RayWill
Well-known member
PlayerRep said:Ringneck said:BWahlberg said:During spring ball, Stitt said the coaches tried manufacturing adverse situations and gauging the players’ reactions and body language. The coaches tried correcting negative body language using film review.
If you've got a couple of minutes to spare, I recommend this video. I know that comparing women's basketball to football might be like comparing melons to bananas, but this is a great video of Geno Auriemma talking about the importance of his players' body language. Basically what he's suggesting is that the way players physically respond to adversity is an indicator of their character. So I think Stitt & Co. are right to address the "negative body language" issue.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3_wgb3OREQ[/youtube]
In my opinion, the biggest casualty of the 2011-2014 Pflugrad-Delaney era was the football program's culture. When the program got whipped by the University brass and the NCAA, they slumped their shoulders and kicked rocks. I understand that Delaney was brought in to try to stabilize things, but he didn't stop the bleeding. Things stabilized, sure, but not back at the same place the program had fallen from. Delaney recruited good players, sure. He maybe even ran the right schemes for those players. But culture eats strategy, and the team's culture reeked of defeat, not pride.
The way Auriemma has built UConn WBB into a dynasty is due first and foremost to the program's culture. Yes, they get excellent players, but those players excel in the team-first culture he's developed. To quote the late great John Wooden, "You can't win without good players, but you can lose with them."
Give Stitt some time. He's rebuilding a culture, and it's hard to regain ground once it's been lost. I believe he's recruiting the right players for the program culture he's building. He's surrounding himself with coaches and staff who are products of the pride and tradition of Grizzlies football. If Stitt isn't around next year, I hope they hire someone to build on what he's done, not tear it down. Give him time.
While "culture", or whatever the right word is, has slipped since Hauck left, I have not seen, heard or read anything that would attribute the slippage do Pflu or Delaney. In fact, if Pflu had not been fired, I believe the Griz would have continued to be an elite program near the top of the heap. Nevertheless, the "culture", i.e. finding a way to win close games, come back, and win on the road, had declined by the time Stitt arrived. However, it is now year 3 and it seems the slippage has continued, and even got worse late last season. Stitt talked about the inability to win on the road during both of his prior years. So, he knew it, but nothing seemed to improve. I am not blaming him, as I have no real clue how to get a team to win consistently on the road.
100% Agree on both points.