FB: American Rivers Conference

[Klopenhiemer]

TME...Nice post.  Very insightful.  

I want to expand upon it for a minute if I may.  Please bear with me if this get lengthy, as I have formulated these thoughts over the past months/year.  

Lets take an honest look at what is happening in our conference.  First off we all complain about coaching tendencies/shortcoming.  That is because we most likely over analize and take things to personal/to far.  But that is the best part about being a fan.  That ability to express feelings regarding the direction of the program.  

Lets take a look at the recent coaching carosel for a moment.  

Raeburn to Wabash
Nieman to ?
Hefty to ?
Osterberger to Loras.  

Does anyone honestly thing that any of these men would have left if they felt they had the backing and power to take the program to the next level, and compete for a national championship.  My vote is no.  

Lets take a look at the status of the IIAC.  The powers that be in D3 allowed the use of spring drills.  The IIAC did not apot this while others around us did.  Advantage others disadavantage IIAC.  

The IIAC passed the law allowing spring drills finally and now teams are allowed to do this 2 years after the fact.  
Advantage: others who have had this program implimented and have had two years to work out the kinks.  Disadvantage IIAC teams, due to the fact your first year will never be the same as your third year, in regards to your processes, unless your team won the national title last season.  I still think that each team adapts to  the new season and certain processes change.  I am sure that UWW with their national title could still look at certain practices and say wow we could have done more to get even better.  

I understand that the fundamental reason for athletics in D3 is to enrich the educational experience.  But if you are going to field a team, why would you not want the best team to be out there.  

College atheletics is the same as the business world.  If you do not give the leaders power, you will not get favorable results.  If you do not give the sales manager power to manager/impliment better proceedures for salesmen, then he can not drive sales.  If you do not back the coach, or come up with rules/ideals that limit the coach, he can not drive the ship deep into national title contention.  

Wartburg wrestling is at the top of the nation right now and they have been.  This is a testiment to Coach Millers leadership, and the fact that the college has given him the power to take the team to the next level.  What other IIAC team in any sport is competing year and year out on a national level.  

The next 5 years will be an interesting one for the IIAC and its member schools.  The implimentation of online classes, the fact that other sports like soccer are becoming ever more previlent, and the attitudes of kids coming out of high schools all equal greater competition for the private insitution and its athletes.  

Take what I say and think of it what you will, I think we need to look at the bigger picture here, rather than mulling over one coaching move.  

[sportsknight]

So tell me why.  You Wartburg guys must know why Suckow left.  So why did he leave, exactly.  Your school knows everything so why did he leave.

Cripes, man.  Get over it already.  This wasn't even a discussion about Suckow until CoeNation brought his name up.  Lord knows that horse has been beaten to death, and then beaten some more.

You want to know what I know?  Here you go:
I know that Suckow is from a town much closer to Waverly than Cedar Rapids.
I know his girlfriend and many good friends go to Wartburg or live in Waverly.
I know that he had looked at leaving Coe long before last August.
I know that his high school coach and a high school teammate were both on the coaching staff at Coe, which must have made his decision that much more difficult.

Have I talked to him directly about his decision?  No, and I never claimed that I did.  Maybe he wanted to be closer to home.  Maybe he enjoyed the summer he spent working in Waverly and decided to make a change.  Maybe he wanted to play for a team that, in his mind, had a better shot at the postseason.  I'm an educated man, but I'm afraid I can't speak intelligently on what the real basis for the decision was.

I'm sure it stung a bit to have a young man decide to eschew your favorite institution for a "rival."  But you seriously need to let it go.  Do you get this pissed at every kid that decides to leave Coe, or just Suckow?  If the table were turned and Yordi left Wartburg for another IIAC school, I'd like to think that the Wartburg fans around here would accept his decision and focus on the 100-some guys on the team, not the one guy that isn't.

I'd be interested in knowing if/why you view these two situations differently.  If not, good for you - you're very consistent.  Is so, what's the difference.  The way I see it, both guys were looking for better situations.  Are you planning on holding as much of a grudge against Raeburn for leaving as you do against Suckow?

[TheOne89.1]

I want to say congrats and good luck to Coach Raeburn. 

I agree completely with Willie U:
"I am also sure some players loved Raeburn, some hated him, and some were in the middle as with any coach. The fact was he knew how to win and did a fine job recruiting."

I have always viewed Coe as one of the best football teams in the IIAC.  Every year I see Central, Coe, or Wartburg competing for the title or a combination of those schools.  The players at Coe know what it takes to win.  They will need to pass that along to the younger guys.  If that attitude keeps getting passed along and with the coaching staff they have and the addition of a head coach who knows what he is doing and how to win...then I think Coe will still be one of the top teams competing for the title every year.

[footballdaddy]

TME,Klop, and SK  all bring outstanding points to this discussion. Let's wish Coach Raeburn well at Wabash (at least until a IIAC team meets him in the playoffs), and Mr. Suckow all the best in his life when he graduates in the spring.

[Klopenhiemer]

TME,Klop, and SK  all bring outstanding points to this discussion. Let's wish Coach Raeburn well at Wabash (at least until a IIAC team meets him in the playoffs), and Mr. Suckow all the best in his life when he graduates in the spring.

Daddy you bring up a solid point.  The winner in the whole equation is the hopefully the world get another upstanding citizen from a well respected instiution in regards to Mr. Suckow.  Lets hope he uses his degree and is not a manager of a Blockbuster for the rest of his life.  We have to many dirt bags and dead beats that suck our society dry and keep us from moving forward as a nation.

[the_mayne_event]

as for suckow
can't say i like the kid that much anymore, probably never will, but it's been a year now, and both teams are going to be incredibly different next year.  personally i'm over it, and i think most of the coe faithful should be as well.  coe finished probably higher this season then a lot expected, and we should probably quit talking about it, no one really should care that much anymore.  the only time it should be talked about anymore is after someone else transfers from one school to another, because it will more then likely happen again.  soon he won't be at either school anymore. 

[Purple Heys]

Nothing gets this board going more than someone leaving Coe....

[The Show]

 

[Purple Heys]

Side note:

Doesn't that picture of Raeburn on the D3 site make him look like a "separated at birth" candidate with one of the Alien shape-shifter villains (Brian Thompson) from X-Files?

http://images.google.com/images?um=1&hl=en&safe=active&q=X-files+actor+Brian+Thompson+images&btnG=Search+Images

[dutchfan1]

Looking outside at all the snow that is coming down got me thinking about weather extremes.

What is the coldest game you can remember playing in or attending?

What is the hottest game you can remember playing in or attending?

Worst field conditions snow?

Worst field condition rain/mud?

Ever not able to make it to a game?

Worst road trip experiance?

Best road trip experiance?  (and that probably shouldn't include any stories about catholic high school girls or cheerleaders) 

Let's hear some good stories. 

Greetings from sunny AZ! It's hard to think about snowy, crappy weather when I am hanging out in 70 degree temps this week.

Coldest games in uniform were always BV. Anytime you are in Storm Lake, in November, wearing a skirt, things are bad. Nothing is colder than that! WH, you can relate, right? J/K.

I'm a little surprised and disappointed that you Coe guys are again so focused on Suckow. Focus on the guys you have remaining. It should be the same for the coaching situation -- focus on the positives that Raeburn brought to CR, and speculate on who you will bring in. Bad-mouthing the legacy does nothing but make you look like you have sour grapes. If Coe chooses, it will turn the corner to bigger and better things.

OK, that's enough serious talk for the week. Back to the pool. 

[footballdaddy]

I hope your cleavage gets sunburned!

[Klopenhiemer]

I hope your cleavage gets sunburned!

Wow!

[coocooforcoekohawk]

I don't care about Suckow leaving.  I'm tired of people telling me he left because Raeburn was a tyrant.

Reality he was a homesick little boy.

Maybe if people didn't rip on Coe's every move and toss around innuendoes all the time we wouldn't feel the need to defend Coe.

I wrote a long post about all the great things Raeburn did and not one person commented on it except Klop.

[Klopenhiemer]

I don't care about Suckow leaving.  I'm tired of people telling me he left because Raeburn was a tyrant.

Reality he was a homesick little boy.

Maybe if people didn't rip on Coe's every move and toss around innuendoes all the time we wouldn't feel the need to defend Coe.

I wrote a long post about all the great things Raeburn did and not one person commented on it except Klop.

CooCoo I am on your side on this one but if anyone is the doormat of this board its Cornell.  Look at the beating they took early in the season when they won two games.  Its the dead of winter in midwest and everyone has a huge case of cabin fever. 

Heys that was not a shot at you.  It was a mere fact.  I like having you around.  I think its nice to see all schools represented. 

[Wartburg Fan]

I hope your cleavage gets sunburned!

Wow!

Klop I still laughting at that response