Elder Coaching

PURPLE REIGN

Well-known member
I saw where LaSalle is searching for a new baseball coach again and it made me realize how blessed Elder is. Doubtful another school in the city, maybe state, and perhaps country can match the coaching stability Elder has had over the past three decades. There is a reason these coaches don’t leave.

Since the early 90’s, Elder has had one basketball coach, two football coaches, one baseball coach and two wrestling coaches. That is 6 coaches in four sports over 30 years…incredible!
 
 
Waiting for an ignorant response from Omar any minute now. ?

There's pros and cons that go with that type of longevity. The biggest con is that is can cause a program to become set in their ways and slow to adapt or grow. That's not a sleight on any of the 3 coaches at Elder, it happens to every coach that's been at the same school an extended period of time. It even happened to Coach K at Duke, where he was behind the curve in terms of recruiting for a few years and had to finally take one & done players to win a high level in the 2010s.

The biggest pro is the stability and culture with established expectations. We saw how ugly things got at Moeller, when the coaching situation wasn't stable.

All that said, Baseball is always going to be in a place to compete long term. They might have some ups and downs year to year, but there's always going to be a strong infrastructure in place. Football and Basketball need to find ways to get more talent. The feeder systems are not going to be enough to compete at the highest level. They might be a solid framework, but they're still going to need a few players from outside the feeder system to truly make them competitive with the top tier programs. And when the time comes when both jobs are open, I think it would be beneficial to explore external options. There's young, talented coaches who are capable of building their own legacy at Elder.
 
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And when the time comes when both jobs are open, I think it would be beneficial to explore external options. There's young, talented coaches who are capable of building their own legacy at Elder.
Not only do I not think this will happen, I would bet each of these 3 coaches will have a a significant say in their replacements, which will undoubtedly be an Elder successor. There's no way they hire an non-Elder guy for the big three sports.
 
Not only do I not think this will happen, I would bet each of these 3 coaches will have a a significant say in their replacements, which will undoubtedly be an Elder successor. There's no way they hire an non-Elder guy for the big three sports.
Of course they’ll have a say but that does not necessarily mean it’s someone currently on the staff. I’ll be honest, I’m not worried the slightest bit about Baseball bc of the strong infrastructure. Basketball, I really think Fleming’s son would be outstanding and he would have JS’s blessing, especially with Austing presumably out of the mix. I might be wrong, but I don’t see how he leaves Sycamore with the $ he’s making. It’s also why I don’t believe Datillo is a realistic replacement for Ramsey.

Football, depends on how long Coach Ramsey wants to stay. He said he’s at the “end of his coaching career”, that’s open to interpretation, but I’d say it’s a safe bet that’s closer to 5 years than 10. I think Peyton would be an excellent successor with more experience.
 
Not only do I not think this will happen, I would bet each of these 3 coaches will have a a significant say in their replacements, which will undoubtedly be an Elder successor. There's no way they hire an non-Elder guy for the big three sports.
You do realize that Thompson is not an Elder guy/grad? You do realize non Elder guys have had great success Coaching at Elder? See McCoy and Roush. Phil Brown son still involved in Elder Baseball? He is “younger” and definitely understands the history and tradition of Elder Baseball.
 
You do realize that Thompson is not an Elder guy/grad? You do realize non Elder guys have had great success Coaching at Elder? See McCoy and Roush. Phil Brown son still involved in Elder Baseball? He is “younger” and definitely understands the history and tradition of Elder Baseball.
Neither is Coach Ramsey or Grippa.
 
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Football, depends on how long Coach Ramsey wants to stay. He said he’s at the “end of his coaching career”, that’s open to interpretation, but I’d say it’s a safe bet that’s closer to 5 years than 10. I think Peyton would be an excellent successor with more experience.

It would be tough to turn down the kind of money D1 college coaches are making. Elder will be lucky if he decides to pursue a coaching career and stay at Elder.
 
It would be tough to turn down the kind of money D1 college coaches are making. Elder will be lucky if he decides to pursue a coaching career and stay at Elder.
If he leaves for a college job one day, at least that means he was successful during his tenure at Elder. You can’t shy away from hiring him just bc one day he MIGHT leave for college.

I could be wrong, I don’t have any data to support my belief, but I think Peyton would be an absolute home run hire as HC when he’s ready. That’s obviously years down the road, but he has the playing background, work ethic and communication skills to be a great HC.
 
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You do realize that Thompson is not an Elder guy/grad? You do realize non Elder guys have had great success Coaching at Elder? See McCoy and Roush. Phil Brown son still involved in Elder Baseball? He is “younger” and definitely understands the history and tradition of Elder Baseball.
I said Elder guy, not grad - meaning the next hires will likely have a current connection - but that's just my opinion. Most coaching hires across the board now, at most schools, have more to do with AD relationships that anything. In the current climate, an AD is very reluctant to hire an outside guy that he doesn't already trust. Just the way it works now.
 
I said Elder guy, not grad - meaning the next hires will likely have a current connection - but that's just my opinion. Most coaching hires across the board now, at most schools, have more to do with AD relationships that anything. In the current climate, an AD is very reluctant to hire an outside guy that he doesn't already trust. Just the way it works now.
But you implied it would be strictly internal, which isn’t true. And again, most GCL schools will look to hire someone with a connection to the program, bc the pay isn’t enough to compete with public schools. You need someone who is willing to take less pay bc they’re loyal to the school. If you’re an AD why would you hire someone who bolts after 2-3 good years? That’s not sustainable.
 
If you’re an AD why would you hire someone who bolts after 2-3 good years? That’s not sustainable.
That's impossible to predict. You can have every intention of finding a 10+ year guy, do everything you need to make sure they're committed, and they still leave after 1-2 years. Happens all the time.
 
That's impossible to predict. You can have every intention of finding a 10+ year guy, do everything you need to make sure they're committed, and they still leave after 1-2 years. Happens all the time.
They’re less like to leave if they have some degree of loyalty. Otherwise, they’re probably taking the job as a stepping stone.
 
They’re less like to leave if they have some degree of loyalty. Otherwise, they’re probably taking the job as a stepping stone.
That's kind of my point - the days of finding a guy that will commit 20+ years is over. Since they haven't hired a coach in basketball, baseball, and football for a very long time, alot of things have changed. The younger generation of coaches will not have this longevity - you will see less and less of it, so you almost have to approach hiring as an ongoing contingency.

If you hire a new guy, and then sit back and relax, that's likely a mistake. You almost need a succession plan WHILE you're making the initial hiring decision.
 
That's kind of my point - the days of finding a guy that will commit 20+ years is over. Since they haven't hired a coach in basketball, baseball, and football for a very long time, alot of things have changed. The younger generation of coaches will not have this longevity - you will see less and less of it, so you almost have to approach hiring as an ongoing contingency.

If you hire a new guy, and then sit back and relax, that's likely a mistake. You almost need a succession plan WHILE you're making the initial hiring decision.
I don’t think that’s the case for HS, but I agree it’s a balancing act. You don’t sacrifice the quality of a hire for loyalty but having someone with a connection to the school/program is a big plus.
 
Also, I don’t think it’s coincidence that Elder seems to produce a lot of quality coaches. There’s clearly a strong culture in the programs that develops guys like Ricky Brown, Pat Kelsey, Jim Hilvert, Tim Austing, Scott Datillo,etc.
 
I think football already has their guy in all honesty. It would shock me to see them not give Currin the HC spot, if he wants it.

Have a similar feeling about Rob Thompson and the baseball program, again if he wants it.

Both guys played and won championships during their time as players. And both have helped coach teams in the past few years in their respective sports to the State Title game.
 
I think football already has their guy in all honesty. It would shock me to see them not give Currin the HC spot, if he wants it.

Have a similar feeling about Rob Thompson and the baseball program, again if he wants it.

Both guys played and won championships during their time as players. And both have helped coach teams in the past few years in their respective sports to the State Title game.
TBH, Currin’s Defenses need to perform better. He started out very strong, but his Defenses haven’t been great the last few seasons. If the Defense doesn’t make a pretty sizable jump from last season, with the pretty solid talent in place, that has to raise some red flags. Also, with how football has transformed, I’d think most programs would prefer an Offensive coach.

Then again, it all depends on timing. If Coach Ramsey retires in the next 5 years, I think Currin makes sense. However, beyond that, I think Peyton would have enough experience on staff to take over. Plus, he has a higher profile than Currin. Kids would want to play for him bc of his reputation as a player.
 
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I saw where LaSalle is searching for a new baseball coach again and it made me realize how blessed Elder is. Doubtful another school in the city, maybe state, and perhaps country can match the coaching stability Elder has had over the past three decades. There is a reason these coaches don’t leave.

Since the early 90’s, Elder has had one basketball coach, two football coaches, one baseball coach and two wrestling coaches. That is 6 coaches in four sports over 30 years…incredible!
To add to the longevity, only two volleyball coaches since the mid 90s.
 
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