worth moving on to the best available option, whoever that may be. Problem is, it seems from the outside perspective, that this may not be what our AD thinks. Instead, he may be more concerned with whether the dollars are coming in than the standards of the program being met.
Not that anyone cares what I think, but I have not lost all faith in TnT, but believe they truly need to adapt, and pronto! This needs to be done in nearly every facet, including but not limited to the following:
*Recruiting - Turn the focus to the highly athletic, explosive, and top tier talents - quality over quantity, a few top tens each year and a few top twenties instead of a hodgepodge of top 100s and the occasional top ten/twenty guy
*Wrestling Style - There is more than one way to skin a cat. For guys that already wrestle like the Brands' did (Gilman comes to mind), keep on doing what you're doing. For guys that are best when they wrestle a different pace/style, adapt your coaching to maximize their success. And, for the love of Pete, become more multi-faceted in what you teach so that our guys can score in a plurality of ways from all positions instead of being one-dimensional across the board.
*Motivational Style - Again, more than one way to skin a cat. Some guys respond well to the level of intensity TnT consistently bring to the picture. Most do not, however, as we have witnessed. There can no longer be a single-mindedness and arrogance that says, "my way or the highway." TnT need to learn how to motivate on an individual, rather than supposed group, basis. What works for getting Gilman, Ramos, Metcalf, and McDonough ready for prime-time may not be what works for getting Sammy Brooks, Alex Meyer, etc. ready.
*S&C - What worked in the Gable era in this department may be outdated. Time to reevaluate here and see what the PSUs, tOSUs, OSUs, and even Cornells of today are doing that seems to be outshining our methods in this department.
