Our Athletic Dept as a Whole

[ShotgunDawg]

Vic didn?t leave because of the opportunity at Texas. If Stricklin or Byrne or basically any qualified AD besides Cohen were still here, Vic would still be here.

Then why did Vic leave?

[Homedawg]

Nobody would care that she left. But some may be interested in why she left.

I've heard a couple different things. None of which can be confirmed.... but you can rest assured if it's not her fault, you'll hear about it.

[Homedawg]

Vic didn?t leave because of the opportunity at Texas. If Stricklin or Byrne or basically any qualified AD besides Cohen were still here, Vic would still be here.

Just not true

[StarkVegasSteve]

Vic didn?t leave because of the opportunity at Texas. If Stricklin or Byrne or basically any qualified AD besides Cohen were still here, Vic would still be here.

There may be friction between him and Cohen but I can almost guarantee you that there's more to the story. Will we ever know the whole story? I don't know, but you know there has to be more to the story. I have a couple of theories, but they're just that. I have no evidence to support any of them other than a couple of very unsubstantiated rumors and guessing.

[trojandawg]

Yeah. Have to realize most of your fan base is pretty conservative. You are free to opinion and I don?t much care for what someone?s political belief is but if you push your political beliefs in public with an official account as your official capacity as a state employee and a coach that can have multiple ramifications. For one you lose support of your fan base but on the other hand if she doesn?t support certain trending political ideologies she loses her team. Fine line. If they win more people will not care as much. But looking at pro sports and lack of viewers from the BLM stuff there are a large group of fans that are lost regardless of winning.

[StarkVegasSteve]

Yeah. Have to realize most of your fan base is pretty conservative. You are free to opinion and I don?t much care for what someone?s political belief is but if you push your political beliefs in public with an official account as your official capacity as a state employee and a coach that can have multiple ramifications. For one you lose support of your fan base but on the other hand if she doesn?t support certain trending political ideologies she loses her team. Fine line. If they win more people will not care as much. But looking at pro sports and lack of viewers from the BLM stuff there are a large group of fans that are lost regardless of winning.

There's no doubt that this will lose her some of the unabashed fan support that Vic enjoyed. I mean that was going to happen anyways, but it's just happening at a faster clip than I thought it would. I agree that winning will solve a lot of problems, but there's a certain portion of the fan base that Vic tapped into that won't come back.

[Coach34]

I wouldn't care if she was a lesbian that voted for Biden and was a Scientologist if she wins games.

Agree. But not everybody sees things that way.

[Maverick]

There's a reason for the old saying that you don't talk about religion and politics. Most people could care less where the coach stands but that doesn't mean you put it out there and that is the problem. Just be a coach, end of story....

[msstate7]

I can't stand Biden, but I didn't get upset over her supporting him. Of course, I don't give a rip about women's basketball. I wouldn't care if leach supported Biden either... leach can do what he wants in his personal life if he solves a zone defenses

[FISHDAWG]

Freedom of Speech has nothing to do with this, and yes as a coach of a team with a fanbase and its need to make money....what you say has consequences. Now we can debate if those consequences of the woman's basketball coach or our football coach for that matter are on par with whatever they said or did that approached a political statement here or there, but you are damn wrong that they can say whatever they wish and there isn't consequences.

As representatives of our university, they know better, or they will pretty soon.

does this apply to ALL professors as well ?

[confucius say]

Doesn't matter what he meant. It's how it was perceived. See the twitter incident. Which is also stupid.

Sometimes maybe. But not here.

Reporter: do you have any thoughts on the covid protocols
Leach: oh yea. But it's best I keep that to myself, our freedoms aren't what they use to be.

To perceive that as a comment about Biden winning the election (or a pro trump comment), you'd have to believe leach meant now that Biden is elected my freedom to comment on smn is less. That Biden and/or the fed govt may retaliate against me or punish me if I express my thoughts. It was fine for me to say it last week when trump was president, but not now.

Anybody who interprets leach's comment that way should be called out, not excused. It was a shot at his employer, not Biden.

[Captain Falcon]

Nikki will be fine for the first few years. Vic left her a roster that is too good to fail in that sport. Her coaching will determine if we can get back to another Final Four and compete for a national title, but even if she's just an OK coach, our floor the next couple of years is like the Sweet 16 or worst case scenario the Round of 32. She's got at least two more years of Jessika Carter and at least three more years of Rickea Jackson and Aliyah Matharu, that program isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

As far as the fan interest thing goes... I mean maybe the political stuff didn't help things, but a lot of that will cool down once we are no longer in a highly polarizing election year. At the same time, I'm not sure the crowds that Vic's teams were drawing are sustainable permanently, and that's before you even factor in the effect that COVID will have on attendance for the foreseeable future. You're talking about a niche sport that is wildly popular with a chunk of our fanbase, but then another portion either doesn't care in the least or they actually resent some of the women's success because they think it hurts the men's program that they care more about. I can't tell you how many times I've heard people voice frustrations with small crowds for men's games and then there's always a tongue-in-cheek comment about "oh but don't worry, I'm sure it'll be full for the women's game on Sunday".

The women will always have some level of support as long as they are winning 25-30 games a year, but the minute they become just OK again then you'll see a lot of the fan interest fade. Especially if a down year for the women happens to coincide with a big year for the men.

[StarkVegasSteve]

Nikki will be fine for the first few years. Vic left her a roster that is too good to fail in that sport. Her coaching will determine if we can get back to another Final Four and compete for a national title, but even if she's just an OK coach, our floor the next couple of years is like the Sweet 16 or worst case scenario the Round of 32. She's got at least two more years of Jessika Carter and at least three more years of Rickea Jackson and Aliyah Matharu, that program isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

As far as the fan interest thing goes... I mean maybe the political stuff didn't help things, but a lot of that will cool down once we are no longer in a highly polarizing election year. At the same time, I'm not sure the crowds that Vic's teams were drawing are sustainable permanently, and that's before you even factor in the effect that COVID will have on attendance for the foreseeable future. You're talking about a niche sport that is wildly popular with a chunk of our fanbase, but then another portion either doesn't care in the least or they actually resent some of the women's success because they think it hurts the men's program that they care more about. I can't tell you how many times I've heard people voice frustrations with small crowds for men's games and then there's always a tongue-in-cheek comment about "oh but don't worry, I'm sure it'll be full for the women's game on Sunday".

The women will always have some level of support as long as they are winning 25-30 games a year, but the minute they become just OK again then you'll see a lot of the fan interest fade. Especially if a down year for the women happens to coincide with a big year for the men.

I think that saying will haunt State fans for years to come.

[Maroonthirteen]

I'm honestly surprised if she was truly made to remove a tweet in support of Biden/Harris by the AD or University.

Because the University has been in full support of left political ideology for years.

[DeltaChicagoDog]

Vic didn?t leave because of the opportunity at Texas. If Stricklin or Byrne or basically any qualified AD besides Cohen were still here, Vic would still be here.

Well...we're waiting...

[Maroonthirteen]

There's a reason for the old saying that you don't talk about religion and politics. Most people could care less where the coach stands but that doesn't mean you put it out there and that is the problem. Just be a coach, end of story....

Those days are over. Athletes believe they have a platform. They will continue to use it in pro and college sports.

[Extendedcab]

Yeah but she has ?principles?. That?s all that matters in a coach to some posters here.

I think there is a misunderstanding in what previous posts implied regarding ethics. Ethics is not all that matters, however it is the primary criteria. In other words if a coach does not have ethics then they automatically do NOT qualify for the job. When a coach or coaches are found that do have ethics, then we grade them on how well they coach. It is pretty simple!

My question, regarding ethical coaches, is why would you want an unethical coach 1) representing your university and 2) having access to young impressionable kids? This is a recipe for disaster! Look at Freeze, hiring a call service for himself and reportedly for prospective student/athletics as well! Look at Penn State, the MSU baseball coach a couple of years ago, now I'm hearing our golf coach was fired for improprieties. This level of depravity was unheard of in generations pasts. Has anybody thought about the negative impact these coaches have on the students/athletics? What has happen to us as a people? The apostle Paul wrote, that men in the last days would become "incontinent", or without self-control, and "lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God". Those phrases accurately describe the self-centered mindset overrunning our nation. How disgraceful!

I love MSU just as much as anyone else, (I am a 82 graduate in electrical engineering, my wife went to MSU for 1 year, 3 of my 4 sons went to MSU - 2 graduated with degrees in physics), but is putting a W in the win column more important than hiring a moral person first and foremost and then a coach? Is there any such person left that would fill that role? I have ethics, but I am not a coach, even though I play one on TV or else I would apply!

There has to be a better way than imitating unethical institutions by hiring known unethical people.

[StarkVegasSteve]

I think there is a misunderstanding in what previous posts implied regarding ethics. Ethics is not all that matters, however it is the primary criteria. In other words if a coach does not have ethics then they automatically do NOT qualify for the job. When a coach or coaches are found that do have ethics, then we grade them on how well they coach. It is pretty simple!

My question, regarding ethical coaches, is why would you want an unethical coach 1) representing your university and 2) having access to young impressionable kids? This is a recipe for disaster! Look at Freeze, hiring a call service for himself and reportedly for prospective student/athletics as well! Look at Penn State, the MSU baseball coach a couple of years ago, now I'm hearing our golf coach was fired for improprieties. This level of depravity was unheard of in generations pasts. Has anybody thought about the negative impact these coaches have on the students/athletics? What has happen to us as a people? The apostle Paul wrote, that men in the last days would become "incontinent", or without self-control, and "lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God". Those phrases accurately describe the self-centered mindset overrunning our nation. How disgraceful!

I love MSU just as much as anyone else, (I am a 82 graduate in electrical engineering, my wife went to MSU for 1 year, 3 of my 4 sons went to MSU - 2 graduated with degrees in physics), but is putting a W in the win column more important than hiring a moral person first and foremost and then a coach? Is there any such person left that would fill that role? I have ethics, but I am not a coach, even though I play one on TV or else I would apply!

There has to be a better way than imitating unethical institutions by hiring known unethical people.

You want honesty.....YES. I don't care about what they do in their private lives. They want to sleep around, that's fine. As long as it doesn't affect their coaching ability I really don't care. That's what gott Cann fired. It affected his coaching ability. I'd much rather win than go 4-8 just to say we got a nice guy coaching us. If ethics mattered then Dan Mullen wouldn't have been our HC, Jackie Sherrill wouldn't have been our HC, Rick Stansbury would've been fired long before he "retired", Dak Prescott would've been kicked off the team before 14, and I could go on and on. If you want to stand on a moral high ground then you'll have to continually be happy with crappy coaches.

[BrunswickDawg]

I think there is a misunderstanding in what previous posts implied regarding ethics. Ethics is not all that matters, however it is the primary criteria. In other words if a coach does not have ethics then they automatically do NOT qualify for the job. When a coach or coaches are found that do have ethics, then we grade them on how well they coach. It is pretty simple!

My question, regarding ethical coaches, is why would you want an unethical coach 1) representing your university and 2) having access to young impressionable kids? This is a recipe for disaster! Look at Freeze, hiring a call service for himself and reportedly for prospective student/athletics as well! Look at Penn State, the MSU baseball coach a couple of years ago, now I'm hearing our golf coach was fired for improprieties. This level of depravity was unheard of in generations pasts. Has anybody thought about the negative impact these coaches have on the students/athletics? What has happen to us as a people? The apostle Paul wrote, that men in the last days would become "incontinent", or without self-control, and "lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God". Those phrases accurately describe the self-centered mindset overrunning our nation. How disgraceful!

I love MSU just as much as anyone else, (I am a 82 graduate in electrical engineering, my wife went to MSU for 1 year, 3 of my 4 sons went to MSU - 2 graduated with degrees in physics), but is putting a W in the win column more important than hiring a moral person first and foremost and then a coach? Is there any such person left that would fill that role? I have ethics, but I am not a coach, even though I play one on TV or else I would apply!

There has to be a better way than imitating unethical institutions by hiring known unethical people.

Absolute BS. People have let their desires rule them since the beginning of time (or have you not read Genesis?). Coaches have committed all sorts of improprieties at universities since they first began athletic competition. Hell, the first Egg Bowl was delayed because Ole Miss believed that we hired professional ringers to play the game. Do you know why Babe McCarthy was fired? Why Richard Williams "retired"? MSU had a player shaving points in basketball in the early 60s. Ever heard of the Black Sox?

I'm not condoning any of it - but to act like there is some Golden Era of Principals and Ethics in sports is possibly the dumbest take I've ever read on a message board.

[Johnson85]

People are seriously mad that McCray-Penson tweeted something about Biden? Don't think I remember people being "alienated" when Mullen was posting pictures from the 2016 RNC with MAGA hats.

In any event, no public university employee is getting fired because of who they support politically. That's actually what First Amendment retaliation is about...

Is that all she did, was post something about Biden? Damn, I think Biden is pretty despicable, but I still don't have a problem with her supporting him. I'd have to have a problem with probably 25% of the country? I assumed she had posted something BLM related, which should also be fine, but there are at least a lot of looters, arsonists, and people engaging in violence while claiming the BLM mantle, so I can at least get people be bothered by anything that looks like support of that.