Wooster

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waynecountybball

Active member
Can anyone give details of what is going on at Wooster? Board tabled the person that got it, he withdrew name, went back to this old job, job reopened, AD almost got blocked on his contract renewal, rumors about administration all over the place. Its June 2nd and you dont have a coach. When does this get resolved?
 
 
Sounds like the typical Wooster girls basketball parents getting involved in coaching decisions. News Flash...this isn't the Wooster girls basketball program from the 90's anymore, not close, and may never be again. Let's not forget that 2 prominent parents who were on the School Board worked their magic to get HOF Coach Mike Gallagher ousted after their senior-to-be daughter was informed that she wouldn't be getting much playing time, regardless of the fact that she didn't earn it and wasn't a very good player at all. All Gallagher did at Wooster was go 356-90, win 11 conference championships, 9 district titles, 2 regional crowns, 1 Associated Press Poll Title, and were State Runner-ups twice.

This doesn't shock me AT ALL.
 
Unbelievable!! School boards are so antiquated and out of date; people with their own agendas ending the careers of good people, all because their kid supposedly got slighted. Prime example of what is wrong with kids today: Helicopter Parents. The way world is now I dont know why anyone in their right mind would want to coach high school sports, especially football, baseball, and basketball. We are doing a total disservice to our children by not letting them fail or handle adversity. So Sad.....
 
All things considered - Coach Baus did a very good job at Wooster. He won 67% of his games and added 2 league titles - in a time when West Holmes was dominating the league - especially at the beginning of his tenure, during the Patterson years.

Some of the Wooster kids during Baus’ time there just truly did not know how to act. The stories that came out of there were tough to believe at times. At some point - this isn’t the coaches fault...the parents and community need to make these kids behave in an appropriate manner. Word has it that Baus tried disciplining kids a number of times and didn’t have administrative support.

I will say - I don’t think that his coaching staff ever got to the point where it needed to be at a school like Wooster. His lack of really good help couldn’t have helped matters in the community.

There were a number of coaching openings in NEO this spring that did not get the pool of desired applicants that administrators and hiring committees expected. Wooster is a good example of this.

If Baus was going to be pushed out - or whatever happened there....you would think that Wooster had a replacement plan in place, but between other desirable coaches staying put and their decision makers deeming other candidates unhireable - they are in a very tough spot right now.
 
A few parents trying to run things is never a good spot to coach. Agree with the above that his staff was the real issue more than it was him. A few parents wrote letters to the board with baseless accusations and threatening to transfer, etc. Now those parents didnt get who they wanted the first time around because another group of parents brought info to the board about her previous stop. that staff was just fired in Feb at a college program for a toxic and abusive environment. That prompts a board member to fillibuster basically to satisfy the wishes of the problem parents. What a mess. No one in their right mind should want the job. Parents think their kid is D1 when in reality kids are D3 benchwarmers at best if any college at all. Job still remains opens. Wooster is a good school but it must be so hard to coach there when parents can swing board people so easily to get what they want. That whole board needs replaced and parents need to stay in their lane. If you want to run the show, apply. But most parents would rather criticize from the cheap seats then be the one on the sidelines.
 
Going back to the removal of Gallagher as Head Coach, lets not forget that it was a new Wooster AD that only took the job for two months before leaving that non-renewed Gallagher. Replacing a 356 game winner with a 24-year-old Freshman coach from GlenOak. They finally found someone who didn't care driving the knife into the back of Gallagher. Mission accomplished. Then the AD left shortly after. Not fishy at all, eh?
 
You are correct PB, and there is no end in sight. No candidates, no interviews, never posted on OHSAA website, AD is not involved, nothing. parents who got rid of the last coach are running open gyms, etc. what a mess. at this point why would anyone want it. the person that wants it, didnt get it the 1st or 2nd time and isnt getting it the 3rd time.
 
As crazy as this sounds - I think if you are Wooster now, you wait until mid-August, see who the complete staff is (there has been a lot of shuffling in the district for teachers and administrators) and make a decision - whether it be a district employee or a coach who still was not hired elsewhere. Summer stuff for the school is over - at this point, no need to rush now when you haven’t yet.

It will be interesting to see what the new superintendent thinks about coaches and their professional roles in the district. Where some schools allow you to be an administrator and a coach - Wooster doesn’t. This may have hurt them in their pursuit of a coach, because if they really wanted an elite coach - they were going to have to give them something that they didn’t have at their old school.
 
I am going to have to agree with you GreenDay. Nothing is accomplished at this point by just making a hire. The other option is to find a former coach or assistant coach that doesnt need a teaching job to do for a year. Then reevaluate after that. I can think of a few area (assistants and former coaches that might do it). Wooster will never allow an administrator to have a head coaching position. they fear that a parent would complain about something and that is all that is needed to stay away from it. just about every other school has coaches in other positions (AD, assistant AD, principals, etc.). if a teacher can, so can an administrator.
 
Dumpster Fire GIF
 
Did Wooster really just recommend/hire a 31 year old male with no experience coaching girls basketball over a 45 year old woman who has head coaching experience at the high school and college level, has Division I experience, played professional basketball and is the school's all-time greatest player. Not even sure this would fly in Alabama circa 1968.
 
PBrownisman said:
Did Wooster really just recommend/hire a 31 year old male with no experience coaching girls basketball over a 45 year old woman who has head coaching experience at the high school and college level, has Division I experience, played professional basketball and is the school's all-time greatest player. Not even sure this would fly in Alabama circa 1968.
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29 year old
 
Read article. New coach is a community guy, a pastor, and ties to the school. Doesn’t seem like a bad choice. Could have been worse: inexperienced or unqualified teacher, unemployed club/AAU coach, lots of other bad choices.
 
So far this has not panned out well for the program. Two average seasons both ending in Sectional tournament losses. For the life of me, I have no idea why a Division I school is scheduling non-conference games with Smithville, Norwayne, and Loudonville...and then going 1-2 in those games. Already at a disadvantage heading into the tournament with the OCC schedule for the most part, so you should be scheduling up in your non-conference games. Will they right the ship, or will it be time for another coaching search in a year or two?
 
Here are my thoughts Mr. General:

Wooster handled the situation with Mike Baus very poorly. At a time when West Holmes was dominating that league - Baus came in and won 67% of his games + a few conference championships. He had been a pillar in the community and a large supporter of Wooster Schools for decades - he deserved to be treated better.

While you have would thought that Wooster had a "splash" hire in mind to replace Coach Baus (I know that they did speak to some coaches who would have fit the definition of a splash hire - but clearly couldn't close the deal with any of them) - that wasn't the case. With that being said - I thought that Alex Kacere was a very good hire. He cares about Wooster Athletics - did have assistant coaching experience - played at Wooster - and dove right in with some energy and new ideas. It's pretty clear that his players love playing for him.

You bring up some outstanding points about Wooster's schedule - outside of the OCC (which has been very weak) - they really shouldn't be playing anyone except for Federal League, Akron City and NEO Private Schools. It benefits the Smithvilles, Norwaynes, Loudonvilles, Daltons of the world to play Wooster - but how does it benefit Wooster?

There isn't much talent coming in the pipeline. Obviously things can change quickly in the world of transfers - but Wooster could be looking at some lean years here. I think realistically - that could be the case, not because of Coach Kacere - but just because there isn't much talent there. He has seemingly been working pretty hard to maximize his program's potential and he had this year's team peaking at the end of the season.
 
He has done a great job for what he has to deal with from the pipeline and parents. Agree with the above and think the scheduling needs to get better over time and not schedule WCAL teams or below. No offense to those teams ( and some are very good ). just not a receipt for post season success. It only helps the lower division team. Additionally you have parents ( like all programs ) who think they know best, unrealistic expectations for kids, etc. You have a few that keep stats in the stands openly while their kid plays. will be a challenge for few years. youth numbers are rising to help in a few years.
 
waynecountybball said:
He has done a great job for what he has to deal with from the pipeline and parents. Agree with the above and think the scheduling needs to get better over time and not schedule WCAL teams or below. No offense to those teams ( and some are very good ). just not a receipt for post season success. It only helps the lower division team. Additionally you have parents ( like all programs ) who think they know best, unrealistic expectations for kids, etc. You have a few that keep stats in the stands openly while their kid plays. will be a challenge for few years. youth numbers are rising to help in a few years.
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It should be noted too - "established" coaches with head coaching experience and a championship resume were not lining up to take this job. Right now - you would get more applicants at Hiland, West Holmes, Chippewa, Smithville, Loudonville, Norwayne, Dalton - if those jobs opened up.
 
While I get the questioning of scheduling small schools, there's no shame in playing Waynedale or Loudonville.. those teams are good and competitive with any size school
 
MCGal said:
While I get the questioning of scheduling small schools, there's no shame in playing Waynedale or Loudonville.. those teams are good and competitive with any size school
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Mr. General said:
Instead of Smithville, Norwayne, and Loudonville. How about Wadsworth, McKinley, and Medina?
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Totally agree @MCGal Waynedale, Chippewa, and Smithville would all compete for and have a chance at winning the Suburban League or the OCC. Copley won the Suburban League this year and finished 21-1. That 1, came from Waynedale. I think the OOC scheduling for Wooster was totally fine! It's not like they scheduled Hillsdale and Rittman.
 
Those same teams play in summer leagues and compete with the "big schools" that you all want them to play all the time. The size of the school doesn't make the difference that some seem to think it does.
 
MCGal said:
Those same teams play in summer leagues and compete with the "big schools" that you all want them to play all the time. The size of the school doesn't make the difference that some seem to think it does.
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Especially in girls basketball
 
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