Dave Hackenberg column on Coach Dakich

doughash · Post by **doughash** » Tue Feb 06, 2007 7:49 am

A lot of the same things have been rehashed on this site but still interesting to here it coming from a different perspective.

http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dl ... /702060396

Schadenfreude · Post by **Schadenfreude** » Tue Feb 06, 2007 8:38 am

I've not met Dakich, but he has always struck me as very likeable. That's what makes this situation so tough.

Jacobs4Heisman · Post by **Jacobs4Heisman** » Tue Feb 06, 2007 8:45 am

Dakich is a great person -- absolutely great. If the general public only knew about half the stuff he has done, he'd be almost universally loved, in spite of being a hard-ass.

Unfortunately, the biggest part of his job is to win, and that's been an issue recently. You're right, Schad -- it is a very tough situation. Most of us like a lot of the intangibles and discipline Dakich brings to the position. Of course, we also need to see results in the form of a championship at some point. It doesn't look like Dan is capable of bringing that to us, so we're probably at the point where's it's best for everyone to move on to a new situation. Dan will land on his feet somewhere, and in the right situation, I have no doubt he can win. That situation just isn't BG anymore.

JoeFalcon · Post by **JoeFalcon** » Tue Feb 06, 2007 9:10 am

A clear synopsis of the talking points for both camps. Clearly, this is Division I basketball and the bottom line is wins and losses. DD understands that better than anyone.

I'm tired of outsiders using Anderson Arena as an excuse. Outside of OU, EMU and NIU, the rest of the league's facilities aren't exactly palaces. They are old, cavernous dumps often sparsely filled and lacking any character or personality. NIU has yet to capitalize on their brand new Convo Center a few years into it, so that really isn't the cure-all people seem to think it would be.

Curt Miller is doing just fine, thank you, and was able to assemble the best team in MAC history (according to Mark Ehlen) and arguably the best recruiting class in MAC history to replace them next year.

No one is saying it's easy, but you can sell the old-school atmosphere and intimate environment that makes it such a special place and worthy of mention in Sports Illustrated when the team was on a roll. Every place has its drawbacks. I want to see a column lamenting Stan Joplin's task of recruiting to an inner-city campus surrounded by rampant crime and urban decay.

We can make excuses and tolerate mediocrity as the cynics and pessimists do, or we can acknowledge that BG's biggest selling point has been and always will be its people, regardless of how fancy the facilities are. You can win here, and it's been proven by none other than Dan Dakich himself.

falconfan1999 · Post by **falconfan1999** » Tue Feb 06, 2007 4:27 pm

I think he deserves at least one more year. And a new or more modern facility to play in. His job is to do more than get "w's", he is first and foremost a teacher (coach) and he is teaching his student athletes the value of an education. Keep it up Coach Dakich!

Flipper · Post by **Flipper** » Tue Feb 06, 2007 5:22 pm

At the rate we're moving on a new building, giving Dan another year and a mdern building would translate into one year plus fifteen more years.

BleedOrange · Post by **BleedOrange** » Tue Feb 06, 2007 5:49 pm

I don't believe that I'll see a new facility in my lifetime.

Falconbadger · Post by **Falconbadger** » Tue Feb 06, 2007 6:36 pm

I don't think you can use Anderson arena as a total excuse, but I hope you're wrong about no new building in your lifetime. The first time I walked into Anderson Arena, I looked around and thought, "Well, this is nice, but it's not really all that much bigger than my high school's gym." And I graduated in 1975.

factman · Post by **factman** » Tue Feb 06, 2007 7:33 pm

Just about the time we get this study finished, and plans for this, that and another facility, the AD will move on, and we'll have ANOTHER study to see what we need, what size, how we raise the money and all that BS. It has happend THREE times to the baseball/softball lockerroom facility. Truthfully, I am completely fed up with the whole situation, and since it get very little push from the "top", probably nothing will happen, other than a bunch of "patchwork" solutions in our lifetimes!

commonsense · Post by **commonsense** » Tue Feb 06, 2007 7:40 pm

falconfan1999 wrote:I think he deserves at least one more year. And a new or more modern facility to play in. His job is to do more than get "w's", he is first and foremost a teacher (coach) and he is teaching his student athletes the value of an education. Keep it up Coach Dakich!

So you believe he deserves at least one more year because his job is to do more than win. FAIR ENOUGH. However, for all the students he brings to campus to be (first and foremost) a teacher to, very few finish their eligibility and graduate. There have been 9 since the 2000-2001 season. That is six seasons and 9 players completing their eligibility. Four of those six seasons have only seen one senior graduate. I am sure some will disagree, but this is the truth. I will not discuss names of graduates or non graduates, if you must know you can check registration and records or the alumni center for conformation. In closing, I am not sure that the number of players graduating is more successful than W-L column the last two seasons. HOW CAN YOU SAY THIS IS TEACHING KIDS THE VALUE OF AN EDUCATION?

Falconboy · Post by **Falconboy** » Wed Feb 07, 2007 12:09 pm

commonsense wrote:
falconfan1999 wrote:I think he deserves at least one more year. And a new or more modern facility to play in. His job is to do more than get "w's", he is first and foremost a teacher (coach) and he is teaching his student athletes the value of an education. Keep it up Coach Dakich!
So you believe he deserves at least one more year because his job is to do more than win. FAIR ENOUGH. However, for all the students he brings to campus to be (first and foremost) a teacher to, very few finish their eligibility and graduate. There have been 9 since the 2000-2001 season. That is six seasons and 9 players completing their eligibility. Four of those six seasons have only seen one senior graduate. I am sure some will disagree, but this is the truth. I will not discuss names of graduates or non graduates, if you must know you can check registration and records or the alumni center for conformation. In closing, I am not sure that the number of players graduating is more successful than W-L column the last two seasons. HOW CAN YOU SAY THIS IS TEACHING KIDS THE VALUE OF AN EDUCATION?

That makes alot of sense too, then again........that is your name.

Rightupinthere · Post by **Rightupinthere** » Wed Feb 07, 2007 12:30 pm

Schadenfreude wrote:I've not met Dakich, but he has always struck me as very likeable. That's what makes this situation so tough.

+1

RobbyFalcon · Post by **RobbyFalcon** » Wed Feb 07, 2007 12:47 pm

As the piece points out and we know all too well, after the WVU trip, DD's record has gone down in a big way.

Why?

Are other coaches using this against him when they recruit the same kid?

Or is it just a coincidence?

We know he's lost a lot of players, but why is the line between winning and losing drawn through those few days in WV?

If this has been gone over before on these boards, I'm sorry for the redunancy.

Curious.

Go BG!
Beat NIU!

JoeFalcon · Post by **JoeFalcon** » Wed Feb 07, 2007 1:01 pm

I know there was some lingering resentment the immediate year after, but I think that fizzled over time. The biggest issue, IMO, is player retention.

He drove Keith McLeod, Lenny Matela, Brandon Pardon and others to their breaking point by yelling, screaming and kicking them out of practice. They stuck it out, developed a closer relationship with him and became winners.

The recent batch of players haven't lasted and have left the team in an almost perpetual rebuilding mode. The key is finding players who can accept hard coaching and thrive off of it rather than get driven away by it.

HoopsFan · Post by **HoopsFan** » Thu Feb 08, 2007 2:20 am

The greatest thing is that Dakich rode the laurels of Larranaga's last classes to a championship. When he left for WVU the tank was empty.
I was happy to see him go, and just as happy to see him come back so he could share in the mess he created.

The knock on Larranaga was that he was a) an East Coast snob b) a horrible coach/recruiter c) A .500 coach

What's Dakich's legacy going to be?

When Coach L first got here, they dusted off the prints for a Convocation center. I guess they got them out again about 3 or 4 years ago. I tend to agree that it won't be in my lifetime, and that's sad. Hey! Look at Kent State. Build the friggin' parking structure where the Student Services Building is, and blow a hole in the North End of AA. Forget the "green" space that no one wants or needs and put another 60' of arena with the amenities for modern facilities. That's about what they did to the MACC center. So what if we "only" gain about 1500 more seats. We can't fill the ones we have.

I think Dakich is gone. I'm happy and I'm sad, but this has got to stop.
I picked the team to be 6-10 and now it looks like about 3 and 13 in MAC play. Added to the 5 losses ending last year and our second winningest coach in Falcon history is fast becoming a .500 coach.

Hoopsfan

Dave Hackenberg column on Coach Dakich

Dave Hackenberg column on Coach Dakich

New facility ...

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