So, when is the press conference?

[glv98]

Some of you overdo the drama just a bit ..... They have still never missed an NCAA Tournament, and the attendance for Lady Vol games is still in the top 5 in the country. They are not "teetering on the brink of total irrelevance." That is drama queen bs.

Agree to disagree. Lack of relevance was used over and over as a recruiting and publicity tool against us. And truthfully, we're no longer relevant enough in the national conversation to get a player like Rickea on an AA team. Another 3 or 4 years and we're a full two decades from our last FF or natty, which was before most of today's players were born. So your "drama queen" is my "legit concern". Relevance is relative.

 

[alexvol]

What is with the legalistic parsing? Nothing in my previous suggested that AlexVol called DW an idiot. It is clear that Alex is a fan of Danny White. You should find turbovols post. White record is actually quite mixed, He has, so far, won with Heupel (and Oates) and lost with others. It really is the roll the dice model where he wins some and loses some. I hope he wins here but this hire is probably his biggest gamble to date (and that is just not my opionon but the national narrative that is emerging around this surprise hire).

He did not say that I called DW an idiot ...your reading comprehension is a little off or you scanned and did not read .

So the hiring of this new coach is a huge gamble .I have a question for you and others who stated something similar.The question is just how long should she be given to determine if the gamble is a failure or a success ......November 30,2024,April1,2025,April 1,2026,April1,2027 ,ie one month ,one year ,two years,three years or five years.

 

[alexvol]

Yeah but the fallout if the huge gamble fails is not just White or Caldwell. They'll be fine. It's the program that will suffer. It's teetering on the brink of total irrelevance (except the history) and this hire had to be right. Can't afford another few years of being "consistently underwhelming", as Harper's program was called. That's what makes this gamble so scary.

I would submit that keeping Coach Harper was an even larger gamble ....as you said the program for many years now has been "consistently underwhelming " and trending downward each year.With the departure of Jackson next year it was looking especially "underwhelming " .It was time to take a gamble .So here we are and it is what it is .Go Lady Vols and good luck with this new Coach .I will be pulling for her and the Lady Vols with all the energy I can muster at the age of 85.3 years young just as I have since I met Pat Summitt in 1979 and became an instant Lady Vol fan for life.

 

[BowlBrother85]

Agree to disagree. Lack of relevance was used over and over as a recruiting and publicity tool against us. And truthfully, we're no longer relevant enough in the national conversation to get a player like Rickea on an AA team. Another 3 or 4 years and we're a full two decades from our last FF or natty, which was before most of today's players were born. So your "drama queen" is my "legit concern". Relevance is relative.

Rickea Jackson simply missed too many games to be on an All-American team. That has nothing to do with the state of Tennessee's program.

Relevance is relative .... but who publicly said the Tennessee women's basketball program was irrelevant?

 

[BowlBrother85]

I would submit that keeping Coach Harper was an even larger gamble ....as you said the program for many years now has been "consistently underwhelming " and trending downward each year.With the departure of Jackson next year it was looking especially "underwhelming " .It was time to take a gamble .So here we are and it is what it is .Go Lady Vols and good luck with this new Coach .I will be pulling for her and the Lady Vols with all the energy I can muster at the age of 85.3 years young just as I have since I met Pat Summitt in 1979 and became an instant Lady Vol fan for life.

Kellie Harper couldn't recruit high school players ... and the lack of supposed NIL funding doesn't hold water as an excuse. She didn't recruit high school talent well at NC State either, and that was before NIL compensation was even legal.

 

[creekdipper]

I would submit that keeping Coach Harper was an even larger gamble ....as you said the program for many years now has been "consistently underwhelming " and trending downward each year.With the departure of Jackson next year it was looking especially "underwhelming " .It was time to take a gamble .So here we are and it is what it is .Go Lady Vols and good luck with this new Coach .I will be pulling for her and the Lady Vols with all the energy I can muster at the age of 85.3 years young just as I have since I met Pat Summitt in 1979 and became an instant Lady Vol fan for life.

Any change is a gamble.

This is a moonshot.

 

[glv98]

Rickea Jackson simply missed too many games to be on an All-American team. That has nothing to do with the state of Tennessee's program.

Relevance is relative .... but who publicly said the Tennessee women's basketball program was irrelevant?

Again, agree to disagree. Rickea had the stats, and the performances against the best teams was sensational. IMO the reason she didn't make the teams was lack of winning and playing for championships. She is a far better player than many who made the second and third teams, in spite of the injury which was early.

Who said TN WBB was irrelevant or heading in that direction? Almost everyone, but most importantly David White yesterday. More or less said that's why he made the hire, to get the LVs back where they belong, competing for championships.

 

[GUNTERSVOL]

A contrarian would say that White was saying what he had to say under the circumstances. Couldn't exactly say, "We thought we'd get a big name coach with a track record of success at the highest level and a pipeline to the top high school talent. Instead, we had to settle for a great person who has coached one season at the D1 level and plays a high-risk brand of basketball which may or not match our returning roster. And who has no experience recruiting at this level.". Much better to tout this as the direction he wanted to go all along...even if that places unfair expectations upon Kim.

I like and trust Kim a whole lot better than I do White.

Why not just take him at his word that a COMMITTEE searched across a broad spectrum of candidate types and her plan provided the best path back to prominence? Big names could be beyond their peak and more conventional schemes might require fighting for the same prospect lists. She for sure fits his more successful innovative hires at previous stops. Sure there IS RISK, but might have been less than the rest per collective group thought, with his concurrence of course. He did not make the decision locked up in his office, even if he owns it.

Don’t worry, be happy! Staff finalization and roster minus and plus activity TILL FALL should be interesting. Dealing with bridge jumpers with each incremental action will defy reason. In some folks DNA I guess.

 

[BowlBrother85]

Again, agree to disagree. Rickea had the stats, and the performances against the best teams was sensational. IMO the reason she didn't make the teams was lack of winning and playing for championships. She is a far better player than many who made the second and third teams, in spite of the injury which was early.

.... but she missed too many games.

Who said TN WBB was irrelevant or heading in that direction? Almost everyone,

Cite someone specifically who publicly said that Tennessee's women's basketball program was irrelevant, so it could be used as a recruiting tool against Tennessee.

 

[creekdipper]

Why not just take him at his word that a COMMITTEE searched across a broad spectrum of candidate types and her plan provided the best path back to prominence? Big names could be beyond their peak and more conventional schemes might require fighting for the same prospect lists. She for sure fits his more successful innovative hires at previous stops. Sure there IS RISK, but might have been less than the rest per collective group thought, with his concurrence of course. He did not make the decision locked up in his office, even if he owns it.

Don’t worry, be happy! Staff finalization and roster minus and plus activity TILL FALL should be interesting. Dealing with bridge jumpers with each incremental action will defy reason. In some folks DNA I guess.

Well, for one reason, he stammered around and looked like the bookie caught running a numbers racket out of the back room of the Bada Bing.

Maybe that's his usual demeanor, but he seemed to be on the defensive side.

 

[glv98]

Cite someone specifically who publicly said that Tennessee's women's basketball program was irrelevant, so it could be used as a recruiting tool against Tennessee.

would save time to try to find someone who doesn't think that. I'm surprised this is an issue. It's the whole reason this change was made, to make the program relevant in championship conversations again per Danny White yesterday.

Many would argue whether 20 win seasons, 3rd place SEC finishes and S16s is truly irrelevant and wouldn't be for most teams. But apparently those whose opinions count think LV relevancy standards are much higher thus exactly the change/gamble we're going thru right now.

 

[madtownvol]

He did not say that I called DW an idiot ...your reading comprehension is a little off or you scanned and did not read .

So the hiring of this new coach is a huge gamble .I have a question for you and others who stated something similar.The question is just how long should she be given to determine if the gamble is a failure or a success ......November 30,2024,April1,2025,April 1,2026,April1,2027 ,ie one month ,one year ,two years,three years or five years.

Correct, late night reading error — I mistook idol for idiot. The police are coming to arrest me away for this felony offense soon so I will need to be brief. To your question, email Danny white. The contact terms have raised speculations that her leash might be fairly short but it is just speculation. I will predict this — if she wins a natty next year, she gets an extension. If she loses every game she might not be back.

 

[butchna]

Yeah but the fallout if the huge gamble fails is not just White or Caldwell. They'll be fine. It's the program that will suffer. It's teetering on the brink of total irrelevance (except the history) and this hire had to be right. Can't afford another few years of being "consistently underwhelming", as Harper's program was called. That's what makes this gamble so scary.

South Carolina was irrelevant as can be conceived. One hire and changed mentality changed that overnight. Nothing is irreversible. Live a little!

 

[BowlBrother85]

would save time to try to find someone who doesn't think that.

You said this :

Lack of relevance was used over and over as a recruiting and publicity tool against us.

Can you specifically name someone who publicly said that Tennessee's women's basketball program was irrelevant, and used that as a publicity tool against Tennessee? I don't recall anyone doing that.

 

[creekdipper]

South Carolina was irrelevant as can be conceived. One hire and changed mentality changed that overnight. Nothing is irreversible. Live a little!

Nothing from nothing leaves nothing
You gotta have something
If you wanna dance with me

 

[BowlBrother85]

South Carolina was irrelevant as can be conceived. One hire and changed mentality changed that overnight. Nothing is irreversible. Live a little!

I do remember the tenure of Susan Walvius. Tennessee beat them one year by over 50 points .... and that was when they had Teresa Geter, a pretty good Tennessee transfer.

 

[glv98]

You said this :


Can you specifically name someone who publicly said that Tennessee's women's basketball program was irrelevant, and used that as a publicity tool against Tennessee? I don't recall anyone doing that.

Not going to take that time bc it's too commonly known and widespread.Including right here on this board. Make of that what you will. And you keep avoiding that DW actually cited this as the reason for the change. that's the opinion that counts

 

[butchna]

He did not say that I called DW an idiot ...your reading comprehension is a little off or you scanned and did not read .

So the hiring of this new coach is a huge gamble .I have a question for you and others who stated something similar.The question is just how long should she be given to determine if the gamble is a failure or a success ......November 30,2024,April1,2025,April 1,2026,April1,2027 ,ie one month ,one year ,two years,three years or five years.

Perceive positive momentum (players “getting it and bought in) first season and expand that every subsequent season. Program stagnates or goes backward, hire the first Pat legacy we haven’t fired yet.

 

[OrangeBeachVol]

Any change is a gamble.

This is a moonshot.

That's what they said in 1969. (trying a little Creek humor)

 

[BowlBrother85]

Not going to take that time bc it's too commonly known and widespread.

It's so commonly known and widespread that you can't even name one specific person who publicly said that Tennessee's women's basketball program was irrelevant, and then used that as a recruiting tool against Tennessee? Just cite one specific name. How will that take up any of your time?

 

[glv98]

It's so commonly known that you can't even name one specific person who publicly said that Tennessee's women's basketball program was irrelevant, and then used that as a recruiting tool against Tennessee? Just cite one specific name of a person who said that. How will that take up any of your time?

Danny White.

 

[BruisedOrange]

FWIW... a reminder that Danny White is a 2nd generation athletic director. He's learned from his father's lifetime of experience, so there's a lifetime of mistakes he's learned from without having to waste time making them himself. Rare.

I'll bet that one of his guiding maxims is "You don't hire records, you don't hire resumes--you hire people."

As for the timing of all this, and connecting it to the kinds of coaches White seems to want in the UTAD, this quote from Steve Jobs of Apple might inform a lot of doubts that have been expressed this week, about what DW is thinking:

"When you have really good people, you don't have to baby them. By expecting them to do great things, you can get them to do great things. A+ players like to work together, and they don't like it if you tolerate B-grade work."

​

 

[spojo13]

Danny White.

Was it Charlie Crème that said our program had become consistently underwhelming? Not quite irrelevant, but close enough.

 

[butchna]

Danny White.

He publicly called them “irrelevant”’and then thanked Holly and Kellie for their contributions and threw in the “enemy of great is GOOD.” Guess it’s all about interpretation?

 

[glv98]

Was it Charlie Crème that said our program had become consistently underwhelming? Not quite irrelevant, but close enough.

Yes, that phrase stuck in my brain all season, mostly bc it was so accurate.

And the beginning of this discussion was if this hire doesn't work and we remain consistently underwhelming or worse for another 4 or 5 years will that push us over the brink of irrelevancy. But it's all subjective opinion.