If she does decide to transfer out, it's most likely not because of the NIL. Zero pitching at times, below average lineup and who the hell knows what the coaches are doing. I'm sure she would rather be a small fish in a big pond than a big fish in a very tiny pool.
I think at this level, if a player is going to produce big, they'll do it from the start as freshmen, like Groenewegen/Macken/denHartog in the past & Chavez/Oakland now. If they're still trying to fimd and develop their games as upperclassmen, it's probably too late. As one highly successful veteran coach put it, "If you want to win big at this level, do it with underclassmen; as seniors they have too many other things interfering on their mind." The Gophers need more players who hit the ground running their first year. Gotta go out and find 'em.
Like to see more of Grayson as well.
It starts higher up, doesn't it? If the Univ. President wants a strong athletic dept., you'll likely get it.
Fingers crossed
Unless the athletics director is doing a poor job, the only reason for the president being involved with coaches would be misconduct or rules violations by the coaching staff.
Sorry that a bad year or 2 was all it took to lose you as a fan. Piper did fine handling both last year. One of the issues could be the number of pitchers she is coaching. It is hard to get six pitchers the individual attention they might need.
She did fine last year because she had an Ace that she could count on; this year its all being exposed. Yes, I know that throwing actual pitches doesn't fall on the coach; but developing players does. There are a handful of players that start that have been performing the same since day 1. I believe she is a good pitching coach, but I think she is in over her head and an upgrade on the assistants need to happen. Basic fundamental plays are not happening and its frustrating as a fan.
I remember when Donna Shelela (spelling?) came to the U of Wisconsin as president, their Athletic Dept. was rock bottom. She fixed that in a hurry.
Keeping those pitching aces coming in one after another is the key to a great program. Can't win without them.
Exactly! The athletics director was doing a poor job and was replaced by Pat Richter. He as much as said that she supported the department, stayed out of the way, and let him run the department.
Emily Leavitt was supposed to be the next star pitcher. Her leaving was an Emily problem not a Piper problem.
Good Point! I actually forgot all about her.
What was the Emily problem? It was hard to figure.
Not sure, but I remember there was some player discord with Leavitt and Chloe Evans and the other players.
I don't recall Chloe having issues with her teammates. In her farewell message, she mentioned working on her mental health. Several of her teammates wished her well.
I can’t say for certain if she part of the issues I know her name was mentioned in the conversation. I’m sure you have more knowledge about her situation than I do. I always liked her and glad she is doing well at UCF.
More than 9 games in front of your home crowd and also trips to the beaches doesn't hurt.
She was average at best last year and a slight improvement this year, so that wasn't a huge loss
I remember she had massive control issues her freshman year. Lots of walks and multi run homers.
Someone told me she was the most sought-after and most highly scholarship-loaded pitcher MN ever brought in. Whether true or not I don't know.
I think she was ranked in the low 30’s for her class. She was highly rated, but not everyone ranked in the top 100 becomes successful at the next level.
As a freshman, she likely would have prospered pitching behind a healthy Pease, or a Fiser or Groenewegen.
I remember in 2017 the Gophers mauled the Illini in the Friday afternoon game by a lopsided score, only to lose the Saturday game, their only Big Ten loss of that season; 19-1 was their Big Ten record that year.
Think a lot of people lost interest in this team.
It's hard to lose interest in a team with hitters like Oakland, DeBord, Chavez, & Krapf. But very easy to wonder about coaches who bring in---what? 7?---freshman recruits who aren't deemed worthy of much more than pinch-running, or assemble a pitching staff that can't hold leads. Is it possible to blow a 16-run lead? Imagine if Enter hadn't come back this year. This is actually a pretty darned good team, except for the recruitment of pitchers.Think a lot of people lost interest in this team.