I love hearing Cael give props to this guy, and as an avid ISU fan he would be my vision quest to be the next head coach at ISU. I'm guessing Cael will try to keep him at PSU forever, but Casey is going to be highly sought after as a head coach. You guys took Cael, so I would not feel bad about going full throttle after Casey when the timing is right. It would also open another spot of the PSU coaching staff for DT.
Casey Cunningham
- Thread starter James P. Whitters III
- Start date
That is the nature of being a great coach - you're in demand. If ISU paid him the extreme compliment of asking him to be their HC, it's hard to begrudge a great assistant their shot if they decide that's what they want to do.
From what I read at the time, PSU was going all-out after Cornell's Rob Koll, son of former NIU and PSU head coach Bill Koll, when Cael in some form or fashion made it known to the search committee that he could be interested in the job. They immediately contacted him and the rest is history but I suspect the truth is that impetus for the initial contact came from Cael, not PSU. If that's true and ISU fans still want to claim PSU "took" Cael, they must also allow that it was only possible after Cael first made himself available for the "taking" -- and that history has so far played out in such a way as to make it very difficult to fault his decision to leave.
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Hey Mr. Whitters the Third, did you just catch that throw by your guy Downey to win the 5th place match? Wow, that was a sweet throw - very Q-esque! Talk about hitting a throw and just sticking a guy! Youza, wham, bam, thank you m'am!
Not enough talent out there , and it would be a constant battle with Iowa for commits.
He knows what's available in PA, and I think he's waiting for the right spot.
He could turn Pitt around in a heart beat.
I was saying to someone at nationals last night that Casey is my worst nightmare at Pitt. I would fear that WPIAL studs such as Nico, Nolf or Jimmy would stay home.
With only 9.9 Scholarships to give, the number of elite wrestlers in Pennsy and the dominating Dynasty Cael has built, that would not be a big concern imho -- the bigger concern is not that Casey would take recruits from PSU necessarily, but how he could "coach the up" the ample talent that exists all over PA.....and that PSU would have to replace an incredible coach. Pennsy has supported programs like Boro, Lehigh, WVU, Lock Haven, Clarion, Bloomsburg....and even Pitt themselves with very, very good long traditions in wrestling, so imho, Casey stealing recruits is not the big risk if he he left for Pitt.
Believe it or not ISU is one of the places that can draw talent from coast to coast with the right coach. Varner came from CA, Big Z from NJ, Reader from Mich., Gallicks from AZ, Earl Hall if from Fl. You get the picture. There is talent around the midwest and the tradition at ISU is quite well known. Casey could win here! I'm not saying a Cael at PSU type of run, but he could build a consistent top 10 and chase a title here and there. I think ISU is more likely to pony up the dough than most programs as well. People forget that ISU is not some 2/nd rate wrestling school- that perception has been built by HR.
u think you are a lot smarter and in the know than what u are....i bet u are unbearable in person
I'm not so sure about that. Cael is still Cael, PSU still has a superior Olympic training center, and PSU is not exactly "not home" from Pittsburgh.
The right coach at Pitt would keep the next set of guys from going out of state: Pletcher, Zavatsky, Coy, Headlee, Krivus, etc. That in itself would make them imposing.
I guess I'm saying I don't think there is a "worst nightmare at Pitt" as long as Cael is here. The real threat is another 3 hrs west of Pitt.
Considering ISU just over-performed at NCAAs, doubt Pollard is really going to be looking for a change. I'm starting to think Jackson is the preverbal cat with 9 lives. Every time you think he's finished, the team puts it together enough to get him off the hot seat. I walked past him after the medal round and he looked very relaxed; you could tell he was happy with how things went.
Agree with that due to the amount of home grown talent in Ohio - Pennsylvania still produces probably double the amount of NCAA wrestlers and qualifiers that Ohio does, but when you are talking only 9.9 scholarships total per school, what difference does it make. Ohio produces enough "elite talent" that in any given year, the top 2 or 3 kids in Ohio could be the best in the country - Pennsylvania's superior numbers in regards to elite talent (still a significant advantage versus any other state) does not guarantee that Pennsylvania's absolute best will be better than another state's absolute best talent, but does give Cael a big advantage in regards to "sleepers" and depth I believe. Rutgers is another one that is going to continue to rise - Ashnault being a good example of why.
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