I'm conflicted about this sort of stuff. I had an a--hole coach who sounds just like this. I actually ended up leaving the team before my eligibility was up, greatly due to him.
However, I wouldn't publicly smear the guy to this degree. It seems like they're really painting this guy to be some sort of villain, like he was a real criminal abuser. Sounds like he was just a jerk. I would describe my former coach the same way. Not an evil person, just a jerk of a coach.
Also...that guy in the article claiming he's 2.7% body fat....lmao yeah right...
Male athletes led push to get Greg Metcalf fired
College Running
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Why would you laugh at 2.7% body fat? Before my Oly Trials attempt half marathon I got in a pod at the expo and registered 4.1%. You guys don't know sh!t about performance.
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Distance runners are a bunch of baby cats... ouch you called me a name...... COME ON!
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Jimjamesrunner wrote:
I’ve led a very successful rebellion of this sort (the primary difference being that I had a fantastic successor in mind that I knew the school would be onboard with).
If you’re likening these athletes to “SJWs”, you’re misunderstanding the situation.
All a college athlete (especially of UW’s caliber) wants is to be successful. This coach had an approach that did not receive feedback from his athletes. That approach is incredibly ineffective with any training program, but especially in one where the athletes are balancing academic responsibilities with their athletic responsibilities.
His approach also lacked unconditional support. A coach’s primary function is to instill confidence in his athletes and to be a vessel for his athletes to displace their anxieties and insecurities. When a coach is manipulative and cannot be trusted, it can ruin an athlete as both a competitor and a human being (because athletes of that ability level/age place so much of their identities into their sport).
These runners are not overreacting. They are righting a wrong. They have plenty of evidence to support their claim and made the correct decision by fighting to have the coach removed.
To any athletic directors who read these boards, just because a coach has experienced some success and possibly even improved your program, that does not mean he is a good coach. If you’ve had multiple complaints from parents/athletes, you need to investigate them thoroughly. Your failure to act can lead to terrible consequences (such as injuries, eating disorders, etc...) for the athletes that are in your care.
PS - Just for clarification, I do believe it is a coaches job to point out when a runner is overweight, but there are proper and improper ways to do so.
Yet only a small minority shared this viewpoint and acted on behalf of everyone. -
2.7 % is bordering serious health issues.
the majority of body fat tests are notoriously inaccurate..>5% is not "the norm" for elite runners or athletes. I was measured in one of those tanks too and got 3.1%..no freakin way...
Of course you need to be lean to run fast, but theres a point where it does more harm than good -
lol sure if you want to put it that way.
More like if you had a boss who constantly berated you regardless of your performance at work, would you want to stay at that job? -
What an unselfish and chivalrous act those male athletes performed by seeing the abuse some of their female counterparts received and putting an end to it.
I don't know why these heroes are being called "sissies" or "SJWs". They and their friends were being mistreated and abused by someone in authority and they took action to protect the mental and physical well-being of themselves and their friends.
Some of you may say "but there were some females who opposed to him going." There are also wives in abusive relationships who truly love their abusive husbands! Once these female athletes receive a coach who is truly caring and supportive they were realize how toxic Metcalfe was on their mental state.
I knew someone on the UW team and when I asked him about this all he said was
"I wish they fired him before I got there" -
boomer / wrote:
“... In the past five years, 41.7 percent of long-distance Huskies have left the program, either transferring to other schools or retiring. Forty-nine percent of UW male distance runners between 2013 and 2017 — nearly one in two — left the program before exhausting their eligibility ...”
Are there stats on how many female athletes had to seek medical treatment for their eating disorders?
Don’t minimize this.
Stat's like these require context. Typically Div 1 teams lose a ton of runners for various reasons. Anecdotally I am not sure 50% is that outrageous of a number - I know of many programs that are a lot worse. This is particularly true of male runners as smaller amount of $ available mean less incentive to stay on the team and depending on how many walk on's there are (they hardly ever make it all 4 years) it can skew things.
Now that does not mean that there is not a problem - just that those stat's don't prove anything. -
nw master wrote:
There are so many dip$$its sounding off here about soft kids, blah blah blah.
I know Greg.
Greg is a very charismatic man.
Greg has some serious personal issues that spilled over into his professional life.
What is being reported in the media is just the tip of the iceberg.
I'll echo this. I ran for Metcalf, and he could at times be a funny and inspiring guy. There were also times where he was a "tough" coach, treating athletes like tough coaches do. And then there were times he was just mean and unprofessional, in ways that made you wonder why you ran for him, and how he came to be a coach in the first place.
This is not black and white. I would say he finally did just enough at this point to force his own resignation. As with all setbacks, I truly hope Greg uses this as an opportunity to learn and get better. -
BS wrote:
boomer / wrote:
“... In the past five years, 41.7 percent of long-distance Huskies have left the program, either transferring to other schools or retiring. Forty-nine percent of UW male distance runners between 2013 and 2017 — nearly one in two — left the program before exhausting their eligibility ...”
Stat's like these require context. Typically Div 1 teams lose a ton of runners for various reasons. Anecdotally I am not sure 50% is that outrageous of a number - I know of many programs that are a lot worse. This is particularly true of male runners as smaller amount of $ available mean less incentive to stay on the team and depending on how many walk on's there are (they hardly ever make it all 4 years) it can skew things.
Now that does not mean that there is not a problem - just that those stat's don't prove anything.
Attrition is attrition, for whatever reason. Is there attrition at every program? Of course. But at what rate?
Part of recruiting is assembling a team that is cohesive and singing off the same songbook, including walk ons and transfers. Part of coaching is keeping the team intact and viable, including avoiding injuries, tracking people's eligibility, and knowing the whole, developing student, who is away from home and dealing with all the stressors and temptations of college life. College coaches develop people, not just championships. If you can't hack it, you coach elites. -
Anecdotal:
Only about 35% of college students, nationwide, graduate from the first school they attend.
Just gonna leave that here for you. -
Multiple girls have been through this program and left for mental health issues or forgone their last year due to issues with Metcalf.... over the last 10 yrs its been Flood, Miller, Schaaf, Knight, Prouse, Bradley, M. Beuachane, Christian (who spoke in the daily article) , and 2 freshman from 2017... just some facts that make it seem its not just a boys team thing
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Yet only a small minority shared this viewpoint and acted on behalf of everyone.[/quote]
Elaborate. If you’re referring to the ones who transferred/quit altogether, those are understandable decisions as well.
However, not everyone has the option of removing themselves from the situation and many people have too much at risk to stir the pot. For example, if their attempt at removal is unsuccessful, they may be removed from the team or have their scholarship cut.
Situations that involve human relationships are extremely complicated and always will be. No newspaper article is going to be able to accurately describe the depth of the situation.
Look at the graduation/transfer rate and look at the talent that’s been destroyed. That’s all you need to know to understand that this coach was not the proper choice for this program, regardless of how good of a person he is or even how good of a coach he is. -
The parents of the few kids who came forward to report their concerns of this so-called coach should be proud of themselves. They raised responsible young adults with strong sensibilities and values.
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Snowflake post-millenials wrote:
Wow so a coach can't be an actual coach anymore in this SJW abyss that exists on college campuses anymore? Getting yelled at/shamed for improper behavior//appearance is how this stuff works
Great job, morans
Hi Greg! -
vivalarepublica wrote:
Snowflake post-millenials wrote:
Wow so a coach can't be an actual coach anymore in this SJW abyss that exists on college campuses anymore? Getting yelled at/shamed for improper behavior//appearance is how this stuff works
Great job, morans
Look, it's Metcalf!
What is pretty shocking is the standard attrition rate for programs overall. Oregon and Colorado lose 1/4 of their athletes. Just seems like success at the DI level in distance running requires somewhat of a meat grinder culture in general.
D1 is definitely a meat grinder at any competitive school. 1/4 seems light, at my school it was closer to 40 or 50%.
Also coaches should be able to talk to athletes in a professional way about weight. It affects how you perform and sometimes athletes do need to gain or lose weight. That being said what Metcalf is accused of goes beyond professional and he should be let go if the accusations are true. But we can't get to the point where weight is an off limit topic for distance coaches. -
What is being reported as a “male distanice runners vs. Greg” issue is false.
The UW is keeping the other issues out of the press (sexual harassment of athletes and staff, alcoholism, Greg going missing on the road due to alcoholic binges, multiple sexual relationships- all of which spilled into his professional life).
All this sh!t is the elephant in the room.
Greg created this situation. -
was Metcalf the coach during the Megan Goethals eating disorder fiasco?
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Snowflake post-millenials wrote:
Wow so a coach can't be an actual coach anymore in this SJW abyss that exists on college campuses anymore? Getting yelled at/shamed for improper behavior//appearance is how this stuff works
Great job, morans
The weight stuff is serious and can very negatively impact the athletes short and long term health. Do you not agree with that statement?
If this was just a bunch of athletes complaining about being yelled at for poor performances or getting tattled on for drinking/partying it would blow over. He wouldn't resign, the school wouldn't care too much but he might still have a high attrition rate. That is not all this is. -
When a coach calls girls on his team “cunts” in public while drunk as a skunk, you’d expect him to get busted.
What about a coach who gets wasted on the road and can’t be found when a female athlete under his care gets raped?
