Another question from one of our readers!
I enjoy your web-site and the very practical information. My daughter is a junior on a very solid club team and your advice and opinions are both interesting and timely for us.
Two questions, if I may: 1) Scholarship information - This is the first year we have seriously considered pursuing a scholarship for our daughter. As we try to educate ourselves about the options and merits of various programs I've been surprised by the lack of (or at least my lack of being able to find) accessible information on what schools and PSA's have negotiated on scholarships. Is there any network or pooled source of information to determine which schools have used up their allotted scholarship #s or $s? That info would help us focus our promoting/contacting towards bona-fide opportunities/needs. At present I review the individual school websites and attempt to glean who has accepted a recent offer, who may still be on one from previous years. Am I a slow learner to realize the process depends 1st on the coach of a specific school developing an interest in your daughter, and only then does the dialogue begin about what level of scholarship might be out there? Is there a better way to promote player to scholarship opportunities?
2) Related to the first question, regarding strategies to link up with a scholarship: How much more, if any, impact is afforded to a player getting seen for recruitment is the JO finals,, vs. a regional JO qualifier or final, or, another venue like the Reno Festival? Our daughter (and the parents too, to be honest) are interested in universities within a certain region that is closer to home so we can hopefully watch and support the team on a more frequent basis. We've heard that the JOs attract more of the East-coast schools and if our interest is towards the West coast can we not fret as much about not winning a bid? I'm not interested in chasing a JO bid around by playing at 2 or more qualifiers if it serves more to gratify the club coach's ego, or market the club instead of our family's interest.Feel free to condense my questions for you postings if you think they can serve a broader audience. Thank you in advance.
Mark
These are interesting questions that I will try and answer appropriately.
Answer #1: It can be tough to determine what scholarship funding is available, especially because of the variations between NCAA divisions and Junior College/NAIA programs. With Division I programs, the NCAA allows for 12 scholarships and only 12 'heads' can be on scholarship (this is called a Head Count sport by the NCAA). If a school decides to fully fund the volleyball program, and most schools now do, then that team will have 12 kids on full rids, but the volleyball roster could be larger than 12.
To determine available scholarships for DI teams, you need to view the roster and use a little deductive reasoning - how many seniors are graduating and how many of those seniors looked to be scholarship players; if there are 3 liberos in the graduating class, odds are that they are not all on a scholarship. Next, you can figure out how many scholarship offers have been accepted by looking through the program web site releases and read about the incoming players. Usually there will be a release after the early and late National Letter of Intent signing periods that publicise the incoming players.
The simplest way to determine scholarship availability is to e-mail the coach and ask - hopefully the coach will reply with general outline of what they are looking for in each recruiting class.
Division II is much more complicated than Division I for scholarships. DII programs are allowed by the NCAA to provide 8 scholarships and each school/conference determines at what amount to fund volleyball scholarships. But, NCAA DII Women's Volleyball is an Equivalency sport - this means that you could have 25 volleyball players on scholarship, but the total amount spent on these players has to equal 8 scholarships. Many DII programs will use academic scholarships, federal and state grants, plus non-academic/scholarships (ROTC, Future Teachers, religious based, etc.) to provide financial support. This creates a rather murky picture in determining the amount of money available for a recruit.
With DI programs, it is simple to determine a scholarship amount - it is a full and each player on a scholarship is getting the same exact amount. With DII programs, each player is on a different amount and thus responsible for paying a cost of attendance bill from the school that could be significant - because of this, many DII coaches discourage any discussion of scholarship amounts because of the potential negative ramifications with team chemistry.
Again, I would strongly encourage a dialogue with the head coach at schools your daughter might be interested in - they are the ones that could provide the most specific information available. Just ask, 'what positions are you recruiting and approximately how much scholarship support do you anticipate' - While the coach may not give you an exact answer, they should be able to provide a range of support.
Answer #2: With Junior Olympic Club Volleyball tournaments, I feel that earlier in the Club season is the best opportunity to showcase a player's talent. Recruiting is a 3 headed monster - Looking at Seniors to fill open roster spots for this fall, evaluating Juniors to determine abilities for fall after next, and marking Sophomores that look to have college playing potential for 3 falls from now - Almost Crazy! Of these three, the Junior class demands the most attention and with the accelerated commitment process, this means that coaches must get a solid feel for the Junior Prospective Student Athletes (PSA's) as soon as possible.
The Junior Olympic National Championship and/or VolleyFest used to be very important to attend, but I feel this has been devalued a bit because the available Seniors are long gone, the majority of the Juniors are committed and while the Sophomores are coming into their own, there is a certain fatigue factor that comes into the college coaches - they have been recruiting hard since February and now it is summer camps and some time for vacations.
The battle between the Junior Olympic Championships and the Reno Festival (VolleyFest) has raged for years. The traditional reputation was that the VolleyFest was for the top flight
west coast teams and whatever mid-west/east coast teams could not get into the Junior Olympic Championships. Because of this, the college recruiters would usually go out to the VolleyFest (it used to be in Sacramento/Davis) for a few days to see the California teams, then shoot out to the JO Championships to catch the rest of the top flight teams.
But, there have been some interesting shifts recently in the year end tournaments - A number of California teams have begun to switch over to the JO Championships; reason being that many CA teams did not like having to play such a lengthy format at VolleyFest with the first few rounds being against not very good teams, plus there were some rumbling within the Club community that some of the Chicago and Texas teams were better. Also, the feeling was that the JO tournament was an invite/at-large selection, thus the matches were immediately competitive and it is felt to be a National Championship.
College coaches tend to prefer the JO tournament because it is all at one site, is very age and skill level specific, and coaches can see many good players on many good teams quickly - it seems to be a more efficient way to recruit. But, to complicate matters, many mid-western and eastern club programs have become very frustrated with USA Volleyball and have formed their own tour and championship - I am still waiting the outcome of this 'protest' movement, but there were some rather big name clubs that joined it!
In general, more and more top flight CA teams are heading to the JO championships because of the quality of play. But, that being said, it is a very expensive proposition to travel to JO Nationals, not to mention the costs associated with trying to qualify. VolleyFest is more straight forward, pay your money and you are in, plus it is in Reno so CA teams can drive or hop a quick flight there.
I would caution anyone to stay away from the rational that by wanting to stay on the west coast to play college volleyball means that one should only play club volleyball on the west coast.
Rather, I would determine my daughter's college volleyball potential (ask the club coach, director or recruiting coordinator's opinion and/or ask them to get feedback directly from a college coaching friend - I have done this many times for someone), then build the club schedule around that potential. If a player has potential to play DI volleyball at a mid to upper level program, then I would choose JO's. If a player is thought to be at a lower DI or DII level, then I would be comfortable going to either tournament with cost/time factors weighing in upon the final decision.
A radical suggestion would be to not play in any year end tournaments, but to spend that money on going to another JO Qualifier or high ranked regional tournament early in the season - By Nationals or VolleyFest, the college coaches have already made their evaluations of the Junior class and extended offers/received verball commitments; honestly, all they are doing is 'baby-sitting' their top recruits and then going out to socialize with their friends at night. All the hard work was done in the spring.
From what I know, even with a player wanting to stay on the west coast, if I were to choose one year end tournament to attend, it would be JO's.
January 29, 2008
January 27, 2008
Men's Volleyball Recruiting Question
A question regarding Men's Volleyball and Recruiting:
Hi Coach,
Nice to find your site. I have a HS junior son who took up volleyball last year and is passionate about the sport. Apparently he is quite an adept and smart player. His club coach tells us he is already playing at Junior College level. I have a friend who played at one of the Ivys - 25 yrs ago - and even at that level he felt the time commitment was simply too much and limited his college experience. Thus, maybe I should have him focus more on intramural club rather than make the effort required to get noticed by even the low level collegiate teams. Any words of wisdom?
Steve
Another good question from one of our readers that may shed some light upon Men's Volleyball and recruiting. Many times, and I am guilty of this, more information is published/discussed for Women's Volleyball than Men's Volleyball.
A few things that we must be aware of before I could offer suggestions for what Steve and his son could consider.
1. Men's Volleyball does not field the volume of teams that Women's Volleyball does - Men's NCAA Division I and Division II is combined for the NCAA Championship and I don't think it tops out any where near 100 teams. There is NCAA Division III Volleyball, but like all DIII sports, this is non-athletic scholarship based and I would not know the number of schools that sponsor at this level (I would not expect it to be huge, but it could be similar to DI/DII numbers). Also, there is Junior College Men's programs, but I think they are mainly limited to California and I would not expect the number of programs to be huge.
2. The NCAA limits Men's Volleyball scholarships to 4 per team (actually funding those 4 scholarships is the decision of the school) - because the typical roster is 12 players (or more) it is rare that the players are on fulls, but rather they are all on a partial scholarship of some amount.
3. As a point of comparison, NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball includes over 320 teams and the NCAA allows for 12 scholarships; NCAA Division II Women's Volleyball approaches 300 teams and is sponsored with 8 scholarships, but is not a Head Count sport (this means that a coach can take those 8 athletic scholarships and divide them among any number of players, then combine jthem with academic funding to create possibly 12 or more players on a full scholarship - this is one area that DII private schools have an advantage over public schools). When you mix in Junior College and NAIA teams, the total number of programs that provide athletic based scholarships to women's volleyball players (not including Division III which is academic only), approaches 1,300!
4. If we look at the number of Volleyball playing spots available, in each gender, by multiplying the number of teams by a roster of 12, you can easily figure out there are many, many more playing opportunities for woman than men, and that number only increases when you factor in scholarship playing opportunities.
5. The concern of athletic time commitment negatively affecting academics and the general college experience is valid - This time commitment demand is a huge change from my days as a player. Everyone expects the regular season to be crunched with practices, lifting, travel, games and normal studies, but now the off-season is no longer off! The off-season begins the first week of school and runs until finals. With coaching staffs now wanting their players to lift, condition, small group skill train, 'volunteer' pick-up games, and then engage in the 6 week non-traditional full team training season, the off-season can easily approach the time commitment of the regular season! There is no more off-season. I very much disagree with this new micro-management trend that I feel is a result of volleyball coaches mimicking the worst of basketball to try and gain a very small competitive advantage at the expense of the players! There is a reason Men's and Women's Basketball teams statistically have the worst grades and graduation rates for their genders: I just described it - no time to be student, all available time is to be an athlete.
Finally, Steve referenced that the current evaluation of his son was that as a Junior in high school, he is playing at the Junior College level. This would indicate that making the roster at a 4 year school would be tough and receiving an athletic scholarship at a 4 year school would very much be a challenge. This is because men's volleyball has a large talent pool and not too many places to play - most high school players that have 4 year college ability, are already playing at that college level as a Junior. It sounds as if there may be room for growth in volleyball ability, as Steve's son has only been playing one year.
To answer Steve's question would be based upon Steve knowing his son best; thus, I really have 3 possible suggestions.
1. If Steve feels that his son would benefit from the the structure and discipline that a 4 year scholarship supporting program (i.e. DI/II) would provide, then the family should push hard in the physical development of the player and the recruiting efforts to garner a roster sport and/or scholarship. In reality, NCAA teams provide the mechanism to keep students moving in a positive academic and social avenue because of the discipline and structure provided.
2. If the family feels that his academics and collegiate experience would be limited (not able to pursue a tough major, join a social club or career organization, etc) or negatively affected, then Steve should just play recreation or intramural volleyball to have fun with out the burdens of an NCAA team.
3. Division III would be a nice fit if the son wanted a higher level of volleyball than the intermurals, but did not want to commit to the drastic time demands incumbent in today's DI/DII Men's teams. This is exactly the reason Division III athletics are here - to provide a high level athletic experience, but to also make sure academics are the priority!
Because the Prospective Student Athlete (this is Steve's son) is a Junior in High School, there is zero time to waste - the family must come together and decide a game plan for the remainder of the club season and for next year.
Hi Coach,
Nice to find your site. I have a HS junior son who took up volleyball last year and is passionate about the sport. Apparently he is quite an adept and smart player. His club coach tells us he is already playing at Junior College level. I have a friend who played at one of the Ivys - 25 yrs ago - and even at that level he felt the time commitment was simply too much and limited his college experience. Thus, maybe I should have him focus more on intramural club rather than make the effort required to get noticed by even the low level collegiate teams. Any words of wisdom?
Steve
Another good question from one of our readers that may shed some light upon Men's Volleyball and recruiting. Many times, and I am guilty of this, more information is published/discussed for Women's Volleyball than Men's Volleyball.
A few things that we must be aware of before I could offer suggestions for what Steve and his son could consider.
1. Men's Volleyball does not field the volume of teams that Women's Volleyball does - Men's NCAA Division I and Division II is combined for the NCAA Championship and I don't think it tops out any where near 100 teams. There is NCAA Division III Volleyball, but like all DIII sports, this is non-athletic scholarship based and I would not know the number of schools that sponsor at this level (I would not expect it to be huge, but it could be similar to DI/DII numbers). Also, there is Junior College Men's programs, but I think they are mainly limited to California and I would not expect the number of programs to be huge.
2. The NCAA limits Men's Volleyball scholarships to 4 per team (actually funding those 4 scholarships is the decision of the school) - because the typical roster is 12 players (or more) it is rare that the players are on fulls, but rather they are all on a partial scholarship of some amount.
3. As a point of comparison, NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball includes over 320 teams and the NCAA allows for 12 scholarships; NCAA Division II Women's Volleyball approaches 300 teams and is sponsored with 8 scholarships, but is not a Head Count sport (this means that a coach can take those 8 athletic scholarships and divide them among any number of players, then combine jthem with academic funding to create possibly 12 or more players on a full scholarship - this is one area that DII private schools have an advantage over public schools). When you mix in Junior College and NAIA teams, the total number of programs that provide athletic based scholarships to women's volleyball players (not including Division III which is academic only), approaches 1,300!
4. If we look at the number of Volleyball playing spots available, in each gender, by multiplying the number of teams by a roster of 12, you can easily figure out there are many, many more playing opportunities for woman than men, and that number only increases when you factor in scholarship playing opportunities.
5. The concern of athletic time commitment negatively affecting academics and the general college experience is valid - This time commitment demand is a huge change from my days as a player. Everyone expects the regular season to be crunched with practices, lifting, travel, games and normal studies, but now the off-season is no longer off! The off-season begins the first week of school and runs until finals. With coaching staffs now wanting their players to lift, condition, small group skill train, 'volunteer' pick-up games, and then engage in the 6 week non-traditional full team training season, the off-season can easily approach the time commitment of the regular season! There is no more off-season. I very much disagree with this new micro-management trend that I feel is a result of volleyball coaches mimicking the worst of basketball to try and gain a very small competitive advantage at the expense of the players! There is a reason Men's and Women's Basketball teams statistically have the worst grades and graduation rates for their genders: I just described it - no time to be student, all available time is to be an athlete.
Finally, Steve referenced that the current evaluation of his son was that as a Junior in high school, he is playing at the Junior College level. This would indicate that making the roster at a 4 year school would be tough and receiving an athletic scholarship at a 4 year school would very much be a challenge. This is because men's volleyball has a large talent pool and not too many places to play - most high school players that have 4 year college ability, are already playing at that college level as a Junior. It sounds as if there may be room for growth in volleyball ability, as Steve's son has only been playing one year.
To answer Steve's question would be based upon Steve knowing his son best; thus, I really have 3 possible suggestions.
1. If Steve feels that his son would benefit from the the structure and discipline that a 4 year scholarship supporting program (i.e. DI/II) would provide, then the family should push hard in the physical development of the player and the recruiting efforts to garner a roster sport and/or scholarship. In reality, NCAA teams provide the mechanism to keep students moving in a positive academic and social avenue because of the discipline and structure provided.
2. If the family feels that his academics and collegiate experience would be limited (not able to pursue a tough major, join a social club or career organization, etc) or negatively affected, then Steve should just play recreation or intramural volleyball to have fun with out the burdens of an NCAA team.
3. Division III would be a nice fit if the son wanted a higher level of volleyball than the intermurals, but did not want to commit to the drastic time demands incumbent in today's DI/DII Men's teams. This is exactly the reason Division III athletics are here - to provide a high level athletic experience, but to also make sure academics are the priority!
Because the Prospective Student Athlete (this is Steve's son) is a Junior in High School, there is zero time to waste - the family must come together and decide a game plan for the remainder of the club season and for next year.
January 25, 2008
Galen Center at USC - Top 5 Gym?
A comment from a reader about My Top 5 Volleyball Gyms.
Dear Coach,
I am a devout Bruin alum but I must admit that the Galen Center is the most beautiful place to watch volleyball. It should be on your list...
Dave
Unfortunately, I have only seen the Galen Center on television and driving by on the freeway (strangly enough there was no traffic, so I did not have the time to view it as long as one normally would) - but, from what I have seen, it looks like a first class facility.
The reason that I did not include it on my list is that I have not played or coached in the Galen Center - maybe one day I will and it would probably be on the Top 5 the next day.
On my list of gyms, I only included facilities that I have physically been involved with volleyball in some capacity. I have been in many gyms while killing time on a campus or being in a gym for another sport or event, but unless I have been doing something with a volleyball - I would not want to judge.
For instance, the Nebraska gym on television looks rather sharp - it is full of fans, the colors looks good, the floor is shiny, there is lots of excitement, but that is on television. Having been in the gym with volleyball, I was less than impressed and it is not in my Top 5.
I have been in more volleyball gyms that I would care to remember, but the ones I listed stood out because of the layout, the sightlines, the accoustics, the floor and the respect given to volleyball by the physical standard of the facility (clean gym, newer seats, nice locker rooms, etc.)
If any readers have their Top Gyms, please fire them off to me and I will get them up for all to see - Don't worry, not comments are allowed (too much negativity in the Internet world today!)
Dear Coach,
I am a devout Bruin alum but I must admit that the Galen Center is the most beautiful place to watch volleyball. It should be on your list...
Dave
Unfortunately, I have only seen the Galen Center on television and driving by on the freeway (strangly enough there was no traffic, so I did not have the time to view it as long as one normally would) - but, from what I have seen, it looks like a first class facility.
The reason that I did not include it on my list is that I have not played or coached in the Galen Center - maybe one day I will and it would probably be on the Top 5 the next day.
On my list of gyms, I only included facilities that I have physically been involved with volleyball in some capacity. I have been in many gyms while killing time on a campus or being in a gym for another sport or event, but unless I have been doing something with a volleyball - I would not want to judge.
For instance, the Nebraska gym on television looks rather sharp - it is full of fans, the colors looks good, the floor is shiny, there is lots of excitement, but that is on television. Having been in the gym with volleyball, I was less than impressed and it is not in my Top 5.
I have been in more volleyball gyms that I would care to remember, but the ones I listed stood out because of the layout, the sightlines, the accoustics, the floor and the respect given to volleyball by the physical standard of the facility (clean gym, newer seats, nice locker rooms, etc.)
If any readers have their Top Gyms, please fire them off to me and I will get them up for all to see - Don't worry, not comments are allowed (too much negativity in the Internet world today!)
January 24, 2008
Volleyball Camp Question
A question from one of our readers concerning volleyball camps.
Are there any college camps that have many different college coaches running them? For instance, my son played baseball and State U. ran a camp that had many different coaches that he was exposed to. She is the type of player that I believe needs to be seen over a couple of days, to showcase her various talents. Her and I both know that she could not be a top notch DIV I setter, but we do not know where she could play - Jayne
This question is actually a few questions that revolve around college volleyball camps. I will do my best to answer these questions - At a later date, I will provide some general camps guidelines and philosophies when it comes to college volleyball camps.
With regards to a multi-coach college volleyball camp, like referenced in the baseball example above, is rare. By and large, college volleyball camps are staffed by the host institution with its own coaches and players; there may be a few instances of a Junior College coach or outside assistant coach with previous ties to the host institution being on the staff.
The reason for this is simply that camps have become recruiting tools - Nebraska is not going to have Penn State's volleyball coaches at their camps.
There are a number of recruiting combines/showcases being run by USA Volleyball or regional volleyball entities, where college coaches may be involved in the running of the camp 0r are there to purely watch players in a more controlled setting than a club or high school tournament.
What Jayne and her daughter need to determine is the focus of the camp - Is the camp for skill development or recruiting. If Jayne's daughter is just getting into high school, then it should be for skill development. If she is at her Junior/Senior year, then it should be for recruiting.
In considering Recruiting, it is very expensive to use summer camps as a means to promote your abilities - a few hundred dollars just for one school to see you, who may or may not even need your position is a tough financial proposition.
During the summers of the Sophomore/Junior year and Junior/Senior year, I strongly suggest that you only attend schools that you are interested in and make sure those schools are interested in you. How do you find out - you ask them point blank, via e-mail or a telephone call (remember the NCAA rules on call backs by coaches). Use the camp as an opportunity to evaluate the school, get a feel for the coaching style of the staff and interact with current players. In a very real sense, it is an extended Unofficial Visit.
If you play Club Volleyball on a team that travels, you will get noticed - I also recommend that you follow the guidelines in my Recruiting Plan.
As for the level that you can play at - Ask your club coach, ask your high school coach and then understand the feedback you are getting from the club tournaments. For instance, if you are receiving letters from mid-level DI schools, but no Top 50 programs, then you are probably a mid-level type of player. I don't want to discourage you from reaching for the top, but I also want you to not ignore those schools that are interested in you!
A very good question by Jayne and please don't hesitate to e-mail me if anyone has another question.
Are there any college camps that have many different college coaches running them? For instance, my son played baseball and State U. ran a camp that had many different coaches that he was exposed to. She is the type of player that I believe needs to be seen over a couple of days, to showcase her various talents. Her and I both know that she could not be a top notch DIV I setter, but we do not know where she could play - Jayne
This question is actually a few questions that revolve around college volleyball camps. I will do my best to answer these questions - At a later date, I will provide some general camps guidelines and philosophies when it comes to college volleyball camps.
With regards to a multi-coach college volleyball camp, like referenced in the baseball example above, is rare. By and large, college volleyball camps are staffed by the host institution with its own coaches and players; there may be a few instances of a Junior College coach or outside assistant coach with previous ties to the host institution being on the staff.
The reason for this is simply that camps have become recruiting tools - Nebraska is not going to have Penn State's volleyball coaches at their camps.
There are a number of recruiting combines/showcases being run by USA Volleyball or regional volleyball entities, where college coaches may be involved in the running of the camp 0r are there to purely watch players in a more controlled setting than a club or high school tournament.
What Jayne and her daughter need to determine is the focus of the camp - Is the camp for skill development or recruiting. If Jayne's daughter is just getting into high school, then it should be for skill development. If she is at her Junior/Senior year, then it should be for recruiting.
In considering Recruiting, it is very expensive to use summer camps as a means to promote your abilities - a few hundred dollars just for one school to see you, who may or may not even need your position is a tough financial proposition.
During the summers of the Sophomore/Junior year and Junior/Senior year, I strongly suggest that you only attend schools that you are interested in and make sure those schools are interested in you. How do you find out - you ask them point blank, via e-mail or a telephone call (remember the NCAA rules on call backs by coaches). Use the camp as an opportunity to evaluate the school, get a feel for the coaching style of the staff and interact with current players. In a very real sense, it is an extended Unofficial Visit.
If you play Club Volleyball on a team that travels, you will get noticed - I also recommend that you follow the guidelines in my Recruiting Plan.
As for the level that you can play at - Ask your club coach, ask your high school coach and then understand the feedback you are getting from the club tournaments. For instance, if you are receiving letters from mid-level DI schools, but no Top 50 programs, then you are probably a mid-level type of player. I don't want to discourage you from reaching for the top, but I also want you to not ignore those schools that are interested in you!
A very good question by Jayne and please don't hesitate to e-mail me if anyone has another question.
January 23, 2008
Newer NCAA Rules
Each year the NCAA reviews a number of proposals with regards to becoming a rule for administering all the NCAA sanctioned sports. In general, the rules tend to be association wide and sport wide, yet there are many variations with regards to Division and sport specific rules. Many times the Division rules tend to reflect Initial Eligibility guidelines or recruiting timetables, and the sport specific rules tend to be centered upon practice/competition legislation or recruiting calendars.
Overall the NCAA has a fairly comprehensive rules submission and review process that has the best interests of most of the student athletes in mind. While the NCAA is good with in-house notification (letting each school and sport know of the changes), it can be lax about informing the Prospective Student Athlete (PSA) and their families about new rules.
This time of the year, following the Athletic Directors/Staff NCAA Convention, is when proposals become rules and ideas become proposals. Here are some newer rules with regards to Women's Volleyball (and all NCAA Sports).
1. Text Messages will no longer be allowed from coaches/staff to recruits beginning in August of 2008. In the past, Text or Instant Messages were allowed because they were considered an e-mail type communication, but that has changed. Texts can be received, but cannot be sent by a coach until the recruit has signed the National Letter of Intent or written offer of Financial Aid from Admissions.
2. The NCAA Core Courses (Math, Languages, Science, etc), has been raised from 14 to 16 courses. This will not take affect until 2013, but it immediately affects those incoming high school freshman who will need to make sure they are in proper classes.
3. Male practice players (for female sports) will be allowed provided they are deemed eligible per NCAA rules.
4. An athlete may regain a year of eligibility if a coach or staff member unknowingly violated a rule or misinformed an athlete, thus using a year of eligibility for an athlete. A bit complicated, but basically says the coach can accept an NCAA violation if the athlete was being punished for something that was not their fault.
5. Electronic media materials may be sent to recruits - this means that coaches may attach moving pictures to the e-mails they send.
Nothing too dramatic, but the biggest ones to note are the end of Text Messages and the increase in the number of core classes.
Hope this helps and please don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions.
Overall the NCAA has a fairly comprehensive rules submission and review process that has the best interests of most of the student athletes in mind. While the NCAA is good with in-house notification (letting each school and sport know of the changes), it can be lax about informing the Prospective Student Athlete (PSA) and their families about new rules.
This time of the year, following the Athletic Directors/Staff NCAA Convention, is when proposals become rules and ideas become proposals. Here are some newer rules with regards to Women's Volleyball (and all NCAA Sports).
1. Text Messages will no longer be allowed from coaches/staff to recruits beginning in August of 2008. In the past, Text or Instant Messages were allowed because they were considered an e-mail type communication, but that has changed. Texts can be received, but cannot be sent by a coach until the recruit has signed the National Letter of Intent or written offer of Financial Aid from Admissions.
2. The NCAA Core Courses (Math, Languages, Science, etc), has been raised from 14 to 16 courses. This will not take affect until 2013, but it immediately affects those incoming high school freshman who will need to make sure they are in proper classes.
3. Male practice players (for female sports) will be allowed provided they are deemed eligible per NCAA rules.
4. An athlete may regain a year of eligibility if a coach or staff member unknowingly violated a rule or misinformed an athlete, thus using a year of eligibility for an athlete. A bit complicated, but basically says the coach can accept an NCAA violation if the athlete was being punished for something that was not their fault.
5. Electronic media materials may be sent to recruits - this means that coaches may attach moving pictures to the e-mails they send.
Nothing too dramatic, but the biggest ones to note are the end of Text Messages and the increase in the number of core classes.
Hope this helps and please don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions.
January 20, 2008
College Volleyball Coaching as a Career
Being a NCAA College Volleyball coach can be a very rewarding career as long as it is approached with a realistic understanding of the positives and negatives.
A few of the positives that I have found in being a College Volleyball coach - It allows for an outlet to your competitive nature; you have the opportunity to build something that reflects your personality and desires; the job is rarely stale or boring; most holidays are off; the ability to set your own schedule and enjoy significant off time, especially in the off-season; most schools offer a solid benefits package including health and retirement; if you so enjoy, can provide leadership and mentoring to a college age student and there are many, many other ways to earn a living that are not as emotionally rewarding.
A few of the negatives, with explanations.
- Your livelihood is in the hands of 18-22 year old women - This statement alone is enough to question why a person would want to make college coaching a career, but it is true. A coach must recruit, train and manage a group of post-teenage females and find a way to be successful while hoping they all get along. If not, and here is the rub, the players will not hesitate to complain to the athletic directors and in this crazy world of NCAA athletics, the athletic directors are more concerned with an 18 year olds 'happiness' than an adult's professional standing.
- The salaries paid can be surprisingly low - The majority of players and parents would be stunned if they knew just low little the mass majority of NCAA College Volleyball coaches are paid. It is nice to hear that those families we have welcomed into the program feel our abilities merit salaries near 100k, but the reality is way too many coaches are getting paid in the 30 to 50k range. Unfortunately, the financial reality of college coaching makes the position a good second job with great benefits or a good job if you are single and like coaching. There are a handful of talented volleyball coaches that are making a comfortable living and there is an army that is just making ends meet. Take for example Idaho State University - in the advertisement for the position, they list the top end of the salary range at $48,000.00! This is a major state university, located in an area that has above average cost of living and, let's not forget, you are supposed to build a winning program, take care of the health and happiness of the team and make sure they graduate. I would venture this school is doing it on the cheap.
- Volleyball's funding support can be dictated by other sports - I can guarantee you that a men's or women's basketball coach has never been told, "...we had to reduce your budget because the football team did not do very well this year." This is an all to common conversation that many volleyball coaches must endure (you can sub basketball in for football whenever needed). We have enjoyed historic volleyball seasons, only to have the budget reduced because of another sport's failings. This is a frustrating fact of athletic departments - some coaches have their professional abilities clipped because of the failure of another coach.
- Multi year contracts are not common enough - Another point of surprise for many players and families. Any contract is nothing more than an employment letter if the contract says at will or termination without cause because you can be fired without any recourse. A single year contract is hollow because they are written to expire at the end of the fiscal year, so if a coach is terminated, they will receive at best a 6 month severance. Again, a handful of coaches enjoy true multi year contracts that protect them against unknown of collegiate athletics; all too many do not.
- A change in athletic directors can result in a change of your employment status - If you were to take a look at all the coaches who leave a program (either by choice or not), you would be surprised at the number who have experienced a change in athletic directors. With ease, I can name all too many examples. Since volleyball coaches do not enjoy rolling multi-year contracts (like football and basketball) we have very little protection against the perception of a new athletic director. With football and basketball beyond the control of athletic directors (these coaches have it in their contracts that they report only to the school president or chancellor), athletic directors are more critical of Olympic Sport coaches. If you turned around a garbage program, but happen to have a tough year, start kissing up to the new AD as fast as you can because it may be the only thing that results one more season of a paycheck.
- There is relatively little upward mobility - Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of jobs advertised each spring (click here), but not many of them are an improvement. My casual guesstimation is that there are 25 jobs that pay over 100k per year, but a number of those are located in high cost of living areas, so that number must be tempered. There may be another 30 positions that pay in the 75 to 100k range. When you look at these top salaried positions, maybe only 5 to 10 (at best) come open per season. This statistic does not support upward mobility when you factor in the number of potential candidates (head coaches, assistant coaches and former coaches looking to get back into the mix). Bottom line, it is TOUGH to get a top flight job, double that if you are not an assistant in a name brand conference (You shagged balls at State U.? Great, that looks better than hiring the established winning coach from Tech College).
- In economics speak, volleyball coaches are cheap labor and can be replaced easily - Because there are so many volleyball programs, there are so many coaches. Double this math by realizing that males coach women in volleyball (this happens in all female sports, but more often in volleyball and I would like to see the flip side come into reality). This means that if an Athletic Director is not happy with you or your program, it is cheap and easy to change. All it takes is interview and moving costs, and they can save tens of thousands of dollars in salary and budget outlays. If the new coach is no better than the old coach, then let's give another inexpensive coach a shot. No contract, no financial penalty to change coaches. That is why so many positions are changed after an athletic director hire.
- Depending on the philosophy of the department, your out of season commitments may not allow you to balance the tremendous amount of time you just expended during the season - This has become a relatively new phenomenon. In the past when the season was done, as a volleyball coach you did not have to do too much until February and then it was just some team training and recruiting work. But, as athletic directors seek to manage their departments, more and more coaches are having to clock more hours in the off season. It has always been an unspoken understanding that the 80 hour weeks a coach puts in during the season, would be balanced with 10 hour weeks during the off season, the understanding was a result of the low salary. Now, between motivational guest speakers, endless departmental meetings, mandatory supporting of other sports, fundraising assignments, making yourself available for department needs, the 10 hour off season weeks are now becoming 40 hour weeks (and don't forget the recruiting season comes quickly, so weekends are no longer off).
- There is no collective voice to empower volleyball coaches - This is probably the biggest disappointment for me as a college volleyball coach. We have no union that will advocate for improving the employment of college volleyball coaches. I have heard of zero instances of the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) putting pressure on the NCAA, conferences or individual schools to make things better for volleyball coaches. Look at all the opportunities that are presented each year - contracts, salaries, budget support, marketing and promotions, post season opportunities - these are all areas that I routinely read about the football, men's basketball and women's basketball coaches associations pressuring the NCAA to improve upon for their coaches. I really don't know what the AVCA does other than put on a convention and send out a monthly magazine (which is a boiler plate version because softball coaches get the exact same type of magazine).
Bottom line - Go into being a college volleyball coach with your eyes wide open and your heart cleanly separated from your mind. I have had a number of assistant coaches, which were my former players, who flat out told me they had no idea that so many things were wrong with being a college volleyball coach. Unfortunately, the very thing the NCAA is advocating for, more women in college volleyball coaching, they are killing because of the unsatisfactory way they support women's athletics (other than the women's basketball, who has done what we need to do).
Again, being a college volleyball coach can be great if you are single, you are looking for another income source for your family, or if you already have money. For me, I have come to the realization that time is more important than money and the time that I can spend with my family makes the potential above frustrations manageable (barely!).
A few of the positives that I have found in being a College Volleyball coach - It allows for an outlet to your competitive nature; you have the opportunity to build something that reflects your personality and desires; the job is rarely stale or boring; most holidays are off; the ability to set your own schedule and enjoy significant off time, especially in the off-season; most schools offer a solid benefits package including health and retirement; if you so enjoy, can provide leadership and mentoring to a college age student and there are many, many other ways to earn a living that are not as emotionally rewarding.
A few of the negatives, with explanations.
- Your livelihood is in the hands of 18-22 year old women - This statement alone is enough to question why a person would want to make college coaching a career, but it is true. A coach must recruit, train and manage a group of post-teenage females and find a way to be successful while hoping they all get along. If not, and here is the rub, the players will not hesitate to complain to the athletic directors and in this crazy world of NCAA athletics, the athletic directors are more concerned with an 18 year olds 'happiness' than an adult's professional standing.
- The salaries paid can be surprisingly low - The majority of players and parents would be stunned if they knew just low little the mass majority of NCAA College Volleyball coaches are paid. It is nice to hear that those families we have welcomed into the program feel our abilities merit salaries near 100k, but the reality is way too many coaches are getting paid in the 30 to 50k range. Unfortunately, the financial reality of college coaching makes the position a good second job with great benefits or a good job if you are single and like coaching. There are a handful of talented volleyball coaches that are making a comfortable living and there is an army that is just making ends meet. Take for example Idaho State University - in the advertisement for the position, they list the top end of the salary range at $48,000.00! This is a major state university, located in an area that has above average cost of living and, let's not forget, you are supposed to build a winning program, take care of the health and happiness of the team and make sure they graduate. I would venture this school is doing it on the cheap.
- Volleyball's funding support can be dictated by other sports - I can guarantee you that a men's or women's basketball coach has never been told, "...we had to reduce your budget because the football team did not do very well this year." This is an all to common conversation that many volleyball coaches must endure (you can sub basketball in for football whenever needed). We have enjoyed historic volleyball seasons, only to have the budget reduced because of another sport's failings. This is a frustrating fact of athletic departments - some coaches have their professional abilities clipped because of the failure of another coach.
- Multi year contracts are not common enough - Another point of surprise for many players and families. Any contract is nothing more than an employment letter if the contract says at will or termination without cause because you can be fired without any recourse. A single year contract is hollow because they are written to expire at the end of the fiscal year, so if a coach is terminated, they will receive at best a 6 month severance. Again, a handful of coaches enjoy true multi year contracts that protect them against unknown of collegiate athletics; all too many do not.
- A change in athletic directors can result in a change of your employment status - If you were to take a look at all the coaches who leave a program (either by choice or not), you would be surprised at the number who have experienced a change in athletic directors. With ease, I can name all too many examples. Since volleyball coaches do not enjoy rolling multi-year contracts (like football and basketball) we have very little protection against the perception of a new athletic director. With football and basketball beyond the control of athletic directors (these coaches have it in their contracts that they report only to the school president or chancellor), athletic directors are more critical of Olympic Sport coaches. If you turned around a garbage program, but happen to have a tough year, start kissing up to the new AD as fast as you can because it may be the only thing that results one more season of a paycheck.
- There is relatively little upward mobility - Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of jobs advertised each spring (click here), but not many of them are an improvement. My casual guesstimation is that there are 25 jobs that pay over 100k per year, but a number of those are located in high cost of living areas, so that number must be tempered. There may be another 30 positions that pay in the 75 to 100k range. When you look at these top salaried positions, maybe only 5 to 10 (at best) come open per season. This statistic does not support upward mobility when you factor in the number of potential candidates (head coaches, assistant coaches and former coaches looking to get back into the mix). Bottom line, it is TOUGH to get a top flight job, double that if you are not an assistant in a name brand conference (You shagged balls at State U.? Great, that looks better than hiring the established winning coach from Tech College).
- In economics speak, volleyball coaches are cheap labor and can be replaced easily - Because there are so many volleyball programs, there are so many coaches. Double this math by realizing that males coach women in volleyball (this happens in all female sports, but more often in volleyball and I would like to see the flip side come into reality). This means that if an Athletic Director is not happy with you or your program, it is cheap and easy to change. All it takes is interview and moving costs, and they can save tens of thousands of dollars in salary and budget outlays. If the new coach is no better than the old coach, then let's give another inexpensive coach a shot. No contract, no financial penalty to change coaches. That is why so many positions are changed after an athletic director hire.
- Depending on the philosophy of the department, your out of season commitments may not allow you to balance the tremendous amount of time you just expended during the season - This has become a relatively new phenomenon. In the past when the season was done, as a volleyball coach you did not have to do too much until February and then it was just some team training and recruiting work. But, as athletic directors seek to manage their departments, more and more coaches are having to clock more hours in the off season. It has always been an unspoken understanding that the 80 hour weeks a coach puts in during the season, would be balanced with 10 hour weeks during the off season, the understanding was a result of the low salary. Now, between motivational guest speakers, endless departmental meetings, mandatory supporting of other sports, fundraising assignments, making yourself available for department needs, the 10 hour off season weeks are now becoming 40 hour weeks (and don't forget the recruiting season comes quickly, so weekends are no longer off).
- There is no collective voice to empower volleyball coaches - This is probably the biggest disappointment for me as a college volleyball coach. We have no union that will advocate for improving the employment of college volleyball coaches. I have heard of zero instances of the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) putting pressure on the NCAA, conferences or individual schools to make things better for volleyball coaches. Look at all the opportunities that are presented each year - contracts, salaries, budget support, marketing and promotions, post season opportunities - these are all areas that I routinely read about the football, men's basketball and women's basketball coaches associations pressuring the NCAA to improve upon for their coaches. I really don't know what the AVCA does other than put on a convention and send out a monthly magazine (which is a boiler plate version because softball coaches get the exact same type of magazine).
Bottom line - Go into being a college volleyball coach with your eyes wide open and your heart cleanly separated from your mind. I have had a number of assistant coaches, which were my former players, who flat out told me they had no idea that so many things were wrong with being a college volleyball coach. Unfortunately, the very thing the NCAA is advocating for, more women in college volleyball coaching, they are killing because of the unsatisfactory way they support women's athletics (other than the women's basketball, who has done what we need to do).
Again, being a college volleyball coach can be great if you are single, you are looking for another income source for your family, or if you already have money. For me, I have come to the realization that time is more important than money and the time that I can spend with my family makes the potential above frustrations manageable (barely!).
January 17, 2008
High School Coaches - Assist in Recruiting
High school volleyball coaches too often get lost in the recruiting process because club volleyball has become the avenue to securing a spot on a college volleyball team. While the club volleyball coaches may have a good understanding of a Prospective Student Athlete (PSA), my belief is that the high school coach will be able to provide a more in-depth analysis of a player's personality.
While the strength of the high school coach can be and in-depth understanding the PSA through year's of interaction, a common weakness of high school coaches is not having a good grip on what it takes to physically play college volleyball.
I receive many, many e-mails from high school coaches which say that a player is a college level player or has college level skills. All too often, I see the corresponding video tape and the mentioned player is no where near having the ability to play in college.
I understand that high school coaches are trying to assist their players in the goal of playing college volleyball and need to promote those players to college coaches, but when the promotion does not come close to the ability, it is not good.
A few suggestions for high school coaches:
1. Go watch a college volleyball match in person.
This can be tough because the seasons run simultaneously, but because of high school football, there are no Friday night high school volleyball matches and there are always Friday night volleyball matches. If you send an e-mail to the college coach, they will put you on the pass list as a professional courtesy.
2. Go watch a junior college match, a NCAA Division III match, Division II match and a Division I match.
Each level is different and only by seeing each match in person can you get a feel for the skill levels needed to succeed at each level. Read what I wrote - watch the SKILLS.
3. Sit as close to the court as possible for a match.
By sitting very close to the court, you can get a feel for just how high college players jump, just how quick they are to the ground and back up off the floor. Sitting up high in the stands is like watching volleyball on television - it will not give you enough feedback on the physicality of the game.
4. Go to a college level or national level sponsored coaching clinic.
Not only for your own coaching development, but to understand what type of skills that college coaches are looking for when they evaluate PSA's. There are some basic no-no's that college coaches have when evaluating talent, that seem to be acceptable to high school coaches who recommend PSA's - backwards footwork, bad passing form, not being able to roll or sprawl on defense, being overweight, no jump, not knowing proper court alignment, etc.
5. Ask a college coach for help evaluating a player's college potential.
College volleyball coaches are a rather approachable bunch - if you are a local high school coach, drop a tape into the mail and ask a local college coach to recommend a level appropriate for that player to pursue. I would do this for a local high school coach in a heartbeat - would be happy to do it! This way, you are able to provide accurate advice to your player.
I offer these suggestions because many times, the high school coach is the one that college coaches can trust to be an innocent. Many club coaches are wide eyed and star struck when a big name college coach interacts with them about a player. In a very real sense, it is an accomplishment for the club and the club coach to be able to say they sent a player to State University.
A high school coach, though aware of the colleges, tends to be a bit more removed from these ego inflations because they are not around the strange world of club volleyball where the college coaches are on constant display.
When I want to get honest feedback about the personality of a PSA, I will always contact the high school coach. I hope my suggestions might allow for high school coaches to become a bit more involved in the accurate recommendation of a player's physical abilities.
While the strength of the high school coach can be and in-depth understanding the PSA through year's of interaction, a common weakness of high school coaches is not having a good grip on what it takes to physically play college volleyball.
I receive many, many e-mails from high school coaches which say that a player is a college level player or has college level skills. All too often, I see the corresponding video tape and the mentioned player is no where near having the ability to play in college.
I understand that high school coaches are trying to assist their players in the goal of playing college volleyball and need to promote those players to college coaches, but when the promotion does not come close to the ability, it is not good.
A few suggestions for high school coaches:
1. Go watch a college volleyball match in person.
This can be tough because the seasons run simultaneously, but because of high school football, there are no Friday night high school volleyball matches and there are always Friday night volleyball matches. If you send an e-mail to the college coach, they will put you on the pass list as a professional courtesy.
2. Go watch a junior college match, a NCAA Division III match, Division II match and a Division I match.
Each level is different and only by seeing each match in person can you get a feel for the skill levels needed to succeed at each level. Read what I wrote - watch the SKILLS.
3. Sit as close to the court as possible for a match.
By sitting very close to the court, you can get a feel for just how high college players jump, just how quick they are to the ground and back up off the floor. Sitting up high in the stands is like watching volleyball on television - it will not give you enough feedback on the physicality of the game.
4. Go to a college level or national level sponsored coaching clinic.
Not only for your own coaching development, but to understand what type of skills that college coaches are looking for when they evaluate PSA's. There are some basic no-no's that college coaches have when evaluating talent, that seem to be acceptable to high school coaches who recommend PSA's - backwards footwork, bad passing form, not being able to roll or sprawl on defense, being overweight, no jump, not knowing proper court alignment, etc.
5. Ask a college coach for help evaluating a player's college potential.
College volleyball coaches are a rather approachable bunch - if you are a local high school coach, drop a tape into the mail and ask a local college coach to recommend a level appropriate for that player to pursue. I would do this for a local high school coach in a heartbeat - would be happy to do it! This way, you are able to provide accurate advice to your player.
I offer these suggestions because many times, the high school coach is the one that college coaches can trust to be an innocent. Many club coaches are wide eyed and star struck when a big name college coach interacts with them about a player. In a very real sense, it is an accomplishment for the club and the club coach to be able to say they sent a player to State University.
A high school coach, though aware of the colleges, tends to be a bit more removed from these ego inflations because they are not around the strange world of club volleyball where the college coaches are on constant display.
When I want to get honest feedback about the personality of a PSA, I will always contact the high school coach. I hope my suggestions might allow for high school coaches to become a bit more involved in the accurate recommendation of a player's physical abilities.
January 13, 2008
Volleyball Practices - How to Make them Better!
Part of Recruiting is going to watch Club Volleyball teams practice. I actually prefer to watch a team practice than play in tournaments - the practices allow me to spend more time observing the many different attributes of a Potential Student Athlete. Unfortunately, the mass majority of Club Volleyball practices are not very good.
Club Volleyball is the next level up from High School volleyball and the bridge to College Volleyball. No matter how easy a training regimen will be for a College team, it is hands down better than most Club Volleyball sessions. It is more than just the College athletes being physically and mentally more mature, it is the preparation of the coaches.
My overall impression of Club Volleyball practice is one of poorly used time. Too often, players are standing around, coaches are figuring out what to do next and everyone is just going through the motions. While this may well happen at any number of College programs, most will be much more organized, efficient with their allocated time frame and the players are well rehearsed about how the practice should and will be conducted.
A few College suggestions for Club Volleyball coaches:
1. Come to practice with a written, detailed plan for that evening's practice - drills, amount of time per drill, players names associated with each drill, what drills to cut if time is running out, what drills to add if you have more time, what the goal is for the practice and each drill; be completely thorough with everything that is supposed to happen.
2. After a preliminary 'meet and greet' time with players and amongst players, start the practice at the appropriate time - this immediately sets the tone for the day.
3. Demand that the players move quickly in each drill and quickly into the next drill - it is comical to hear a coach say "hustle" to shag or get a drink, then the players just walk around, yet the coach does nothing to reprimand them - words don't work.
4. If the player's are not following the most basic instructions; hustle, shag, quickly get a drink; the most routine volleyball movements - then there should be a penalty. I like to start with sit-ups and move quickly into push-ups. Sprints don't work, anyone can run - but female volleyball players do not like push-ups.
5. Take enough time to completely explain how the drill will work and the focus (reason) you are doing the drill, then move into it quickly - don't waste time finding balls, talking to an assistant, letting the players wander into their supposed spot - move quickly into the drill.
6. Engage in drills that make volleyball sense. I recently watched a drill where the Club coach had a player serve, then run to left back to dig a hard driven ball, then chase a tip from left back, then hit a ball front row. What part of this drill did not make sense? The front row attack is illegal, based on the first three touches - the players should have hit back row, that would have made sense.
7. Keep as many people actively touching balls and engaged in drills. In the above mentioned drill, there was one person working and 10 people standing around watching/shagging. This was a poor use of practice time, when a team only goes once a week for 2 hours. Find ways to take a slow, individually orientated drill and make it a multi-person, fast paced drill.
8. Save the 'memorandum' part of the practice for afterwards - information on the next practice, next tournament, uniforms, etc., should all be handled after the training session is done.
9. As the practice is progressing and immediately after practice, make notes on your written practice plan about what worked, what could be made better and ideas for the next training session. During and after practice are when the volleyball 'juices' are flowing, so take advantage of them to create even better training sessions.
One way that College Volleyball and Club Volleyball are similar is in only having a limited amount of time per week to practice. Colleges do a good job of making each minute count, while most Club teams should be much more effective with their time.
Club Volleyball is the next level up from High School volleyball and the bridge to College Volleyball. No matter how easy a training regimen will be for a College team, it is hands down better than most Club Volleyball sessions. It is more than just the College athletes being physically and mentally more mature, it is the preparation of the coaches.
My overall impression of Club Volleyball practice is one of poorly used time. Too often, players are standing around, coaches are figuring out what to do next and everyone is just going through the motions. While this may well happen at any number of College programs, most will be much more organized, efficient with their allocated time frame and the players are well rehearsed about how the practice should and will be conducted.
A few College suggestions for Club Volleyball coaches:
1. Come to practice with a written, detailed plan for that evening's practice - drills, amount of time per drill, players names associated with each drill, what drills to cut if time is running out, what drills to add if you have more time, what the goal is for the practice and each drill; be completely thorough with everything that is supposed to happen.
2. After a preliminary 'meet and greet' time with players and amongst players, start the practice at the appropriate time - this immediately sets the tone for the day.
3. Demand that the players move quickly in each drill and quickly into the next drill - it is comical to hear a coach say "hustle" to shag or get a drink, then the players just walk around, yet the coach does nothing to reprimand them - words don't work.
4. If the player's are not following the most basic instructions; hustle, shag, quickly get a drink; the most routine volleyball movements - then there should be a penalty. I like to start with sit-ups and move quickly into push-ups. Sprints don't work, anyone can run - but female volleyball players do not like push-ups.
5. Take enough time to completely explain how the drill will work and the focus (reason) you are doing the drill, then move into it quickly - don't waste time finding balls, talking to an assistant, letting the players wander into their supposed spot - move quickly into the drill.
6. Engage in drills that make volleyball sense. I recently watched a drill where the Club coach had a player serve, then run to left back to dig a hard driven ball, then chase a tip from left back, then hit a ball front row. What part of this drill did not make sense? The front row attack is illegal, based on the first three touches - the players should have hit back row, that would have made sense.
7. Keep as many people actively touching balls and engaged in drills. In the above mentioned drill, there was one person working and 10 people standing around watching/shagging. This was a poor use of practice time, when a team only goes once a week for 2 hours. Find ways to take a slow, individually orientated drill and make it a multi-person, fast paced drill.
8. Save the 'memorandum' part of the practice for afterwards - information on the next practice, next tournament, uniforms, etc., should all be handled after the training session is done.
9. As the practice is progressing and immediately after practice, make notes on your written practice plan about what worked, what could be made better and ideas for the next training session. During and after practice are when the volleyball 'juices' are flowing, so take advantage of them to create even better training sessions.
One way that College Volleyball and Club Volleyball are similar is in only having a limited amount of time per week to practice. Colleges do a good job of making each minute count, while most Club teams should be much more effective with their time.
January 11, 2008
Off-Season College Volleyball Training Suggestion
With the Spring Semester beginning in college, it also begins the off-season or Non-Traditional Season (fancy NCAA term for those sports that are not in their NCAA Championship segment). More and more the off-season is not 'off' - this is a trend that I disagree with completely. College volleyball players and coaches need OFF time during the Spring Semester.
College Volleyball is fortunate in a sense that the competitive season is in the Fall Semester, which allows us to have the Christmas and New Year's Holiday off. The Basketballs span both semesters and if successful in their season, they will actually be training during each school holiday. A sport such as Softball is a spring sport, but they really use the Fall Semester as their pre-season training and are very intense in an effort to jump start their season; it can't really be called the off-season.
Traditionally, Basketball and Football have been manic about using each possible moment to train their teams in some capacity and thus, the NCAA has developed specific rules with regards to training hours during the Traditional and Non-Traditional seasons. College Football has some of the most stringent rules and because of this, their players actually have some 'down-time' during the Spring Semester and Summer. Basketball, on the other hand, has no down time - unfortunately for their Student-Athletes, they are expected to play volunteer "pick-up games" everyday that they are in their off-season ("volunteer" workouts do not count in the rules), in addition to lifting, conditioning and coach led group training. That begins the 1st day of school, re-starts the first day after the end of the season and continues through the summer. One of the greatest hypocrisies of the NCAA is the lamentation over the dismal graduation rates of men's (and now women's) basketball, while they allow the sport to dominate the player's collegiate existence.
Specifically the NCAA says that during the Traditional Season, a sport is allowed 20 hours of Countable Activity (not including travel and a pre-determined hour amount is used for all contests), with a minimum of one Off-Day per week. During the Non-Traditional Season, the NCAA states that a sport may engage in 8 hours of Countable Activity per week, with no more than 2 hours per week being spent on small group training (up to 4 SA's per group). Each of the above hourly limits are applicable to individual players of the team. In addition, some sports allow for an approximate 6 week Spring Season that is similar to the Traditional Season - 20 hour practice week and competitions.
A disturbing trend that I am seeing in Volleyball and other Olympic Sports is the gravitation towards the Basketball model of managing the Non-Traditional season. It is common to see Fall Sports back in the weight room, on the courts doing abilities, into groups of four for volleyball training, being told to go play pick-up games at a certain hour beginning the first week of the new semester. I disagree with this philosophy because it allows for no true off-time in college for the player or the coach.
There is only so much gas in the tank of a team. A mistake that I made early in my coaching career was making the pre-season workouts and early season matches very challenging - this resulted in having a very good team in September and a very tired team in November; November is much more important than September. I learned through experience to train less in the early part of the season, to allow my teams to peak later in the schedule. The same argument is made for the Non-Traditional season.
What makes me uncomfortable with a demanding off-season is the length of it and asking everyone in the program to focus for over 15 weeks. During the fall, you have the stimulus of upcoming competitions. The Spring competition opportunities are limited and usually not until late-March or April. While I believe lifting is an intelligent choice for a team, moving into intense conditioning or skill work is not - there is still too much time left in the semester.
Touching a volleyball and being together with other players and staff, should be the highlight of the day. By going to fast too soon, an atmosphere is created where the highlight quickly becomes a burden and everyone gets a bit edgy.
From an academic or philosophical point of view, I feel athletics must be balanced by non-athletics. Even though the SA just went home for Christmas, home is not campus. Being in college means being a college kid - not so much a college athlete, just some kid enjoying what college is all about. I disagree with the argument that since the player is on a scholarship they should be doing something for their sport every day - is the same argument made about the drama or chemistry student who is on a supported scholarship? In a real sense, the volleyball player is doing something for their sport, something that too many basketball and football players are not doing - going to class, making good grades and graduating.
I always stress the importance of being a college kid - make smart choices, don't be a knucklehead, but enjoy what it means to be 18 to 22 years old and in college. Pull an all nighter, eat to much pizza, take a road trip with friends - live like a college kid.
Too many times, in too many sports, I see Seniors that are counting the days until they leave and are so burnt out on sports that they don't even want to touch a ball for a long, long time.
Every now and then, coaches get word of NCAA proposals that may limit the number of Countable Hours, add another mandatory off day or restrict 'volunteer' activities, but it never comes to fruition - Because of the NCAA television contract for the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship Tournament, nothing is done without the tacit approval of Men's Basketball and they don't want any more limitations placed on their sport; they already feel as if they can't do much of use right now (I am not kidding).
If you are college coach or a potential college coach, I would strongly encourage you to go slow during the off-season - make as much of it OFF as possible. I believe you will be surprised how much better your workouts will be, how much more focused the players are and how much more enjoyable the whole Non-Traditional season is for everyone.
College Volleyball is fortunate in a sense that the competitive season is in the Fall Semester, which allows us to have the Christmas and New Year's Holiday off. The Basketballs span both semesters and if successful in their season, they will actually be training during each school holiday. A sport such as Softball is a spring sport, but they really use the Fall Semester as their pre-season training and are very intense in an effort to jump start their season; it can't really be called the off-season.
Traditionally, Basketball and Football have been manic about using each possible moment to train their teams in some capacity and thus, the NCAA has developed specific rules with regards to training hours during the Traditional and Non-Traditional seasons. College Football has some of the most stringent rules and because of this, their players actually have some 'down-time' during the Spring Semester and Summer. Basketball, on the other hand, has no down time - unfortunately for their Student-Athletes, they are expected to play volunteer "pick-up games" everyday that they are in their off-season ("volunteer" workouts do not count in the rules), in addition to lifting, conditioning and coach led group training. That begins the 1st day of school, re-starts the first day after the end of the season and continues through the summer. One of the greatest hypocrisies of the NCAA is the lamentation over the dismal graduation rates of men's (and now women's) basketball, while they allow the sport to dominate the player's collegiate existence.
Specifically the NCAA says that during the Traditional Season, a sport is allowed 20 hours of Countable Activity (not including travel and a pre-determined hour amount is used for all contests), with a minimum of one Off-Day per week. During the Non-Traditional Season, the NCAA states that a sport may engage in 8 hours of Countable Activity per week, with no more than 2 hours per week being spent on small group training (up to 4 SA's per group). Each of the above hourly limits are applicable to individual players of the team. In addition, some sports allow for an approximate 6 week Spring Season that is similar to the Traditional Season - 20 hour practice week and competitions.
A disturbing trend that I am seeing in Volleyball and other Olympic Sports is the gravitation towards the Basketball model of managing the Non-Traditional season. It is common to see Fall Sports back in the weight room, on the courts doing abilities, into groups of four for volleyball training, being told to go play pick-up games at a certain hour beginning the first week of the new semester. I disagree with this philosophy because it allows for no true off-time in college for the player or the coach.
There is only so much gas in the tank of a team. A mistake that I made early in my coaching career was making the pre-season workouts and early season matches very challenging - this resulted in having a very good team in September and a very tired team in November; November is much more important than September. I learned through experience to train less in the early part of the season, to allow my teams to peak later in the schedule. The same argument is made for the Non-Traditional season.
What makes me uncomfortable with a demanding off-season is the length of it and asking everyone in the program to focus for over 15 weeks. During the fall, you have the stimulus of upcoming competitions. The Spring competition opportunities are limited and usually not until late-March or April. While I believe lifting is an intelligent choice for a team, moving into intense conditioning or skill work is not - there is still too much time left in the semester.
Touching a volleyball and being together with other players and staff, should be the highlight of the day. By going to fast too soon, an atmosphere is created where the highlight quickly becomes a burden and everyone gets a bit edgy.
From an academic or philosophical point of view, I feel athletics must be balanced by non-athletics. Even though the SA just went home for Christmas, home is not campus. Being in college means being a college kid - not so much a college athlete, just some kid enjoying what college is all about. I disagree with the argument that since the player is on a scholarship they should be doing something for their sport every day - is the same argument made about the drama or chemistry student who is on a supported scholarship? In a real sense, the volleyball player is doing something for their sport, something that too many basketball and football players are not doing - going to class, making good grades and graduating.
I always stress the importance of being a college kid - make smart choices, don't be a knucklehead, but enjoy what it means to be 18 to 22 years old and in college. Pull an all nighter, eat to much pizza, take a road trip with friends - live like a college kid.
Too many times, in too many sports, I see Seniors that are counting the days until they leave and are so burnt out on sports that they don't even want to touch a ball for a long, long time.
Every now and then, coaches get word of NCAA proposals that may limit the number of Countable Hours, add another mandatory off day or restrict 'volunteer' activities, but it never comes to fruition - Because of the NCAA television contract for the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship Tournament, nothing is done without the tacit approval of Men's Basketball and they don't want any more limitations placed on their sport; they already feel as if they can't do much of use right now (I am not kidding).
If you are college coach or a potential college coach, I would strongly encourage you to go slow during the off-season - make as much of it OFF as possible. I believe you will be surprised how much better your workouts will be, how much more focused the players are and how much more enjoyable the whole Non-Traditional season is for everyone.
January 9, 2008
Junior Club Volleyball National Qualifiers
With the Club season underway and the National Qualifiers looming in the not to distant future, I wanted to find out what folks think the funniest part of these huge tournaments are. To this end, there is a new poll on the right for readers to cast their votes!
When you consider it, the National Qualifier tournaments are amazing. While recruiting at the Colorado Crossroads NQ, I was downstairs in the lobby (?) having a quick bite when the waves started to change. At approximately 1:00 p.m. there began a huge throng of people coming into the building, through the instructed entrance doors - it was like the tide rushing in. To meet this avalanche of people, were the morning wave contingent that was trying to exit the building - in a very real sense, it was like watching two ant colonies smashing into each other. I guess having over 100 courts will have that effect.
100 courts - 1 pool of 4 teams per court - 400 teams in the a.m. wave and 400 teams in the p.m. 800 teams of 12 players/coaches represent 9600 volleyball people - throw in parents, college coaches and officials, you could easily be talking about 12,000 folks! That is a bunch of die hard volleyball lovers - I hope it continues because we need everyone of them.
When I recruit, I tend not to be very 'social' at club tournaments - I have a very specific job to do and when I need a break from evaluating players, I tend to sit down and watch the circus. It really is a circus. You have the players all excited and bouncing around, the parents are pacing nervously, club coaches are just trying to keep things moving in a positive direction, officials that have to be thinking they should be making more money, and college coaches that strut around like a bunch of peacocks!!
A few year's ago, the fad for the players were those really tall 'Cat in the Hat' hats -it was something to see a 3 foot tall felt hat on a 6' tall club player. I also enjoy seeing the groups of younger club kids that wander up to the older player's courts and watch - they tend to travel in small packs (for safety) and just look so wide eyed. You know they are still in the early age brackets when the knee pads are wider than their legs!
College coaches are a strange mix. Aside from the standard regimen of nice pants, the fashion trends have shifted from nice sweat-top with college name, to Polo's, to Polo's with sweater vests, to polo's with zip up tops, to short sleeve button down shirts to black slacks with a very nice dress shirt for the women (sometimes they tend to look like they are going out for a nice dinner!). Footwear is also changing - court shoes, to running shoes, to sandals/flops, to dress shoes.
My favorite is usually Coach Shoji or the other U. of Hawaii coaches in some type of floral shirt (if I could coach in Hawaii, I would wear the Warrior grass skirt like the mascot at football games!). But, my award for best outfit goes to the Army coach (or maybe Navy?) who used to wear her uniform the first day of a club tournament - now that is an eye stopping outfit!
If anyone tops the college coaches, it has to be the parents. There are two types - the ones that are uptight, which make me cringe, and the ones that are just having a great ride with their daughters! The uptight ones are those that scream 'point' repeatedly if the score keeper did not immediately flip the score after a rally! The mellow ones are those that smile during the bad games and give their kids a big hug when they need one.
It seems to me that the parental division of labor is this - the Mother's duty is to always have the water bottle full and the Father's duty is to shag balls during every hitting warm-up! With out fail, these two agendas have been constant through the years!
Club coaches have nothing but my sympathy - they have to coach young players with a youthfully influenced lack of focus, placate over-worried parents, interact with college coaches and then coach the games with less than stellar referee's. I barely make it through the college camp season - I could not imagine being a club coach.
All in all, the National Qualifiers can be such a unique experience, but for me, they always seem to give me a lift just because a huge building is wall to wall volleyball!
When you consider it, the National Qualifier tournaments are amazing. While recruiting at the Colorado Crossroads NQ, I was downstairs in the lobby (?) having a quick bite when the waves started to change. At approximately 1:00 p.m. there began a huge throng of people coming into the building, through the instructed entrance doors - it was like the tide rushing in. To meet this avalanche of people, were the morning wave contingent that was trying to exit the building - in a very real sense, it was like watching two ant colonies smashing into each other. I guess having over 100 courts will have that effect.
100 courts - 1 pool of 4 teams per court - 400 teams in the a.m. wave and 400 teams in the p.m. 800 teams of 12 players/coaches represent 9600 volleyball people - throw in parents, college coaches and officials, you could easily be talking about 12,000 folks! That is a bunch of die hard volleyball lovers - I hope it continues because we need everyone of them.
When I recruit, I tend not to be very 'social' at club tournaments - I have a very specific job to do and when I need a break from evaluating players, I tend to sit down and watch the circus. It really is a circus. You have the players all excited and bouncing around, the parents are pacing nervously, club coaches are just trying to keep things moving in a positive direction, officials that have to be thinking they should be making more money, and college coaches that strut around like a bunch of peacocks!!
A few year's ago, the fad for the players were those really tall 'Cat in the Hat' hats -it was something to see a 3 foot tall felt hat on a 6' tall club player. I also enjoy seeing the groups of younger club kids that wander up to the older player's courts and watch - they tend to travel in small packs (for safety) and just look so wide eyed. You know they are still in the early age brackets when the knee pads are wider than their legs!
College coaches are a strange mix. Aside from the standard regimen of nice pants, the fashion trends have shifted from nice sweat-top with college name, to Polo's, to Polo's with sweater vests, to polo's with zip up tops, to short sleeve button down shirts to black slacks with a very nice dress shirt for the women (sometimes they tend to look like they are going out for a nice dinner!). Footwear is also changing - court shoes, to running shoes, to sandals/flops, to dress shoes.
My favorite is usually Coach Shoji or the other U. of Hawaii coaches in some type of floral shirt (if I could coach in Hawaii, I would wear the Warrior grass skirt like the mascot at football games!). But, my award for best outfit goes to the Army coach (or maybe Navy?) who used to wear her uniform the first day of a club tournament - now that is an eye stopping outfit!
If anyone tops the college coaches, it has to be the parents. There are two types - the ones that are uptight, which make me cringe, and the ones that are just having a great ride with their daughters! The uptight ones are those that scream 'point' repeatedly if the score keeper did not immediately flip the score after a rally! The mellow ones are those that smile during the bad games and give their kids a big hug when they need one.
It seems to me that the parental division of labor is this - the Mother's duty is to always have the water bottle full and the Father's duty is to shag balls during every hitting warm-up! With out fail, these two agendas have been constant through the years!
Club coaches have nothing but my sympathy - they have to coach young players with a youthfully influenced lack of focus, placate over-worried parents, interact with college coaches and then coach the games with less than stellar referee's. I barely make it through the college camp season - I could not imagine being a club coach.
All in all, the National Qualifiers can be such a unique experience, but for me, they always seem to give me a lift just because a huge building is wall to wall volleyball!
January 7, 2008
Junior College Volleyball - Recruiting Information
The option of playing Junior College Volleyball is one that should be seriously considered by many Prospective Student Athletes (PSA's), especially if a player is not completely comfortable and excited about their current post-high school education/volleyball opportunities.
I have written in past posts about other options outside of the much hyped NCAA Division I segment. Many NCAA Division I schools are trading on the moniker of DI and not providing respectable support for their volleyball team. I know of too many programs that pay their head coaches salaries in the 30's, don't provide adequate travel and equipment support for the team, yet the program is expected to be the Athletic Department poster child for NCAA Athletics - all the good with non of the blemishes of the Flagship sports.
The non-NCAA Division I opportunities are:
NCAA Division II - The NCAA limits each school to a total of 8 scholarships and each school/conference decides at what level to fund their volleyball program(s) up to the NCAA limit. The season is generally shorter and the off-season is not as intense, when compared to DI.
NCAA Division III - DIII scholarships are based solely on academic credentials. No scholarship moneys are supposed to be determined by athletic ability. Much shorter season and an extremely limited off-season, when compared to DI and DII.
NAIA - I am not as familiar with this organization of athletics, but it is my understanding that each school determines it scholarship support and academic admission requirements. Many schools with a religious affiliation that don't wish to spend the tens of millions needed to run a NCAA athletic department can be found in the NAIA.
The main difference in the Junior College division versus the three listed above is that Junior Colleges are two year institutions that determine their own admission policies based on the philosophy of the school. Having been a successful multi-sport athlete in high school, I will be the first to admit that my young view of Junior Colleges was that they were for athletes that either were dumb or were not good enough to play NCAA sports.
While this may be true in other sports (the common impression is that of basketball and football), but for Volleyball this is not exactly the case. As I gain more experience as a coach (14 years and I still learn many new things each year), I have come to respect the tremendous opportunity that Junior Colleges present to volleyball PSA's.
As an unsigned PSA progresses through their Senior Year, I strongly suggest they consider the Junior College option. The strengths of a Junior College student-athlete experience:
1. You can play. You may be good enough to play NCAA volleyball but do you want to sit on the bench for two to three years at a 4 year school, or do you want to play as a freshman and sophomore?
2. Quality competition. There are a great number of Junior College teams that I would not want to play because they could beat my team. Because of the influx of International student-athletes at the Junior College level, the competition can be outstanding.
3. Full Scholarship - All the Junior Colleges that I interact with or know the head coaches, offer full scholarships to their players. Outside of Division I, JC's may full scholarship a larger percentage of their athletes than any other segment.
4. Academic Progress - A major hurdle that some freshman Student-Athletes face is balancing the rigorous academic load of college, with the intense travel/training regimen of being a fall sport athlete. While JC's also travel and train, by and large, their class loads do not have the intensity of the elite universities. A Student-Athlete can complete much of the rudimentary course work needed for a 4 year degree at the Junior College in a much 'healthier' academic climate.
5. More Balance - It seems that all college level volleyball programs are spending more time in travel, team training, off-season lifting/conditioning and spring season training/competition, but JC's will usually not log as many hours as NCAA programs - This is a good thing, too much volleyball is not the healthiest situation.
6. Better Crowds - Embarrassingly enough, a number of JC matches enjoy a larger, louder crowd than many NCAA Division I programs. Nobody likes playing in an empty gym, but it seems to happen less at the JC level.
7. Barriers to Admission - While the NCAA has tried to create formulas to enable a larger percentage of PSA's initial eligibility, the Junior Colleges are much more forgiving of unique circumstances - learning disabilities, family hardships, events beyond a PSA's control - JC's provide the route to NCAA graduation, without having to deal with NCAA admission restrictions.
8. Quality Coaches - In my interaction with Junior Colleges coaches, I have generally found two situations - Young coaches that are talented but don't have the sexy, big name university on their resume or older coaches who have long term demonstrated success. Don't be fooled into thinking that because a head coach was an assistant at a power conference school that they are a good coach - Odds are that the power conference program was successful before that coach got there and will be successful after they leave. I was one of those assistant coaches; it was humbling to realize just how little I knew about being a head coach and creating/running a successful program.
The Junior College ranks are divided into a number of divisions and a California segment that is not affiliated with the rest of the country. You can find complete information about Junior College Volleyball (divisions, rankings, history, stats, etc.) at www.njcaa.org and the California organization is at www.coasports.org.
Again, I believe that Junior College Volleyball is a smart option and one that should be taken seriously as an unsigned PSA embarks upon their Senior year of high school. My biggest advice is to keep an open mind and you may well be surprised what a good fit it is for you.
Don't think that because you started at a Junior College that NCAA schools will not be interested in you after two years - in fact, just the reverse is coming true; a great number of NCAA programs are active in recruiting Junior College players because they bring maturity, experience and talent to the floor!
I have written in past posts about other options outside of the much hyped NCAA Division I segment. Many NCAA Division I schools are trading on the moniker of DI and not providing respectable support for their volleyball team. I know of too many programs that pay their head coaches salaries in the 30's, don't provide adequate travel and equipment support for the team, yet the program is expected to be the Athletic Department poster child for NCAA Athletics - all the good with non of the blemishes of the Flagship sports.
The non-NCAA Division I opportunities are:
NCAA Division II - The NCAA limits each school to a total of 8 scholarships and each school/conference decides at what level to fund their volleyball program(s) up to the NCAA limit. The season is generally shorter and the off-season is not as intense, when compared to DI.
NCAA Division III - DIII scholarships are based solely on academic credentials. No scholarship moneys are supposed to be determined by athletic ability. Much shorter season and an extremely limited off-season, when compared to DI and DII.
NAIA - I am not as familiar with this organization of athletics, but it is my understanding that each school determines it scholarship support and academic admission requirements. Many schools with a religious affiliation that don't wish to spend the tens of millions needed to run a NCAA athletic department can be found in the NAIA.
The main difference in the Junior College division versus the three listed above is that Junior Colleges are two year institutions that determine their own admission policies based on the philosophy of the school. Having been a successful multi-sport athlete in high school, I will be the first to admit that my young view of Junior Colleges was that they were for athletes that either were dumb or were not good enough to play NCAA sports.
While this may be true in other sports (the common impression is that of basketball and football), but for Volleyball this is not exactly the case. As I gain more experience as a coach (14 years and I still learn many new things each year), I have come to respect the tremendous opportunity that Junior Colleges present to volleyball PSA's.
As an unsigned PSA progresses through their Senior Year, I strongly suggest they consider the Junior College option. The strengths of a Junior College student-athlete experience:
1. You can play. You may be good enough to play NCAA volleyball but do you want to sit on the bench for two to three years at a 4 year school, or do you want to play as a freshman and sophomore?
2. Quality competition. There are a great number of Junior College teams that I would not want to play because they could beat my team. Because of the influx of International student-athletes at the Junior College level, the competition can be outstanding.
3. Full Scholarship - All the Junior Colleges that I interact with or know the head coaches, offer full scholarships to their players. Outside of Division I, JC's may full scholarship a larger percentage of their athletes than any other segment.
4. Academic Progress - A major hurdle that some freshman Student-Athletes face is balancing the rigorous academic load of college, with the intense travel/training regimen of being a fall sport athlete. While JC's also travel and train, by and large, their class loads do not have the intensity of the elite universities. A Student-Athlete can complete much of the rudimentary course work needed for a 4 year degree at the Junior College in a much 'healthier' academic climate.
5. More Balance - It seems that all college level volleyball programs are spending more time in travel, team training, off-season lifting/conditioning and spring season training/competition, but JC's will usually not log as many hours as NCAA programs - This is a good thing, too much volleyball is not the healthiest situation.
6. Better Crowds - Embarrassingly enough, a number of JC matches enjoy a larger, louder crowd than many NCAA Division I programs. Nobody likes playing in an empty gym, but it seems to happen less at the JC level.
7. Barriers to Admission - While the NCAA has tried to create formulas to enable a larger percentage of PSA's initial eligibility, the Junior Colleges are much more forgiving of unique circumstances - learning disabilities, family hardships, events beyond a PSA's control - JC's provide the route to NCAA graduation, without having to deal with NCAA admission restrictions.
8. Quality Coaches - In my interaction with Junior Colleges coaches, I have generally found two situations - Young coaches that are talented but don't have the sexy, big name university on their resume or older coaches who have long term demonstrated success. Don't be fooled into thinking that because a head coach was an assistant at a power conference school that they are a good coach - Odds are that the power conference program was successful before that coach got there and will be successful after they leave. I was one of those assistant coaches; it was humbling to realize just how little I knew about being a head coach and creating/running a successful program.
The Junior College ranks are divided into a number of divisions and a California segment that is not affiliated with the rest of the country. You can find complete information about Junior College Volleyball (divisions, rankings, history, stats, etc.) at www.njcaa.org and the California organization is at www.coasports.org.
Again, I believe that Junior College Volleyball is a smart option and one that should be taken seriously as an unsigned PSA embarks upon their Senior year of high school. My biggest advice is to keep an open mind and you may well be surprised what a good fit it is for you.
Don't think that because you started at a Junior College that NCAA schools will not be interested in you after two years - in fact, just the reverse is coming true; a great number of NCAA programs are active in recruiting Junior College players because they bring maturity, experience and talent to the floor!
January 5, 2008
Poll Results - 2008 NCAA Women's Volleyball Second Best Team
First of all, I would like to thank those readers who took time to vote - it was interesting to see the results. My poll question was based on the belief that Penn State will debut as the 2008 pre-season #1 team, but I was curious who might come out as the pre-season #2 team - Stanford, Texas, Nebraska or USC?
The Results:
- Stanford was the choice for the second best team with 21 votes.
- Texas garnered a respectable 8 votes.
- USC, in a bit of a suprise, registered only 1 vote.
- Nebraska brought up the rear, getting goose-egged with zero votes.
When I posted the question, I was not sure who I thought would be the #2 pre-season team. My belief was that it would be either Stanford, Texas, Nebraska or USC. I was a bit surprised that USC and Nebraska did not tally well, because Nebraska was the 2006 National Champion and USC was one serve away from the finals!
To come up with my opinion on who is #2, I am going to take a different approach - If I was building my season schedule, how would I rank each team? The ability to schedule appropriately is key to running a successful college volleyball program - some coaches schedule ridiculously easy and it looks poor, while others schedule way beyond their team's ability and it can cost them a job.
A well known west coast coach once told me that to effectively schedule name brand teams (i.e. when to schedule State U, as opposed to just scheduling State College), you need to look at what impact Seniors they graduated and what impact players are returning, especially Seniors to be. This scheduling guideline is what I will use to look at Stanford, Texas, Nebraska and USC.
Beyond Stanford losing in the National Championship match in 5 games, how will they be in 2008? Seniors lost - Kehoe (setter) and Girard (middle), both starters. Seniors to be - Barboza, Fishburn, Waller and Akinradewo. By returning five starters, including the National Player of the Year and the PAC 10 Freshman of the Year, along with each of the outside attack positions and passing, Stanford will be very good. The loss of a four year starting setter will be felt early, but with rally score being dominated by outside hitters, this loss will not be as great as in year's past.
Texas put together a very good 2007 season, but what about 2008? Seniors lost - Moriarty (setter), Magee (middle), Jennings (Libero), Christian (outside). Seniors to be - Paolini and Hall.
The Longhorns will lose some talented players, but also return plenty of impact players. With the starting setter, libero and middle moving on, one would think Texas may drop off a bit, but they return all the outside attack options including the National Freshman of the Year. My concern with 2008 team would be a shortage of impact Seniors - there is just something about having a few talented Seniors on the court to keep everybody in line and working hard.
USC was just one point away from knocking out Stanford in the NCAA Final Four and what will 2008 hold for the Women of Troy? Seniors lost - Bishop (middle/outside), Kaczor (outside), Johanson (middle), Siemiatkowska (middle), Copenhagen (outside). Seniors to be - Gysin and Tennant. USC losses quite a bit for 2008, almost 9 kills per game, and Gysin will be the only impact Senior.
For the Nebraska fans, the 2007 NCAA tournament was not fun - the defending National Champion and long time #1 ranked team did not reach the Final Four - will the Cornhusker faithful be happy in 2008? Seniors lost - Pavin (outside), Stalls (middle), Houghtelling (outside) and Griffin (setter). Seniors to be - Schwartz, Larson and Gates. Nebraska had a lot of talent graduate in this year - both outsides and a middle, accounting for over 10 kills per game! The returners are solid but, with the exception of Larson, are not impact players.
If I was to put together a schedule in which I wanted my team to have a shot at beating a name brand opponent, I would look to play Nebraska, then USC, not Texas and stay as far away from Stanford as possible. Please keep in mind that USC and Nebraska will have very good seasons and because their coaches are talented and know how to recruit, they could have a great seasons. Texas should be the best in the Big 12 next year and might easily jump into the top slot nationally during next season - they have a bunch of fire power!
But, the poll has my seal of approval - Stanford just has so much returning talent that they should start as the #2 team in the country for the 2008 season! If they develop a setter and Barboza has a Final match worthy of her reputation, then the Cardinal could win the 2008 title over Penn State.
The Results:
- Stanford was the choice for the second best team with 21 votes.
- Texas garnered a respectable 8 votes.
- USC, in a bit of a suprise, registered only 1 vote.
- Nebraska brought up the rear, getting goose-egged with zero votes.
When I posted the question, I was not sure who I thought would be the #2 pre-season team. My belief was that it would be either Stanford, Texas, Nebraska or USC. I was a bit surprised that USC and Nebraska did not tally well, because Nebraska was the 2006 National Champion and USC was one serve away from the finals!
To come up with my opinion on who is #2, I am going to take a different approach - If I was building my season schedule, how would I rank each team? The ability to schedule appropriately is key to running a successful college volleyball program - some coaches schedule ridiculously easy and it looks poor, while others schedule way beyond their team's ability and it can cost them a job.
A well known west coast coach once told me that to effectively schedule name brand teams (i.e. when to schedule State U, as opposed to just scheduling State College), you need to look at what impact Seniors they graduated and what impact players are returning, especially Seniors to be. This scheduling guideline is what I will use to look at Stanford, Texas, Nebraska and USC.
Beyond Stanford losing in the National Championship match in 5 games, how will they be in 2008? Seniors lost - Kehoe (setter) and Girard (middle), both starters. Seniors to be - Barboza, Fishburn, Waller and Akinradewo. By returning five starters, including the National Player of the Year and the PAC 10 Freshman of the Year, along with each of the outside attack positions and passing, Stanford will be very good. The loss of a four year starting setter will be felt early, but with rally score being dominated by outside hitters, this loss will not be as great as in year's past.
Texas put together a very good 2007 season, but what about 2008? Seniors lost - Moriarty (setter), Magee (middle), Jennings (Libero), Christian (outside). Seniors to be - Paolini and Hall.
The Longhorns will lose some talented players, but also return plenty of impact players. With the starting setter, libero and middle moving on, one would think Texas may drop off a bit, but they return all the outside attack options including the National Freshman of the Year. My concern with 2008 team would be a shortage of impact Seniors - there is just something about having a few talented Seniors on the court to keep everybody in line and working hard.
USC was just one point away from knocking out Stanford in the NCAA Final Four and what will 2008 hold for the Women of Troy? Seniors lost - Bishop (middle/outside), Kaczor (outside), Johanson (middle), Siemiatkowska (middle), Copenhagen (outside). Seniors to be - Gysin and Tennant. USC losses quite a bit for 2008, almost 9 kills per game, and Gysin will be the only impact Senior.
For the Nebraska fans, the 2007 NCAA tournament was not fun - the defending National Champion and long time #1 ranked team did not reach the Final Four - will the Cornhusker faithful be happy in 2008? Seniors lost - Pavin (outside), Stalls (middle), Houghtelling (outside) and Griffin (setter). Seniors to be - Schwartz, Larson and Gates. Nebraska had a lot of talent graduate in this year - both outsides and a middle, accounting for over 10 kills per game! The returners are solid but, with the exception of Larson, are not impact players.
If I was to put together a schedule in which I wanted my team to have a shot at beating a name brand opponent, I would look to play Nebraska, then USC, not Texas and stay as far away from Stanford as possible. Please keep in mind that USC and Nebraska will have very good seasons and because their coaches are talented and know how to recruit, they could have a great seasons. Texas should be the best in the Big 12 next year and might easily jump into the top slot nationally during next season - they have a bunch of fire power!
But, the poll has my seal of approval - Stanford just has so much returning talent that they should start as the #2 team in the country for the 2008 season! If they develop a setter and Barboza has a Final match worthy of her reputation, then the Cardinal could win the 2008 title over Penn State.
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