Dead last place

[tsull]

Just horrible what's happened to Western Oregon's men's basketball program, from my perspective. I know others who are fans of other schools don't care and that's fine. But for me it's tremendously disappointing. The staff has seemed to have driven the program into the ground. I'm not sure the athletic director cares or not. It's just very discouraging especially with some new funds that came into the program recently. We go to California to get average players, while completely ignoring the in-state talent that has made the program good for years. It's a very arrogant approach to building a program.

Our women's program is 3rd from the last.

[D2Rover]

Just horrible what's happened to Western Oregon's men's basketball program, from my perspective. I know others who are fans of other schools don't care and that's fine. But for me it's tremendously disappointing. The staff has seemed to have driven the program into the ground. I'm not sure the athletic director cares or not. It's just very discouraging especially with some new funds that came into the program recently. We go to California to get average players, while completely ignoring the in-state talent that has made the program good for years. It's a very arrogant approach to building a program.

Our women's program is 3rd from the last.

Talked to a long-time coach in Oklahoma a couple years ago who took issue with the same thing in their state (with Texas). Schools exclusively recruiting big cities out of state, creating a team that nobody locally cares about because it really doesn't represent their school at all, then finishing in the bottom half of the conference anyway while a team starting 3 local kids was at the top of the conference. If I'm a D2 AD, part of the interview process hiring coaches is asking how they recruit local talent - they're worth double what a Cali kid of equal talent is because of the local attention they bring to the program.

Feels like WOU really shouldn't have an excuse as the only D2 in the state, but I don't know the details well enough to say. Are you losing guys to the NAIA schools?

[tsull]

Talked to a long-time coach in Oklahoma a couple years ago who took issue with the same thing in their state (with Texas). Schools exclusively recruiting big cities out of state, creating a team that nobody locally cares about because it really doesn't represent their school at all, then finishing in the bottom half of the conference anyway while a team starting 3 local kids was at the top of the conference. If I'm a D2 AD, part of the interview process hiring coaches is asking how they recruit local talent - they're worth double what a Cali kid of equal talent is because of the local attention they bring to the program.

Feels like WOU really shouldn't have an excuse as the only D2 in the state, but I don't know the details well enough to say. Are you losing guys to the NAIA schools?

One of the worst athletic things I've seen in Monmouth happened last year when 3 (!!!) Salem players started for St. Martin's and each scored double figures, two over 20 points, as they torched the Wolves. Salem is 15 miles away from Monmouth. I'm sure the A.D. had no clue, and certainly our coaching staff didn't know who these guys were. Even worse was they brought about 100 fans with them.

If this staff was coaching a few years ago, no way they go on Andy Avgi and Tanner Omlid, two Oregon preps who went on to become the West Coast D2 players of the year and All-Americans. We are not UCLA, we are a regional state college. They've alienated the fan base and in-state prep coaches. It's really a joke, and now they're in LAST place with good scholarship funding. The staff truly doesn't believe Oregon kids can play, despite heavy evidence that they can. Almost every top player in school history is from in-state. This is a recipe for disaster, but the athletic dept. really doesn't care what the fans think, it's a closed vault. Even in last place they think what they're doing is right. I don't think we're losing guys to NAIA schools because we don't recruit the state anymore.

It's disappointing on many fronts. One, I think coach Pifer is a good guy, who has paid his dues in his profession. He's a smart guy, that's why this ignore-the-state thing is so baffling to me. I just don't get it. Some of the players they have gone to Cali for simply wouldn't make many WOU rosters.

[Anchorage]

There is an old school coach belief that is basically, local kids bring local problems. For years I heard was the belief of the UAA coaching staff but it’s clear they have moved away from that in recent years. Local kids bring local interest and local enthusiasm about your program so I get your frustration. It’s the same one I had 5 years ago.