Molly Seidel returning to Notre Dame for 2017 NCAA track season

Brooks Beasts or Hansons.

New Balance

Hoka

Those are the only ones that would be willing to pay $60k. Probably not planning on the Marathon which would rule out Hansons and Hoka. That leaves just the Beasts or New Balance.

Nike and Adidas would not invest $60k without huge reductions.

I would wonder why she would leave Coach Sparks to join another training group. He has kept her healthy for the most part and helped her reach her potential with a couple NCAA championship titles. Perhaps the other training groups wouldn't allow her to continue with Sparks?

I've met her and her family and know the ND team pretty well because one of my kids in on it.

I don't think she's awkward at all. She's a very intelligent, funny, articulate young woman. She's very well liked among her teammates. So, this idea that she wouldn't fit in a training group is just silly and just another example of LRC trolls spewing unsubstantiated garbage.

I don't know the 'inside baseball' on what her offers were, if any. My guess is that she didn't get any ridiculous, 'make me go pro' offers because she was recovering from an injury in the spring. So, she made the logical decision to come back to ND, get healthy, win some big races and then see what the market offers.

It's that simple folks.

Go Molly and go Irish!

Stick with what works wrote:

I would wonder why she would leave Coach Sparks to join another training group. He has kept her healthy for the most part and helped her reach her potential with a couple NCAA championship titles. Perhaps the other training groups wouldn't allow her to continue with Sparks?

Get back to your office hours Coach Matt.

She would leave because.

1. There is more money in the groups.

2. Because she would be training with athletes at her level.

3. Because the college schedule does not mesh with the pro schedule.

4. Because her future is in the marathon.

If she wants a REAL contract she leaves.

Needs representatin. You are wrong. The post you are referencing most definitely didn't come from anywhere close to Notre Dame.

Conflict of interest wrote:

Coach Matt wants her at Notre Dame.

He doesn't share all the interest that come through his office regarding Molly.

Molly believes there is lack of interest.

Molly comes back to ND

Coach Matt wins.

Why do coaches always get accused of this? It took me all of 30 seconds to go to the Notre Dame web directorty and get Molly Seidel's email address. I'm very confident an actual coach could get in touch with her very easily, particularly since she's been in Flagstaff for months.

Does she have to take a postgrad program to run for a fifth year? What is she doing?

I'm wondering the same thing. Can you just use your 5th year to run and not be a grad student? Also she majored in anthropology so I'm not really sure what she was planning to do with that?

You can enroll as a non-degree seeking graduate student, so she can come back for the spring semester without seeking an additional degree.

newser wrote:

I saw her running on the Flagstaff urban trail a few days ago- she was awkward af and skinny af.

shes taking the fall off from classes and living/training full time in flagstaff until next semester start.... isnt technically cheating but pretty unfair imo. taking a semester off to strictly train at altitude seems like a fairly big competitive advantage.

Conflict of interest wrote:

Coach Matt wants her at Notre Dame.

He doesn't share all the interest that come through his office regarding Molly.

Molly believes there is lack of interest.

Molly comes back to ND

Coach Matt wins.

THIS 100x

goodellishitler wrote:

newser wrote:

I saw her running on the Flagstaff urban trail a few days ago- she was awkward af and skinny af.

shes taking the fall off from classes and living/training full time in flagstaff until next semester start.... isnt technically cheating but pretty unfair imo. taking a semester off to strictly train at altitude seems like a fairly big competitive advantage.

And only costs ND 50% of a scholarship because of only half the year! Pretty nice windfall for the ND program. Wonder how much ND helped or hurt her pro recruitment in private talks with Agents/Shoe reps?

But if I really had to guess, some agent got to her after indoors and started talking about 6-figure contract he/she could secure for Molly and after she was injured for the Trials, shoe reps lost interest. That's the business; the haves and the have-nots. If she was solely interested in earning potential and securing a future, should've gone pro the day after the indoor Championships.

goodellishitler wrote:

newser wrote:

I saw her running on the Flagstaff urban trail a few days ago- she was awkward af and skinny af.

shes taking the fall off from classes and living/training full time in flagstaff until next semester start.... isnt technically cheating but pretty unfair imo. taking a semester off to strictly train at altitude seems like a fairly big competitive advantage.

So, by that logic, NAU has an unfair competitive advantage. Should we ban them from competition?

runner dad with advice wrote:

goodellishitler wrote:

shes taking the fall off from classes and living/training full time in flagstaff until next semester start.... isnt technically cheating but pretty unfair imo. taking a semester off to strictly train at altitude seems like a fairly big competitive advantage.

So, by that logic, NAU has an unfair competitive advantage. Should we ban them from competition?

No. My point was taking a semester to strictly train and then enroll again in January to compete in track. She isnt redshirting. She is literally taking a semester off where she isnt taking classes= isnt a student

goodellishitler wrote:

newser wrote:

I saw her running on the Flagstaff urban trail a few days ago- she was awkward af and skinny af.

taking a semester off to strictly train at altitude seems like a fairly big competitive advantage.

If this is the first time that you have heard of DI athletes training for a semester in Flag, let me assure you that there are more than a few institutions that have gone down this path. In many instances, it is programmed in by the coach.

I suspect that the process that Molly has undertaken is scarcely different than a collegiate FB or basketball player testing the waters before declaring for the draft. She 'doesn't have' an agent, has shopped the shoe companies and gambled on staying for track to raise her stock.

AnnieTee wrote:

You can enroll as a non-degree seeking graduate student, so she can come back for the spring semester without seeking an additional degree.

There's obviously no NCAA rule against coming back to school just to compete, but it's sad that this is what academic institutions praise. It's obviously not terrible to gain a few graduate credits and not pursue a degree just so she can compete one more time. I just hope that she values the academic opportunity as much as the athletic one. (I too once valued running more than academics and regret this, but then again I was also below average.)

DKCCC wrote:

...but then again I was also below average.

Then your experience really doesn't relate much to that of a multi-time NCAA champ who is trying to get a pro contract, does it? Obviously she will place athletics over academics because that is her intended career path.

No way, man wrote:

DKCCC wrote:

...but then again I was also below average.

Then your experience really doesn't relate much to that of a multi-time NCAA champ who is trying to get a pro contract, does it? Obviously she will place athletics over academics because that is her intended career path.

Our situations don't relate much, you're right. However, the university that I attend and ND were both founded as academic institutions. I'm disgusted that with STUDENT-athletes, putting athletics over academics is something that is positively reinforced. If somebody wants to go back to school, it should be because that is the best choice for their academic career, especially if they are not receiving a scholarship. I'm very skeptical that this is true in Molly's case (and if it is, then I humbly apologize).

She was an academic All-American last year so she clearly values academics. Comments about what coursework she is doing in the spring is speculation. But of course this is the internet.