In the "be careful what you ask for" department, a case in point
would be the Indiana University basketball coach that replaced Bobby
Knight. He didn't get angry, though.
On Apr 1, 2008, at 3:13 PM, Hampton, Nathan E. wrote:
> This will take awhile because the answer is multifaceted.
>
> A successful hockey program is a function of (1) school record and
> on-ice success (2) academic performance (3) alumni (contributions)
> support (4) post Wildcat performance (5) NCAA compliance (no $400
> left in hat on a desk chair) and (6) personality. To look at only
> one of them (i.e. Record) may distort the measurement of the whole
> hockey program. Furthermore, even point (1) which is the main one
> everyone sees, school record and on-ice performance, is a multi-
> product output: (1) you have to recruit good players, (2) form
> those players into a cohesive whole making each of them a
> contributing teammate with a clear role to play, (4) individual
> practices must be geared to the big picture, (5) behind-the-bench
> strategy must be successful even under pressure, and (6) off ice
> conditioning, supporting academic programs, and front office must
> all run very smoothly. No one is going to be good at all of these
> aspects (and why most are best left to the specialists) and then
> you add in the problem of monetary budgets and it is no wonder that
> most programs struggle.
>
> Now even if Umile is weak in a few of these areas (has he had the
> wrong players on the ice at the wrong time, has he recruited badly,
> has he had teams that could not jell?), he may be very strong in
> the others (academic performance, post-Wildcat representation, NCAA
> compliance) and just because you eliminate him for those
> weaknesses, is there any guarantee that he will be replaced by
> someone better? Sometimes the devil you know is better than the
> devil you do not know. I am not trying to vilify nor defend Umile,
> but it is often important to "be careful what you ask for" because
> it might not be any better. So being able to relax and enjoy the
> game is important - control the things you can (your enjoyment) and
> ignore the things you cannot (the record) change. Besides, what if
> you do "WIN THE DAMN THING!!!!"? The only result will be higher
> expectations and larger disappoints as reality sets in - do you
> really want that?
>
> Just my two cents from a long distance away.
> Nathan Hampton
>
>
> On 4/1/08 11:53 AM, "Spreeman, Cathryn" <[log in to unmask]>
> wrote:
>
> As a long time UNH fan, I have done some serious soulsearching in
> the past several years concerning the track record of UNH hockey in
> the post season. I sometimes chide my husband over his attitude of
> complete disgust -- he is one that says Umile definitely must go --
> and I try to remember when we just went to a UNH hockey game to
> enjoy the game. Back in the days of Snively Arena, we just plain
> had a great time watching a college hockey game. For the past ten
> years or so, we've had the experience of rising expectations. Good
> players, good records, post-season appearances, some successes (two
> Hockey East tournament championship teams) and some excruciating
> failures (two Frozen Fours lost in the championship game; losses in
> the semifinals, losses in early rounds). Having grown up a Boston
> Red Sox fan, I had good training to be a UNH hockey fan. The Sox
> broke their curse; what will it take for the Wildcats to break
> theirs?? A new coach who knows how to win at that level? Once I
> actually drafted a piece for the UNH student newspaper about being
> tired of being "Umile-ated" every year. I never sent it in. Part
> of me says, hey, just enjoy the game. If they go to the
> tournament, fine. The other part of me says WIN THE DAMN THING!!!!
>
> Cathy Spreeman
> UNH '72
>
> ________________________________
>
> From: - Hockey-L - The College Hockey Discussion List on behalf of
> Deron Treadwell
> Sent: Sat 3/29/2008 10:05 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: UNH
>
>
>
> I'm curious to know what people (specifically UNH fans) think about
> the latest first round exit for the University of New Hampshire.
>
> As Charlie's release mentioned earlier, UNH is now 4-8 in first
> round games and I believe have lost in the first round in 3 of the
> last 4 years (at least one of those games in Manchester, NH). All
> the while, UNH has had dominant regular season teams, winning or
> near the top of HOCKEY EAST every year it seems.
>
> Almost shockingly, I've seen a few messageboard posts from UNH fans
> saying that perhaps Dick Umile needs to go. I think its an
> interesting question, because there is no doubt UNH has the
> facilities and they are getting the talent. Is it time to make a
> change in order to get over the top or is it something else?
>
> -Deron
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