|
Post by mikegarrison on Oct 12, 2014 20:49:41 GMT -5
Here's an interesting counterpoint on how some coaches are not as sold on swing-blocking. (There are some really great coaches in this video!)
Sealy says he loves to play teams that swingblock because they can beat them to the pins with the fast sets. Well, it worked against Washington pretty well in the first set last week. But the UW block caught up to the UCLA offense. Final result, UW had twice as many blocks as UCLA did when they played.
|
|
|
Post by alwayslearning on Oct 12, 2014 21:16:03 GMT -5
Thanks for the video -- interesting perspectives from some highly respected coaches.
Clearly a good serving team creates more and better blocking opportunities. But it's not all about the serve, is it? Why aren't more teams -- teams with really elite athletes -- better at blocking?
|
|
|
Post by redbeard2008 on Oct 12, 2014 23:29:36 GMT -5
Here's an interesting counterpoint on how some coaches are not as sold on swing-blocking. (There are some really great coaches in this video!) [...]Yeah I just watched that a couple hours ago. I saw it as more of an unintentional "how not to" video. Most of the "cons" they bring up are what McLaughlin says not to do in his video. Dunning is now swing blocking, by the way. Said they tried it before, but didn't really understand how to do it. I think that video is from 2011.
|
|
|
Post by redbeard2008 on Oct 12, 2014 23:56:12 GMT -5
Clearly a good serving team creates more and better blocking opportunities. But it's not all about the serve, is it? Why aren't more teams -- teams with really elite athletes -- better at blocking? One concern is that teaching players to do it correctly is too time consuming. You only have a limited amount of practice time - do you spend it on teaching swing blocking or serving and passing? A lot of recruits coming to UW have already learned how to swing block in club ball, especially if from TStreet. It can be less suited to taller middles - Amanda Gil never really got the hang of it, but still led the nation in blocking. The best middle blockers at UW have mostly been 6'2" or under: Sybeldon (6'1"), Rowland (6'0"), Swarbrick (6'1"), Deesing (6'1"), Myhre (6'2").
|
|
|
Post by mikegarrison on Oct 13, 2014 0:01:34 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by redbeard2008 on Oct 13, 2014 10:45:51 GMT -5
And Leslie (nee Tuiasosopo) Gabriel. I was thinking about McLaughlin-era middles, however. Desilets is playing professionally in Poland, I believe.
|
|
|
Post by alwayslearning on Oct 13, 2014 11:07:09 GMT -5
Clearly a good serving team creates more and better blocking opportunities. But it's not all about the serve, is it? Why aren't more teams -- teams with really elite athletes -- better at blocking? One concern is that teaching players to do it correctly is too time consuming. You only have a limited amount of practice time - do you spend it on teaching swing blocking or serving and passing? Fair point. In your (and others' opinions), how important is blocking to UW's success this year? My own theory is that, while you might point to the total number of points actually won by blocks and conclude that it's not that significant, it's significance lies more in other factors: 1) blocks tend to be momentum plays or momentum changers; 2) consistently good blocking makes hitters rethink and adjust their normal swings; and 3) blocking tends to wear on an opponent psychologically, especially over the course of longer matches. If my theory is true, then I still don't get why coaches do not appear to emphasize it more. Unless, of course, it's just a difficult skill to teach and coaches get more return from practicing other aspects of the game.
|
|
|
Post by mikegarrison on Oct 13, 2014 11:11:35 GMT -5
It's clear that for the Huskies this year, blocking well is key to their momentum. When they get a block they get fired up. If they get a couple blocks in a row, they start playing with a ton of confidence.
|
|
|
Post by tomclen on Oct 13, 2014 11:16:09 GMT -5
To change the subject: Let's talk JMac.
Is McLaughlin now the best coach ever at UW?
Sure, some are going to mention the Dawgfather....or Softball or Crew.
But McLaughlin came in and turned the program around almost immediately. And, amazingly, he has kept his teams at an incredibly high level of excellence year after year after year.
Even in years when die-hard fans are disappointed, it means the Huskies lost in the 2nd round of the tournament! That's really the worst he's done since he turned things around, only making it to round 2..incredible!
And nearly every week it's almost ho-hum how UW is ranked in the top 10, frequently top 5 of D1 VB.
And then there's the butts in the seats. I still remember his first season, being able to walk into Hec Ed 20 minutes before a match with a GA ticket and sit front row mid-court.
I don't want to jinx the guy, but it has really been a remarkable tenure...here's hoping for another decade or two.
|
|
|
Post by alwayslearning on Oct 13, 2014 12:03:44 GMT -5
JMac's record speaks for itself. I can't really compare to coaches in other sports at UW, but he's up there.
What intrigues me about JMac is that he combines this super-analytical approach where he tracks everything players do in practices and games, but at the same time brings a very high level understanding of how to motivate players and get them to approach the game in the right frame of mind. I'm just looking from the outside in, but so many of his comments focus on "intangibles" and getting players to "think the right thoughts." When other coaches make their post-game comments, it's usually "Well, we hit too many service errors, or we didn't use our right side hitters enough, etc." With JMac, more often than not, it's about the flow of the game and players' ability to deal with adversity. In other words, he seems really attuned to the psychological aspects of the game.
|
|
|
Post by ay2013 on Oct 13, 2014 12:04:45 GMT -5
To change the subject: Let's talk JMac. Is McLaughlin now the best coach ever at UW? Sure, some are going to mention the Dawgfather....or Softball or Crew. But McLaughlin came in and turned the program around almost immediately. And, amazingly, he has kept his teams at an incredibly high level of excellence year after year after year. Even in years when die-hard fans are disappointed, it means the Huskies lost in the 2nd round of the tournament! That's really the worst he's done since he turned things around, only making it to round 2..incredible! And nearly every week it's almost ho-hum how UW is ranked in the top 10, frequently top 5 of D1 VB. And then there's the butts in the seats. I still remember his first season, being able to walk into Hec Ed 20 minutes before a match with a GA ticket and sit front row mid-court. I don't want to jinx the guy, but it has really been a remarkable tenure...here's hoping for another decade or two. +1
|
|
|
Post by redbeard2008 on Oct 13, 2014 12:05:45 GMT -5
It could be argued that blocks for points are not the primary object of blocking, but rather forcing hitters to make riskier attacks. Included in that would not be just blocks to the opponent's court, but also putbacks and soft touches for easy digs. I'd guess that those can be up to thrice or more the actual blocks.
Hitters hate to get blocked - it hurts, and can destroy, their hitting percentage, which is the primary measure of their performance, at least in the USA (internationally, they rely on kill percentage, which disregards errors). It does get into hitters' heads.
There are also differences in how coaches position defenders behind the block. Some try to channel attacks to defenders, while others position them relative to where more balls fall (the middle of the court).
|
|
|
Post by ay2013 on Oct 13, 2014 12:18:00 GMT -5
It could be argued that blocks for points are not the primary object of blocking, but rather forcing hitters to make riskier attacks. Included in that would not be just blocks to the opponent's court, but also putbacks and soft touches for easy digs. I'd guess that those can be up to thrice or more the actual blocks. Hitters hate to get blocked - it hurts, and can destroy, their hitting percentage, which is the primary measure of their performance, at least in the USA (internationally, they rely on kill percentage, which disregards errors). It does get into hitters' heads. There are also differences in how coaches position defenders behind the block. Some try to channel attacks to defenders, while others position them relative to where more balls fall (the middle of the court). I would agree with this. blocking for points is usually just an added bonus of a quality block. Even good blocking teams only get about 10% of their points from stuff blocks. The best blocks should be measured by A: what they force opposing hitters to do which is ideally taking away court that a defender is not in, and B: getting soft touches for the backcourt to transition into offense. THOSE touches count for a lot more than a stuff block.
|
|
|
Post by mikegarrison on Oct 13, 2014 12:26:07 GMT -5
Well, there is Hec Ed himself, who has to rank pretty highly in UW coaching history. And Bob Ernst of the rowing team (in his 41st year as coach!) has coached both the UW men and UW women to multiple national championships as well as coaching the USA in multiple Olympics. The current men's rowing coach, Michael Callahan, coached the team to perhaps the most dominant run any Husky team has ever had, including being described at Henley as the best university rowing team in history. In the late 80s and early 90s Chris Gobrecht had roughly the same kind of impact on UW women's basketball that McLaughlin has had on volleyball.
But yeah, McLaughlin has had a huge impact.
|
|
|
Post by alwayslearning on Oct 13, 2014 12:58:38 GMT -5
|
|