The importance of coaching

[coachjwb]

I was listening to Mike and Mike this morning and they were making an interesting observation about the college and pro national champions from this past year. We can all debate about who the best coaches are, but a very good case can be made that this list might make a lot of "best" lists ... for starters ...

College football ... Urban Meyer
Pro football ... Bill Belichick (we can hate him for some reasons but few would deny he's an outstanding coach)
College basketball - men ... Coach K.
College basketball - women ... Geno Auriemma
Pro basketball ... Greg Popovich
MLB ... Bruce Bochy

Of course, not only are team and game management are important, but so is recruiting and drafting. If we draw a conclusion that coaching is that important at the college and pro levels, how important must it be in youth softball?!?!

Another observation ... being a Cleveland sports fan, I like the Indians chances with Terry Francona, but David Blatt is certainly a wild card for the Cavs, unless of course that one makes the case that LeBron is actually the coach!

 

[Hilliarddad3]

Plain and simple, the best on the above list is Geno as far as recruiting and success, none of the others compare including Urban, the 10 titles prove that thought.....

 

[JoeA1010]

I'm sure Geno is a great coach, but he does have one advantage that Meyer doesn't. In college football, every school is trying to be the best. In women's basketball, it is a throw-away sport for a lot of schools, so UConn doesn't have to fight as many legitimate contenders as any college football program.

 

[coachjwb]

Just to be clear, my post was not intended to compare the coaches to each other, but instead to make a point that the teams winning the championships have arguably the best coaches in their respective sports.

 

[Hilliarddad3]

Say what Joe? No way on that as basketball his a heck of allot less players to choose from due to open spots. There are many power houses in Womens BBall vying for the same percentage of great players. He gets them and molds them into champions better than any other in history of college Sports.....

As for Girls Softball on the original question, the perennial successful programs always have the better players wanting to play for them as you can see at tryouts. The long term coached organizations breed success year in and year out.

 

[okiedad1961]

Just to be clear, my post was not intended to compare the coaches to each other, but instead to make a point that the teams winning the championships have arguably the best coaches in their respective sports.

So your question was how important it is for softball ? Imop depends what your team can accomplish,conference title,make the regionals,play for a Nat championship.Coaching college softball at different levels is different than coaching expecting a Nat championship,getting the most out of your players is a measure of good coaching.

 

[Converse Kid]

While it is important, it is not necessary. Have seen unknowledgeable Coaches succeed with self reliant and athletic teams. Certain cohesion amongst a group or a few stud players can make an average Coach look brilliant.

 

[hot corner]

Coaching is just as important in softball as any other sport. You can have great talent and beat the ok and bad teams but when you play the good teams coaching comes into play. Knowing how to use your talent. Being able to get the most out of your talent. Putting the talent in the right position to make the team the most successful it can.

If you have a talented team and have a bad coach. The team want trust the coach and second guess him/her. The coach won't know how to use the talent. He/she won't get the most out of the players because the players don't trust the coach. When it comes to those situations in a tough game he/she won't know what to do.

 

[softballoldtimer]

They are also some of the best recruiters, when coaches don't have talent its much, much harder. Can't make chicken salad, out of chicken $hit... lol my opinion the best coaches take less and make more out of it, and make the most out of their players talents. When you have a reputation of being a good coach, the best players up front typically tend to lean your direction. A good coach, also is good at handling egos.

 

[daboss]

I seriously doubt anyone would argue that any team would be better off without a coach. I doubt anyone would argue the importance of having a good coach. If there would be an arguement it might be what if a mediocre team had a "good" coach? Perhaps they would rise from the experience to a higher level.

A "good" coach wears so many hats depending on the level of difficulty a team plans to compete. Some entry level coaches need to do everything while a larger, well-supported organization can get support for different aspects of the job description to relieve a coach from tasks that some may not be considered theirs. (ie fundraiser chairman, equipment manager, travel coordinator, ect) Ultimately, the responsibility still falls under the description of a head coach whether you believe it or not.

While most of us think of a coach as a teacher, it goes much deeper to be really good at it. Mentors can recruit and motivate as well as teach. Once a mentor gains the respect of the masses, they normally separate themselves from the pack and excel. The names listed in the original post have the mentoring qualities to recruit and develop the skills of some of the best players in the country in their respective sports. I do not believe this list is the best of the best, but they are some of the most well-known of a much larger list.

Look deep into your local program and find that unknown with the same qualities and surprise them with a pat on the back and thank you for helping today's youth to become successful members of our society. These are the true heros out there that deserve some recognition.