Dambrot’s postgame quotes
Posted November 24th, 2007 by mrasor
Men’s basketball
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Some notes and quotes…
Ronnie Steward has a more serious issue than his hip pointer. He has been in and out of the hospital this week with a heart problem. “I’m worried about his heart, not his hip,” Keith Dambrot said.
QUOTE OF THE NIGHT about the coach’s relationship with Steve McNees: “I like McNees. He’s unbelievable as far as attitude goes. Me and him have been like living together. I feel like I’m cheating on my wife.”
On Jeremiah Wood’s subpar game: “It’s going to be hard to win if Jeremiah doesn’t play better.”
On the strong second half: Akron “spread it out, played the little guys. We have been a good team when we go small.”
On shooting woes: “We haven’t made shots all season. Our shooting has not been good. That’s why I’m going to play (Nick) Goddard. Chris (McKnight) went 2-for-8 and he was open for almost the entire game.”
On the defense: “We’re so passive defensively compared to what I want. We don’t have any quickness with (Cedrick) Middleton being only 60 percent. We can’t get any ball pressure.”
On the team’s lagging assist-to-turnover ratio: “It indicates you’re not playing very well together. You’re not penetrating and pitching well, and you’re impatient.” (There’s a Phil Jackson/Brokeback Mountain joke in there somewhere.)
On Middleton playing with his patella bruise: “He’s just gutting it out.”
Binghamton coach Kevin Broadus’ thoughts on Akron: “Akron is a very good team. Coach has a really good program. They have good players and good team chemistry. You know you’re a good team when your best player scores nine points and everybody else fills in. The seniors (Middleton and Nick Dials) stepped up and hit some big shots.”
Football
I confirmed with Mack Rhoades that the rumor you may have seen is bogus.
J.D. Brookhart has not been fired.
I feel silly having to discredit a rumor from an anonymous poster, but the amount of detail made it seem legitimate. In the future, if you have a rumor you want me to pursue, please e-mail me and include your source. My address is mike_rasor@yahoo.com and AIM screen name is MRasor0200.
November 24th, 2007 at 11:32 pm
J.D.’s not leaving? Oh well, a guy can dream, I guess.
So the Zips are having their annual shooting problems, huh? And Rasor’s favorite gunner, Nick Goddard, is going to be playing more? How desperate are we? I can’t help but agree with that other guy that Eric Scheile could have really helped this team. How many guys do you know who hit 25 of 28 3’s in a challenge? Let’s face it, pure basketball shooters, like Steve Kerr and B.J. Armstrong, are at a premium, no matter what their size. We blew that one, for sure.
Some guys pointed out that these games mean nothing, only the MAC title game. Well, there are others of us who contend that if Akron had beaten Nevada here last year, we would have been the 2nd MAC team in the Big 64 (or the NIT, at minimum). These games ARE important, and need to be vs. somewhat impressive teams.
November 24th, 2007 at 11:42 pm
Dambrot only recruits guys who he thinks can fit in his system. In other words, they have to have the quickness to play defense. That’s why Steve McNees is such a conundrum to Coach D.
I don’t know much about Scheile, but pure shooters who can’t defend are not what has brought Akron’s program out of obscurity. To use your reference, can you picture B.J. Armstrong or Steve Kerr on the 2003-2007 Pistons?
November 25th, 2007 at 1:12 am
[...] can read the full story here Filed under: [...]
November 25th, 2007 at 2:23 pm
Is it just me or do the following quotes from Tom Osborne’s comments after the firing of Bill Callahan sound similar to our situation:
“The head coach is responsible for the defense and kicking game and the whole deal,” Osborne said. “That’s why you’re the head coach. You’re responsible for hiring those people, so I was not going to tell Bill Callahan who he had to keep and who he had to let go. Bill Callahan is where the buck stops.”
When the Huskers were 4-4, Osborne said, he told Callahan that if the team finished 8-4, there would be no coaching change and that if he won three of the last four games “we can maybe make it work.”
“If it’s two out of four, it’s going to be pretty tough because now you’re break-even, and we haven’t had many break-even seasons around here,” Osborne said he told Callahan. “And if we have a losing season, there isn’t any way this will work. The parameters were pretty clearly spelled out.”
Callahan was widely acclaimed for his recruiting, and each of his classes was ranked high by analysts. But many of those players never delivered, and Callahan’s ability to develop talent was questioned.
Callahan came in with much bluster, saying he would “flip the culture.” That meant dumping the triple-option offense employed by Osborne and Solich and installing the West Coast offense.
I can hear the theme song of the Twilight Zone in the background. It gives me the chills….
November 25th, 2007 at 2:42 pm
Thanks for that article, Chris. You see, Mack, this is exactly what we’re talking about. At least Tom Osborne had the good sense to realize…hey, this guy isn’t showing any improvement here, and this just isn’t gonna work. Akron needs to stop doling out these ludicrous long-term contracts to coaches before they’ve earned their keep.
Osborne outlined exactly what he expected from Callahan. What was Rhoades expecting from Brookhart’s Zips this season? Four wins? The lowest home attendance in D-1? What exactly are the expectations for 2008? And how can I get hired by UA? Seems like the job-security is pretty solid, no matter what.
November 25th, 2007 at 4:18 pm
Rick Neuheisel. OC/QB Coach for Baltimore Ravens, former HC at Colorado and U of Wash. Former UCLA QB. Known for his offensive mind and recruiting. Hmmmmmm???? Doesn’t the team with the best offense usually win the MAC.? Hmmmm????
November 25th, 2007 at 4:21 pm
There is some serious similarities.
Nebraska has the money to make a change. UA doesn’t.
We are probably stuck with JD at least another year.
On the flip side, their are quite a few great coaches that didn’t start winning until past year 5.
JD is young and hopefully learning.
November 25th, 2007 at 8:45 pm
Zippy is leading Hairy Dawg by a mere 4 votes as of 7:45 PM Sun. Vote Vote Vote!
November 26th, 2007 at 1:44 pm
Anybody know how serious the Steward situation is? Was he admitted as a precaution or is something more serious going on?