Schumacher has seemingly lost the plot. The high volume, high intensity training methods were working for a time, for some of his pros. But he's pushed it too far for even the most talented athletes to handle. Woody's and Frerichs' interviews were telling. Woody felt he was forced to do too much being a work horse for Grant, and Frerichs said she didn't like that Jerry changed the training to add even more workouts a week. He's running people into the ground.
So this surprises me, having never been a pro runner. Were Frerichs and Kincaid employees of jerry? Non union coal miners maybe??? They are star athletes, I cannot believe they have no say in their work-outs or if they are tired one day or the volume is wearing on them? Coaching 101 is every athlete cant have the exact same training regimen. I guess i assumed Track wasn't the same as football or Bball...coaches way or the highway? What worthwhile coach that has immense talent and motivation at his disposal would just blindly prescribe workouts without feedback?
Woody said Jerry told him when he left that "he was making the worst mistake of his life". He wanted to be able to have more input into his training but that isn't Jerry's way. Notable that Woody pr'ed in the 5k and 10k after leaving. In a way they were employees of Jerry, bc until they renegotiated with Nike it was likely in their contracts to train under Jerry's instruction.
Oregon has always been a hard scholarship to score. It's even tougher for in-state kids to break through. Why take a chance and use fiscal resources on a domestic high school kid when you can get a Canadian, Australian, British, or Spanish U20 with international experience for next to nothing because their family or their government is footing most of the bill?
95%+ of "next great American distance talent" kids flame out in college or never reach their potential. Track doesn't have the budget to absorb bad recruiting decisions like football does. The reality of NCAA coaching is that you can use money, facilities, and history to recruit athletes with talent but, it's all a crapshoot once they arrive on campus. Some kids cannot handle the pressure. Some can't manage academics/sports because both are far more intensive than in high school. Many find alcohol, sex, and parties more alluring than their childhood dreams of Olympic glory.
I don't know Jerry but, he certainly knows the pro side of the sport. Most of his staff are former pros. I would venture that they have an eye for talent that most college coaches don't and simply don't consider a lot of top high school kids because they lack fire, discipline, bravado, or some other "IT!" factor that screams future NCAA champion and pro potential. They might miss out on some great athletes but, they also won't be tied down by a lot of bad money committed to unfulfilled potential. Case in point, look at Colorado these days.
Jerry Schumacher is a bad fit in many ways to be the head coach of a college team. A. He doesn't like dealing with the media.B. He is used to managing a small team, not a big team.C. He is used to dealing with mature adults,...
Why take a chance and use fiscal resources on a domestic high school kid when you can get a Canadian, Australian, British, or Spanish U20 with international experience for next to nothing because their family or their government is footing most of the bill?
Foreign athletes are “all or nothing” with a scholarship, no partials, just full rides.
So this surprises me, having never been a pro runner. Were Frerichs and Kincaid employees of jerry? Non union coal miners maybe??? They are star athletes, I cannot believe they have no say in their work-outs or if they are tired one day or the volume is wearing on them? Coaching 101 is every athlete cant have the exact same training regimen. I guess i assumed Track wasn't the same as football or Bball...coaches way or the highway? What worthwhile coach that has immense talent and motivation at his disposal would just blindly prescribe workouts without feedback?
Woody said Jerry told him when he left that "he was making the worst mistake of his life". He wanted to be able to have more input into his training but that isn't Jerry's way. Notable that Woody pr'ed in the 5k and 10k after leaving. In a way they were employees of Jerry, bc until they renegotiated with Nike it was likely in their contracts to train under Jerry's instruction.
Seems insanely counterproductive. I mean no disrespect to pro coaches but we're all aware that there's a finite amount of knowledge in running and racing. Just about any pro runner has acquired the same knowledge as a pro coach by the time they're twenty two. Everything else becomes personalized, and that would definitely require a great deal of input from the athlete.
Since when? I personally ran with and against a lot of foreign "walk-ons" back in the day. They didn't need financial aid because rich parents or their home governments paid for them to attend college in the USA.
CONNOR BURNS & SIMEON BIRNBAUM RETURN TO THE PODCASTYou ask, we deliver. After months of requests to get the villains back on the podcast, we came through. C...
I listened to this the other week, and perhaps off topic, but one of the most shocking things to me was how little school work or school seemed emphasized in their daily lives. They are after all at college and the odds are not in their favor of making much as pro runners.
I listened to this the other week, and perhaps off topic, but one of the most shocking things to me was how little school work or school seemed emphasized in their daily lives. They are after all at college and the odds are not in their favor of making much as pro runners.
Often times people don’t talk about schoolwork much in these interviews. Doesn’t mean that people don’t study and do hw though
Well, that really puts a cap on an absolutely miserable year for Oregon's men, thanks to Jerry. Birnbaum was a tremendous long- and short-term prospect and now he has one of those overuse injuries that are a hallmark of overtraining of the kind Jerry preaches and a wont of checking in on his athlete's health individually, because a femur stress fracture is usually something that develops gradually and provides many warning signs in advance. For me, the only public warning sign I saw was that he ran 3:45. This was a 3:37.93 guy in high school.
In a post to Strava this afternoon, Oregon Freshman Simeon Birnbaum announced that he will miss remainder of the 2024 outdoor season due to a stress fracture. He wrote, “I am honestly extremely confused on how this could have...
Add this to the continuing and still unidentified injury that Burns described going through over the past months and you have a complete disaster for Jerry's top recruits this year.
That is brutal news for Jerry/Oregon and unfortunately it just keeps stacking up. A stress fracture in the shin is one thing, but the femur is a big bone to put a crack in. That's either a significant biomechanical issue or an athlete that has severely overtrained.
Lost years for both Birnbaum and Burns. Barely raced, also maybe burned some eligibility with those early season races before getting hurt? Hopefully they can get a waiver.
If Jerry turns things around I'll be the first one to hype him up and say I was too harsh too soon. But as it stands now let's call a spade a spade.
Jerry stuff aside, this is a devastating injury for Birnbaum. Things are different now with underwater treadmills and zero-g treadmills, but I had a teammate who got this sophomore year and he was basically out until he was a senior. Not only is this one that should be caught earlier, but it is also just so hard to heal from being such a high weight bearing area. Hard to keep weight off your femur, even with crutches. Does it mention if it is low on the femur or up near the femoral neck?
