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Post by loken on Dec 7, 2017 12:05:28 GMT -5
Thanks Brandon, looking forward to the team's success over the next few years. I knew Joe back when he was at Penn, and he is a good guy.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 7, 2017 14:42:49 GMT -5
Saugla seems to be a very knowledgable coach and good man. I hope that things will turn around after the stressful year he has had.
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Post by superfan1 on Dec 7, 2017 21:54:31 GMT -5
With the returning roster that UNC has, fans shouldn't be too worried about their success next year. The potential is there for another outstanding season as long as injuries don't derail them. Scoles and Leath are an incredible duo on the left, Evans and Carlton are experienced setters. Those four are a VERY strong core without even adding the rest of the roster.
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Post by sulo on Dec 8, 2017 20:14:49 GMT -5
Brandonl10's comments were quite interesting to me. Especially the statement that the landscape has changed significantly in the past 5-6 years as more home-grown talent is apt to stay close to home as opposed to heading out to the Pac 12 or Big 10. As an example, my DD played at UNC in 2008. Their team was very good, as they won 22 matches, were ACC co-champs(with Duke), went 1-1 in the NCAA Tourney(Losing to top 10 ranked Oregon) and having the good fortune of beating 8th ranked Minnesota at Minnesota during the season. However, they fell short of being a great team. I bring this up in the context of Brandonl10's remarks because,at the time, Megan Hodge, was a 3 or 4 time all American at Penn State. Megan was from the Durham/Chapel hill area and went to Penn State. If that team had Megan Hodge, I believe they could have been at least an elite 8 team. that's how good Megan Hodge was. UNC tried to recruit her, but at the time it was probably unrealistic that she would go there. But now, as Brandonl10 has pointed out, it is much more likely that Coaches Sagula and Rachkam could land a recruit like her. After my DD graduated I have stayed a fan and I think Sagula has done a great job with the program having won 3 ACC titles and appearing 6 times in the NCAA tournament in the last 9 years. I believe things are looking up and will rebound next year. The program is in good hands with Sagula and Rackham.
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Post by bucky415 on Dec 8, 2017 21:05:21 GMT -5
I guess it depends what you mean by rebounding. I would be surprised if they didn't contend for an ACC title and make the NCAA tournament next year, but I don't know how much of a threat they will be to do some damage in the second weekend of the tournament. The potential for that is there if they can get healthy, I think, but they will need to be better on the first two contacts for that to happen.
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Post by kubricks on Dec 8, 2017 21:05:55 GMT -5
No the Heels cannot rebound.
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Post by sulo on Dec 8, 2017 21:26:04 GMT -5
Whaddya mean? The 'Heels can Block(out) with the best of them.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 10, 2017 10:00:55 GMT -5
Sulo, Hodge is a great example of what I was talking about. Borup is not homegrown but was from the nearby Virginia area. She was also recruited by USC, And a couple of bigger west coast schools as was Scoles. But UNC really wanted them and convinced them to choose there. It’s a great sign for the program.
In regards to 2018, if Sagula gets a fully healthy squad to put out there along with the experience this younger team received this year, and the Heels will definitely contend for the ACC title and will have the ability to make a deep run next year. They return some very good offense and welcome more in. The defense should be better with the starting libero back and the underclassmen who already flashed some great play. I know a lot of people do not put stock in the spring, but it will tell us a lot about the state and condition of the team. I think 2018 could be a great year and the future looks even better.
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Post by sulo on Dec 11, 2017 13:55:20 GMT -5
Thanks, Brandonl10. Lets keep our fingers crossed on the health of the team. I'm looking forward to next year.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 12, 2018 22:05:57 GMT -5
So now that it is official, Eve Rackham has resigned and will be leaving the Heels to head to Tennessee. Eve is a huge loss as she orchestrated the offense of the Heels and was a fabulous recruiter. She was expected to be Sagula’s replacement when he retired but UT was a good opportunity.
So now the question arises: who will replace her? Recruiting has been on an uptick and will Sagula find anyone as good to replace her?
Some early thoughts are what current players would come back? I’d love to see Abigail Curry grow into the role as Rackam did or even Chaniel Nelson. No one knows the Tar Heel Program like last Heels but new experience is also good. Any ideas?
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Post by digitup on Jan 13, 2018 10:52:21 GMT -5
As a UNC alum, who coached the UNC men's volleyball club from 85-87, and assisted then women's coach Peggy Bradley Doppes one season, my question to observers is this: Has the UNC program under Joe Sagula, achieved the level one would expect of one of the premier sports universities in the country? I have been away from the game for 20 years so now as I come back to coaching, I am curious where my alma mater is in the national scheme of things. In the last 20 years, name a volleyball program (other than Florida) that has had as much success in the southeast US as North Carolina? That part of the country has never had a ton of success because girl's volleyball in the southeast has been behind the rest of the country which makes a significant difference. That is changing and thus why North Carolina can be a top 10 team moving forward. Barring major injuries to a number of players this season, Carolina may have been a final 4 team. There is a reason Ole Miss and Miss State suck in the SEC. One of the big reasons is that volleyball in that state is way behind the rest of the country. Joe's team will be a contender next year. Losing Eve is huge, but Tyler is great as well and they will bring in someone to offset Eve going to Tennessee. Perhaps an old assistant will come back....I hear Lizzy Stemke is available. Just saying.
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Post by naujack85 on Jan 13, 2018 13:38:05 GMT -5
As a UNC alum, who coached the UNC men's volleyball club from 85-87, and assisted then women's coach Peggy Bradley Doppes one season, my question to observers is this: Has the UNC program under Joe Sagula, achieved the level one would expect of one of the premier sports universities in the country? I have been away from the game for 20 years so now as I come back to coaching, I am curious where my alma mater is in the national scheme of things. In the last 20 years, name a volleyball program (other than Florida) that has had as much success in the southeast US as North Carolina? That part of the country has never had a ton of success because girl's volleyball in the southeast has been behind the rest of the country which makes a significant difference. That is changing and thus why North Carolina can be a top 10 team moving forward. Barring major injuries to a number of players this season, Carolina may have been a final 4 team. There is a reason Ole Miss and Miss State suck in the SEC. One of the big reasons is that volleyball in that state is way behind the rest of the country. Joe's team will be a contender next year. Losing Eve is huge, but Tyler is great as well and they will bring in someone to offset Eve going to Tennessee. Perhaps an old assistant will come back....I hear Lizzy Stemke is available. Just saying. Florida State?
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Post by digitup on Jan 13, 2018 14:48:09 GMT -5
In the last 20 years, name a volleyball program (other than Florida) that has had as much success in the southeast US as North Carolina? That part of the country has never had a ton of success because girl's volleyball in the southeast has been behind the rest of the country which makes a significant difference. That is changing and thus why North Carolina can be a top 10 team moving forward. Barring major injuries to a number of players this season, Carolina may have been a final 4 team. There is a reason Ole Miss and Miss State suck in the SEC. One of the big reasons is that volleyball in that state is way behind the rest of the country. Joe's team will be a contender next year. Losing Eve is huge, but Tyler is great as well and they will bring in someone to offset Eve going to Tennessee. Perhaps an old assistant will come back....I hear Lizzy Stemke is available. Just saying. Florida State? True...last 20 years Florida State has won 67% of their matches and North Carolina has won 69%.
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Post by chancelucky on Jan 13, 2018 15:44:14 GMT -5
I'm not sure about the former player well. There aren't that many recent UNC players who are coaching. Erin (Berg) Lindsey's at Stanford and has already been a head coach at Dartmouth, so it's not likely that she'd come back to be an assistant again. Lindsey and Rackham actually take up a huge portion of Sagula's time at UNC. They each started for 4 years at setter in a 5-1 and were assistants at the school for several years without actually overlapping. Chaniel Nelson was the operations manager for a year, but I don't think she's stayed in coaching. Beyond that, I don't know of any recent players who've been coaching at the college level. There may be some who would like to start doing it, but starting out at UNC as a first job is relatively unusual. In the last 2 years, the operations managers have been a former d3 head coach who'd been an Ivy League assistant and a former D1 assistant coach. They also had a volunteer who'd been a D1 assistant for 3 years.
Of the former assistants, a surprising number of them have gone on to be head coaches. That includes Travis Filar, Stemke, Jim Lodes, Lindsey, even last years operations manager Ilkson, is now the head coach at George Mason. It happens, but it's it's unusual to go from being a head coach to being an assistant at your old place, because whatever can be gained or learned from doing it has already happened.
UNC does not pay as well as many schools in the conference, with Mclaughlin's Notre Dame salary being the most extreme example. A Big 10 second assistant might even have to take a pay cut to be a first assistant at UNC. I think that leaves young but promising, smaller conference assistants or maybe even head coaches, outside the box choices (someone who's been away for a while), or someone from the men's side who's looking to move to the women's side for the better money/job opportunities. One logistical problem with a coach from the men's side is that they're currently in season, so it might be hard to get someone who already has a coaching job. One other possibility could be someone with lots of club connections which might help with recruiting.
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Post by chancelucky on Jan 14, 2018 12:13:04 GMT -5
I think it's fair to say that Florida State and UNC have been very close over the last 20 years. UNC was dominant from 1999-2002. After Kress left, Chris Poole helped put FSU in the more dominant position and got FSU to the final four, the only ACC program to do that. Last year was a down year for both programs, though FSU still made the tournament and won their one match against each other. In the 4 years or so prior, UNC had the edge, though it's been pretty close. UNC won 2 ACC championships and oddly FSU hasn't won in 5 years, though they've been consistently close.
Duke's also been in the mix, though maybe a notch back.
In the southeastover the last 20 years, it's been Florida at one level, FSU, UNC, and arguably Tennessee (the other team that made a final 4) at the next. Kentucky, Duke, and Miami would be just below. Georgia Tech also had a very good stretch in Shymansky's early years, but hasn't made the tournament in some time. Of course, only part of the ACC is still in the southeast. I"m leaving Louisville out of the discussion, because it's arguably neither south or east.
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