Orr named MAC Coach of the Year!!

Post by **ZiggyZoomba** » Mon Mar 09, 2009 1:01 pm

Louis Orr Named MAC Coach of the Year

Cleveland, Ohio - Bowling Green State University men’s basketball coach Louis Orr was named the Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year today by vote of the MAC News Media Association. In just his second year at Bowling Green, Orr has led the team to an 18-12 overall record, a share of the MAC Eastern Division championship, and the No. 1 seed for the MAC Tournament.

Orr’s defensive philosophy has helped the team win five more games in 2008-09 than it did a year ago, including four more MAC wins. The Falcons finished fifth in the Eastern Division a year ago and were picked to finish third in the preseason poll but exceeded those expectations by taking on coach Orr’s philosophy and leading the conference in field goal percentage defense and blocked shots. In the year prior to his arrival, Bowling Green went 13-18 overall and finished last in the Eastern Division with a 3-13 conference mark. Last year the team went 13-17 and finished 7-9 in the MAC.

Over the course of the season, Orr has developed a tough-minded team that made a remarkable transformation. The team opened the year by losing seven consecutive road games. But the Falcons persevered and, after beating Ohio on the road, won six consecutive MAC road games, the longest streak in the conference since Kent State won seven in a row away from home in the 2001-02 season.

Bowling Green won its first division crown since 2000 and, by virtue of the No. 1 seed for the MAC Tournament, has qualified for the NIT Tournament for the first time since 2002. The Falcons need two more wins to reach 20 for the first time since that 2002 campaign and are attempting to qualify for the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1968.

Orr has a career record of 131-109 and had a pair of 20-win seasons in his prior seven years as a head coach. He took Seton Hall to the NCAA Tournament in both 2004 and 2006 and also took the Pirates to the NIT Tournament in 2003. He is the third Bowling Green coach in league history to receive the award joining John Weinert in 1978 and Jim Larranaga in 1997.

TG1996 · Post by **TG1996** » Mon Mar 09, 2009 1:13 pm

Is this shocking to anyone?

WAY TO GO COACH!!!! Congrats!!

Redwingtom · Post by **Redwingtom** » Mon Mar 09, 2009 1:44 pm

It's nice to see great things happen to great people.

Congratulations Coach Orr!

hammb · Post by **hammb** » Mon Mar 09, 2009 2:23 pm

I meant to mention this on our way out yesterday Grant, but this was a no-brainer to me.

Glad to see the voters were smart enough to see what a great job Orr has done. To win the conference with a team that was picked to finish middle of the pack in it's own division took a great coaching job. Especially since we still don't have a single player that I'd call a star. This was a total team effort, and coach Orr is the one that put it together. He's very deserving of this honor, and I'm glad to see the award went where it belonged.

Jacobs4Heisman · Post by **Jacobs4Heisman** » Mon Mar 09, 2009 2:25 pm

Well deserved - Congrats and thanks, coach!

hammb · Post by **hammb** » Mon Mar 09, 2009 2:29 pm

ah55 · Post by **ah55** » Mon Mar 09, 2009 2:45 pm

From The BG News Sports Blog

"Orr won in a landslide, gaining 20 of the votes."

tiznow · Post by **tiznow** » Mon Mar 09, 2009 3:01 pm

Congrats and thank you. Much deserved. I listened to the post game with Coach Orr on bgsufalcons.com. Very impressed, he is very humble. We are very fortunate to have him.

Warthog · Post by **Warthog** » Mon Mar 09, 2009 3:46 pm

Congrats Coach Orr!

Falconfreak90 · Post by **Falconfreak90** » Mon Mar 09, 2009 6:48 pm

Coach Orr oozes class and character. He is a very humble person and I love seeing him succeed. I am so glad he and his staff are leading our program.

Congrats Coach!! You deserve this award BiG time.

WIN THE TOURNEY

gmartin · Post by **gmartin** » Mon Mar 09, 2009 9:07 pm

He is very religious in his post game speaches. He mentions Lord and God more than he mentions Miller, Polk, Knight, etc.

In high school you would be banned for saying God or Lord in a statement. Personally I find it nice to hear. Just wondering if his mentioning to the guy above bothers anyone?

Falcon Fanatic · Post by **Falcon Fanatic** » Mon Mar 09, 2009 9:19 pm

Congratulations, Coach Orr!!! Well deserved!!!!

Post by **ZiggyZoomba** » Mon Mar 09, 2009 9:23 pm

gmartin wrote:He is very religious in his post game speaches. He mentions Lord and God more than he mentions Miller, Polk, Knight, etc.

In high school you would be banned for saying God or Lord in a statement. Personally I find it nice to hear. Just wondering if his mentioning to the guy above bothers anyone?

I'm pretty sure it really pisses Satan off....

Zig · Post by **Zig** » Mon Mar 09, 2009 9:28 pm

gmartin wrote:He is very religious in his post game speaches. He mentions Lord and God more than he mentions Miller, Polk, Knight, etc.

In high school you would be banned for saying God or Lord in a statement. Personally I find it nice to hear. Just wondering if his mentioning to the guy above bothers anyone?

So long as he isn't making the players say or do something religious as a requirement I don't see much problem with it. He can talk God all he wants. It might make some uncomfortable, but if my understanding is correct it's not technically illegal.

There was a story a while ago about a high school wbb team that said the lord's prayer before or after each game. One girl on the team politely declined to do it (because she was an atheist apparently) and stood by herself as the rest of the team said the prayer. She was either suspended or kicked out of school for it. Obviously what the school did would be illegal. So long as Orr doesn't make it a requirement against their wills I don't see a problem.

Dayons_Den · Post by **Dayons_Den** » Mon Mar 09, 2009 9:29 pm

Did someone say............

SATAN???!!!

Or was that Satan?