Time for a change!

[maroonandsilver]

Mel spotted yesterday in Helena wearing a Griz Softball sweatshirt and watching the AA tourney. I have to think that if she hasn't been let go by now, and she is apparently on the recruiting trail, she is safe for another season.

[OMGriz9501]

I guess I was expecting more from this program. Despite steady improvements the first three years..steady decline is now all the rage and apparently acceptable. Just a real bummer.

[Griz til I die]

Mel spotted yesterday in Helena wearing a Griz Softball sweatshirt and watching the AA tourney. I have to think that if she hasn't been let go by now, and she is apparently on the recruiting trail, she is safe for another season.

The one thing I will say in response to that is before Danny Sprinkle got hired at Utah State, he was still actively recruiting for the cats. I think it is possible that Haslam hasn’t met with Mel yet and is waiting for the Super Regionals this weekend to end as I think a lot of the potential candidates Haslam would target are PAC 12 assistants, many of which are still playing in the NCAA tournament. Therefore he may wait until the tournament is over. Point being, Mel is gonna continue to do her job until she’s told otherwise.

Another thing that we haven’t talked about that I think may be worth mentioning is that Mel is one of only 2 female head coaches in the department along with Allison Lawrence of Volleyball. We saw all the tricks Shannon played on her way out the door. I’m not saying Mel would do that but what if Haslam were to hire a guy as Head Softball coach? I personally wouldn’t care as I want the best possible coach regardless of what gender they are, but in the eyes of some people it could potentially be a bad look if we only have one female head coach. Does Haslam potentially feel pressure around letting Mel go solely for that reason? Something to consider.

[maroonandsilver]

Mel spotted yesterday in Helena wearing a Griz Softball sweatshirt and watching the AA tourney. I have to think that if she hasn't been let go by now, and she is apparently on the recruiting trail, she is safe for another season.

The one thing I will say in response to that is before Danny Sprinkle got hired at Utah State, he was still actively recruiting for the cats. I think it is possible that Haslam hasn’t met with Mel yet and is waiting for the Super Regionals this weekend to end as I think a lot of the potential candidates Haslam would target are PAC 12 assistants, many of which are still playing in the NCAA tournament. Therefore he may wait until the tournament is over. Point being, Mel is gonna continue to do her job until she’s told otherwise.

Another thing that we haven’t talked about that I think may be worth mentioning is that Mel is one of only 2 female head coaches in the department along with Allison Lawrence of Volleyball. We saw all the tricks Shannon played on her way out the door. I’m not saying Mel would do that but what if Haslam were to hire a guy as Head Softball coach? I personally wouldn’t care as I want the best possible coach regardless of what gender they are, but in the eyes of some people it could potentially be a bad look if we only have one female head coach. Does Haslam potentially feel pressure around letting Mel go solely for that reason? Something to consider.

I wonder if UM is hesitant to fire Mel with the 2 the deed bias suits still in the works (SS, and the group of women), not wanting to give them more ammo.

[Grizfan-24]

I don't think the decision to keep or fire Mel has necessarily been made for sure, but odds are the long we press into June, we'll see much of the staff back in 2024 in their same roles.

As I have mentioned before and I'll say again, I don't think the decision making process w/ the softball program is as black and white as some people would think or want it to be in regards to hiring or firing the staff. I don't necessarily think it has conspiratorial implications (re: SS lawsuit), but rather some hard realities of how the past five or six years have played out within the program and athletic department and its impact on decision making factors.

There will come a point when decisions absolutely have to be made, and I personally thought it be this year after how the season played out and how non-competitive the team was that they'd likely part ways. I think Haslam has put all the programs on blast the trends aren't good and I think when push comes to shove if things don't radically improve next year for the softball program there are going to be radical/wholesale adjustments. Moreover, I wouldn't necessarily think that Haslams job is necessarily secure either. Pretty much the only program with any amount of safety is probably the women's soccer program. I think Hauck, Holsinger, and DeCuire all face increased scrutiny and a need to show real progress towards stated program and department goals. Does that mean they are going to get fired if they don't? Doubt it, but clearly the admin expects adjustments to the positive to be made.

[OMGriz9501]

Looks like one of Pinkerton’s assistants left for University of Utah. Any chance he gets the band back together in Ames? Grabbed Jackson from Carroll a couple years ago. Would be a nice pay raise for Mel.