Hey Coach:
Now that we're in the middle of the college spring season, maybe this is a good question to add to the list for PSAs or their parents to ask potential college coaches, to learn a little more about their coaching philosophy:
"What is your philosophy on spring ball playing time / how do you use your players during spring competitions?"
Having had two daughters play in college, I found that their respective coaches took very different approaches to spring ball. As a parent, I assumed that spring was a time especially to play the young players & reserves, hopefully creating opportunities for newer players to gain experience & for the team to develop depth.
I was therefore dismayed to find that DD #1's coach still played his starters in spring ball and continued to sit the reserves (those who didn't have a starter graduate ahead of them). DD #1 played a little her first spring, but very sparingly, while the (injured) starter ahead of her played every match, packed her knee in ice immediately after each competition & had surgery the day spring ball ended.
I was therefore dismayed to find that DD #1's coach still played his starters in spring ball and continued to sit the reserves (those who didn't have a starter graduate ahead of them). DD #1 played a little her first spring, but very sparingly, while the (injured) starter ahead of her played every match, packed her knee in ice immediately after each competition & had surgery the day spring ball ended.
DD #2 's coach plays his whole roster every match in spring. If a kid isn't on the floor in set 1, she's out there in set 2, and for the whole set, not just a few rotations. Both programs are high-achievers in good conferences. So it's safe to say that both coaches want to win and are working towards being as good as they can.
Just something to pass along from a parent whose kids' recruiting days are in the 'rear view mirror". VolleyMom
Very good information and pertinent questions which VolleyFamilies must ask of potential collegiate coaches!
A little more on this subject from Volleymom: DD #1’s coach has been very successful in the NCAA tournament, so he is a “good coach”. But his actions show that this success must be due more to being a "good recruiter" more than a "good coach / developer of talent". If you can win because you are at an attractive school to play for in a power conference, thus having the ability to recruit top-ranked HS studs who can start as freshmen & get 4 years out of them, do you really NEED to develop your other players to be successful? Not really, you just bank on getting another stud HS player to come in & start right away.
ReplyDeleteSome coaches are "all about the winning" and some "get it" when it comes to successfully dealing with people (by “people”, I mean the KIDS ON THEIR TEAM, not just recruits & their parents). The lucky ones are those who get to play for a coach who understands that those two things are not mutually exclusive. Coaches can treat their kids well & still have a winning / successful program.
DD #2 is a lucky one. But had it not been for DD #1, we wouldn't have known what to look for & what to ignore.