COACHES HOT SEAT BLOG

Coaches Hot Seat Quotes of the Day – Thursday, October 27, 2011 – John Wooden

“A coach is someone who can give correction without causing resentment.”

And

“Adversity is the state in which man most easily becomes acquainted with himself, being especially free of admirers then.”

And

“Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are.”

And

“Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.”

And

“Don’t measure yourself by what you have accomplished, but by what you should have accomplished with your ability.”

And

“Failure is not fatal, but failure to change might be.”

And

“I’d rather have a lot of talent and a little experience than a lot of experience and a little talent.”

And

“If you don’t have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over?”

And

“If you’re not making mistakes, then you’re not doing anything. I’m positive that a doer makes mistakes.”

And

“It’s the little details that are vital. Little things make big things happen.”

And

“Never mistake activity for achievement.”

And

“Success is never final, failure is never fatal. It’s courage that counts.”

And

“Success is peace of mind which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best to become the best you are capable of becoming.”

And

“Talent is God given. Be humble. Fame is man-given. Be grateful. Conceit is self-given. Be careful.”

And

“Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out.”

And

“What you are as a person is far more important that what you are as a basketball player.”

And

“Winning takes talent, to repeat takes character.”

And

“You can’t let praise or criticism get to you. It’s a weakness to get caught up in either one.”

And

“We don’t have to be superstars or win championships…. All we have to do is learn to rise to every occasion, give our best effort, and make those around us better as we do it.”

And

“The best competition I have is against myself to become better.”

And

“Time lost is time lost. It’s gone forever. Some people tell themselves that they will work twice as hard tomorrow to make up for what they did not do today. People should always do their best. If they work twice as hard tomorrow, then they should have also worked twice as hard today. That would have been their best.”

And

“Some of my greatest pleasures have come from finding ways to overcome obstacles.”

And

“Earn the right to be proud and confident.”

And

“The man who is afraid to risk failure seldom has to face success.”

And

“Approval is a greater motivator than disapproval, but we have to disapprove on occasion when we correct. It’s necessary. I make corrections only after I have proved to the individual that I highly value him. If they know we care for them, our correction won’t be seen as judgmental. I also try to never make it personal.”

And

“You cannot live a perfect day without doing something for another without thought of something in return.”

And

“There is no substitute for work. Worthwhile results come from hard work and careful planning.”

And

“I believe it’s impossible to claim you have taught, when there are students who have not learned. With that commitment, from my first year as an English teacher until my last as UCLA basketball teacher/coach, I was determined to make the effort to become the best teacher I could possibly be, not for my sake, but for all those who were placed under my supervision.”

And

“When you improve a little each day, eventually big things occur…. Not tomorrow, not the next day, but eventually a big gain is made. Don’t look for the big, quick improvement. Seek the small improvement one day at a time. That’s the only way it happens — and when it happens, it lasts.”

And

“Be quick but don’t hurry.”

And

“Leadership is the ability to get individuals to work together for the common good and the best possible results while at the same time letting them know they did it themselves.”

And

“Profound responsibilities come with teaching and coaching. You can do so much good–or harm. It’s why I believe that next to parenting, teaching and coaching are the two most important professions in the world.”

Wikipedia:  John Wooden

Tags: Uncategorized by Joe
Comments Off

West Virginia to the Big 12? Boise State and Air Force to the Big East? What the Hell? Yes, this all makes perfect sense

I guess if we were West Virginia AD Oliver Luck we would take the Big 12 up on the offer to join their conference especially since the Big East is like a sinking ship that is also on fire as it goes down….BUT…West Virginia in the Big 12?

Come on…does anyone think that makes any sense at all?

Even worse is Boise State and Air Force considering the idea of joining the Big East?

What the Hell?

As was pointed out by Jeff Jacobs in the Hartford Courant last week the Bogus and Un-American BCS is at the bottom of some of the Idiocy in the conference realignment because without the BCS there is no way in Hell that teams would be leaving like rats from the sinking Big East nor would there be teams that in the Rocky Mountains that would be considering becoming a member of the Big East.

If EVERY one of the 120 teams in I-A (FBS) football were guaranteed the opportunity to be a part of a postseason tournament in major college football if they were their conference champion and that there was “X” number of teams (we propose 7 Wildcard teams in the Coaches Hot Seat 16-Team Postseason Tournament) then there would be no need for the conference climbing we are now seeing because NONE of the I-A (FBS) schools would have to worry about all of this Bogus and Incredibly Un-American…

“AQ” or “Not AQ” Conference Member Crapola

…which is about as Un-American as anything going on in our country today.

One has to wonder just who in Hell raised the people that support the Bogus and Un-American BCS which makes some Very Sorry People very wealthy and at the same Damn time costs intercollegiate athletics HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS every year and still doesn’t crown a legitimate national champion in Major College Football. Yes, one has to wonder…but then P. T. Barnum was right about that “Sucker being born every minute” and the supporters of the Bogus and Un-American BCS are the Biggest Suckers in America today.

For all of this talk about the LSU – Alabama game on November 5 if there was a 16-Team Postseason Playoff the talk would be about whether LSU or Alabama were going to win the SEC Conference Championship because the importance of winning conference championships is what should be emphasized in Major College Football long before a bunch of Morons are talking about which team may or may not get into a Bogus national title game which relies on something more akin to witchcraft instead of doing what Americans have always done when it comes to sports and most other things in our country’s history….

Settle the winner on the Field of Play for all to see…..

…instead of using Absolute Stupidity like the Bogus and Un-American BCS.

Yes, there is a very good reason why the Chinese believe the 21 st Century will be the “Chinese Century” and look no further than Complete Morons debating a stupid idea like LSU and Alabama possibly playing in a rematch game which if you are debating such nonsense only shows why American is headed down the tubes with the Candy Asses out front leading the parade and the computer geeks in their basements drinking Mountain Dew, eating Twinkies, watching re-runs of Battlestar Gallactica and tweaking their asinine computer polls while Morons sit around and debate which team might be better…when in the rest of American sports the best team is determined on the Field of Play.

Yes, raise the Candy Ass flag high, debate Absolute Nonsense like LSU and Alabama playing a rematch game but please don’t pay any attention to the Chinese because they are licking their chops as they watch the self-destruction of the American Republic with the Chinese not even having to life a finger because it is “Us” that is taking our own country down.

Meanwhile in Candy Ass Room #1 two Morons are debating what could happen if LSU loses to Alabama and Alabama loses to Georgia and Oklahoma beats Oklahoma State and…..well…anyone debating that kind of nonsense needs to take the Candy Ass flag down and raise this one…

..because you might as well label yourself as a Communist and get it over with because there is no way in Hell a REAL American would debate such Nonsense.

 

Jim Tressel NCAA Audio Interview

Tom Farrey of ESPN was able through the Freedom of Information Act get the audio tape of Jim Tressel’s interview with the NCAA in February of this year and we still cannot for the life of us imagine what Tressel was thinking when he first got that email about his players potentially being involved with someone involved committing crimes and Ohio State football players potentially breaking NCAA rules.

Audio of Jim Tressel interview released, Outside the Lines, ESPN

Below is a portion of the interview from ESPN’s Outside the Lines that really makes us really wonder just what the Hell Jim Tressel was thinking in the spring of 2010 when he first got that email about the activities of Ohio State football players:

NCAA Investigator – You were aware that violations regarding student-athletes, particularly, had either occurred or likely occurred. Is that correct?

Jim Tressel – Yes.

NCAA Investigator – And you did not report that, those violations to anyone in athletics or compliance or the NCAA. Is that correct?

Jim Tressel – Correct.

NCAA Investigator – And were you aware that as a result of those violations that the student-athletes would likely be ineligible then for participation in the 2010 season?

Jim Tressel – Ah, no, I didn’t think of it like that. I knew inevitably they were gonna have a problem. I don’t – you know, I can’t sit here and say I thought, “Oh, these guys are ineligible.”

What the Hell? Jim Tressel knew that he had Ohio State football players that had more than likely broken NCAA rules and he didn’t think of how breaking those rules could affect those players eligibility?

Double What the Hell?

Oh, but that’s not the worst part.

Jim Tressel received an email from a former Ohio State player that detailed how current Ohio State players were involved with someone that was being investigated by the FBI and that the players had sold merchandise including their championships rings to this guy and after reading that email Jim Tressel doesn’t immediately print out the email and walk it down to the ADs office at Ohio State?

Forget about eligibility of the players what about the welfare of these players that were potentially involved in something that could be dangerous to their very lives and Jim Tressel didn’t tell anyone else at Ohio State about that email?

BUT Jim Tressel did speak to some of the Ohio State players that were mentioned in the email which brings us to these paragraphs from the ESPN story:

“Tressel’s faith in Sarniak may have been misplaced. After Pryor applied for the NFL, he alleged that Sarniak provided him with cash and benefits in violation of NCAA rules.

Tressel spoke with Pryor shortly after he was tipped off by Cicero, but didn’t ask him specifically about Rife — and wasn’t sure he would get the truth out of Pryor anyway.

Chuck Smrt, an outside consultant hired by the university to help manage the NCAA investigation, pressed Tressel for not asking the players about specifics related to the tip he had received about the tattoo parlor.

At the time, Pryor was finishing up his sophomore year, having led the Buckeyes to a pair of Big Ten championships. Tressel said once he learned of the Rife situation, he didn’t know what to do.”

Jim Tressel “didn’t know what to do?”

The above line may be the either the most unbelievable thing we have ever read in our lives or Jim Tressel is a Complete and Absolute Moron that shouldn’t be allowed to drive a car forget about being the head football coach at Ohio State.

Jim Tressel gets an email that some of his Ohio State players are involved with and selling merchandise to someone that is being investigated by the FBI which is both a criminal and NCAA issue and Jim Tressel “didn’t know what to do?”

Sorry Jim Tressel…It is our opinion you are lying to cover up for something or someone else and since you blatantly lied in that December 2010 press conference announcing that the “Tattoo Five” were going to be allowed to play in the Sugar Bowl we believe and it is our opinion that you are still lying to this day because it NOT believable that you “didn’t know what to do,” when learning about possible criminal and NCAA wrongdoing by your players because the obvious thing to do that any MORON would understand is to immediately notify athletic department and other people on the Ohio State campus so that the school could figure out just what the Hell was going on with YOUR Ohio State players.

It is our opinion that YOU Jim Tressel lied in order to keep these players eligible because YOU knew that if you or anyone else at Ohio State had dug into what was going on at this tattoo parlor that NCAA rule-breaking would have been found for sure and that there was the potential for criminal activity as well which would have been a big negative for the school and Ohio State football program.

The really pitiful and sad part about this entire Jim Tressel – Tattoo Debacle is that if Jim Tressel had just done what was best for the players from the start which was report the email immediately and have Ohio State find out just what the Hell was going on then the OSU players involved in the NCAA rule-breaking would have probably been made to sit out for 2 to 4 games to start the 2010 season and Jim Tressel would still more than likely be the head coach at Ohio State.

The actions of Jim Tressel in this case should be a Helluva example for coaches of what NOT to do when potential NCAA wrong-doing is found and coaches out there right now that are turning a blind eye to things they are suspicious of should know that we have always believed that it is bad form for news stories on NCAA rule-breaking to appear during the college football season and thus there have been few stories on that front….for now that is…because you, us and the man behind the tree and in the shadows doling out the money all know there are major NCAA rules being broken at this very moment and the NCAA is not going to aggressively investigate potential rule-breaking UNLESS a story breaks in the news or the story is so big that the NCAA comes to believe it will eventually break in the news because it is our opinion the NCAA has come to the conclusion that finding rule-breakers is bad for the image of intercollegiate athletics and thus here is the real NCAA policy…

…in our opinion of course.

That’s not to say that college football isn’t going to get cleaned up in the coming years whether the NCAA really wants to do any real investigating or not….which is usually not interviewing people that have every incentive to lie and no reason to tell the truth which means there is little chance the NCAA will find out the truth without someone like the Feds or Yahoo! Sports leading the NCAA by the nose to where the real wrongdoing is at and even then when you put them at the scene of the crime it is like pointing out the stars at night to someone that has put on a blindfold on and really could give a Damn about what the Milky Way looks like.

Thanks again to Tom Farrey and the folks at Outside the Lines which is headed up by Bob Ley who was part of the original guerilla warriors that first went on the air at ESPN in September 1979 with that show that all of us recognize today…SportsCenter.

On a related note a member of Coaches Hot Seat that worked in New York City in the early 1990s got to know an executive at ABC/ESPN that he still knows to this day and our CHS member has told us some very interesting and entertaining stories about what he has seen and experienced during his many visits to the Worldwide Leader over the years and he also has a very interesting opinion on the way ESPN now operates which he believes is driven by early influences at the network and in many ways the “underdog” view that is still held by many at the network even when ESPN is the dominant force in American sports today. Now if we can only get that CHS member to put those views into a word processor we could put them in this blog but some of the stories he has told would have to be edited out since the ESPN folks would be chewing on our ass if they ever hit the Coaches Hot Seat Blog!

 

Excerpts from Three and Out: Rich Rodriguez and the Michigan Wolverines in the Crucible of College Football Continue

The Detroit News has now published its third excerpt from…

Three and Out: Rich Rodriguez and the Michigan Wolverines in the Crucible of College Football

…which has not disappointed and no doubt reading the entire book will be very entertaining as well.

Here are the links from the three Excerpts from Three and Out in the Detroit News:

Three and Out Excerpt I: Michigan’s search for football coach lacked game plan – Detroit News

Three and Out Excerpt II: Michigan feared “mass exodus” of players after Carr retired – Detroit News

Three and Out Excerpt III: NCAA investigation ate at Rodriguez, Michigan players – Detroit News

Clearly, the most ludicrous part of Three and Out that we have read to this point was from Excerpt II which included the amazing development that Michigan feared a ‘mass exodus” of players from the Michigan program after the retirement of Lloyd Carr and that as it is told in Three and Out Lloyd Carr volunteered to sign the transfer form for any of the Michigan players that requires the signature of the player’s current coach.

What the Hell?

If the above is true that Lloyd Carr was ready and willing to sign transfer forms for any Michigan football player that wanted to leave Michigan even before Rich Rodriguez had met with the UM players then Lloyd Carr just went up a few more notches on our Pompous Arrogant Meter or as a friend of ours in Michigan calls Carr:

His Majesty Lloyd Carr!

We actually have a member of Coaches Hot Seat that was on the last team of one of the most legendary coaches in college football before his retirement and almost immediate death and we asked him if any of the players on his team were begging for transfer forms when that legendary coach retired. His response:

“Are you f-ing kidding me? If anyone had been stupid enough to ask for a transfer just because the Coach was retiring the Coach would have decked us on the spot and told us to support the new coach because we had come to attend “X” school no matter who the head coach was.”

We couldn’t have said it better which makes Lloyd Carr not only a Pompous Arrogant Ass that for some Bizarro reason didn’t want the most obvious choice to take over at Michigan, Les Miles, but also someone that in our opinion was undermining Rich Rodriguez from the start if the above story is true about Carr being willing to sign transfer forms for the Michigan players even before Rodriguez was on campus.

Yes, in our opinion add “Asshole” to Pompous Arrogant Ass and that is where you would find Lloyd Carr’s picture in that dictionary he kept outside of his office at Michigan.

Or the other name our Michigan friend has for Lloyd Carr makes perfect sense as well:

“God’s gift to Planet Earth“

Yes, the rest of these Excerpts from Three and Out and the book itself are going to be great reading by a roaring fire with some hot coffee…with some brandy added of course for extra warmth!

Tags: Uncategorized by Joe
Comments Off