AgSportsGuy said:
You don't seem to understand that I am not posting in support of anyone on the staff. To say this team was thriving under Coach Phil is insanity. This team was not good. The nucleus of this team played together for 19 games, still had no chemistry, and were 8-9-2, arguably the worst season in Texas A&M soccer history. So is that the fault of the players on the field or the fault of Coach Phil and Coach G? Or maybe it was a combo of both talent and coaching. Not all high school talent translates to the college level. A lot of times players are exposed at the college level because they can no longer survive on a reputation they had in high school. All coaches see players differently, so maybe there was a disconnect with the talent.
Yes G is responsible because he is listed as the Head Coach. 100%. G did not run the practices. G did not run film sessions. G did not make line up or substitution decisions. Yes, I agree, G is responsible for letting it get to that point.
Yes, Phil and Lori, as a team, were untouchable. Phil was once a top tier coach but had changed in recent years. That is apparently one reason we lost two top players last year.
What's done is done. Seth and Alyssa are young assistant coaches that actually know the game, but were apparently often silenced by Phil. We should hope they stick around and don't leave like Ahmad left the program. Ahmad was a huge loss for A&M soccer. Seth and Alyssa would also be huge losses.
We have to assume the girls that choose to stay will fight for the program because they are Aggies. Success might not come soon but being that Texas A&M offers one of the best educations in the country and is one of the top college environments in America, Aggie soccer will bounce back. At least there is a change and the program will be run differently than in the last several years. You all can go back and forth as much as you want but it won't change the decision Alberts made, whether we like it or not.
Let's support the ladies that are still
Fightin' Texas Aggies. They deserve support and respect.
I think you are seriously underestimating the power of coach G's negativity on the team and program as a whole. Historically, those in the program working alongside or beneath coach G spent an inordinate amount of time trying to convince him not to make damaging decisions or attempting to undo or minimize the damage of the poor decisions he did make. Even if we assume what you say is true about Phil making all coaching decisions (which seems laughably unlikely, but let's go with it), coach G is present at practices, when watching film, on the sidelines… His presence, comments, behaviors, etc. all have an effect. We saw two perfect examples of his tantrums with the refs leading immediately to goals being scored on us. Phil could be the best tactician next to Pep Guardiola, but that is not enough to stave off the fear, distaste, and confusion felt by the team in the face of coach G's influence.
Whoever it was that mentioned Lori brings up a good point. The Stephensons were there closer to the beginning of coach G's career - before he had as big a sense of entitlement. Having been there along the way surely led to a better balance of power and sense of empowerment to say no when coach G wasn't acting with the team's best interests in mind. I'm sure it was also easier mentally and emotionally when they could share in that responsibility - and others felt safer speaking up because it WAS safer when they could stand with both Stephensons.
Since Lori left, the team has continued to get worse. Alyssa and Seth are both young and unlikely to feel comfortable standing up to coach G. The director of ops is well-known for being coach G's yes-man. So for the last few years, who has that left to be the only one willing to stand up to him?
The only one who "retired."
One thing we can agree on is giving support to the players who decide to stick with the program. With an unchecked coach G at the helm, they're gonna need it.