[BostonCard]

Who the hell did win coach of the year?

BC

South Carolina's coach. Best season in school history, including their first SEC championship, and finished ranked #4. Definitely exceeded expectations the most, so a similar rationale to why Washington's head coach got Pac-12 Coach of the Year. 

Basically, I only think Lele is going to win Coach of the Year in those years where (1) Stanford wins a national championship, and (2) it's a very chalky year overall, with no one jumping 30 spots in the rankings from the previous year. It may not be fair, but it seems like the standards are so high for her that even when she meets them, the ITA shrugs. ("Great, you repeated as national champion with the same roster that won it all last year. We assumed you'd do that.") I wonder if she gets dinged because of the perception that we have so much talent (we do), so the coaching job itself is necessarily less impressive than a coach who takes some less highly-touted recruits and turns them into a contender. Of course, that ignores the coach's role in recruiting that talent. 

Anyone who watches this team's improvement over the course of the year and how mentally tough they are in Pac-12s and NCAAs would be hard pressed to say anyone other than Lele Forood is the best coach in the country. And that's true every year.

OK, I guess that is reasonable.  This year probably was not the year to get upset over Lele's omission, though the coaching in the NCAA championship was masterful.  As in, we romped through it despite not being the top seed.  I mean, we won the title 4-0, with the three singles matches being won in straight sets.  Still, while you can make allowances on any given year, looking at her career and only 2 coach of the year honors... somewhere there is a disconnect.

By the way, in college, recruiting the best players is part of the job requirement.

BC

[BostonCard]

Who the hell did win coach of the year?

BC

South Carolina's coach. Best season in school history, including their first SEC championship, and finished ranked #4. Definitely exceeded expectations the most, so a similar rationale to why Washington's head coach got Pac-12 Coach of the Year. 

Basically, I only think Lele is going to win Coach of the Year in those years where (1) Stanford wins a national championship, and (2) it's a very chalky year overall, with no one jumping 30 spots in the rankings from the previous year. It may not be fair, but it seems like the standards are so high for her that even when she meets them, the ITA shrugs. ("Great, you repeated as national champion with the same roster that won it all last year. We assumed you'd do that.") I wonder if she gets dinged because of the perception that we have so much talent (we do), so the coaching job itself is necessarily less impressive than a coach who takes some less highly-touted recruits and turns them into a contender. Of course, that ignores the coach's role in recruiting that talent. 

Anyone who watches this team's improvement over the course of the year and how mentally tough they are in Pac-12s and NCAAs would be hard pressed to say anyone other than Lele Forood is the best coach in the country. And that's true every year.

OK, I guess that is reasonable.  This year probably was not the year to get upset over Lele's omission, though the coaching in the NCAA championship was masterful.  As in, we romped through it despite not being the top seed.  I mean, we won the title 4-0, with the three singles matches being won in straight sets.  Still, while you can make allowances on any given year, looking at her career and only 2 coach of the year honors... somewhere there is a disconnect.

By the way, in college, recruiting the best players is part of the job requirement.

BC