Sisson has done way more than Mccraven with lesser athletes. Most TAMU distance runners did by far their best in April.
Sisson has done way more than Mccraven with lesser athletes. Most TAMU distance runners did by far their best in April.
First off, both McRaven and Sisson are great coaches.
Now, Sisson does not have a history of running his athletes into the ground; as many have already stated he has a history of developing unknown Texas girls into All-Americans.
McRaven has completely turned around the distance program at TAMU (with Dan Waters' athletes) and has really created an awesome culture there.
Both are great programs and both have a track focus. Do your research; speak to several coaches and athletes from different programs.
I am a former Texas A&M distance runner and I can say positively that Texas A&M has the BEST places to train distance wise in Texas. We had about 20 different places to drive out to or run to from campus. UT has the greenbelt, town lake, and very few places. Austin is a HUGE distraction. HUGE! Their team parties a TON. Trust me I would know. I would go to Austin to party with them! UT has a great academic program but they party way too much and your daughter will be peer pressured into it for sure. All I hear is good things about McRaven and how much everyone has PR'd since him getting to the program. Notice he has only had one year with the program. I really wish I was a part of the program when McRaven was around. But I was there to realize that Pat Henry's values, system, personality, fairness, and EVERYTHING is what keeps that program amazing. He won't keep the bus from leaving to a meet for ANYONE. I've seen him leave national champions in the parking lot. He stresses time management. Of course for extenuating circumstances I've seen him wait. Such as someone's car broke down or wouldn't start and had to get a ride, etc. He has a quote that sticks to me still to this day. "Don't let the day get away from you". He ran cross country himself in high school and the distance runners always receive great treatment. To this day he has taught me most of the life lessons I live by. You will not go wrong with having Coach Henry and Coach McRaven guiding your running career. We Aggies are a family. I love coming to the huge team tailgating events before football games even after I've graduated. That team is still as close as they were when I was running. Seeing them hang out and support each other on a daily basis makes me thankful I had such a great team.
hahhahha wrote:
Sisson has done way more than Mccraven with lesser athletes. Most TAMU distance runners did by far their best in April.
In one year McRaven took a girl to runner up at the Olympic Trials. And took a team to 3rd at the regional meet. Sisson has had many years to prove himself, give McRaven a chance. He is taking a program that Dan Waters ruined to a top level distance running program.
Crazy how much crap the aggies always talk on here. It happens every year. Good luck aggies. At the end of the day, you are still aggies and you still have to return to college station.
And at the end of the day we've won six national titles in 4 years...with eight of our teammates in London for the olympics. College Station is an amazing place to call home. We love it.
carrots wrote:
[quote]Broke Dad wrote:
wow - you actually felt so strongly about "mentioning religion" that you counted her references to it & felt a derogatory post was in order? I take it that a college that only "mentions religion" to ridicule it would be OK-fine with you? I appreciate this athlete taking the time to reply to the OP, who - after all - asked about values, Christian influence, etc..[/quote
You're right the OP didn't ask about christian influence. My problem was that it seemed as if she was suggesting Christians won't party and that they all hold strong moral values.
No, I won't pretend that all Christians don't party or that they all have strong morals. There is hipocrisy/lack of authenticity among some people, and that's sad because it can give Christians a bad name. But to clarify, I was meaning that for the most part the Christians I know at Baylor are genuinely good people who really do hold to strong morals, and that partying is a lot less prevalent (though of course not absent) due to this Christian influence. This is one of the things that set Baylor apart from other places I've experienced, and these things could be relevant to the OP. I've gotten to know a lot of awesome people at Baylor and for many I can clearly see their faith at work in their life and their attitude toward others.
Sorry to go off on a tangent like this. I don't want to turn this thread into a debate about religion, but the OP asked about the overall school atmosphere as well as just the running situation, and Christianity is a big part of the culture at Baylor and could be a good factor to know about no matter what your beliefs are.
Well it certainly sounds like each program has its pros and cons for sure. Even renowned academic institutions such as Rice can have reported instances of partying by long distance girls, which is counterintuitive. So how much attributed to individual personalities vs. defined by the culture of the school?
Don't pay attention to all these negative comments. All these bashing are pointless and false.
I hope you are being recruited by the schools that are being discussed about because they are all fine schools. I hope u will get a chance to visit the schools that peak your interest. I wouldn't worry about party scene or social scenes cuz from what i see, a lot of these XC teams really build a strong sisterhood with each other (probably easily noted by the Baylor runner posting). It sounds like an experience you probably won't forget in ur lifetime regardless which school u go to. You also can make whatever u want out of your college experience, with academics, social scene, athletes.
From the schools mentioned:
Rice should be a young but upcoming team. They signed Cali Roper who was the best XC runner out of Texas this yr. I can see her do good things and leading Rice. Wouldn't be bad training with her. Obviously, academics are one of the best around. Houston is a fun city, but hopefully there are ways to get around the hot/humid weather.
Baylor is also a young team. They signed a good nucleus in 2011 led by Rachel Johnson. I am expecting big things out of this girl next yr. She is an amazing talent. I think Baylor will be much improved this coming yr with their soon-to-be Soph class. Hopefully the Baylor runner who posted gave you some good insight on her experience.
Texas is one of the best teams in the Big XII along with ISU. If Betsy Saina runs next yr i think ISU is top but Texas shouldn't be too far behind. Like everyone said, they have improved a lot under Sisson. A good number of their runners didn't place high in High School State or didn't go to State and are now doing good things under Sisson. As everyone mentioned, Austin is a very great place to train and a great city to live in. I really like Sisson a lot. Like everyone mentioned, he's intelligent and personable and caring. I don't people mentioned about Sisson, but he coaches Rogue Running which is a professional team. He really cares for his athletes and opens opportunities for any athlete (not just from UT) to consider a 'pro' career in track. If you have aspirations to consider track as a career if your track takes off during college, Sisson might be a good person to consider. Rogue Running has also improved/grown quite a bit.
If Sisson is coaching a pro team I feel like he won't have as much time to focus on the women like Harbour or McRaven. I hear great things about Baylor and A&M to be honest although I don't run for either.
What great things have you heard about Baylor? It seems like a lot of very talented runners go there every year and they never seem to pan out or develop. They are good as freshman and then you rarely hear from them again. Baylor should dominate Texas and Texas A&M. Lamar and UTSA were right behind them at the NCAA Regional last year.
Texas and Texas A&M are great choices. If you want more individual attention, you may want to look at Rice or some of the smaller schools in Texas with solid distance programs.
Once the Aggies and Longhorns are done throwing mud at each other you should step back and talk to both coaches. DEFINITELY take visits to both UT and A&M, as IMO they have equal programs. Both have great resources, teams, alter G's, etc. Don't set out on your official visits looking for anything in specific. Just take everything in and you'll know which one is right for you within 24 hours.
Aussies wrote:
If Sisson is coaching a pro team I feel like he won't have as much time to focus on the women like Harbour or McRaven. I hear great things about Baylor and A&M to be honest although I don't run for either.
Sisson only coaches the women at Texas, so no, he has plenty of time to focus on the UT women. McRaven coaches both sexes & has to recruit for Papa Henry.
Overseeing a professional program is a full-time job itself. Plus coaching the womens team at Texas. I would say both coaches have full plates. But they still make time for their athletes as they both have good programs.
If you guys have any brains at all you'll go to A&M.
Please just stop the trash talking. As an Aggie I don't think trash talking should be part of this conversation. Let the girl know the FACTS of the programs.
Texas - Placed second at regionals, had a strong runner in Sara Sutherland. Coach Sisson does very well with them.
TAMU - Placed third at regionals. Had the best collegiate runner in the nation with Natosha Rogers. Coach McRaven has done well his first year at A&M. We'll see what the second year has in store.
There is my two cents.
Please recount more than just the last year...
It totally depends on what you want out of a coach, school, and running.
I think the 3 best programs are probably Texas, A&M and Rice and then UTSA looks good out of the smaller ones.
Your daughter is a 10:40 runner, right? She can go to any of those.
So now you have to decide which school she likes out of those 3. Where does she want to live for the next 4-5 years? What does she want to major in?
If she absolutely hates the community or can't stand the students, then she shouldn't even look at the program because she won't be happy there anyway.
That being said, I would strongly consider visiting those 3 schools and then look into an out of state school or two.
Another thing she could do is use athletics to put her up a tier academically. For example, she might not be able to get into Princeton, but the running could give her the nudge to get in (as long as she is at least kinda close.)
I know some of the runners who attend Rice would normally not get in if they were a regular student. They're not stupid, but they might have fallen a little short on their GPA or test score and this gives them the edge.
Look into SMU and visit the university.
Just go to A&M