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Post by vbkahuna on Sept 15, 2023 23:12:49 GMT -5
Oh come on, how can you put USC women’s volleyball and “good” in the same sentence? They haven’t beaten anyone… and the losses are ugly. Illinois setting is horrid and the back row is unacceptable. I don’t understand why Chris can’t get better talent to Champaign… I thought Illinois would be a bubble team this year… I just don’t see that after watching tonight… [/quote] Hey, photos1, any chance you've seen tonight's scores? To what do you attribute your expertise in evaluating VB team quality?
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Post by bucky415 on Sept 15, 2023 23:16:55 GMT -5
Oh come on, how can you put USC women’s volleyball and “good” in the same sentence? They haven’t beaten anyone… and the losses are ugly. Illinois setting is horrid and the back row is unacceptable. I don’t understand why Chris can’t get better talent to Champaign… I thought Illinois would be a bubble team this year… I just don’t see that after watching tonight… Hey, photos1, any chance you've seen tonight's scores? To what do you attribute your expertise in evaluating VB team quality?[/quote] Um, they won at Purdue. That is a good win.
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Post by photos1 on Sept 15, 2023 23:34:45 GMT -5
I have to admit USC appears to be a much better a team than they were 3 weeks ago. It will be interesting to see how long Fields physically holds up given the load she has to carry to make them competitive. She is a great player and Keller has been good for her game.
Purdue is a nice story with the B1G network hype machine behind them, but with huge holes in the middle, OPP and back row , just how good are they really? .
Am I really suppose to be overwhelmed that USC beat a below the bubble Illinois team in 5 sets and then beat media darling Purdue the next? Ok… But maybe you should remember that on this same rinky-dink injury promoting wooden floor, Creighton swept Purdue 3-0…and they didn’t require 4 interesting video challenges to do it …. We’ll see how it goes…. 🏐
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Post by oldmanvb on Sept 15, 2023 23:34:54 GMT -5
Can Burbage or Nunge pass any worse than Pan? Hiding Burbage in the back row versus hiding Pan at least gives us an attacker out of the back right position.
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Post by inpaign on Sept 16, 2023 0:13:36 GMT -5
It was crazy seeing the correlation between serve receive and our success in this match. First set, we looked atrocious...like a bad junior high team. Second and third set especially our serve receive was on point and we dominated. Truly looks like we will go as far as our serve receive will take us this season. At least we showed we can be competitive with a good USC team. Hoping this translates to tomorrow. Oh come on, how can you put USC women’s volleyball and “good” in the same sentence? They haven’t beaten anyone… and the losses are ugly. Illinois setting is horrid and the back row is unacceptable. I don’t understand why Chris can’t get better talent to Champaign… I thought Illinois would be a bubble team this year… I just don’t see that after watching tonight… I did put USC and GOOD in the same sentence. I didn't say they were great, I said good, which they are. Any team with one of the most dominant OH's in college volleyball this year is likely going to be good. Fields was borderline unstoppable. They've played ranked/RV teams this year competitively, and regardless of how you feel about Purdue, they beat a ranked team in 4 sets tonight. I'd consider that to be a good team.
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Post by liberovb10 on Sept 16, 2023 7:27:59 GMT -5
one interesting thing i noticed last night - and after rewatching the fifth set.
at the second timeout at 7-12, they make a note that Illinois was in a player only time out (standard) before Tamas and co. step in. But in that player’s only huddle, it doesn’t look like a single person is talking or trying to rally the team together. Maybe Burbage was and i couldn’t see it, but it looked grim and quiet before Tamas comes in.
Where is the leadership? Who does/should the team look to for motivation? This squad just doens’t look comfortable playing with one another - and it’s nearly the same squad from the spring/summer!
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Post by oldmanvb on Sept 16, 2023 8:00:25 GMT -5
one interesting thing i noticed last night - and after rewatching the fifth set. at the second timeout at 7-12, they make a note that Illinois was in a player only time out (standard) before Tamas and co. step in. But in that player’s only huddle, it doesn’t look like a single person is talking or trying to rally the team together. Maybe Burbage was and i couldn’t see it, but it looked grim and quiet before Tamas comes in. Where is the leadership? Who does/should the team look to for motivation? This squad just doens’t look comfortable playing with one another - and it’s nearly the same squad from the spring/summer! They don’t appear to have confidence in themselves or each other. Same problem as at the end of last year in Indiana and Nothwestern matches.
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Post by liberovb10 on Sept 16, 2023 9:41:37 GMT -5
They really don’t and it’s painful - this is probably the most disconnected squad since the Villunas/Poulter season (IYKYK). Through the pre-season schedule here are my one sentence thoughts on our core lineup.
Collins is a steady eddy - but we need more leadership/energy from her - especially as a 5th year player - put the squad on your back!
Brooke - setting is all over the place, there’s time for her to settle in but where is the spunk/fire from last season?
Pan - can’t serve receive, can’t play line defense, brings little to nothing in the back row…causes more OOS play than any DS i’ve seen in a while.
Barnes - put her back in as Libero - we need her in that jersey so she can anchor the back row. she was commanding the defense/serve receive pattern as the DS during UCF…typically what the libero should be doing.
Barry - move her back to DS - she can be used as an OOS hitter when passing is erratic and the only front row options are Terry or Collins…especially because we know passing will continue to be erratic
Burbage - as inconsistent as they come but the move to OPP is gaining her confidence back
Bohm - slow, looks lost on transition, tips more than she swings (partly a setting issue), and looks gassed when moving from pin to pin to transition
Nunge - seems to be getting into her groove after this weekend? Can she be a 6 rotation OH or at least hidden? That would at least put Barry in for Burbage and open up the pipe as an attack
Terry - is Terry. She’s doing the upmost to carry this team - but the load she takes on can’t be sustainable - she needs help and it all starts with a pass.
Tamas - it feels like no coaching seat in the Big Ten is hotter than his. Illinois has a rich volleyball program history - i can’t see Whittman allowing the tank to continue much longer
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Post by vbkahuna on Sept 16, 2023 9:43:45 GMT -5
I have to admit USC appears to be a much better a team than they were 3 weeks ago. It will be interesting to see how long Fields physically holds up given the load she has to carry to make them competitive. She is a great player and Keller has been good for her game. Purdue is a nice story with the B1G network hype machine behind them, but with huge holes in the middle, OPP and back row , just how good are they really? . Am I really suppose to be overwhelmed that USC beat a below the bubble Illinois team in 5 sets and then beat media darling Purdue the next? Ok… But maybe you should remember that on this same rinky-dink injury promoting wooden floor, Creighton swept Purdue 3-0…and they didn’t require 4 interesting video challenges to do it …. We’ll see how it goes…. 🏐 I'm not going to let you off that easily now that you're trying to weasel-word your way out of it. You flat out asserted that USC was not a good team, and furthermore that going 5 sets against them was no big deal for Illinois. It's typical of a lot of VT commenters who make flip pompous statements that are dead wrong. You're darn right now (in your weasel backdown) that USC is a better team now than they were 3 weeks ago. But that means (I'm helping you a bit here with the logic)...that Illinois may be better than they were 3 weeks ago too. And not just because they went 5 with both USC and a really good UCF team. In the case of Illinois, there's a really good logical reason why they're better than they were 3 weeks ago. It's because Nunge and Barnes recently returned to the starting lineup and finally got into decent "game shape". That doesn't fix all their problems, but they are much more capable of competing at a higher level now. A couple more thoughts for you to consider in improving your future VB assertions. I'd avoid dismissing teams as not "good" because they had ugly losses (or wins), especially in the pre-conference season. There are some teams like USC, and yes, Illinois, that have significant structural weaknesses but ALSO have serious weapons. It's reflected in how inconsistent they can be not just from match to match but even within a match, or within a set even. But having serious weapons gives them a serious chance of taking down much higher ranked opponents. As for the Illini, this week was actually a good inflection point leading into the conference season. No predictions on how much they can improve or how they'll end up in the conference. Just sayin' I want to be there when Huff Hall is rockin' and they knock off one of the big dogs. TBD.
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Post by vbkahuna on Sept 16, 2023 10:31:04 GMT -5
... Tamas - it feels like no coaching seat in the Big Ten is hotter than his. Illinois has a rich volleyball program history - i can’t see Whittman allowing the tank to continue much longer I normally like and respect your observations, but I think you need to think this one through a bit more. Tamas has had 6 seasons on which to assess his overall performance. If you throw out the ridiculous shortened COVID year (2020, when even Stanford had an absurd losing season), Tamas's record includes one Final Four and two Sweet Sixteens (the last one in 2021), with no losing seasons in 5 seasons. In the Big 10. That's not chopped liver. He's already part of the "rich volleyball history." You're frustrated about the losses and some players/attitudes. I get it. But back off the stove top. You're itching to jump out of the frying pan into the fire. Who are you going to find with that kind of record and that kind of patience for waiting for the new VB facilities that were promised and never come?
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Post by oldmanvb on Sept 16, 2023 11:49:22 GMT -5
Tamas needs to up his game. Getting rid of him would be a mistake at this point, but this is a team that needs coaching leadership, which is his job.
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Post by badgerbyproxy on Sept 16, 2023 11:53:02 GMT -5
one interesting thing i noticed last night - and after rewatching the fifth set. at the second timeout at 7-12, they make a note that Illinois was in a player only time out (standard) before Tamas and co. step in. But in that player’s only huddle, it doesn’t look like a single person is talking or trying to rally the team together. Maybe Burbage was and i couldn’t see it, but it looked grim and quiet before Tamas comes in. Where is the leadership? Who does/should the team look to for motivation? This squad just doens’t look comfortable playing with one another - and it’s nearly the same squad from the spring/summer! Out of curiosity, who are the captains for this year’s squad? They should be the ones to step up and lead if their going to do these player-led timeouts
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Post by liberovb10 on Sept 16, 2023 13:37:41 GMT -5
... Tamas - it feels like no coaching seat in the Big Ten is hotter than his. Illinois has a rich volleyball program history - i can’t see Whittman allowing the tank to continue much longer I normally like and respect your observations, but I think you need to think this one through a bit more. Tamas has had 6 seasons on which to assess his overall performance. If you throw out the ridiculous shortened COVID year (2020, when even Stanford had an absurd losing season), Tamas's record includes one Final Four and two Sweet Sixteens (the last one in 2021), with no losing seasons in 5 seasons. In the Big 10. That's not chopped liver. He's already part of the "rich volleyball history." You're frustrated about the losses and some players/attitudes. I get it. But back off the stove top. You're itching to jump out of the frying pan into the fire. Who are you going to find with that kind of record and that kind of patience for waiting for the new VB facilities that were promised and never come? Thank you vbkahuna - i appreciate the praise and to a certain degree you’re right..there’s frustration and maybe it’s unfair given the bad luck we’ve had with injuries throughout the years. However, from a “success” standpoint I know he’s led us to some impressive tournament runs, but the 2018 final four result was with Hambly’s recruits, we were bounced early by Utah in 2019, beat an over-hyped Kentucky team in 2021 (before losing to NEB), had the wonky covid year we can throw away, a 15-15 result last season, and a losing season currently against more than beatable opponents. What is frustrating about Tamas is his lax attitude (maybe the wrong word) when it comes to the transfer portal and bringing in talent. He’s been on record saying that he’ll recruit personality over talent - which is good to a certain degree - but there’s zero depth on the pin, no improvement on the passing front, zero capitalization on the final four run with recruits, no stability in the middle (what would we have been without Collins coming back), and little to no development at the setting position - Diana Brown never seemed to grow and we’ll see about Mosher as the years go on. Coming from the Cook coaching tree, maybe we expected too much? Maybe we thought he would instill that same defense first mentality? Maybe there’s a breakdown within the assistant coaches we have currently (we did great when Alfie and Rashinda were around)? Frustration all around when we know what Illinois Volleyball should be, and how much better the B1G is when we have a competitive squad on the floor. I can take the losses - but losing an 2-0 lead to UCF and not being able to close out 5 set wins - where is the hunger? where is the fight? some of that stems from the coaching staff.
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Post by notpriddy (COIF) on Sept 16, 2023 13:57:27 GMT -5
I am writing this as the Illinois football game is on the television, and I am on my 5th bottle of Bud Light Platinum. Also, I am at the advanced age of 72 and really know very little about coaching volleyball, recruiting, and what ultimately determines a good volleyball program other than wins and losses. I have been watching women's college volleyball for over 50 years. I agree with Chewblocka and am not giving up on this Illini team or the coaching staff. I can be honest and admit that we may lack the overall firepower that exists with almost any other Big Ten team. I do not know why up to this point the Tamas Era has not garnered more top notch players, but I am excited with the addition of our new assistant coach, Jen Tamas. My hope is that she will become an active recruiter in her new role to complement another proven recruiter on staff, assistant coach Krista (Vansant) Hendrickson. Forever I will say either I-L-L or I-N-I!
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Post by exit237a on Sept 16, 2023 14:11:11 GMT -5
I would not have set Raina back row on that last point when Fields is blocking and you have Tuniaga front row. I went back that night to watch that last USC point because it looked strange in the moment. Why was Raina being set on the right side when we're serving? I drafted you a message on my phone but VT crashed before I could send it and I didn't want to type it all out again- it was really late. Here's the gist of what I wrote. Raina wasn't in the back row. Out of the timeout, Tamas had arranged a special blocking scheme where Raina, who was positioned in right front stayed there after we served, presumably to put up a bigger block on Fields than Brooke. Brooke stayed on the left pin after Pan served. Normally in that serving rotation Raina would bump over to the left as soon as Pan serves with Brooke crossing over immediately to the right pin. The whole idea backfired when Fields sent an overpass back on Pan's serve, leaving Brooke with one attack option, to set Raina OOS on the right side with the big Fields + MB block camped out on the one Illinois attack option. I think you can count on one hand the number of swings Raina has taken from right front this whole season. Raina was stuffed. I'm not an experienced volleyball mind and it's annoying to keep piling on the coaches when we lose but I'm just bummed at how that went. As far as I can tell, the only outcome of that play that would validate us being in that special blocking scheme would be for Raina to have gotten a block, scored a point by blocking Fields. Any outcome other than that would have still left us out of position to transition to offense, with both Raina and Kennedy on the wrong side of the setter. You have the good fortune of serving at 13-14 to push a fifth set to deuce with your best outside hitter and attacking middle blocker able to line up in their natural spots with your lefty-attacking setter positioned such that she's another viable attack option the opposing block has to account for and instead of trusting that lineup you go with some longshot blocking scheme that puts you in an overall worse place to convert and score a point. Am I wrong in how I'm looking at this? It's not like 6'0" tall Brooke Mosher is some blocking liability. It just seems like a giant longshot when you have such good attacking personnel in the front row if you'd left them in their normal spots. Would love some insight on this from folks better versed in volleyball than me. I'm sincerely wanting to understand the thinking if I've misunderstood it.
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