Coaches changing schools

[buscowrestling]

One of the arguments that I hear for class wrestling is that the good coaches leave small schools and go to bigger schools for more success.  I am not saying that this does not happen, but I am just wondering situations were it has occurred.  Again im just trying to get some discussion going, I am not saying it does not happen, I can think of Randy Kerby as an example going from Bluffton to Columbia City.  What I do feel is that it doesn't happen very often.

I think coaching changes occur more often than not do to teaching oppurtunities than for coaching success.  I may be mistaken but I just dont think that these moves happen that often.

I also found this interesting.  This is a link to the football coaching changes from 07-08.  I do not notice alot of the coaches going from small schools to big schools on this list.

http://ifca.zebras.net/ifca/candler/foot2008/coaching_changes.htm

One final thing that I think we could discuss under this topic is the idea of elite coaches, and where they came from.  Did they start at a small school?  Did they start at the bigger school?  what kind of success would they or did they at a small school?  Just trying to cause soome disscussion, so dont jump my case if im wrong on this, i just cant think off of the top of many head  coaches going to big schools after having success at small schools.

[Y2CJ41]

Jim Tonte coached at Tri-West before Perry Meridian.
Brad Harper coached at Benton Central before Penn.
Danny Struck coached at Greencasatle before Jeffersonville.
Lance Ellis coached at Bishop Chatard before Roncalli.

Tom Miller coached at Tri-Central before Lafayette Jeff.
Jarred Williams went from Avon(2200 enrollment) to Lawrence North(2800 enrollment)

[buscowrestling]

Just curious how did they do at the smaller schools before the big ones, I know that I heard that Harper was really changing BC around before he left. 

[B Campbell]

Just curious how did they do at the smaller schools before the big ones, I know that I heard that Harper was really changing BC around before he left. 

I thought he did a great job with the BC program.

[KarlHungus]

I thought he did a great job with the BC program.

They were not, however, a top ten team

[Silence Dogood]

Jim Tonte coached at Tri-West before Perry Meridian.
Brad Harper coached at Benton Central before Penn.
Danny Struck coached at Greencasatle before Jeffersonville.
Lance Ellis coached at Bishop Chatard before Roncalli.

Tom Miller coached at Tri-Central before Lafayette Jeff.
Jarred Williams went from Avon(2200 enrollment) to Lawrence North(2800 enrollment)

Any idea if any of these changes were motivated by reasons other than the size of the school?  For instance Brad Harper's move to Penn brings him back to his hometown area.  I am wondering if any of these other moves were similar (e.g., closer to the coach's hometown, back to the coach's alma mater, closer to a new job, etc.). 

[indyt]

Coach Tonte grew up in Perry twp.  He was also the head coach at Connersville for 3 years, head coach at Tri west for 2 and asst at Ben Davis for 3.

[Y2CJ41]

Any idea if any of these changes were motivated by reasons other than the size of the school?  For instance Brad Harper's move to Penn brings him back to his hometown area.  I am wondering if any of these other moves were similar (e.g., closer to the coach's hometown, back to the coach's alma mater, closer to a new job, etc.). 

I don't know Coach Harper, but I will cite three reasons.
More chance for coaching success- CHECK
Increase in pay- CHECK
Closer to home- CHECK

I really doubt he would have gone somewhere closer to home without the other two reasons.  No way he goes to a school closer to home that lessens his chances for success. 

[buscowrestling]

Then why would you leave Northrop to go to Garrett?  By the way its a good drive from BC to Penn maybe he is close with his family.

[Y2CJ41]

Because of a job change.

[buscowrestling]

Thats cool I still think that just wanting to get back home could have been a possible reason that Harper went to Penn, but who knows.

[Y2CJ41]

Thats cool I still think that just wanting to get back home could have been a possible reason that Harper went to Penn, but who knows.

Harper most likely would not have gone back to a schools like LaVille, Mishawaka Marian or South Bend St. Joe amongst other schools in the area. 

[hammer]

Jim Tonte coached at Tri-West before Perry Meridian.
Brad Harper coached at Benton Central before Penn.
Danny Struck coached at Greencasatle before Jeffersonville.
Lance Ellis coached at Bishop Chatard before Roncalli.

Tom Miller coached at Tri-Central before Lafayette Jeff.
Jarred Williams went from Avon(2200 enrollment) to Lawrence North(2800 enrollment)

I believe that you can add coach Maldanado to this list.  Didn't he go from a small Catholic school to Merrillville?

[buscowrestling]

Why?  I would say that St.  Joe, and Marian despite being down have the potential to be as good if not better than BC.  Plus they are private so each student should count as like 1.5 kids, so acctually they would have a lot more students (im being sarcastic about the last part).  I imagine the argument would be that he wouldn't because of the fact that Mishawaka, and Penn are in their sectional, or that the private schools dont pay as much, but still BC is a good 2 hours from Penn I know that I would have taken the oppurtunity to get back to home even if it meant taking a job at Marian, or St. Joe,  both orf which are jobs I would put at minimum on par with BC.

[Y2CJ41]

You are putting way too much emphasis on going back home.  If he was so worried about going back home, he would have been an assistant at Mishawaka or Penn right after college.  He was at BC for four years, in which there were probably openings at many Mishawaka area schools during that time that he did not either get or apply for.  Coaches very, very rarely leave a job to downgrade their positions and start back over.

[buscowrestling]

Hey your probably right,  I just know that I personally would put a lot of emphasis on getting back to the area where I was from.  Thats me, it may not have played a big role in his decision.  There are a lot of varibles that neither of us know in this situation or the others, but like I said I may be wrong.

[BC/Western]

Harp wanted to teach more than anything. All BC would do is give him the attendence officer job.  Being a teacher pays much more than being an attendence officer.  If BC would have offered him a teaching job, I believe he would still be there.  BC athletics really could care less about wrestling, while Penn is the other way around. 

[pin2win1]

I talkd to Harper's parents just shortly after he got the job at Penn.... i believe their response was something along the lines that penn was both close to home and paid well. Now the question is, what paid more? the teaching job, the coaching job, or both.

But the assumption that he took the job for both location and money i think would be fair, but maybe not in that particular order.

[bigdanteague]

Cale Hoover - Anderson Highland to Center Grove, farther from home.

What is curious is that buscowrestling seems to downplaying the idea that coaches might look for situations that offer greater pay and greater chances of success.  I would hope that good coaches would naturally look for better situations.  Sure, sometimes moving closer to home might be a consideration, but I would hope that driven, competitive coaches would look for the best situation both competitvely and financially.  Football and basketball coaches do it all the time.  However, in those sports, small school coaches have a realistic chance of having team success in the state tournament.  Heck, Dan Gable could be hired at LaVille and they would never get higher than 3rd in their sectional.

[MAJAM152]

David Maldonado Started at Bishop Noll in Hammond, then to Merrillville.

[ace2212]

Because he wanted to be like his mentor, adviser, and role model!

[Y2CJ41]

Mishawaka Marian and SB St. Joe were both open the year before the Penn job was open.  I would venture to guess if Harper's soul concern was to be closer to home he would have spent a year at one of those schools for a year.  Either that or he would have been an assistant at Mishawaka or Penn while looking for another area position.  The perfect combination of location, pay increase and potential are what lured him there.  If one of those are not present he would be more likely to not pursue the opportunity.

[Silence Dogood]

Mishawaka Marian and SB St. Joe were both open the year before the Penn job was open.  I would venture to guess if Harper's soul concern was to be closer to home he would have spent a year at one of those schools for a year.  Either that or he would have been an assistant at Mishawaka or Penn while looking for another area position.  The perfect combination of location, pay increase and potential are what lured him there.  If one of those are not present he would be more likely to not pursue the opportunity.

And, as mentioned by a previous poster, a teaching position opening up in the area he teaches probably didn't hurt.  Did either of the schools you mentioned have that going for them?  I am guessing the teaching position is what's paying the bills and might have played a bigger factor in luring him there. 

I could also see the private, religious-affiliated schools not being for everyone. 

There are plenty of reasons a coach might change (or not change) schools  that have nothing to do with the enrollment size.

[pin2win1]

I got this great and killer idea.... instead of speculating why Harper left BC for Penn, and not for Marian or st. Joe, why don't you ask him? I am sure even if you don't know him that you could get a hold of him and find out from the horses mouth.

[TripleB]

I"m missing the point of this. Is somebody saying/implying that class wrestling would lock small school coaches in?