Beth Sullivan making headlines at UT

She absolutely got cut for not being an SEC/high NCAA level athlete. Yes, she may get much better in college but obviously BAS saw that the investment was not worth it. She has run 61.37 and 14.51 this year. 13.97 is the 25th fastest time in the SEC. She would have the 20th fastest 400m H time.

That is hardly worthy of a full scholarship and the assistants at UT feel confident enough that this young lady would not be likely to impact in the SEC. End of story.

It doesn't matter what I think nor does it matter what you think. Will Morgan Harvey be able to run 55-56 and score high points at the SEC meet in the future? Maybe, but the coaches at UT sure weren't willing to put their jobs on the line to bet in favor of her.

You say she was recruited by BAS at Penn State. Fine. That was at Penn State. In case you have not noticed, the SEC is pretty darn competitive. Tennessee (and the SEC) is definitely a more high pressure job than Penn State (and the Big 10). She probably could have taken the risk at Penn State and been fine. I honestly do not know her thinking but after seeing her times, I would say she MAY be good enough someday at 400mH but not the 100mH in the SEC. That means that indoors there is no great event for her.

It is not the young lady that I have an issue with. It is likely her parents that are posting here. If it were my kid then I most definitely would not sit quietly. I would tell my son or daughter that the situation sucks, I would tell my son/daughter to visit the AD and let them know the situation. Then I would tell my son/daughter to figure out the next step and to make UT pay by running so fast that BAS regrets her decision to cut her. In other words, I would teach my son/daughter and put it in their hands.

Right now, I would assume that BAS does not regret anything. The 4 year headache of dealing with Morgan's parents would not be worth the 6th-8th place points she would bring UT in her Junior and Senior years.

I am sorry if the truth hurts. College track is elitist and brutal at the highest level. Morgan Harvey chose to go into THE most brutal conference and it didn't work out.

I would never send my children to compete in the SEC unless it was to Vanderbilt. Way too cut throat but that is why they get paid, why the facilities are usually great (although at UT they are not that great for track) and why the teams are so good. JJ found out what happens when your team is not good many years in a row. I'm sure he liked the paycheck but not getting fired for poor performance. Think how he feels as the most accomplished women's middle distance coach in the country.

Just realized Pitt is now in the ACC.

"She could have potentially endeared the athletes there by telling them that 'instead of dropping you now as I could, I will do the right thing for you as a person, honor your signing for the first year, and give you chance to earn your chance to stay"

So you're saying she should have not only ended up cutting them, she should have burnt a year of their eligibility as well??

This thread is crazy. There's been more made out of some scrub women's athlete's getting cut than any female runner's performance- EVER.

Hahaha!! wrote:

She absolutely got cut for not being an SEC/high NCAA level athlete. Yes, she may get much better in college but obviously BAS saw that the investment was not worth it. She has run 61.37 and 14.51 this year. 13.97 is the 25th fastest time in the SEC. She would have the 20th fastest 400m H time.

That is hardly worthy of a full scholarship and the assistants at UT feel confident enough that this young lady would not be likely to impact in the SEC. End of story.

14.51 would be the second fastest time (and the fastest wind-legal time) at UT this year. More importantly though, they have not had anyone run the 400H this year. It's pretty obvious she was cut to re-deploy her scholarship, not because the wasn't good enough.

It doesn't matter what number she would have been at UT. It only matters what number she would have placed at SEC or NCAA. A 9th place finisher at SEC is as good as no runner being entered. Obviously if she were good enough to place 9th as a freshman then it would indicate potential for the future.

BAS likely figured that if she were to invest a full scholarship in a 100mH/400mH then she wants someone that could score indoors and outdoors.

You really don't know what you are talking about, do you. Morgan Harvey has PBs of 13.95 and 59.63. I guess those must be from high school.The decision to cut Morgan and the other girls had nothing to do with the girls, or their parents, and everything to do with coaching staff changes. The AD was in on it. Morgan was cut, not for being sub-par, but for being good in the wrong event.Your story is fiction. Let's hope you really do end it.

Hahaha!! wrote:

She absolutely got cut for not being an SEC/high NCAA level athlete. Yes, she may get much better in college but obviously BAS saw that the investment was not worth it. She has run 61.37 and 14.51 this year. 13.97 is the 25th fastest time in the SEC. She would have the 20th fastest 400m H time.

That is hardly worthy of a full scholarship and the assistants at UT feel confident enough that this young lady would not be likely to impact in the SEC. End of story.

Ok, 59.63 and 13.95. That changes almost nothing in the conversation.

You really believe that she was cut for "being good in the wrong event"? Now I must laugh!!! That is hilarious!

Let me try again to explain 1+1=2 because you don't seem to get it. If Morgan Harvey could score at NCAA and win an SEC title then it would NOT matter what event she was participating. BAS may be a lot of things but that would be one of the dumbest moves in the NCAA history to get rid of a national scorer because she is in the wrong event.

Sorry but your daughter is really good but not great. Just deal with that. It would be better to come to grips with that now than following the fantasy of what you hope she will be. If she gets faster in an open 400m and can chop 3 seconds off (and that MAY be possible - I really don't know but obviously UT coaches don't think so) then she could help. I don't know Morgan's times but I would guess that she is not very fast in 200m or an open 400m. If she were then UT could use her in the 400m H and a 4x400m at championships. I do not see her making any impact in the 100mH though. She is light years away.

TNrunnah wrote:

"She could have potentially endeared the athletes there by telling them that 'instead of dropping you now as I could, I will do the right thing for you as a person, honor your signing for the first year, and give you chance to earn your chance to stay"

So you're saying she should have not only ended up cutting them, she should have burnt a year of their eligibility as well??

This thread is crazy. There's been more made out of some scrub women's athlete's getting cut than any female runner's performance- EVER.

The continuous efforts to reduce this story of shameful behavior by a University and the University's athletics administration are just amazing.

Throw in some more personal attacks next time.

runDirtyrun wrote:

The continuous efforts to reduce this story of shameful behavior by a University and the University's athletics administration are just amazing.

Throw in some more personal attacks next time.

Or, in the alternative, everyone could just STFU and let the thread die. I'll start: I won't post (under any handle) in this thread again.

But if, on the other hand, a certain individual keeps on bumping the thread with, in essence, precisely the same post that s/he posted ten times before, then s/he can probably anticipate responses, possibly unpleasant ones, from those who disagree with her/him and might be getting fed up with the beating this particular dead horse has received.

Not from me, though: I'm done.

Kicking recruited scholarship athletes off the team for no cause before the season, but after they are allowed to transfer and compete without a waiver, when they had signed a one-year contract is disgusting. The term 'entitled' applies here: if you are signed to a one-year contract to a team and university, you are legally entitled to the terms of that contract being fulfilled.

The terms of the contract were fulfilled. Please tell me which part of that contract was not fulfilled and don't make it up. Just tell me from the contract which part was not fulfilled.

Hahaha!! wrote:

The terms of the contract were fulfilled. Please tell me which part of that contract was not fulfilled and don't make it up. Just tell me from the contract which part was not fulfilled.

He means the contract in his head where everyone gets to win sec's and everything is candy and rainbows

Dial it up wrote:

Hahaha!! wrote:

The terms of the contract were fulfilled. Please tell me which part of that contract was not fulfilled and don't make it up. Just tell me from the contract which part was not fulfilled.

He means the contract in his head where everyone gets to win sec's and everything is candy and rainbows

Oh, Dial it up - your name says it all. You aspire to be the Joker of the Message Boards. You just want to see them burn. And, given the rampant nihilism among long distance runners, your existence, or, the existence of someone just like you is inevitable. I don't blame you. You're a consequence of the laws of nature.

But, hahahahaha!?!? I actually suspect that you are here trying to defend BAS - or, more likely - are BAS herself. You do know that every minute this thread stays atop the message boards is one minute longer that some athlete you're hoping to recruit gains a little more insight into who you are and how much you care about your athletes.

Unless, of course, you're actually BAS's enemy. Perhaps you, yourself, are a parent. Then.... I bow to your genius sir/madam. This would make you one of the most effective trolls in all of internet history. 10/10... heck, 12/10. Because every time you post some post arguing against me, or, the hundreds of other people who recognize and are calling out BAS's cruel behavior, you put this post up at the top one more minute.

I can't wait for your response!

How many UT coaches have posted in this thread?

Coaches and Parents wrote:

How many UT coaches have posted in this thread?

Probably several plus some administrators in the athletic department. They're trying to tag-team us with their side of the story, which doesn't hold much water. Makes them look bad.

Hahaha!! wrote:

The terms of the contract were fulfilled. Please tell me which part of that contract was not fulfilled and don't make it up. Just tell me from the contract which part was not fulfilled.

The part where their calculated efforts created nationwide ill will for the school and coaching staff. That part.

A general life lesson: whenever people are checking contracts there's really nothing left. No trust, no goodwill, nothing.

Coaches and Parents wrote:

How many UT coaches have posted in this thread?

Most likely one: Beth herself and possibly her dependent househusband.

Just a question. Has anyone ever looked at the UT videos of her? Doesn't she seem kinda creepy to you? Her mannerisms, her forced speech patterns? Doesn't she seem like someone who is not comfortable in her own skin and is trying to be what she thinks being a coach is supposed to be? She talks and acts like a 12 year old boy does when he's imitating sports announcers or pro-sports players when they are being interviewed.

When the conversation is to evaluate if she has potential to score points in the SEC, then 59.63 and 13.95 as a high school girl (the reality), versus 61.37 and 14.51 as a college freshman (what you said) changes that assessment significantly.BAS is a distance coach and Tennessee was a sprinting university. Morgan and others were dismissed to free up funds for more distance runners. For BAS, Morgan is running the wrong event. While you are laughing, the girls are crying, and many outsiders are scratching their head, asking why?That's what many here are saying -- that BAS made a dumb move, by discarding their top recruits before they even had a chance to succeed or fail. You seem to agree she has potential in the 400m H.My daughter is 8 and her only activity is dancing. I don't know if she is any good, but she likes it.

My daughter has received a few recruiting emails from various colleges. If she was to receive one from UT how would you advise her to respond?

1. No reply.

2. Reply with list of ,very obvious, reasons for rejection.

3. Give it serious consideration.

4. Another option.

Middle distance runner BTW.