Definitely happens a lot in basketball, coach will gutted pretty much their entire team at times. Definitely starting to be much more of a trend in soccer.
I think sports with less $$ to "buy" players make it less likely that coaches can take the "best" players. In a team sport like soccer, the best at one program may not be the same somewhere else with a different surrounding cast. The one attribute that travels the best (as in least variance) is athleticism, but even that can come with red flags! Plug and play is really hard in College WoSo
Easier in a game with 5 on the floor, where two players can change an entire team. Soccer is not like that
For another thread perhaps, I feel like we've discussed this here on BS? Is the transfer portal a net positive? The stats on the majority of portal kids Not finding a home at least at a parallel level, or with similar money, when they transfer are not good. Just an example regarding HotSeat: Would the Miss St coach take the Florida job if he could not easily bring kids with him (and drop the current FL kids)? Would a school like Florida give a coach time to recruit and change the team w/o the portal? Are schools now more willing to, or seem just fine with coaches ejecting players from their roster, when there's a coaching change (FL), or maybe not (Pitt every year). Are kids making worse, or riskier decisions, knowing they can leave by Christmas and just go to that "other school" that maybe recruited them. Same for coaches- give her a chance, if it doesn't work out, move on and find a new player....apparently the Pitt philosophy. There has never been a lot of loyalty in this process frankly. But, what has happened to the value of the college degree? Or just the college experience? Remember when folks used to say "what if you weren't playing, would you choose that college" or the cliche about the 40-year decision, not just a 4-year one... Old School thinking these days, at least in D1.
10 players from Montana just went onto the portal this morning, puts their number at 15 from Montana this winter portal. Assistants/head coaches if you're thinking of going for this job, might want to hold off and wait to see what else opens. Just my opinion is all, because don't get all bent out of shape about it.
What Montana is losing Starters: - By “starter-minutes” (≥900 mins): 11 of 12 are gone (only 1 returns). - By “top XI minutes”: 10 of the top 11 minute-getters are gone. - Goals: losing 28 of 30 goals = ~93% of scoring - Assists: losing 11 of 13 assists = ~85% of assists. Chance creation (xG / xA): - xG: losing 30.32 of 32.77 = ~93% of xG - xA: losing 11.68 of 14.27 = ~82% of xA Goal scorers / creators: - 7 of 9 goal scorers are gone - 7 of 9 assist providers are gone Starting GK: the #1 keeper is leaving (1,777 mins, 9 clean sheets, 84.9% save rate).
That is a great overview and sure people would find something similar for MS State and Washington State very interesting as huge impacts due to coaching changes.
The point made earlier - wouldn't some coaches look at this as a chance to bring in 'their kids' or think of it as a blank slate and chance to start fresh? i.e. who will be the Miss St if Montana is the Florida? Is Montana in a position to go get the next best Big Sky coach?
I’m calling out the unprofessionalism of these coaches. Florida, Pitt are getting downright seedy and are like snakes in the grass. I hope that someday it comes back to bight them in ass if enough parents and players realize what sleazy programs these guys are running
If you think it's just a select few college coaches who are unprofessional when it comes to how they run their programs, I have some oceanfront property in Idaho to sell you.
Yes I do think so. The proof is in their action. I’m not seeing this across the board at such and extreme level
Time share, but it’s only available every 3rd weekend of months that start with the letter “O”, except on leap years then it is also available on the 2nd weekend of months that start with the letter “F”. My point to the other poster is this: Not to defend “unethical” coach behavior or be overly cynical, but the state of college athletics and the critical nature of admins, fans, and donors does not encourage “ethical” coach behavior. It is out there, and it’s probably more widespread than people want to admit. Also one person’s “cheater” is another person’s “competitor”, so some of it is in the lens which we view it.
This has been going on since sport began? If anyone is shocked by any of it, then they’ve been living under a rock…alone.
Who's the front runner at Montana for hire? They don't have a team anymore, so hopefully someone who can get hired very soon and recruit!
Lol …… yea so I’ve been following on the inside women’s college for 30 years and it’s never been this seedy …. If you want to accept this is the norm then your part of the problem. …. Or probably named Zimmerman. Don’t forget these are young women who just want to play, develop and have a positive soccer experience …. Oh wait I forget it’s not about that
i think you could also look at it in a positive light for Zimmerman. When he was named head coach at MS St. most of the team stayed. Apparently they like him and think he's a good coach. As soon as he left, they all followed him to Florida. Once again, i would think that means he's a good guy and good coach. The players must want to play for him.
Of course it’s not been as commonplace because there was a ton of negative stigmas in transferring AND it was made out to be more complicated 20-30 years ago. I’m not calling out any coach — or singular sport. Which is why I said what I did. It’s nowhere near as dirty as the “$100 handshakes” that took place for decades at alumni and booster events. C’mon now, let’s not act like this is anything new.
Here is how I'd rank current open jobs (just my opinion) Old Dominion – ~80/100 Sun Belt is strong now; ODU has resources, location in a good recruiting area (Virginia, Mid-Atlantic, East Coast). You can win, and the league is now pretty nationally respected. Cons: soccer is fighting for attention with football/men’s hoops, and the league is brutally competitive. Fresno State – ~75/100 Pac 12 brand, California location, better recruiting base, solid institutional profile. Upside if they invest and you win: can springboard to bigger jobs. Cons: facilities/support and administrative alignment vary by AD era, but on paper it’s one of the strongest. Lipscomb – ~75/100 Consistent contender in the ASUN, private Christian school with a strong soccer reputation on the women’s side. Nashville is a very recruitable city and attractive to young staff. Cons: conference profile is a bit below MW/AAC level, and institutional fit (religious expectations) isn’t for everyone. Murray State – ~68/100 MVC is respectable; program has had good years and you can win the league with the right build. Smaller town but reasonable regional recruiting (TN, KY, Midwest/central states). Cons: limited national profile, and facilities/resources aren’t at the top of this list. St. Thomas – ~65/100 Recent D1 mover; Minneapolis–St. Paul market is a huge plus with tons of youth soccer. “Grow with the program” angle is attractive to builders. Cons: still ramping up to full D1 scholarships/resources; conference (Summit) is mid-low profile competitively. American – ~60/100 Patriot League, strong academics, DC location – attractive for a certain type of student-athlete and coach. Can win the league but it’s a very specific academic/recruiting niche. Cons: scholarship/aid constraints and institutional priorities can make it feel tighter than pure-athletics schools. Montana – ~60/100 Proven winner in the Big Sky, clear identity, real chance to play for conference titles and NCAA bids regularly. College-town feel. Cons: Big Sky is lower-RPI than MW/ASUN etc., non-rev / likely one-year contract, and the roster is gutted right now so Year 1 is a genuine rebuild, very remote place to live. Nevada – ~55/100 Mountain West brand, WUE hook, Reno city location = theoretical upside. But: no winning season in ~20 years, shared facility, and a deep rebuild with tough history. Great spot if you love projects and believe you can be “the one” who finally flips it; tougher sell for stability-seekers. Cons: No winning season in roughly 20 years, multiple coaching changes, share everything with football (stadium and practice facility), finished 2-14-2 Le Moyne – ~50/100 Newish D1 (NEC) with a chance to build something from the ground up; lower expectations initially. Cons: smaller brand, cold-weather Northeast location, limited resources compared to the others on this list; slower path to national relevance.
Nice breakdown! Scholarship-wise, outside the Power 4: How many Division I programs have increased to 28 scholarships? How many have stayed at the old 14-scholarship level? How many are operating below the old 14-scholarship number, even as others move to 28?
Great breakdown...I would like to see some of these schools take a chance and be creative in their hires. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.