Thinking about running for Emory? Think again

a lawyer didn't draw these up - nor would any reasonable person (athlete or coach) expect that they be followed to the letter of the law in every conceivable circumstance

snowflakes who joined a team for the bus rides and pillow fights at the hotel will surely take issue that their little weekend slumber parties might be not be as fun because they are expected to be disciplined, train and compete seriously

some D3 programs don't want to be intramurals

#14 and 15 are the most ridiculous.

Coach Nguyen might just be a bit of an authoritarian and a control freak.

I’d tell him to pound sand, too.

A couple of facts here:

Emory is not some small, liberal arts school. It's a major research university. Just because you spot "D3" doesn't mean you can assume it is functionally the same as the model in your head.

All student-health concerns go through trainers at this point, at this level. I hate it too, but it's an absolute certainty to get chewed out by the AD. "I don't understand why it's that hard to follow this rule" has been told to me because I sent a kid back to their room because they were coughing.

Change isn't welcomed by everyone.

One subjective opinion:

The UAA is an arms race that is only comparable with a Power 5 league. The money that UAA schools spend on staffing and travel is hilarious. They are, effectively D1 in every way except for scholarships.

One hot take:

There are reasons that there's been a lot of staff turnover there in the last few years. It was absolutely never going to be "more of the same" for them, from an administrative perspective.

Pogo wrote:

One subjective opinion:

The UAA is an arms race that is only comparable with a Power 5 league. The money that UAA schools spend on staffing and travel is hilarious. They are, effectively D1 in every way except for scholarships.

I *definitely* never felt this way when I was at the school I was at. We got a pair of trainers, a pair of spikes, and a t-shirt. That's it. A lot of regional meets. Close to qualifying for Nats and want to go to a last chance not on the schedule? Tough.

Pogo wrote:

One hot take:

There are reasons that there's been a lot of staff turnover there in the last few years. It was absolutely never going to be "more of the same" for them, from an administrative perspective.

Don't know him personally, but under Curtin Emory was always a tough team that had multiple A-A athletes. If that's not enough for them, I'd sure hate to be Case, Brandeis, or NYU.

But I concede your larger point - if you expand beyond track, Emory is a top 10 school year-in and year-out in multiple sports, and WashU is a step beyond that. If their goal is to be competitive with WIAC without being shady/huge/admitting everyone under the sun like the WIAC, then I guess you have to switch it up.

Pogo wrote:

All student-health concerns go through trainers at this point, at this level. I hate it too, but it's an absolute certainty to get chewed out by the AD. "I don't understand why it's that hard to follow this rule" has been told to me because I sent a kid back to their room because they were coughing.

As a UAA alum, I can confirm that this is incorrect.

Pogo, can you clarify this:

"All student-health concerns go through trainers at this point, at this level. I hate it too, but it's an absolute certainty to get chewed out by the AD. "I don't understand why it's that hard to follow this rule" has been told to me because I sent a kid back to their room because they were coughing."

Is the rule at your school that coaches cannot make any health-related decisions, and must instead direct athletes to the trainers (I can imagine administrators creating a rule like this), or that a student must see a trainer before seeing any other health professional (I cannot imagine administrators creating a rule like this)? The Emory rule seems to be unambiguously the second.

I have no idea if the new Emory coaches are creating a "toxic team culture" or eradicating it. Time will tell? The trainer rule seems bad though.

Yeah this seems fucking dumb. I'm at a D3 school that routinely pumps out all-americans and podium finishes and we're treated like actual people by our coaches, and somehow we're much better than Emory. Yeah the team is pretty serious when it needs to be, but jesus christ it would suck so much to have that level of micromanagement.

dii alum wrote:

Pogo wrote:

All student-health concerns go through trainers at this point, at this level. I hate it too, but it's an absolute certainty to get chewed out by the AD. "I don't understand why it's that hard to follow this rule" has been told to me because I sent a kid back to their room because they were coughing.

As a UAA alum, I can confirm that this is incorrect.

So am I. And I'm a college coach. This has been my world for the last 10 years.

Basically, yes. It's absolutely bonkers. I can't send one of my athletes to Student Health Services. I can't make the decision to not train an athlete for a day because they aren't feeling 100% without alerting the trainers.

I'm sure there's some logic regarding liability, but at a certain point it went from injuries related to the sport they play to ALL health concerns. It's maddening. The only limit that I've found is health concerns due to Title IX circumstances.

Bruh

holyshit wrote:

Yeah this seems fucking dumb. I'm at a D3 school that routinely pumps out all-americans and podium finishes and we're treated like actual people by our coaches, and somehow we're much better than Emory. Yeah the team is pretty serious when it needs to be, but jesus christ it would suck so much to have that level of micromanagement.

I don't disagree with this, but keep in mind a lot of team management concerns/changes brought about by new coaches are directly related to issues due to prior administrations. Everything is a reaction. I've seen coaches replaced around me for lack of team control, and the next coach is a micro-manager. If they don't win and turn a corner then someone more relaxed takes the helm. You either win, grow, or get out.

holyshit wrote:

Yeah this seems fucking dumb. I'm at a D3 school that routinely pumps out all-americans and podium finishes and we're treated like actual people by our coaches, and somehow we're much better than Emory. Yeah the team is pretty serious when it needs to be, but jesus christ it would suck so much to have that level of micromanagement.

I'm not defending these rules (although I definitely think they are quite normal and everyone is overreacting), but you can't blame a coach for the performance of a team in his first season. Wait 10 years then decide.

Pogo wrote:

holyshit wrote:

Yeah this seems fucking dumb. I'm at a D3 school that routinely pumps out all-americans and podium finishes and we're treated like actual people by our coaches, and somehow we're much better than Emory. Yeah the team is pretty serious when it needs to be, but jesus christ it would suck so much to have that level of micromanagement.

I don't disagree with this, but keep in mind a lot of team management concerns/changes brought about by new coaches are directly related to issues due to prior administrations. Everything is a reaction. I've seen coaches replaced around me for lack of team control, and the next coach is a micro-manager. If they don't win and turn a corner then someone more relaxed takes the helm. You either win, grow, or get out.

Are you close to the UAA? Did Curtin leave, or did he get pushed out related to whatever culture this new guy is trying to eradicate?

holyshit wrote:

Yeah this seems fucking dumb. I'm at a D3 school that routinely pumps out all-americans and podium finishes and we're treated like actual people by our coaches, and somehow we're much better than Emory. Yeah the team is pretty serious when it needs to be, but jesus christ it would suck so much to have that level of micromanagement.

the same treatment occurs at D1 schools - the athletes are treated like people and they manage to have some fun despite most having very similar expectations

a few hobby joggers were a little miffed that the jogs to the ice cream shop and soccer games in lieu of workouts have been eliminated

if it isn't for them that is understandable - but to go after a coach's livelihood by whining to the school rag is childish

I ran at a bottom-feeder d3 school, but I always had a passion for the sport and never had a problem making pretty much all the sacrifices the athletes talk about in the article. I really do not understand the 'it's just d3' excuse that these kind of athletes regurgitate. To me, if you're going to participate in a college sport, you should want to be the absolute best you can be. I know people could pass for just wanting to be on the team in high school, but not college.

The thing is these types of kids go into d3 programs because they want to have a balance where they won't have to make too many sacrifices for track. In reality, if you are an athlete at a d3 program, you should be thankful for the opportunity to pursue your passion in T/F.

These coaches do need to improve though in their approach. When you inherit a team, it's just not a good look to clean house and have a mutiny. the only thing the coaches can do is be up front when they recruit new kids and lay out the expectations.

Another thing- this list of rules is full of holes. I can not read all of them but things like 'no drinking' or 'no tobacco use' AT ANY TIME are impossible to enforce. The coach cannot monitor these people 24/7. The best any coach can do is deter athletes from drinking by instituting early morning practices on the weekends.

If you were wondering why the article screams of lack of coherent logic and is incredibly one-sided, justifying resentment, I give you the

Author of the Article:

Madison Bober (20C) is from Hollywood, Fla., majoring in political science and minoring in women’s, gender and sexuality studies. In addition to the Wheel, she is an undergraduate research fellow at Emory’s Center for Law and Social Science and a member of the Emory College Honor Council.

God forbid the coaches restrict you from drinking and partying in season. There's a reason people do not take D3 seriously on this board.

ok. i haven't read the whole article or all the rules for that team, but i just wanted to say that having to wear school colors for anything is stupid. at my middle/high school, they required that students wear school colors during PE class and this is a public school by the way. in my opinion, if the school doesn't offer the clothes for free, then they should not be forced to wear certain colors.