Basketball It's Official — new WBB head coach
- Thread starter RUcrazee
- Start date
I think there was a natural personal connection as both are lawyers. In academia being a qualified female minority candidate always helps you in the hiring process especially in women’s basketball.
She played an up tempo high scoring aggressive style of play. They shot threes all day long and was a guard heavy team. They struggled inside and defensively. They often played three guards. This seemed to kill then in tournaments because when they had a off shooting night they couldn’t pound the ball. They would struggle against better teams who were more balanced. When they had guard like Maggie Lucas they were successful.
Another Penn State member of our athletic department. And she has Notre Dame as her Alma Mater to boot. Too bad she didn’t also have coaching experience at Seton Hall, Syracuse, and Michigan too or she would have been the perfect fit for RU athletics.
Well she has inherited a real train wreck. She has 3 players left from last years team, a transfer from Hartford and 2 freshman recruits. So she can’t even hold practice of a scrimmage unless some of our posters want to volunteer their services for practices. I sympathize with her plight. This will not be easy. Good luck.
Just about every team in America plays 3 guards, a wing/stretch 4 and Big. Where you been ?
This is the reality where we are at compliments of $tringer's greed and ego.
This will be a great thread to save and re-visit in about 3-4 years from now. (should add I'm not betting one way or the other).
Last edited:
There are valid criticisms of this hire. This is not one of them.
This is like every coaching search… fans have an inflated opinion of who should be hired and get disappointed when it’s someone less than that. No surprise here.
Sooooo, how's the purported savior of the program, Carolyn Krieger, working out for you guys? Maybe Penn State women's basketball is a perpetual train wreck? Krieger was touted as a major rebuilder and savior of the program because she turned it around so quickly at Marquette (1 year).
Krieger:
2019-20: 7-23/1-17 (14th place)
2020-21: 9-15/ 6-13 (11th place)
2021-22: 11-18/5-13 (12th place)
Maybe PSU women's basketball is just doomed to failure after the crappy end to Rene Portland's career and recruits avoid it like the plague? Seems Washington took over a hateful train wreck of a program that was cratering under Rene Portland and forbade lesbian athletes in her program, with 46% attrition of players.
To her credit, Washington took over a hateful train wreck of a program that cratered under Rene Portland and turned it around. To be objective, Washington had two really bad years in 2014-15 and 2015-16, but turned it around in 2016-17 only to regress in two following years.
I'm neutral on the hire with a wait and see mindset. From the the other threads on this board, seems our options were limited.
The usual negative nancies and sad sack fans never disappoint with their gloom and doom here.
I know Tiny. But did not reach out to him directly on this one. People very much on the same level and in those same circles.
The second paragraph explains the first paragraph. "They expected more," but they realized that more than one candidate was scared away.
I point again to her replacement as PSU the last 3 years, who has not moved the needle one bit (maybe her recruiting has picked up, but in 3 seasons, she has not finished above 11th place). Often times home run hires whiff, but often times they hit home runs too.
I put this hire in the category of you get who you get but you don't get upset, in view of what you mentioned in your second paragraph. There both reasons for some optimism and reasons for concern. But considering PSU's overall reputation in women's basketball, it seems like a tough place to coach.
I agree paragraph 2 lead to paragraph one. Candidate pool was limited because of paragraph 2.
But when AAU coaches are not inspired by a hire things will be difficult in the short term. They are a fickle bunch. I hope that I am and they are wrong. I said last summer when CVS announced her LOA (separation from the program) that she would not walk silently into retirement. She tarnished her legacy by delaying the search and next hire. She tied Hobbs hand and this is the best he could do with the delay. I do not blame this hire on Hobbs but on CVS and her advisory team.
And Krieger has started to change her original staff only 3 years in. Adding Terri 'Coach Flo' Williams (most recently HC @ Auburn, prior to that Georgetown) as well as Maggie Lucas (Dir of Operations).
The player talent and the staff are just as important as the HC. Here's hoping Coach Washington can right the RU ship to bring back respectability. She certainly has her work cut out for her given the cards she's been dealt.
Tough spot, but the best we can do is support the new coach and hope for the best. Was the group of AAU coaches representative of all AAU coaches?
Sometimes first takes based on idle chatter are the worst takes, but sometimes they are dead on. We see this kind of instant reaction in a lot of places.
Hopefully, Coach Washington learned from her final 4 seasons (or was it 5?) at PSU, reflected and has a plan to not let whatever happened happen again. Also, getting strong recruiters as assistant coaches is absolutely key if she is not an impressive recruiter. We have seen how that has worked out for the men's side, and to date, the results have been good. Like I said, we have to wait and see, but casting stones on hiring day is not the right move, ever, IMO.
This is silly. I have no idea if this is a good hire or not but you can tell from other hires this isn’t the criteria used. This is your political views coloring your analysis.
I will be supporting the coach and as I said I hope I and they are wrong with first impression of hire. This will not be an easy climb. Being there is no roster and she does not have the immediate name recognition to inspire a mass roster infusion.
Rumor has it that Gleeson dined with Hobbs the night before the announcement. 😇
Sad about the name recognition, as if you read her biography you will realize she was a very important part of the WNBA's early labor negotiations. Was, among those of us who followed the "W" in the day, well known for it. As well as for earning her law degree, probably why she was so involved in the labor organizing, by the way.
While I might have been scared off by the crash-and-burn at Penn State, she certainly had success for a while, and I think, depending on her Assistant hires, could be successful. But next year - yikes!
Yup. Even in the NBA top teams right now are guard/ball handler heavy (e.g., Warriors, Celtics)
Likeable woman. Nice introduction from her.
hope she succeeds!
hope she succeeds!
The Carolyn Kieger example I think is a constructive one.
Heading into PSU, her pedigree looks very similar to some of the coaches who could have been available to RU had CVS retired earlier (Shauna Green at Illinois; Agugua-Hamilton at Virginia).
Thus far, 3 seasons in, she has not been able to turn the program around yet.
We'll see how these new coaches do at their new programs; nothing is guaranteed.
Heading into PSU, her pedigree looks very similar to some of the coaches who could have been available to RU had CVS retired earlier (Shauna Green at Illinois; Agugua-Hamilton at Virginia).
Thus far, 3 seasons in, she has not been able to turn the program around yet.
We'll see how these new coaches do at their new programs; nothing is guaranteed.
I see that Kieger and PSU are bringing in what they hope will be the needed reinforcements to help boost the program. They picked up Williams-Fountlroy and Sharnee Zoll. I've seen it mentioned that Maggie Lucas is also onboard. That's a heck of a team.
Some more examples of rising stars who star did not shine on a B1Gger stage.
Coach Green's predecessor, Nancy Fahey, 737-133 at Washington U, 42-99/7-77 in five seasons at Illinois.
Amy William at Nebraska, 96-44/45-17 at South Dakota, 94-82/50-55 after 6 seasons.
Joe McKeown, Northwestern, 44-154/250-52 at George Washington, 223-186/94-128 over 13 seasons.
Jonathan Tsipis, Wisconsin, 92-38/46-16 at George Washington, 50-99/14-74 over 5 seasons at Wisconsin.
Of course there are examples of past success translating to success at the next level. But as the mutual fund prospectus warns, past results are no guarantee of future success.
Moral of the above story- don't hire a former coach of George Washington U to coach a B1G team!
After listening to Hobb's introduction, I would say that you were right. It definitely played a significant role in Coquese's selection.
Also, ...after listening to Coquese's explanation for the fall of the last 5 seasons at PSU, it sounded to me like she was describing the instability that shook much of the Penn State campus following that scandal. I went back to check the timeline and it does coincide.
Some may underestimate the effect of such a scandal on the decisions of players. I certainly do not.
Like she said,.....she was able manage the instability to right the ship for a season, and then it just couldn't be sustained.
As so many other programs were gaining steam and popularity as they became elite programs, the scandal damaged an already somewhat unattractive PSU wbb program to the point that they are still trying to recover. I'm not even sure if football considers itself to be fully recovered from that ugly chapter.
Some may underestimate the effect of such a scandal on the decisions of players. I certainly do not.
Like she said,.....she was able manage the instability to right the ship for a season, and then it just couldn't be sustained.
As so many other programs were gaining steam and popularity as they became elite programs, the scandal damaged an already somewhat unattractive PSU wbb program to the point that they are still trying to recover. I'm not even sure if football considers itself to be fully recovered from that ugly chapter.
I can see where you're coming from
Coaches are only good for the program when thay coach a winning team.
If a winner most of their career and goes down hill , they tend to lose their jobs because they fail to stay a winner.
I didn’t see the entire press conference. But from what I did see I came away somewhat impressed. Let’s hope she can hit the ground running and turnaround some of the relationships that have been strained locally over the years. I will be rooting for her to succeed
Similar threads
