Coach Karcher and this board

[HarrisburgFlame]

Guys I feel like I need to speak up a bit here. We have all been (for the most part) disappointed with the results this year on the football field. The same can be said for previous years under Coach K. I was on a coaching staff once that was in its' final stages. In college when the head man goes in most cases everyone else goes. take it from me - it's no fun to have to re-interview for a job you already have! I think we all need to think about the number of people (other coaches, wives, children) impacted if the current head coach is released. Change is sometimes a good thing for everyone - but I think we need to be sensitive to Coach K and his staff on this one. I pray that if he is let go that he will land on his feet.

Sorry for the rant but I have had this on my chest all day and wanted to share my thoughts.

[flameshaw]

I don't think anyone on this board is unsympathetic to Coach Karcher or the others on the staff with regards to looking for other jobs/positions. In reality it is not any different than the corporate world, a lot of people are affected by downsizing, etc. However, many times people end up in better situations when change does come. I can only hope it happens in this case.

The other alternative is to never change anthing or anyone and sometimes that causes stagnation, which is not good either.

[FHSFlash]

harrisburgflame said:

Guys I feel like I need to speak up a bit here. We have all been (for the most part) disappointed with the results this year on the football field. The same can be said for previous years under Coach K. I was on a coaching staff once that was in its' final stages. In college when the head man goes in most cases everyone else goes. take it from me - it's no fun to have to re-interview for a job you already have! I think we all need to think about the number of people (other coaches, wives, children) impacted if the current head coach is released. Change is sometimes a good thing for everyone - but I think we need to be sensitive to Coach K and his staff on this one. I pray that if he is let go that he will land on his feet.

Sorry for the rant but I have had this on my chest all day and wanted to share my thoughts.

[FHSFlash]

How much more painful could it be than losing and losing?? It would probably be relief to get it done. How many of the staff have been there a long time? Sometimes it is good for preachers and football coaches to move on to new situations. IMHO..

[HarrisburgFlame]

Guys I am in total agreement with your posts. Change is a good thing. But we never know who is reading the board. I think we need to be sensitive to the "let's hope he is gone" tone to our posts. It's all about results in football, business, ministry, life - no one can argue that. But at the same time no one likes to fail - I just want to remind folks not to pile on if in fact Coach K is let go at the end of the year.

[lufbfan3]

You're right and I am probably one of the top people that should be apologizing for what you are saying. I let my frustration guide what I say sometimes (a lot) and I should be more sensitive to the possibility that he could be reading this board and is probably just as disappointed that he has been unable to revive this program as we are. I will try and watch my negativity-thanks for pointing it out HBurg. Sometimes we all just need a kick in the butt to keep our mouths in check

[Sly Fox]

Thanks for the reminder, Hburg. I agree wholeheartedly. But I think we have done a very good job of not letting this get personal.

[PAmedic]

I agree w/ SLY- we've been pretty good on this board re: sensitivity to the "human resources" side of this whole thing. Note my previous post below:

pamedic said:

Don't get me wrong- I'm not wishing ILL on anyone, a coach losing his job is a scary thing for wives/family, assistants/their families, etc.

[PAmedic]

and in addition to that- I think we were sensitive to how this could potentially affect the WHOLE coaching staff, and their families:

pamedic said:

Here's an example of the dedicated assistants that work hard, but are destined to become collateral damage/casualties when the necessary changes DO happen.
Losses pain LU coaches

By Chris Lang
Lynchburg News & Advance
October 19, 2005

Marshall Roberts is glad he's not married.
It's not that he doesn't like women. It's more that his chosen profession doesn't exactly tender itself to long-lasting relationships. The Liberty University defensive backs coach usually gets to the office by 6 a.m. and doesn't leave until well after dark.

The only solace during the grueling workday for Roberts is a lunchtime run that helps him clear his thoughts.

"Thank God I'm single," Roberts said. "If I had a wife, she'd probably leave me."

When the Flames go through rough patches like they're enduring now, it only gets worse.

Liberty has lost six games in a row and as demoralizing as it is for the players, it's just as agonizing on the coaching staff.

Coaches pore over video of the losses, looking for little correctable errors, anything they can fix to change the results on the field.

Typically, Roberts said he watches at least two hours of film a day. During a losing streak, he watches even more.

"I find myself really going over and above the amount of time spent trying to prepare the young men, and that can be dangerous sometimes," Roberts said. "The first thing you do is that you look inward to make sure that every base is covered (in preparation) and that you double- and triple-check things."

Roberts' passion for the game is easily identifiable on the field. If a Liberty defensive back makes the right read in practice, and it leads to an incompletion or a bone-jarring tackle, Roberts is the first man on the field to congratulate him.

Jumping. Screaming. Smiling.

It's like Roberts made the tackle himself. That's how excited he gets.

Conversely, when the Flames play a game like they did last Saturday against Towson, it eats at the coaching staff.

LU head coach Ken Karcher counted six occasions in which a Flames defender had a one-on-one situation with a Towson player and missed the tackle.

Coaches can drill players endlessly during the week, but it's up to the players to make plays under the lights.

"I'll take the blame as a coach. It's my team," Karcher said. "But I can't tackle the guy. Neither can (defensive coordinator) Steve Carson or (linebackers coach) Robert Wimberly."

Coaching a skidding team isn't easy. Position coaches, especially, must both be psychologists and technicians since they have more individual contact with the athletes than the head coach.

If a coach tears a kid down too much, he risks losing him. There's a gentle balance of constructive criticism and positive reinforcement.

"We don't need to use guillotines," said assistant head coach Pete Sundheim, a 17th-year LU assistant who also coaches the Flames' tight ends. "We need to erase mistakes. Somewhere along the line, you try to express to them that the hard work and the effort toward excellence is going to pay off on that scoreboard.

"Our point as coaches is to not let them get discouraged. It's to encourage them to take the next step."

The coaches refuse to give up on the season. With four games left, the staff sees four more weeks to draw the best out of the players.

And four more opportunities to scratch out a win.

"I don't think anybody's enjoying this," Sundheim said. "It hurts. It's painful. But how we model for them, and the way we respond, is going to encourage them through that tough time."

[bigsmooth]

i too agree with HF. i do not think anyone has been malicious in their responses but a few, but change is good, and college athletics are a business. any of us in our jobs would be fired if we did not perform, so on that note, if karcher gets fired, i feel for him, and will pray that he lands on his feet.

[HarrisburgFlame]

lufbfan and others;

I think we have all been respectful and I wasn't attempting to call anyone out. Call it a public service announcement! Let's take the high road and pray that the situation works out for Coach K, his staff and the Liberty football program.

[coachedsometoo]

LU Fans,

just who was responsible for putting UCONN,who by the way is aDiv. I-A football program in the second spot on the schedule? not to mention W&Mary or even Youngstown ST. back to back to back? High expectations?? by whom? Nothing wrong with that folks, but high expectations need to have realistic goals. this team was set up for failure. lookat the other teams in your conference, for the most part they were successful because they competed with teams that were on the same level as they were. i dont mean to sound insensitive to what has transpired there, its just that it sounds like some people there have tottally missed the point in the whole football program thing. #1- you dont beat your players down at the begining 3rd of a season and then expect anything in the long run. #2 stop worrying about making the national scene
and concentrate on setting the players up for success.

[PAmedic]

old news. old argument. not that many on here don't agree w/ ya.

(see August's posts in the FB thread)

[Sly Fox]

As I mentioned in another thread, I was talking with a head coach of a bowl-bound I-A program the other day. In passing I told him about our murderer's row of four games after the seaosn opener. He asked if our AD had it out for our coach.

Personally, I like being somewhat aggressive in our scheduling. Much of our 2005 slate was put in place well in advance of this year. Next year looks just as tough if not tougher. But you play with the cards you've been dealt.