Archive for lafayettesports.myfreeforum.org This forum is not affiliated in any way with Lafayette College, Lafayette College Athletics, The Maroon Club or any other official organization. Please be respectful of other posters as well as the athletes, coaches and administrators.
It seems like eons ago, but there was a time before the internet. Which meant that the only open commentary on athletes was put in the newspaper. I was at Lafayette in the early 90's. I can remember several instances where guys from the Express-Times would say something less than favorable toward a player or coach and become persona non grata for a while on College Hill.
And those reporters didn't say ANYTHING remotely close to the kind of criticism we level at players here. Now we have an anonymous place to post any thoughts we may have--and they aren't always complimentary.
Let me say I think we 'Pard fans do a good job at keeping it sensible. Even on the Voy forum I can recall very few instances of low-rent attacks. I think registration--which I wasn't even that wild about--helps the cause. The people that have no agenda except to have a virtual graffiti board to spread their personal issues are gone, and we've lost almost nothing in the amount of posts.
I actually was a Penn State fan this past weekend. Let me go on record in saying this is NOT the norm. I find PSU fans ridiculous. We have a group of them in our office who get together at lunch and obsess over them every single day--talking endlessly about the 1984 Sugar Bowl as if it was played last night. I was a fan because I couldn't stand seeing the horrid, personal, and hateful attacks that had been directed toward Morrelli the entire week.
You could argue quite convincingly that Morelli knew darn well what he was getting into. The QB at PSU is probably one of the 5 most visible positions in PA and the attacks come with the territory. I don't buy it entirely. Morelli is a student who plays football and won the QB job, not an elected official who is being paid anything with tax dollars. But I can see the other side of the argument---He's on national TV, he wanted to be a big-time QB so he has to be subject to intense scrutiny.
So maybe Morelli deserves to be scrutinized. But does Mike D? Do any of our Leopards?
Look we aren't saying anything on this board that isn't said in the stands. The problem is (or may be) we are saying it in a place where it can be read---and I have every reason to believe this board IS read by players, coaches, John Leone (DO THE BROADCAST YOUR WAY JOHN!) , a lot of people. And we do it anonymously. Back in the day when Pard94 would be doing his human sieve impersonation against Hofstra he didn't have to come home and read criticism about his play from guys like me who never played a down!
Is it OK to say such and such a player is slow? Is it OK to say they played a bad game? Personally I think so. When it gets to the level of "so and so doesn't work hard at all, he loafs at practice and has an attitude" then I would take exception and possible delete the post. I've never had to do anything like that---a credit to us Leopard and most PL fans.
IS it OK to scrutinize players from the sports with little attendance? A Field Hockey midfielder doesn't get much press no matter how good they are, is it right to post that they aren't getting the job done if we see a game and really believe they aren't?
What about the coaches? What about my favorite Tammy? Sure they are paid, but we certainly don't know the obstacles they are up against. Tavani certainly took a lot of shots when he was 4-17--which in retrospect is ridiculous given what he inherited. When Tammy is 7-70 is that enough? She's not getting rich doing it---and every indication is her players like playing for her and she's never done anything to discredit the college. I'm coaching youth soccer in the most non-competitive environment imaginable and I have a couple of parents who get upset about how I use my midfielders and where I place the defense...and these kids are...7. I'm happy when they kick it in the right direction. Anybody who would watch my team for an hour would see we aren't sitting there with the next Freddy Adu or Mark Price, but still I'm getting pretty roundly criticized by a couple of parents. This isnt' about me--it's just noting that it's REALLY easy to criticize.
ANd I've criticized and I will continue to do so--because the fact is this kind of forum isn't going anywhere. I do my best to be reasonable, but I know some things I write tick people off. But It's the way things are now.
Still...those of you who played in the past--how would you feel about playing in this age?
TheTruth
Good post maroon. A little long but it allowed me to meet my reading requirement for the week....
I played for the Pards back in the 80's. I am happy the internet wasn't around back then. Becuase no one can see your face, people feel they can say what ever they want and claim freedom of speech, even if they have no clue what they are talking about. Unfortunately, this attitude has spilled over to journalism and more important 24 hour news stations. It's a crassness that too me borders on disrespect and not something my parents would have ever promoted in my house.
I came onto these forums about 4-5 years ago because I was reading things that simply were misconceptions, half truths and some lies. This is why i chose this login name. I try to keep my post as factual as possible and base my opinions on the circumstances rather then emotions. At times (mostly on the Voy board) some of the criticism was too personal for my liking. Depending on the circumstances, it may be justified for the coaches and administrators; it is completely unacceptable for the players. If you want to criticize their play that is fine but not the person. We don't know most of them and for the most part they are doing the best with their God given ability. I avoid those types of posts with the coaches and administrators because most of them I consider friends. I think we do a good job on this forum. We all are quick to correct posters who may have bad information and we treat everyone with respect which is very important. It also promotes healthy debate on issues. I like to follow the rule of I don't post anything I would not be willing to say in public or to another person face to face. If you want a good laugh go to the Lehigh board, you'll see what I mean.
Unfortunately this is the era that we live in. We have the paparazzi, 24 hour news stations, You Tube, MySpace, etc. this generation is used to this media for communication. Sure it's not nice to read negative reviews of yourself esp. by people who only know you by the number on your back. But that is one of the drawbacks of playing college football today. Whether it's Lafayette, Lehigh, PSU (I also despise their alumni) or Southwest Texas St., they all have fans (which is short for fanatic) who are obsessed with their sports. Some of it is brought by the college itself, the RCN productions (I think Gary and John are excellent broadcasters), the e-mail alerts, the first class publications, the weekly news conferences, etc. They want you to care about the athletic program. Like anything else you have to take the good with the bad. The good - alumni are more informed and feel connected to the program and donate to the program; the the bad - alumni are connected to the program, donate, feel they know everything and have the right to criticize. You can't have your cake and eat it too.
We can't change the world but we can make sure the this forum remains respectful to our athletic program. We all post on here because we love our school or are interested in what is going on at Lafayette. Where I come from you don't disrespect your own.
Pard94
Re: Scrutinizing Us
The Maroon wrote:
It seems like eons ago, but there was a time before the internet. Which meant that the only open commentary on athletes was put in the newspaper. I was at Lafayette in the early 90's. I can remember several instances where guys from the Express-Times would say something less than favorable toward a player or coach and become persona non grata for a while on College Hill.
And those reporters didn't say ANYTHING remotely close to the kind of criticism we level at players here. Now we have an anonymous place to post any thoughts we may have--and they aren't always complimentary.
Let me say I think we 'Pard fans do a good job at keeping it sensible. Even on the Voy forum I can recall very few instances of low-rent attacks. I think registration--which I wasn't even that wild about--helps the cause. The people that have no agenda except to have a virtual graffiti board to spread their personal issues are gone, and we've lost almost nothing in the amount of posts.
I actually was a Penn State fan this past weekend. Let me go on record in saying this is NOT the norm. I find PSU fans ridiculous. We have a group of them in our office who get together at lunch and obsess over them every single day--talking endlessly about the 1984 Sugar Bowl as if it was played last night. I was a fan because I couldn't stand seeing the horrid, personal, and hateful attacks that had been directed toward Morrelli the entire week.
You could argue quite convincingly that Morelli knew darn well what he was getting into. The QB at PSU is probably one of the 5 most visible positions in PA and the attacks come with the territory. I don't buy it entirely. Morelli is a student who plays football and won the QB job, not an elected official who is being paid anything with tax dollars. But I can see the other side of the argument---He's on national TV, he wanted to be a big-time QB so he has to be subject to intense scrutiny.
So maybe Morelli deserves to be scrutinized. But does Mike D? Do any of our Leopards?
Look we aren't saying anything on this board that isn't said in the stands. The problem is (or may be) we are saying it in a place where it can be read---and I have every reason to believe this board IS read by players, coaches, John Leone (DO THE BROADCAST YOUR WAY JOHN!) , a lot of people. And we do it anonymously. Back in the day when Pard94 would be doing his human sieve impersonation against Hofstra he didn't have to come home and read criticism about his play from guys like me who never played a down!
Is it OK to say such and such a player is slow? Is it OK to say they played a bad game? Personally I think so. When it gets to the level of "so and so doesn't work hard at all, he loafs at practice and has an attitude" then I would take exception and possible delete the post. I've never had to do anything like that---a credit to us Leopard and most PL fans.
IS it OK to scrutinize players from the sports with little attendance? A Field Hockey midfielder doesn't get much press no matter how good they are, is it right to post that they aren't getting the job done if we see a game and really believe they aren't?
What about the coaches? What about my favorite Tammy? Sure they are paid, but we certainly don't know the obstacles they are up against. Tavani certainly took a lot of shots when he was 4-17--which in retrospect is ridiculous given what he inherited. When Tammy is 7-70 is that enough? She's not getting rich doing it---and every indication is her players like playing for her and she's never done anything to discredit the college. I'm coaching youth soccer in the most non-competitive environment imaginable and I have a couple of parents who get upset about how I use my midfielders and where I place the defense...and these kids are...7. I'm happy when they kick it in the right direction. Anybody who would watch my team for an hour would see we aren't sitting there with the next Freddy Adu or Mark Price, but still I'm getting pretty roundly criticized by a couple of parents. This isnt' about me--it's just noting that it's REALLY easy to criticize.
ANd I've criticized and I will continue to do so--because the fact is this kind of forum isn't going anywhere. I do my best to be reasonable, but I know some things I write tick people off. But It's the way things are now.
Still...those of you who played in the past--how would you feel about playing in this age?
Hey Man...if you remember this OT's performance against Hofstra...you truely are a fan. Perhaps alarmingly so.
I often think about what the players think if they are in fact reading this stuff...and why wouldn't they. I would think it could be rather motivating.
You couldn't site my dominating performance against Holy Cross in 93...you had to bring up Hofstra...damn!
Lafalum
I agree with the tone of the above posts but a board like this is not all cheerleading. There is room for constructive criticism. As for coaches,adminstrators, or college presidents there is nothng wrong with expressing displeasure, or disagreements. I think some of the comments on Tammy's attire were out of line but her decisions, recruiting, etc are fair game. That goes for organization, budgets, and wrongheaded policies.
As long as the players are putting out the effort commensurate with the expectations they should have for themselves and their school we should be careful. Playing Div 1 athletics wearing your school colors is a priviledge and honor most don't have and I have always thanked God I had the opportunity to do it at Lafayette an emotion I hope today's players take with them on the field
The Maroon
Re: Scrutinizing Us
[quote="Pard94"]
The Maroon wrote:
Hey Man...if you remember this OT's performance against Hofstra...you truely are a fan. Perhaps alarmingly so.
I often think about what the players think if they are in fact reading this stuff...and why wouldn't they. I would think it could be rather motivating.
You couldn't site my dominating performance against Holy Cross in 93...you had to bring up Hofstra...damn!
LOL...Nah--I wasn't there for the Hofstra debacle, at least the ugly one. I listened to Dick Hammer on the radio. They had like 600 yards of offense. I heard they had like 3 guys wide open on every single play--one of them was Chrebet. Hell...You can't take the fall when the defense gives up 60!!
Pard94
Re: Scrutinizing Us
[quote="The Maroon"]
Pard94 wrote:
The Maroon wrote:
Hey Man...if you remember this OT's performance against Hofstra...you truely are a fan. Perhaps alarmingly so.
I often think about what the players think if they are in fact reading this stuff...and why wouldn't they. I would think it could be rather motivating.
You couldn't site my dominating performance against Holy Cross in 93...you had to bring up Hofstra...damn!
LOL...Nah--I wasn't there for the Hofstra debacle, at least the ugly one. I listened to Dick Hammer on the radio. They had like 600 yards of offense. I heard they had like 3 guys wide open on every single play--one of them was Chrebet. Hell...You can't take the fall when the defense gives up 60!!
that hofstra game may have been one of the worst athletic experiences of my life.
Pards Rule
Those PSU lunch buddies of yours have GOT to get a life. You know really if your whole world revolves around what 19-21 year olds do on a Saturday afternoon, then you're a loser. Thats why I never liked PSU - just cause of the media and fan OBSESSION with them. It borders on psychotherapy requirements - like they are trying to relive their college years thru these kids. BTW what was the score of that Hofstra game? I remember it was quite a spread. What was the last year we played them?
carney2
Pards Rule wrote:
Those PSU lunch buddies of yours have GOT to get a life. You know really if your whole world revolves around what 19-21 year olds do on a Saturday afternoon, then you're a loser. Thats why I never liked PSU - just cause of the media and fan OBSESSION with them. It borders on psychotherapy requirements - like they are trying to relive their college years thru these kids. BTW what was the score of that Hofstra game? I remember it was quite a spread. What was the last year we played them?
1991 Hofstra 60, Lafayette 17
1992 LC 21, HU 14
1993 LC 17, HU 17
1994 HU 27, LC 6
1995 HU 26, LC 0*
*The last time the two teams played.
Would love to have them back on the schedule now that they are a decent and representative CAA program and the Pards have found their growl.
Pard94
Yeah...that damn 1991 debacle is burned in my brain forever!
