The athletic director at UWGB is another strong personality. It seems like coaches are disposable, after reading the one line press release to fire their head coach. She was also a former player at UWGB.
Would a successful coach at ODU want to go to a dumpster fire like Maryland? Seems very risky. Nahas should get the job, unless a National Champion head coach applied for the job. There are also a lot of other interim positions that need to be filled.
VCU open: VCU and Head Women's Soccer Coach Martin mutually part ways.📰 More: https://t.co/fcbZ4UzMN8https://t.co/Oa6YCshNhG— VCU Women's Soccer (@VCUWomensSoccer) November 7, 2024
Kind of surprised at this one. Three seasons ago she was the COY and regular season champion. High expectations there for sure.
OPEN: Oregon State (interim) UC Riverside (interim) Loyola Chicago (interim) Cal Poly (retirement 6/9) North Carolina (interim; retirement 8/9) Mississippi Valley State (8/25) Niagara (8/27) Maryland (10/10) Kansas State (10/28) Oregon (10/29) Illinois (10/30; retirement) Western Illinois (10/31) Wisconsin Green Bay (11/4) Weber State (11/5) VCU (11/7) IU Indianapolis (11/7) FILLED: Duke - Kieran Hall (Duke associate head; filled after Fall 2024 season retirement) San Francisco - Pinder Nijjar (interim; 9/17)
OPEN: Oregon State (interim) UC Riverside (interim) Loyola Chicago (interim) Cal Poly (retirement 6/9) North Carolina (interim; retirement 8/9) Mississippi Valley State (8/25) Niagara (8/27) Maryland (10/10) Kansas State (10/28) Oregon (10/29) Illinois (10/30; retirement) Western Illinois (10/31) Wisconsin Green Bay (11/4) Weber State (11/5) VCU (11/7) IU Indianapolis (11/7) NC State (11/8) VMI (11/8) FILLED: Duke - Kieran Hall (Duke associate head; filled after Fall 2024 season retirement) San Francisco - Pinder Nijjar (interim; 9/17)
I'm hoping someone can help me understand a little better about this situation. Patriot League has a history of having tenured coaches with great success, but the Lafayette College staff has been there for nearly 20 years, with 3 seasons barely over .500 during that time. How is that program continuing to move forward with having nearly 100 more losses than wins? I heard there are issues bubbling below the surface, but not sure what or if anything would come out of it.
I ordinarily do not express my subjective feelings here, but I think it is very sad day for DI women's soccer that Tim Santoro no longer will be coaching at NC State. It is possible, maybe even likely, he is a victim of the NCAA's insistence on continuing to use the RPI, which last year and especially this year has greatly underrated his team. That is ironic, since he is one of the coaches who has a good understanding of how poor the RPI is as a rating system.
OPEN: Oregon State (interim) UC Riverside (interim) Loyola Chicago (interim) Cal Poly (retirement 6/9) North Carolina (interim; retirement 8/9) Mississippi Valley State (8/25) Niagara (8/27) Maryland (10/10) Kansas State (10/28) Oregon (10/29) Illinois (10/30; retirement) Western Illinois (10/31) Wisconsin Green Bay (11/4) Weber State (11/5) VCU (11/7) IU Indianapolis (11/7) NC State (11/8) VMI (11/8) Youngstown State (11/8; retirement) FILLED: Duke - Kieran Hall (Duke associate head; filled after Fall 2024 season retirement) San Francisco - Pinder Nijjar (interim; 9/17)
What is happening to the Horizon league? Green Bay, IU Indy and Youngstown State. Will there be more?
Probably the AD saw a trend happening. Last 5 years the team has decreased in the standings of the ACC every year. Admin probably looking for something better than 10th place or lower. Coach will find another job with his resume. Maybe a good mid major or get on another power 4 staff making as much or more than he made at NC State.
In the past few years, Boston College, NC State, and Miami, along with Syracuse have all been bottom dwellers. All of them have made recent changes, except for Syracuse. They won 2 games total in the ACC since 2019. They must just be happy to have a team and don't care what the results are. The other bottom feeders have made changes. Too bad for Santoro. Good guy. That NC State team was a debacle, he made them a legit contender for a while. Should be picked up for another good opportunity I would think.
If I am correct Santoro had a few years left on his contract. If I were him I would take a volunteer position somewhere and let NC State pay him out. NC State should be happy to have a great guy and a great coach leading their program. They will find out what they are missing after their next hire. Tim won for years there and has had a few down years. The ACC is brutal and you have to wait for UNC and Duke and Wake to recruit before you can start as you will always be 4th pick in North Carolina. Good luck Wolfpack. I can’t wait to see the hire there.
Santoro was running a one player rodeo there with Zee for a couple years, then JJ for her 5 years. Other than that, the supporting cast was not doing much. Now that JJ moved on, the program got exposed.
Great analysis. And yes, it will be interesting to see who would be a strong hire. Who are some initial candidates that fit the bill?
Not exactly sure what is going on in the Horizon League - I'm sure it's a combination of a number of factors. In general, the Horizon league stinks, so it isn't this tremendous conference within which to coach. Or maybe it's a lack of budgetary support from the athletic department. Or the inequality between support and performance expectations (from AD) - support should be equivalent to expectations, but often isn't. Or the changing landscape of D1, which has changed college coaching from a transformational to a transactional job. Or perhaps the salary range, usually around $60-$70,000, just doesn't make it worth it. All of these factors often don't equate to a great quality of life. And if you are a person who doesn't need the job (like Brian at YSU) - why do it?
I want to see them hire Nahas. Former State player, local guy, and excellent coach. My kids went through CASL back in the day and Damon was just rising up and I knew it back then he was the real deal. I reckon he’d take it if unc isn’t picking him up.
Surprised this happened but would think NC State has to increase support with the new scholarship and NIL allowances. Probably unfortunate Santoro didn't get a chance with more finances but the right hire will win in the new world.
Who are some of the top Assistants/AHC’s in line for some of these openings? Some I think that would make sense with programs having very good seasons… Nick Zimmerman at Miss St (NC St?), Brit Cameron at Wake (NC St?), Ahmad Brown at USC (Oregon?), Longino at Iowa (Maryland?), Higgy at TCU, Gavin/Brian at OSU (Illinois?). And then some potential mid major HCs that could be in the mix after good seasons… Jason Dowiak at UMass (Maryland?), Lewis Robinson at Western Michigan (Illinois?), Rodriguez at UConn, Josh Walters at JMU (Maryland?), Kirk at Missouri St (Kstate?), Garbar at FIU. Just throwing out ideas ♂️
ECU or USC upstate HCs due for a move? feel like some of these programs need someone who has turned around a program before, rather than being an assistant at successful P4s