Ranking WI collegiate distance programs

XC Artist wrote:

Crouching Tiger Hidden Panther wrote:

Pete Corfeld is a prime representation of UW-Milwaukee as a whole . UWM is a failed system which staggers at least two steps backwards before making any strides forward. If you were to get a better WI-native leader in that position--i.e. Dave Uhrich, Thomas Breitbach or Dominic Newman--UWM would yield consistent results and be more competitive as a whole. I think it is important to have a home grown coach for this particular position.

Bruce Pearl as a coach (non-native) did this in one year with basketball. Like him or not, side with the future Tennessee scandals or not, Bruce Pearl energized his student-athletes and got the most out of them. Corfeld is the polar opposite. Pete Corfeld has cost UWM decades of humiliation and the long term damage/stigma for the program is nearly irreparable.

I think this is a good point. Leadership must change for UW-Milwaukee to truly make the next step. A native coach is the right call also. You need someone who has a strong tie to the Wisconsin running community. Pete Corfeld's days are numbered at UW-Milwaukee, the guy is pushing 60 and he doesn't look like a healthy young 60. That said, there are a few factors involved with Corfeld's future departure and the next leader.

A mid-major program like UW-Milwaukee is going to want to save money when hiring a new coach. They are going to want a first time head coach who can't leverage any salary demands. They will also want this person to be the head of both men's and women's XC and Track so they don't have to pay multiple coaches to be head coaches. UW-Milwaukee's future in distance running solely depends on the decision of the AD. Suppose the AD likes a candidate that is a non-distance coach, well you can kiss goodbye any possibility of continued forward momentum from UW-Milwaukee. Coaches want to hire people they know and trust, so in this scenario you can figure every coach will get canned. The next piece to this is that a non-distance coach isn't going to put a lot of scholarships into distance (Think SEC type structure).

I like the thought of Dom Newman, he is a well respected coach, but he's probably making better money at Shorewood than what UW-Milwaukee would offer. Plus you have to think about work/life balance, he's not thaaaatt young, and I doubt he wants to be on the road half the weekends out of the year. Tom Breitbach has a good thing going for him at Parkside. His next move has to be assistant at a DI or Director at Eau Claire or something like that. UW-Milwaukee would be a step sideways, not forward. I am not familiar with Dave Uhrich, so I can't comment on that.

Other names to float out there (because its fun to speculate): Dawson Miller, John DeWitt, I'd even say Maverick Darling

UW-Milwaukee's future in distance running depends on getting someone who is a qualified candidate that would work for $30-35k. My prediction is that Corfeld steps away the moment he hits retirement age, and when that happens, UW-Milwaukee will become a revolving door for young coaches to earn their stripes for 3-5 years before taking a better job somewhere else.

Foreshadow complete wrote:

"I am not big on 'success promises' – what I call where a new coach will say 'we plan to win by this certain year'," Basler said. "I feel there are too many things we can't control with opponents and other teams. We just have to focus on what we can control and how we respond. The promise I can make is that the process is going to be very good. And, usually, when the process is good, the outcome will be good as well. I am ready for the challenge and really grateful for the opportunity."

This translates to "I don't want to make any promises because Corfeld and his staff left me with nothing to work with. We are going to suck for a while until I change the staff and recruit kids I believe in. So just hang in there with for the next 2-3 years."

For the record, he's not wrong to think that, but it is stupid for him to say it out loud. If I am a kid on the team, I would be so pissed to read that. Some guy who has never run a single practice at uwm or anywhere as a head coach is making comments like that on his opening press release? That is no way to build trust with your current student athletes.

The Starved Elephant wrote:

Foreshadow complete wrote:

"I am not big on 'success promises' – what I call where a new coach will say 'we plan to win by this certain year'," Basler said. "I feel there are too many things we can't control with opponents and other teams. We just have to focus on what we can control and how we respond. The promise I can make is that the process is going to be very good. And, usually, when the process is good, the outcome will be good as well. I am ready for the challenge and really grateful for the opportunity."

This translates to "I don't want to make any promises because Corfeld and his staff left me with nothing to work with. We are going to suck for a while until I change the staff and recruit kids I believe in. So just hang in there with for the next 2-3 years."

For the record, he's not wrong to think that, but it is stupid for him to say it out loud. If I am a kid on the team, I would be so pissed to read that. Some guy who has never run a single practice at uwm or anywhere as a head coach is making comments like that on his opening press release? That is no way to build trust with your current student athletes.

But he didn't say that out loud. You put words in his mouth for him. I am not the least bit convinced your translation is accurate. He's probably an honest guy that doesn't want to make any empty promises. Is that so bad?

Foreshadow complete wrote:

The Starved Elephant wrote:

But he didn't say that out loud. You put words in his mouth for him. I am not the least bit convinced your translation is accurate. He's probably an honest guy that doesn't want to make any empty promises. Is that so bad?

No one is asking him to come in there and say we will win a horizon league title by year X, but you have to understand the audience you are giving your first public remarks to. The overwhelming majority of people who are reading this presser are alums, current students, local runners, and parents of high schoolers. They are all going to be confused by Basler speaking out of both sides of his mouth saying things like "There is a rich history and tradition of winning at Milwaukee" (under Pete Corfeld), but "I am looking to bring in a new energy and a new passion.", (insinuates Pete and Co. severely lacked that). Then goes out of his way to say "I am not big on 'success promises'", which indicates he does not have a lot of faith in the team he is inheriting, also a major indictment on Corfeld again.

My point is, you can think all of these things, and they can all be true, but you need to be mindful of how things come across. If I read it that way, there are probably a lot more people who did too, including Pete Corfeld, who from my understanding has a very good relationship with his alums. Sometimes being honest and real is not a good thing. This was not a positive first presser for Coach Bassler.