Very Interesting Article

[OCBison]

It's taken a while but the Forum has finally done the follow-up article that they said they were going to do.

http://www.in-forum.com/articles/index.cfm?id=124936&section=Sports


Through it all it seems like the student-athletes are the ones that are losing out here. A dismal fall season followed by a spring season with no head coach.

Let's see where this takes us now.

[JJ_Penn]

It's too bad Zaundra isn't more willing to talk about the issue...Dorn seems more than happy to give her side. I'm glad that they finally got more of the story out. Biggest thing to me in the article, Zaundra said there didn't seem to be any problems with the admin. when she was winning. Maybe that's why no one wants to touch this job, hopefully the Alabama asst. doesn't change his mind as well.

[silkamilkamonico]

Wow.

Other coaches somewhat siding with Bina (not really but lack of better words).

She was well respected around all the coaching circles I know.

I'm curious on the comment of "she was too hard on her players".

Too hard?

Huh.

[mikelsch]

There was never a lack of applicants. It's just that NDSU has high standards, and wants the best person available to take this program to the highest level and to avoid past issues.

[silkamilkamonico]

I thought Lisa Mimick's head coach made an interesting comment when she stated something about, she didn't want Lisa to walk in to a situation where it was extremely hard to succeed.

I know some of the MSU players personally, and they, for whatever reason, don't think too highly of the talent level of NDSU.

I think NDSU has some very good players on a part of the program myself, but I guess when your not winning, you have to face that criticizm.

[mandanbison]

Greenie- Sounds as though players and parents got involved and when Lyn Dorn made a move based on this (players setting the rules) people got scared to accept. Along with being well respected (Coach Bina) by her colleagues in volleyball.

[silkamilkamonico]

Greenie- Sounds as though players and parents got involved and when Lyn Dorn made a move based on this (players setting the rules) people got scared to accept. Along with being well respected (Coach Bina) by her colleagues in volleyball.


I don't want to speculate, but I would be very upset if I were Bina and the players/parents had something to do with the "philosophical difference's".

1)Players/Parents are there for only 4 years.

2)She's been a coach for how long and didn't have these differences before, now all of a sudden they struggle through a tough year and the players/parents have some control over whether she coaches or not?

Again, I'm not speculating or saying that is what happened, but if that is indeed what happened, Bina has every right to be upset at the situation. Every right indeed.

With that being said, I know Lyn Dorn and co. will do th ebest they can to resolve this situation, and maybe we are hurting even moreso this year, but they will do what's best for the program in the long run.

[kchats]

I attended a tournament at Missouri State and the team was completely out of sorts. *They didn't play well and there didn't appear to be an answer. *The parents I talked with stated that Zaundra wasn't good at lending support and positive encouragement, her approach was more of a negative coaching style that probably crushed what little confidence the players had remaining. *When in division II and winning the negative coaching style probably didn't affect the players as much because they were winning. *When you are losing decisively because you are playing against more talented teams it probably really shakes your confidence and carries over to the matches against like talented teams.

I also heard that SDSU spends a great deal of time working on serving and passing because they wanted to make sure that they didn't hand the opponent points by unforced error. *NDSU gave alot of points away with service errors and passing errors. *That is something that should have been correctable by focusing on it during practice.

[SDSUFAN]

Greenie- Sounds as though players and parents got involved and when Lyn Dorn made a move based on this (players setting the rules) people got scared to accept. Along with being well respected (Coach Bina) by her colleagues in volleyball.


I don't want to speculate, but I would be very upset if I were Bina and the players/parents had something to do *with the "philosophical difference's".

1)Players/Parents are there for only 4 years.

2)She's been a coach for how long and didn't have these differences before, now all of a sudden they struggle through a tough year and the players/parents have some control over whether she coaches or not?

Again, I'm not speculating or saying that is what happened, but if that is indeed what happened, Bina has every right to be upset at the situation. *Every right indeed.

With that being said, I know Lyn Dorn and co. will do th ebest they can to resolve this situation, and maybe we are hurting even moreso this year, but they will do what's best for the program in the long run.

Silk:
I know you disclosed over on the Jack board that you were involved in volleyball coaching. That said I respect your points about Bina. I dont know that much about NDSU coaches other than what was presented in the article. Coach Bina does remind me of a certain coach who like Bina has been very sucessful, but now seems to have problems retaining athletes. I think when a coach lets frustration and anger take over they stop being sucessful and communication between the coach and athletes seems to end. Most parents who are fortunate to have talented athletes should care about the program and what is going on. If a athlete walks away from practice 3 out of 4 times a week with a feeling of failure, then the coach is not getting the job done. Being hard on people and destroying them are two different levels which coaches I feel need to have a good handle on. When the coach starts to destroy people, they should be fired, or they should be honest enough to resign. *I think this part of the article is very important and they outline the NDSU policy for terminating a coach:

According to Bina’s contract, NDSU had the right to terminate the agreement for just cause. According to the contract, just cause carries three reasons:

1) Conduct related to the employee’s job duties that are detrimental to the institution,
thical standards.


2) Material that brings public disrepute upon NDSU and

3) Failure to follow high moral and ethics

[silkamilkamonico]

Greenie- Sounds as though players and parents got involved and when Lyn Dorn made a move based on this (players setting the rules) people got scared to accept. Along with being well respected (Coach Bina) by her colleagues in volleyball.


I don't want to speculate, but I would be very upset if I were Bina and the players/parents had something to do *with the "philosophical difference's".

1)Players/Parents are there for only 4 years.

2)She's been a coach for how long and didn't have these differences before, now all of a sudden they struggle through a tough year and the players/parents have some control over whether she coaches or not?

Again, I'm not speculating or saying that is what happened, but if that is indeed what happened, Bina has every right to be upset at the situation. *Every right indeed.

With that being said, I know Lyn Dorn and co. will do th ebest they can to resolve this situation, and maybe we are hurting even moreso this year, but they will do what's best for the program in the long run.

Silk:
I know you disclosed over on the Jack board that you were involved in volleyball coaching. That said I respect your points about Bina. I dont know that much about NDSU coaches other than what was presented in the article. Coach Bina does remind me of a certain coach who like Bina has been very sucessful, but now seems to have problems retaining athletes. I think when a coach lets frustration and anger take over they stop being sucessful and communication between the coach and athletes seems to end. Most parents who are fortunate to have talented athletes should care about the program and what is going on. If a athlete walks away from practice 3 out of 4 times a week with a feeling of failure, then the coach is not getting the job done. Being hard on people and destroying them are two different levels which coaches I feel need to have a good handle on. When the coach starts to destroy people, they should be fired, or they should be honest enough to resign. *I think this part of the article is very important and they outline the NDSU policy for terminating a coach:

According to Bina’s contract, NDSU had the right to terminate the agreement for just cause. According to the contract, just cause carries three reasons:

1) Conduct related to the employee’s job duties that are detrimental to the institution,
thical standards.


2) Material that brings public disrepute upon NDSU and

3) Failure to follow high moral and ethics



I can respect that, and that's why I'm commenting on the issue both sides.

(I'm trying to be supportive from both sides, I understand that administration needs to do what's best for the program, and if that's without Bina, so be it. But at the same time, I have a hard time feeling that there were ethical issues involved from a successful coach who has been with the same program for 11 years, and has had a stepping stone at every program been successful.)

I would have a hard time believing that this is Bina's first struggling year as a coach (in terms of winning/losing). And sometimes the perception of the negativity from the coaches view, and the parents/players view, isn't always on the same page. Reports about Bina not being good at positivity when needed could very well be true, but at the same time, sometimes the players just don't react to being pushed when they are struggling, and that's not a responsible sign from the players as well.

A couple comments leave me to wonder some things though.

1)Lisa Mimick's head coach at MSU making a comment about her not wanting Lisa to walk into a situation that would be extremely hard for her to succeed. If Bina was the problem, then the players wouldn't be, and it wouldn't be a 'hard situation'. Just IMHO.

2)Bina being "too hard on the girls". I just wish they wouold elaborate on "too hard" a little more, and maybe they will down the road.

Whatever happened, the administration made a decision, and I really am positive the program (even though in turmoil now) will come out of this soon with the best possible options, and good things will happen. You can almost count on that at a school like NDSU, because success is almost mandatory and that's a good thing.

I don't know the situation, it's just a little odd when 'ethical situations' come out of nowhere from someone who has been in the buisness for 15-20+ years and never had a problem before.

[onetimeuser]

Let's face it. This is a program trying to win Division I volleyball games with Division II and even Division III athletes. That is a recipe for failure. *This current group of athletes is mostly made up of D2 athletes not D1 volleyball players. *Note those word changes athletes to volleyball players. *Anyone can recruit athletes but not everyone can recruit volleyball players. *And with the geographical location of NDSU it is damn near impossible to recruit volleyball players. *Bina was a phenomanal coach with D2 athletes (current junior class) and was slowly making that transition to coaching D1 volleyball players (current freshman class). *Its just a shame that a fair amount of time was not given to the previous coaching staff. *Wasn't it said in a news article by Lynn Dorn that she wanted no one else but Bina to take the program through the transition from D2 to D1. *Does she lie like that all the time and to all of her coaches?

[SirHinn]

Let's face it. This is a program trying to win Division I volleyball games with Division II and even Division III athletes. That is a recipe for failure. *This current group of athletes is mostly made up of D2 athletes not D1 volleyball players. *Note those word changes athletes to volleyball players. *Anyone can recruit athletes but not everyone can recruit volleyball players. *And with the geographical location of NDSU it is damn near impossible to recruit volleyball players. *Bina was a phenomanal coach with D2 athletes (current junior class) and was slowly making that transition to coaching D1 volleyball players (current freshman class). *Its just a shame that a fair amount of time was not given to the previous coaching staff. *Wasn't it said in a news article by Lynn Dorn that she wanted no one else but Bina to take the program through the transition from D2 to D1. *Does she lie like that all the time and to all of her coaches?

Was the team getting the job done? It doesn't appear they were. It is indeed a business and thats what happens when your not getting er done. They needed to make a change, so although controversial, she made the change. I also think your comment about having D2 athletes is kinda silly. There were lots of those senior and junior players who got recruited to play at D1 schools. So to single them out and call them D2 athletes is absolutely absurd.

[SDSUFAN]

Let's face it. This is a program trying to win Division I volleyball games with Division II and even Division III athletes. That is a recipe for failure. *This current group of athletes is mostly made up of D2 athletes not D1 volleyball players. *Note those word changes athletes to volleyball players. *Anyone can recruit athletes but not everyone can recruit volleyball players. *And with the geographical location of NDSU it is damn near impossible to recruit volleyball players. *Bina was a phenomanal coach with D2 athletes (current junior class) and was slowly making that transition to coaching D1 volleyball players (current freshman class). *Its just a shame that a fair amount of time was not given to the previous coaching staff. *Wasn't it said in a news article by Lynn Dorn that she wanted no one else but Bina to take the program through the transition from D2 to D1. *Does she lie like that all the time and to all of her coaches?

I can resist commenting on this post. Its easy to wipe the slate clean with this kind of rationalization. SDSU has one program where the fans seem to have this same kind of thinking. If the athletes are leaving and are unhappy about how they are treated, then its a matter that deserves much scrutiny and apparently that is what Lynn Dorn did before terminating Bina. I dont care what institution we are speaking of, if the athletes are not enjoying the competition, and dread practice day after day, then what is going on? The coach recruited these athletes to succeed not to fail nor to quit the program. If its one unhappy athlete its one thing, but if its several, then we need to look at what the coach is doing or is not doing. Hence NDSU is now looking for a new volleyball coach.