All of us can learn from failure
http://www.newspressnow.com/opinion/editorials/all-of-us-can-learn-from-failure/article_79497112-6839-11e9-8799-6383a71badb4.html
QuoteIn 1989, Missouri Western took a chance on a men's basketball coach with a .378 winning percentage at Valparaiso in Indiana. Three decades and 600 wins later, Tom Smith is a member of the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame and the MIAA Conference Hall of Fame.
Next season, Whitaker will coach on what is now known as Tom Smith Court. It seems like an appropriate start to her career with the Griffons.
I did not know that. Interesting story about Tom Smith.
Quote from: Just Sayin on April 27, 2019, 08:15:52 AM
All of us can learn from failure
http://www.newspressnow.com/opinion/editorials/all-of-us-can-learn-from-failure/article_79497112-6839-11e9-8799-6383a71badb4.html
QuoteIn 1989, Missouri Western took a chance on a men's basketball coach with a .378 winning percentage at Valparaiso in Indiana. Three decades and 600 wins later, Tom Smith is a member of the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame and the MIAA Conference Hall of Fame.
Next season, Whitaker will coach on what is now known as Tom Smith Court. It seems like an appropriate start to her career with the Griffons.
I did not know that. Interesting story about Tom Smith.
This article missed a key factor in the Tom Smith hiring. He was extremely successful D2 coach at Central Missouri before taking the Valpo job. His career at both schools was impressive. As unsuccessful as he was at Valpo he was a step up from Rochlitz.
Wow, talk about a small world. Many of you probably don't know that Candace White Whitaker was a Valpo Assistant Coach after she graduated from TTU, while I was on campus. Her husband, Matt Whitaker, was a baseball player at TTU, and was a volunteer coach for our baseball team during that season. I played summer ball with him before that school year, and he was very good.
I played with a Matt Whitaker at PNC...he'd come from Texas someplace after having some arm trouble. Wonder if it's the same guy? This guy could hit a baseball a very long way!
I am not sure Smith was a step up from Rochlitz. Rochlitz was also a successful JUCO coach in Wyoming. Both coaches had limited resources during their tenures.
At the end, Valpo basketball did not really improve under Smith. His 1983-84 season with Rob Harden was a disaster which at most schools would have resulted in unemployment.
Quote from: M on April 28, 2019, 08:26:09 AM
I played with a Matt Whitaker at PNC...he'd come from Texas someplace after having some arm trouble. Wonder if it's the same guy? This guy could hit a baseball a very long way!
Sounds like the same guy, what year was it for you? This was going into my last season, which was 2003-2004, so summer of 2003. He was originally from Midland, TX, but was last at Texas Tech before arm/back troubles got him. He hit several HRs for our Michigan City Stars team, which was the season we won our IL/IN region to go to some type of broader regional tourney in Cincinnati. There were several of us Valpo players on that roster: me, Tom Starck, Mike Schroeder, Matt Gillikin, etc, in addition to some Butler and St. Joe's guys.
Yup, same guy. He only DH'd for us. Won the CCAC tourney and advanced to whatever postseason tournament NAIA teams play in for probably the first time in school history that year. Our offense was real good...our pitching was real average.
That is so odd, as I thought that he was out of eligibility from his time at TTU. That does explain why he disappeared a few months into the school year.
A lot of the things that occurred that baseball were odd.
Frankly, when Tom Smith was at Valpo, the program was supported financially like a mid-level DII program, at best. At Central Missouri, which funds athletics at a high level for DII, he had success. Smith goes back to DII at Missouri Western and wins. I was at Valpo during the Smith era, and while I didn't think he was much of a coach while he was there, I think he proved that he could win in two other good situations. Tip of the cap to Tom.
Early on, it was difficult for Valpo to understand what it took to be a program at the Div. 1 level. If you think the ARC is bad, Hilltop was a different bad.it reminded me of the gym In the movie Fast Break with Gabe Kaplan.
Quote from: usc4valpo on May 02, 2019, 05:27:39 AM
Early on, it was difficult for Valpo to understand what it took to be a program at the Div. 1 level. If you think the ARC is bad, Hilltop was a different bad.it reminded me of the gym In the movie Fast Break with Gabe Kaplan.
Was first at Valpo in fall of '83. Played a pickup game on the Hilltop floor, was dribbling, then hit a dead spot. Couldn't believe this was a Division I gym, most grade school gyms had better floors. ARC was huge upgrade a year later.
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I first played in Hilltop in 99. Dead spot was still there.
Quote from: covufan on May 02, 2019, 06:49:09 PM
Quote from: usc4valpo on May 02, 2019, 05:27:39 AM
Early on, it was difficult for Valpo to understand what it took to be a program at the Div. 1 level. If you think the ARC is bad, Hilltop was a different bad.it reminded me of the gym In the movie Fast Break with Gabe Kaplan.
Was first at Valpo in fall of '83. Played a pickup game on the Hilltop floor, was dribbling, then hit a dead spot. Couldn't believe this was a Division I gym, most grade school gyms had better floors. ARC was huge upgrade a year later.
Quote from: usc4valpo on May 02, 2019, 05:27:39 AM
Early on, it was difficult for Valpo to understand what it took to be a program at the Div. 1 level. If you think the ARC is bad, Hilltop was a different bad.it reminded me of the gym In the movie Fast Break with Gabe Kaplan.
Fast Break an incredibly far fetched basketball movie, despite that it was a decent film. I prefer the Robbie Benson
classic One on One also starring a young Annette O'Toole.
I remember dead spots all over the place!!! Still, it has a classic look...did they fix the dead spots with the latest refurbishment???
Robbie Benson leading a hoop team was so unrealistic. G.D. Spradlin was great as the a**hole coach.
QuoteI am not sure Smith was a step up from Rochlitz. Rochlitz was also a successful JUCO coach in Wyoming. Both coaches had limited resources during their tenures.
Apples to oranges a bit, because Rochlitz was the coach as we transitioned to D-1, so that's a much tougher gig, plus we were independent, so we had to play more road games. But Smith had us competitive a few years at least.
Favorite Rochlitz memory of the "it was a different time" variety: I remember him getting teed up by a ref in one game for stomping his foot. Once. He didn't say anything audible (you could hear easily in old Hilltop if he had back then). Just one stomp out of frustration on a no-call and the ref whistled the T.
I think Smith rolled the dice much with recruiting but most of the time it did not pay off. I am not sure the program got better with him at the helm. Maybe it was boosted to a reduced level of bad. Also, his personality was not exactly engaging.
Smith pretty much had to roll the dice with guys, given the state of our program at that time. VU had no academic advising resources dedicated to basketball at the time and there was zero investment in the program at the time. (Smith was interviewed shortly after the Sweet 16 year by a local reporter and he basically relayed how he was told he couldn't put up ads in the ARC because the university didn't want the building to "look cheap." He apparently had a couple of local corporate sponsors that he and a few boosters had lined up that would have helped our financial situation greatly but the deals fell apart when the sponsors were told they couldn't have an ad in the arena). It'd be interesting to see how he would have done with the resources and sponsorship Homer's teams had.
Valpo went into Division 1 basketball in 1977 at a time when they had a president, Robert Schnabel, who for the most part did not care about athletics. It was a struggle for Rochlitz and Smith to get some respect from the higher ups. I though both coaches, particularly Smith, had deficiencies in their coaching and handling of players. Schnabel was very good on the academic end, which was important at the time. But to get more funding, forget it.
Schnabel came to Valpo from, what I consider, a very limited frame of reference: Concordia Bronxville, NY. It was a 500 student JC that evolved into a small 4 year college (it still is). I know cuz I taught and coached there for 4 years back in the late 60s early 70s. Everything there was done on a shoestring and athletics was supported piecemeal. No reason to believe that a president of a small institution like that would understand the huge ramifications of being a nationally recognized institution. Academics and curriculum were his strong suit. He had little concept of marketing, branding, public relations, yaddah, Yaddah, because in NY it was never a consideration.
Schnabel was selected in 1978. My uncle, who was the Dean of the School of Science at San Jose State (and a 1948 VU grad), was one of four finalists for the job. His final interview was held in March of my senior year in 1978. The selection of Dr. Schnabel was considered something of an upset, a "safe" pick when many on campus advocated a bolder selection.
Paul
I will say this - Hilltop was the Division 1 facility I ever saw in the life time, and I saw some inadequate places - the old Loyola Alumni gym, Northwestern McGaw hall, Chicago State's old gym, Western Hall at WIU.
Quote from: VULB#62 on May 05, 2019, 09:52:41 PM
Schnabel came to Valpo from, what I consider, a very limited frame of reference: Concordia Bronxville, NY. It was a 500 student JC that evolved into a small 4 year college (it still is). I know cuz I taught and coached there for 4 years back in the late 60s early 70s. Everything there was done on a shoestring and athletics was supported piecemeal. No reason to believe that a president of a small institution like that would understand the huge ramifications of being a nationally recognized institution. Academics and curriculum were his strong suit. He had little concept of marketing, branding, public relations, yaddah, Yaddah, because in NY it was never a consideration.
I think I've told this story before but I'll do it again as it is apropos to this discussion. I knew Tom Smith, he is a fraternity brother. He was one of the most electric point guards we have ever had. He learned coaching at the feet of Gene Bartow. He was given ZERO support from Dr. Schnabel.
So I ran into Tom in Minneapolis at, I think, was a final four, many years ago. This was after Homer was in charge. Tom told me that he had a conversation with Schnabel about Cleveland State's (a conference mate at the time) success in the NCAA tournament and how that success equated to Valpo getting some share of the funds. Schnabel response was priceless. He said: "Well let's hope Cleveland State continues to be successful". True story.
I am sure that is a true from my meetings with Schnabel. Back then <Valpo went Div. 1 for the sake of being Div. 1
Quote from: usc4valpo on May 06, 2019, 11:32:14 AM
I am sure that is a true from my meetings with Schnabel. Back then <Valpo went Div. 1 for the sake of being Div. 1
The real push to go to Div 1 came from Dick Koenig, the VP for Public & Alumni Affairs. He had a lot of connections to the NCAA through serving as Secretary/Treasurer for the NCAA governing body. He knew what success in sports could do for a university. He also knew from being around Valpo since he was a student that pushing too hard for athletic success would not work. He got Valpo as far as he could in Athletics.
Also at the time the old Indiana Collegiate Conference was breaking up with Butler and Evansville going to Div. 1, Depauw, Wabash, Indiana Central (now UIndy) & St. Joe staying in lower divisions and Valpo needing to make a big decision.
Also remember that the Valpo founder, Henry Baker Brown, never believed that Athletics should be a part of education at his university. I think he would be appalled that a football field was named after him.
http://www.valpoathletics.com/athletics/hofmembers/1997-98/2895/richard-koenig/
QuoteI will say this - Hilltop was the Division 1 facility I ever saw in the life time, and I saw some inadequate places - the old Loyola Alumni gym, Northwestern McGaw hall, Chicago State's old gym, Western Hall at WIU.
Loyola's old Alumni Gym was pretty bad but at least it had all the history from the 1963 championship team there. Northeastern Illinois' gym would've been considered small by Porter County Conference standards, but at least it was more modern than Hilltop was (built in the late 80's, I think).
Chicago State's old gym was pretty awful too and only held about half as many as Hilltop, so that would get my vote as "worst," but not by much. That said, I'm pretty sure the old University of Baltimore facility was the worst we've ever played in as a D-1 team back in the late 70s/early 80s... it was a converted armory.
QuoteSo I ran into Tom in Minneapolis at, I think, was a final four, many years ago. This was after Homer was in charge. Tom told me that he had a conversation with Schnabel about Cleveland State's (a conference mate at the time) success in the NCAA tournament and how that success equated to Valpo getting some share of the funds. Schnabel response was priceless. He said: "Well let's hope Cleveland State continues to be successful". True story.
I've heard that story as well, and I know it to be true. As someone noted above -- Smith was a great player for VU but also was a flawed coach -- he was way too stubborn with his system, and way too quick to run guys off over minor disagreements. He seemed to lose sight at times that unlike at a D-2 state school in Missouri, there wasn't an endless array of talented D-1 players that he could get and keep in school at Valpo at that time.
That said, I don't think we've ever had a coach that absolutely
busted his butt to the degree Smith did to try and make the program work. This is a guy who, when told the university wouldn't cover a hotel room or airfare for a recruiting trip, borrowed a season-ticket holder's conversion van, drove on the recruiting trip and slept in the back of it for a week. He and his staff would absolutely work themselves ragged on the recruiting trail because they had to, with very little in the way of returns. He finally saw the ARC open, only to see the university half-ass every detail, to the point of *not ordering Valpo name placards for the scoreboard* (which we lost a big-time recruit over at the ARC dedication game). He and his staff worked all summer running large stay-on-site basketball youth camps (at a time when only P5 schools really did so) in an effort to not only get local families excited about cheering for their hometown team, but also to remind prospects from the area that there was a Division I team in their backyard.
So yeah, mixed legacy in terms of results, but no one should question his dedication to VU.
What I most remember, other than the dead spots on the gym floor, is the basketball office in what was really a closet!!! Even though I was a kid, I knew it was not up to D1 standards...
Quoteis the basketball office in what was really a closet!!! Even though I was a kid, I knew it was not up to D1 standards...
Yeah, if I recall, Steinbrecher was the only one who had a real office in the building, and even that was so small, whenever he'd have a cigarette while working (which was frequently), it would fill the hallways around it with clouds of smoke.
oh the memories when we were the Kmart of college basketball!
Quote from: usc4valpo on May 07, 2019, 11:07:20 AM
oh the memories when we were the Kmart of college basketball!
Rainman would say "Kmart..................."