RE: Official Game Thread: Western Carolina
Forbes had much better players, a stable, knowledgeable, veteran staff, no transfer portal and no NIL to deal with.
Good players make good coaches. Coaches cannot take lesser talented players and turn them into good players. Yes coaches can make a difference but the players must put in the time and effort to improve, they must follow the game plan, they must listen to coaches during game and they must play hard the entire time they are in the game and play as a team.. Unfortunately, I don't see the players doing what they have been coached to do. I know for a fact several players have been called out by the staff for not taking practice seriously and not making an effort to improve.
To constantly blame the coach or say they were out coached is just a talking head comment. The players must be held accountable as well as the coaches.
As others have said in earlier posts, how did they play so well in earlier games and play well for the first 12 min of last night's game and then implode. Did our coaches tell them to quit getting back on D, throw crazy passes the length of the floor, dribble into double teams, don't guard the 3pt line, completely lose your man on D, don't block out. I don't think so. This is why Oliver and Hughgley were so mad at some players. Some players went completely off script. How does a 5'9 point guard drive to the basket 3 times in second half and make an uncontested layup? How can the opponent shoot uncontested, 5 footers with not even a hand put up. How can the opponent shoot uncontested 3s the entire game. My take is the players lack of effort and not following the game plan just gave the game to Western.
Forbes and his staff had players doing the same things. Guess what, he replaced them. A couple bought in to the program and turned in to all league players.We saw this same senerio with the Brewer brothers, constantly going off script, reverting to playground, rec ball, destroying team concept. What's the result, everyone is affected in a negative way, frustration, the blame game and the end result everyone suffers. How do you solve the problem? Coaches must try as best they can to recruit high character, hard working athletes. ETSU is not going to to get the kinds of athletes they attracted before NIl, portal and the rise od lower level FBS and the formation of new FBS conferences.
ETSU, along with 100s of simular institutions has fallen to the bottom of the football and men's basketball athletes food chain.
The climate of College Athletics has drastically changed with the PORTAL NI and lower level FBS. It's all about money. The richer will get richer and the poor will get poorer. IMO, ETSU is in the poorer category.
|