This is just sad and very unfair to the players who stay.The rumor out there is that the Pawlikowski's have been offered assistant coach positions at Wisconsin. It may very well be that there are different reason for the four players leaving, but if Coley and Dan leave, it would seem to be a major reason for at least a couple of the players.
Wicinski, Norris and Lubic all played for Pawlikowski at the club level (Kane County Jrs.) so the ties were even stronger. Illinois lost an outside hitter via transfer at the end of this year (Orozco) which would be a perfect opportunity for Wicinski to play on a natioanally ranked team whose weakness in 2012 is deemed to be at OH.
This reminds me of the last time we made the NCAA's in volleyball ten years ago. Kress bolted for Florida State ( don't want his arse back on any terms), the three players he recruited said thanks, but see ya, and we lost our stellar setter via transsfer to Minnesota. The program blew up. Gooden was hired, he swung and missed terribly with a couple of juco kids and two recruits from Canada, but was lucky enough to have Tera Lobdell stick around, bless her heart. He had a great player in Kate McCullogh, but could never put combinations of recruits together to get to the NCAA's. That is, until the Pawlikowski's came on board, settled down the recruiting and found a great player in wcinski drop into his lap.
I have mixed feelings about Gooden. I remember Bobby Narang ( I think)posting on this site that Gooden was one of his favorite coaches at NIU and he was well respected within the department. I watched the interviews of Kristen Hoffman and Allison McGlaughlin, our two seniors last year, at the NCAA tourney and they both could not have been
more effusive in their praise of Gooden. They said he was more than a coach, he was a mentor and friend and that's high praise for any coach.
However, ten years waiting for a tourney berth, with a so so record and, at least to me, no demonstrable, coherent recruiting history save for what his assistants have contributed, makes me wonder if he should have gone two or three years ago. I guess he can prove himself to those who have doubts now.

Alright somebody has to be "that guy."

Who cares? It's women's volleyball.

(02-27-2012 06:05 PM)17Huskies Wrote:  Very interesting....if the release isn't granted, she'd have to sit out a year on the vball court right? At least at a bigger school? Seems that could hurt her chances of playing the big time once more.

If her reason is to "play at a bigger school", you don't give the release. I'm very surprised she was quoted as saying that, it's not an appropriate reason for a release.

Yea, I don't think she should be granted the release based on that. I think she started as a true freshman so she would use her "redshirt" year to sit out and then have two years to play.

OK, if the Pawlikowsks go to UW, Wicinski follows. Without them, Ray Gooden will need at least one assistant coach. In steps Stephanie Gooden, Ray's wife, who — according to the Chronicle — just resigned as DeKalb High School varsity girls volleyball coach.

And 7, people do care about women's volleyball, especially since we're losing one of the best players in the country. Hope she doesn't go to Illinois or pull a Tuke (Toledo).

Even if granted her release, which she undoubtedly will get, she has to sit out a year.

Is there no end to bad news for NIU fans. Compher must be really pissed about this development.

(02-27-2012 07:43 PM)chazb2 Wrote:  Is there no end to bad news for NIU fans. Compher must be really pissed about this development.

No end to bad news? We're breaking ground on an IPF, we won the MAC in football, soccer and volleyball. Won our bowl game, kept our football coach, have our QB at the combine, grabbed one of, if not the highest ranked recruit for soccer in NIU history, have a new basketball coach, and women's basketball is returning to respectability. So we lost a coach to the NFL and a volleyball player. How many schools in the MAC wouldn't trade places with us right now?

(02-27-2012 07:43 PM)chazb2 Wrote:  Is there no end to bad news for NIU fans. Compher must be really pissed about this development.

If all this were true...Then why would he be pissed? Its not like they are taking the same position with a team within the same conference. Its not like we can pay even close to the same money so they can stay. We are never going to compete with the B1G to keep coaches. The best thing is to show that our program is good enough to get good coaches noticed and hired to bigger schools.

As for the players that may be leaving because of the coach that recruited them is leaving...yes it sucks but that is nothing new.

The only thing we can do is to show up and support the team. More attendance dollars should mean more money to the program.

Lewis University is ranked 6th in men's VB. They dominated defending nat'l champ Ohio State last week in Romeoville. Major success can happen at smaller programs but some athletes need the glory of the big name program to feed their ego.


It's easier to join a team already ranked than create one. Good luck to her either way.

(02-27-2012 09:13 PM)prairiedawg Wrote:  Lewis University is ranked 6th in men's VB. They dominated defending nat'l champ Ohio State last week in Romeoville. Major success can happen at smaller programs but some athletes need the glory of the big name program to feed their ego.


It's easier to join a team already ranked than create one. Good luck to her either way.

+1

One thing about volleyball, and I don't know if it applies to other sports, is if NIU grants Wicinski an unconditional release she can play next year.
I see that the Star updated their story, and Donna Turner was quoted as saying some of the players were non-scholarship. I'm pretty sure that volleyball has 12 scholarship slots. I think they can be distrubuted as half-rides to some extent. We had 17 players on the roster last year and would have had 15 this year, so some attrition may have been expected.
Again, I think not having any scholarship players come in for any given year, even with expected redshirts is a mistake.
The story also added another quote from Wicinski reporting that she said she had not contacted any other schools. Really?

Well she certainly isn't NIU material. To quit on your school and program seems childish and defines character.

(02-27-2012 08:18 PM)HuskieFan84 Wrote:  

(02-27-2012 07:43 PM)chazb2 Wrote:  Is there no end to bad news for NIU fans. Compher must be really pissed about this development.

No end to bad news? We're breaking ground on an IPF, we won the MAC in football, soccer and volleyball. Won our bowl game, kept our football coach, have our QB at the combine, grabbed one of, if not the highest ranked recruit for soccer in NIU history, have a new basketball coach, and women's basketball is returning to respectability. So we lost a coach to the NFL and a volleyball player. How many schools in the MAC wouldn't trade places with us right now?

+1 It has been a great year to be a Huskie and many of our programs are in great shape.

I hope that that NIU does not grant her a release. I think NIU should let this play out and find out where she is going. Maybe then an unconditional release could be granted if one of their big whale alums makes a cash donation to our IPF. Just my thoughts!

(02-27-2012 10:37 PM)Kevin S Wrote:  I hope that that NIU does not grant her a release. I think NIU should let this play out and find out where she is going. Maybe then an unconditional release could be granted if one of their big whale alums makes a cash donation to our IPF. Just my thoughts!

I don't know if that is realistic to happen or if that would be in compliance with the crazy NCAA rules.

(02-27-2012 10:03 PM)bikechuck Wrote:  

(02-27-2012 08:18 PM)HuskieFan84 Wrote:  

(02-27-2012 07:43 PM)chazb2 Wrote:  Is there no end to bad news for NIU fans. Compher must be really pissed about this development.

No end to bad news? We're breaking ground on an IPF, we won the MAC in football, soccer and volleyball. Won our bowl game, kept our football coach, have our QB at the combine, grabbed one of, if not the highest ranked recruit for soccer in NIU history, have a new basketball coach, and women's basketball is returning to respectability. So we lost a coach to the NFL and a volleyball player. How many schools in the MAC wouldn't trade places with us right now?

+1 It has been a great year to be a Huskie and many of our programs are in great shape.

+1000 NIU is overall one of the stronger non-AQ schools. Our facilities are moving forward nicely and we're making noise in several sports recently. Every program at every D1 University takes a hit now and then, its all part of the fun.

(02-27-2012 10:42 PM)HuskieJohn Wrote:  

(02-27-2012 10:37 PM)Kevin S Wrote:  I hope that that NIU does not grant her a release. I think NIU should let this play out and find out where she is going. Maybe then an unconditional release could be granted if one of their big whale alums makes a cash donation to our IPF. Just my thoughts!

I don't know if that is realistic to happen or if that would be in compliance with the crazy NCAA rules.

Certainly not compliant, can you imagine the slippery slope? Can we have your star football senior RB for a 1 mil donation. Goodness.

Anyways, if there was a personal/family reason or NIU had a head coaching change, I would be fine with an unconditional release, but NIU gave her a scholarship (yes, they are 1 year deals), but part of that is expecting her to stay here and play for 4 years.

(02-27-2012 10:42 PM)HuskieJohn Wrote:  

(02-27-2012 10:37 PM)Kevin S Wrote:  I hope that that NIU does not grant her a release. I think NIU should let this play out and find out where she is going. Maybe then an unconditional release could be granted if one of their big whale alums makes a cash donation to our IPF. Just my thoughts!

I don't know if that is realistic to happen or if that would be in compliance with the crazy NCAA rules.

I was just going to say that doesn't sound legal under NCAA rules.

(02-28-2012 01:23 AM)17Huskies Wrote:  

(02-27-2012 10:42 PM)HuskieJohn Wrote:  

(02-27-2012 10:37 PM)Kevin S Wrote:  I hope that that NIU does not grant her a release. I think NIU should let this play out and find out where she is going. Maybe then an unconditional release could be granted if one of their big whale alums makes a cash donation to our IPF. Just my thoughts!

I don't know if that is realistic to happen or if that would be in compliance with the crazy NCAA rules.

Certainly not compliant, can you imagine the slippery slope? Can we have your star football senior RB for a 1 mil donation. Goodness.

Anyways, if there was a personal/family reason or NIU had a head coaching change, I would be fine with an unconditional release, but NIU gave her a scholarship (yes, they are 1 year deals), but part of that is expecting her to stay here and play for 4 years.

But it sounds like she may or may not have had a full scholarship. If she goes elsewhere, she might just get a full one.

College sports is nasty business....especially when you're not on top of the heap like NIU. Always a bride's maid, it seems...

There's no point in trying to keep someone who doesn't want to stay. Let her go. Be angry about it (who likes to be told "you're not good enough for me"?), but let her go. It'd just be petty.