Wow. I was planning to wait until season’s end to express my opinions about the South Carolina coaching staff and whether they should return for the 2008-2009 season–but after seeing a lot of comments on this subject on the Danger Zone website (Unofficial home of South Carolina women’s basketball) that speculate that “only a miracle” could save head coach Susan Walvius’ job–well, I thought I should move up the deadline a little bit, lest my comments be rendered moot on short notice. Again, this is based on a rumor and I can’t vouch for the source of said rumor, but based on the level and intensity of grumbling I’ve been hearing in the stands, this season, I certainly wouldn’t rule it out.

This is the first time, in her 11 seasons guiding the Gamecocks, that I can remember fans in the stands calling for the firing of head coach Susan Walvius. Don’t get me wrong, it hasn’t been all wine and roses for the past 10 years, either. But previous disagreements with lineups, tactics and a variety of other factors have never reached this level of disgruntlement, as far as I can tell. Granted, there were signs of mutiny last year, during the final home game of the season. It was Senior Day and several seniors didn’t see so much as a minute of playing time–these were NOT marginal players, some of those seniors had been starters for more than half of the season. It was that much worse that a few of those seniors were from the European contingent and some of them had family in the stands, for the first time in their college careers. There are plenty of folks who are still upset about that, which probably doesn’t help the current situation.

My personal opinion about coaching jobs, in general, and Walvius’ job, in particular, might surprise some people. I am not in favor of firing her, at least, not at this time. Why? Because although there is incredible focus on the current W-L record, that is not the only thing that she does. I don’t believe that focusing solely on the Ws, as a whole, is quite fair. The team that Walvius inherited was not a team that was ready to play, on even terms, in the Southeastern Conference. They had already played 6 seasons in the SEC, but had a total of only 13 conference wins in that time. Walvius started from scratch, and well behind the SEC pack, in all aspects of building an SEC team. Recruiting is only now at the level that it should be. There is a lot of competition for the best in-state players, considering that South Carolina is right smack in the middle of both the SEC’s and Atlantic Coast Conference’s territory. U.S.C. competes for talent with the best teams of both conferences and it appears, now, to be a truly competitive effort. Walvius and staff are now signing players who have earned rankings in the Top 100 scouting report lists, where initially she had to travel to Europe to sign a big, talented player. She got a lot of criticism for going overseas–but if you can’t find an American kid who wants to play at U.S.C., what are your other options? It was a fresh and creative–and productive!–solution to the problem.

But put aside the on-court part of the job. (I know, most of you prefer not to do so. Wins and losses are important.) Remember, in the women’s game, the ideal of the “student-athlete” is valid, not the oxymoron it often resembles in the men’s game. I like that; I admire the effort that it takes and I hope it never changes. Walvius and staff have had tremendous success promoting academic success on the team. I think that’s important, perhaps as important as winning. I know it’s important to the players and their futures.

You don’t build a dynasty–or even a competitor– overnight. Everyone gets compared to Tennessee and the machine that Pat Summitt has put in place there. But Pat has been building that machine for more than 30 years, now. Her model for team building is impressive, but it is no longer applicable to the game. There was no NCAA for women when Pat started coaching and there was a lot less competition–I’m not slighting Old Dominion or Delta State or Louisiana Tech or any of the really good teams of that era–but there were fewer teams playing, less in the way of player development, and even less overall emphasis on championships and winning. Women’s college basketball is much more competitive, top to bottom, now than ever before and building a winner is a lot tougher. And it takes a lot longer.

Unlike a lot of fans, I actually do see progress on the women’s basketball team. I can remember scanning through the SEC leaders rankings, in past seasons, and never finding a U.S.C. athlete’s name anywhere on those lists. Right now, there are quite a few of our players listed in the rankings for shooting, rebounding, 3-point shots taken and percentages, steals, blocked shots and assists and assist-to-turnover ratio. It’s not dramatic, but it is progress. Recruiting is better than it has ever been. Jordan Jones, this season, has demonstrated dramatically what the difference is between a Top 50 player and those that are ranked lower or unranked: the ability to step in and play NOW, as well as simultaneously learning the team system and adjusting to the new challenges of college ball. Jones plays as if her life depends on it. Is it any wonder that the teams who sign several players of that caliber, each year, are those who are in perennial contention for a national championship? I think not.

This year and the past 2 seasons, it has seemed to me that the template for success was in place–and we had some good players. Good, but not great. I watched so many games that I thought we should have won, considering the talent available. But a bunch of talented players is not necessarily a good team. There were games in which I thought we were out-coached–but not that many. More often, we went into the game with a viable game plan that was poorly executed. And while the blame for that situation does fall on the coach’s shoulders, there is only so much that she can do. She can’t shoot the layups and free throws for the players, nor box out for the rebounds. Hopefully, though, she can teach the players to do all of these things a little bit better. My own dissatisfaction with our current coaching staff has more to do with what appears (to me) to be a lack of flexibility and creativity, rather than the won-loss record. Sometimes they seem to be determined to pound a square peg into a round hole, rather than to look at and assess what they have and, just maybe, “try another way.” I’m a Monday morning quarterback, of course, but I really do think that taking some chances–however unconventional they might be–would have a positive effect on the players, the team and the won-loss record. You have to remember that these young women are still kids, in a lot of ways. They don’t look at basketball as a business–which it most certainly is, to their coaches, schools and administrations. They play because they love it. They don’t want to be bothered with the details, nor should they be. Approach the game on their level, with emotion and energy and intensity.

I was struck by the difference in Carolyn Peck, in last year’s SEC tournament, coaching what she knew would be her last games for the Florida Gators. Everyone expected Florida to show up for Thursday’s game, lose, and go home. But the coach, that day, was the Peck of old: pacing the sideline, working the refs, squatting or stretching for a better view, shouting instructions and encouragement, totally involved in the game. It wasn’t something that had been seen from her in a while, but it worked. Freed from the constraints of worrying about what would happen if she lost, she was totally involved in Game 1 and the Gators responded with an unexpected win. I can remember when we used to see that kind of energy from Walvius and staff, too–again, something we haven’t seen in a while. Does anyone else remember how, in years past, Walvius would yank off her jacket and (literally) roll up her sleeves? It was a clear signal that the team had better get down to business, because she was on it–they knew it and so did we. I’d really like to see that kind of energy and involvement again; I think it would make a positive difference.

So, while I’d definitely like to see some changes made by our coaching staff, I am not yet ready to call for a wholesale change of that coaching staff.

Not yet.

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