This was the fall of almost but not quite

Lafalum · This was the fall of almost but not quite

In most every sport there were great moments. The liberty game in football, the West Virginia game in men's soccer, Colgate in Field Hockey which might of led you to believe we going to make a run at a champioship but all fell short. We seem to lack that finishing fire in the belly...a scoring punch in soccer, a flat performance ag a fired up Bucknell squad in the FH plyoffs, a disappointing perfomance ag Colgate,HC and Lehiigh in football.
Is there a common theme here, lack of leadership , off season commitment? We certainly have good facilities, scholarships in soccer and field hockey, I like our coaches...Rothkopf is gone!! What's going on??? Where do we get that hunger for championships!!

Pard4Life

I do not know if there is any validity to this notion, but I get the feeling everyone is "soft" i.e. nice facilities and the notion of being taken care of. "I am comfortable where and how I am, so why seek or try to attain anything greater". My dad says we need to recruit more PSDs.. poor, smart, desperate kids.. (though ironically I feel that's all we can recruit without scholarships).. not sure that is the answer. I like to think of the Cleveland Indians in 'Major League'... a propeller plane, 1950s bus, tyranical owner.. only incentivizes the drive to win.

Pard4Life

In addition to skill, perhaps we can be more vigilant in recruiting kids with the right psyche and attitude, in addition to skills? I would think coaches do that anyway..

Lafalum

We have some good individuals but some of the others on the teams seem content to let others carry the load. In some interviews I have done there is a desire to " play division 1 sports" but I don't hear very often, "I'd like to be an all-american", "win a national championship,"" be an olympic athlete". Maybe as we get to our full scholarship level in two years, we'll have more althletes like that. But we will see, as our first scholarship classes in Soccer and Field Hockey will be juniors next year!! In football, classes that were recruited while we had the new facilities will be sophs.
I hope we start to see some of that hunger and fire!!!! We'll see next summer.

65Pard

I look at the glass has half full here, not half empty.....
I think it unrealistic for such a small school to have national champ expectations given aid constraints....the fact that we do show up occasionally is a tribute to the tradition and coaching that drives our kids to excel......

Lafalum

I don't disagree but I would expect (especially in the non revenue sports) to see a more ambitious athlete. The PL is perhaps the 3rd best league in Lacrosse in the country and we don't get any of the athletes some of the other PL teams get. Soccer is certainly (with scholarships ) within our schedule and demographic capable of being very good. Field Hockey we could be very good ( five of the Olympic team members came from the Delaware or Lehigh valley). I think the coaches are fine and in soccer and FH we have scholarships, so we have a chance to excel. What is stopping us from getting that truely good elite student athlete. Is there something in the recruiting or qualification process that inhibits us?? Is there something in the social or peer preasure that inhibits the dedicated athlete? About 10 pct of our students are foriegn so it follows that 10 pct could be athletes, but it doesnt happen. A soccer player from Brazil or FH player from the Netherlands might be that key player that propels us to a championship and inspires their teammates.
There are some within the administration and on the BOT who would say our students are too smart, they have other interests. My answer would be ..as smart as the students from Princeton or Stanford that rank 1, or 2 in national championships??
I don't expect Lafayette to be in that company but is there something in the lowered expectations from administrators, alumni, and the Board itself that says second, third , or fourth is ok as long as you are participating??
Boards like this tend to focus on football and basketball and I have to agree getting to a final four in basketball just will not happpen, neither will an FCS championship in football without scholarships. But I think we can make noise in some of the other sports but we don't yet have that spark or fire that could make that happen. And I ask the question why?? WE have participators and not enough difference makers.