Lady Vols Softball Team Gets Worse Each Year

#26
#26
This is just like the Fulmer years. Should have been run off 4 years sooner. These idiots at the top never learn. It's a business, pull the trigger. I've been hearing this for about 3 years from some friends who follow softball closely. Sad. James Madison and Liberty coaches are doing it NOW. Go get them this would be a dream job.
 
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#27
#27
beachvol23 said:
Your assuming the Weekleys have a “plan” to to make changes when they probably do not. They look tired, stubborn and DONE! Time to turn the program over to the Shipleys for fresh energy and take program to next step!
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Maybe, but we have a brand new and highly respected professional AD now, not just a football coach AD. I'm gonna trust him to assess the softball program and take the right steps to make it more competitive. And I'm gonna guess strongly that will not include summarily firing Weekly without trying to help her recover for at least a couple of years. But all that's a guess.
 
#29
#29
Surely everyone has seen enough of the Weekley's. They had numerous years with top recruited classes and it did not translate to on the field play. Keeping them and hoping that recruiting solves the problem is not going to get it done. They are not working hard enough as head coaches. Not assessing talent correctly, poor game planning, poor game decisions (i.e. pitching to the Alabama slugger late in game). I could go on, but most importantly I do not see the fire from our programs coaches like you do from the younger coaches. Sure Karen questions a few calls, but she is not a motivator of players. Just look at Patty Gasso. This team had a nice comeback last week, but look at the Florida team - they have had like 10 or more walk-offs or last inning rallies. In softball it has always been hard for teams to close out games in the last inning. They had the top of the order up last night and go 3 and out.
You don't just fire long tenured successful coaches but the AD needs to encourage a retirement so the program can move on. Did anyone see the article on Yahoo slamming the program for firing a women's golf coach because she had always made the NCAA tournament. If we were to fire the Weekley's it would definitely be a black eye. However, a previous comment about the AD giving the Weekley's what they need to be more successful is BS. They have top 10 softball facilities and fan support in the country. Why is Vitello getting it done with some of the worst facilities and traditionally poor fan support. Need I say more.
 
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#30
#30
Spook1 said:
First, I would look at the coaching staff and possibly do a couple of replacements with some strong recruiters along with the ability to coach players upward. Ralph Weekly has his brother as a coach, but can he be replaced with someone else that is a strong recruiter. Next I would look at getting some better pitchers...essentially we currently have one good pitcher. She pitched in two successive games with something like 165 to 170 pitches in one game and around 140 in the next game...the reason was simply she was all we had. Most good teams have 3 strong pitchers. Without her the LV's would be in the very bottom of the league. Since, you asked what would be your plan?
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This is one of my pet peeves: one pitcher dominance. I think there should be a limit to the number of pitches or number of appearances allowed. The 165-170 pitch runs are ridiculous. This would allow more kids to become really good pitchers and make for better series of multilabel games.
 
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#31
#31
1TheCoach1 said:
You are a glass is half empty kind of person aren't you. 2022 class is loaded for the Lady Vols softball team and a pitcher that is already throwing up to 71 mph as a junior in high school is in that class.
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Karen can’t coach them up. She runs off pitchers and our bats sleep when it counts. We underperform every year.
 
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#32
#32
Spook1 said:
Ralph Weekly has his brother as a coach, but can he be replaced with someone else that is a strong recruiter.
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Marc is actually Ralph’s son, and he’s only a volunteer assistant. It’s the same role Madison Shipman and India Chiles played in years past, in addition to him being in the same role several years ago, prior to him being the coach at King’s Academy.
 
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#33
#33
Spook1 said:
The Lady Vols Softball team has peaked and is getting worse each year. The team only has one good pitcher who will be a senior next year. The Weekly's have done a good job over the years, but it is time to do something else. The team will be no better next year. The team was eliminated from the softball world series teams today and beaten soundly by James Madison University and Liberty. It is time to do something better.
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Nuts!
 
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#35
#35
savannahfan said:
This is one of my pet peeves: one pitcher dominance. I think there should be a limit to the number of pitches or number of appearances allowed. The 165-170 pitch runs are ridiculous. This would allow more kids to become really good pitchers and make for better series of multilabel games.
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Why stop at pitchers? Let's limit the playing time for all good players in every sport. After all, we need to be concerned with the self-esteem of all the second-rate athletes in this country. New policies need to be put in effect to level the playing field in every sport so we can stop applauding excellence and start worshipping mediocracy.

Let's start with Paige Bueckers! That girl won every national player of the year award available to a freshman. Allowing her to play 36 minutes per game is unfair to the rest of WCBB. We need immediate legislation to limit her playing time to no more than 10 minutes per game.

And don't even get me started on Tom Brady!
 
#36
#36
Delmonico, Fulmer, Majors DeVoe and Mears were all long time coaches at Tennessee in different sports along with DePalmer and Pavon.

Mears was the only coach who kept having solid seasons as he aged and if he had not had health issues, Tennessee would be a blue blood in men's college basketball.

The other coaches on the list had slow declines as theirr tenures increased at Tennessee.
 
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#37
#37
1TheCoach1 said:
You are a glass is half empty kind of person aren't you. 2022 class is loaded for the Lady Vols softball team and a pitcher that is already throwing up to 71 mph as a junior in high school is in that class.
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Name of p throwing 71..?
 
#39
#39
I’m
DeerPark12 said:
Tennessee has only started one slapper, Kaitlin Parsons, this year, and she only started about half the games. The Weeklys moved away from relying on that several years ago. They turned Cailin Hannon from a slapper to a swing away hitter three years ago and she's become one of the more consistent performers offensively. Every team is going to have a couple of fast players that have that in their arsenal, but nobody uses it as a primary offense anymore.

As far as slugging, UT was 6th in the SEC in home runs, second in doubles and fourth in runs scored. Players with the ability to do these things was not the problem. Players' inability to do them in key situations was definitely the problem.

As for pitching, I would agree that it wasn't good enough behind Ashley Rogers. But relying on only her certainly wasn't the plan. Since you don't follow the recruiting side, you probably weren't aware that Callie Turner was one of the top pitchers in her class and was someone that most every SEC school wanted. She took a step back this year after a solid freshman campaign last year. Bailey McCachren and Anna Hazelwood were both Top 50 overall recruits in their classes and have proven to be vastly overrated. Some of that is coaching, some is evaluation, so you'd have a valid criticism there, but the idea that UT wanted to rely on one pitcher is not correct.
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Obviously you know this team better than most.. What’s the problem? Also, that slugging pct in the Sec, is that in Sec play or the entire season. I ask because our schedule was very weak before Sec play.
 
#42
#42
DeerPark12 said:
Tennessee has only started one slapper, Kaitlin Parsons, this year, and she only started about half the games. The Weeklys moved away from relying on that several years ago. They turned Cailin Hannon from a slapper to a swing away hitter three years ago and she's become one of the more consistent performers offensively. Every team is going to have a couple of fast players that have that in their arsenal, but nobody uses it as a primary offense anymore.

As far as slugging, UT was 6th in the SEC in home runs, second in doubles and fourth in runs scored. Players with the ability to do these things was not the problem. Players' inability to do them in key situations was definitely the problem.

As for pitching, I would agree that it wasn't good enough behind Ashley Rogers. But relying on only her certainly wasn't the plan. Since you don't follow the recruiting side, you probably weren't aware that Callie Turner was one of the top pitchers in her class and was someone that most every SEC school wanted. She took a step back this year after a solid freshman campaign last year. Bailey McCachren and Anna Hazelwood were both Top 50 overall recruits in their classes and have proven to be vastly overrated. Some of that is coaching, some is evaluation, so you'd have a valid criticism there, but the idea that UT wanted to rely on one pitcher is not correct.
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Nice read. I used to follow the Lady Vols softball religiously. Then I went back to over the road driving. And this season ive been watching the guys mostly. I dont like to watch a replay of anyone. I dove into the upcoming recruiting class. Looks like there is help on the way.
 
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#44
#44
If a coaching change is made, the Picken's girl needs to be retained....She "may" develop into something special throwing from the circle.....
806ef72f-145c-434b-91ad-c3f7ace9786f-Karlyn_Pickens_North_Buncombe_softball.jpg
 
#45
#45
jeff1vol said:
IMO... theyll just underachieve like they usually do. It really is time for some younger blood.
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A new co head coach "with Karen" would be idea....That way when Karen steps away, the co head coach becomes the head coach, and few commits, or players, would be lost.

Of course, that would never happen, so it's more than likely going to be chaos if she is let go....
 
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#47
#47
volinatlanta said:
Surely everyone has seen enough of the Weekley's. They had numerous years with top recruited classes and it did not translate to on the field play. Keeping them and hoping that recruiting solves the problem is not going to get it done. They are not working hard enough as head coaches. Not assessing talent correctly, poor game planning, poor game decisions (i.e. pitching to the Alabama slugger late in game). I could go on, but most importantly I do not see the fire from our programs coaches like you do from the younger coaches. Sure Karen questions a few calls, but she is not a motivator of players. Just look at Patty Gasso. This team had a nice comeback last week, but look at the Florida team - they have had like 10 or more walk-offs or last inning rallies. In softball it has always been hard for teams to close out games in the last inning. They had the top of the order up last night and go 3 and out.
You don't just fire long tenured successful coaches but the AD needs to encourage a retirement so the program can move on. Did anyone see the article on Yahoo slamming the program for firing a women's golf coach because she had always made the NCAA tournament. If we were to fire the Weekley's it would definitely be a black eye. However, a previous comment about the AD giving the Weekley's what they need to be more successful is BS. They have top 10 softball facilities and fan support in the country. Why is Vitello getting it done with some of the worst facilities and traditionally poor fan support. Need I say more.
Click to expand...

Preach on brother. Or sister.. My wife has played at a high level and coached for years at middle school and high school. She’s been to Weekley’s camps as a player and a coach. She stopped watching this team over a month ago. I text her video of plays from games now. Back to back errors, piss poor base running, stupid decisions Karen has made. It’s like a game for me to record and send them to her. And we’ve watched them for years together. We watch a lot of UCLA games. She loved Lisa Fernandez when she was young. It’s freaking frustrating to watch that blue team play and then watch Karen’s team play. Not Ralph’s team, Karen’s team...
 
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#50
#50
This team was only a second pitcher away from looking like an entirely different team. Probably not a National Championship contender, but certainly capable of getting to OkCity.
 
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