Is it time to consider new leadership?

With the loses to Pacific and Saint Mary's, picked by the WCC coaches to finish last and next to last, respectively, Portland's first steps into conference play is looking like the start of a sad death march.

Through Sunday, the 3-8-1 record is the poorest start since the 1983 team finished 2-11-3, an all-time worst record safe for at least a year.

Can anyone who went to last night’s game give me a sense of the vibe around the coaches and players? Urgent? Desperate? Calm and collected?

They seemed calm and collected. They seemed to play with much more intensity than we have seen all season. Several players who up to now have not seen much playing time got a chance to play and gave good accounts of themselves. For long stretches of the game they held their own with Santa Clara. Unfortunately the final score was disappointing, however I thought they made a significant step in the right direction with this game. I'm looking forward to Sunday's game, also looking forward to today's Thorns game.

A_Fan wrote:They seemed calm and collected.  They seemed to play with much more intensity than we have seen all season.  Several players who up to now have not seen much playing time got a chance to play and gave good accounts of themselves.  For long stretches of the game they held their own with Santa Clara.  Unfortunately the final score was disappointing, however I thought they made a significant step in the right direction with this game.  I'm looking forward to Sunday's game, also looking forward to today's Thorns game.

I would agree. Possession was relatively equal. 2 or 3 Pilot shots off the woodwork in the first half. A breakaway goal in the second half. The Broncos showed more skill and creativity in the final third--to me, that was the difference in the game.

SCU was the better team, but I admired the grit the young Pilots showed trying to dig out of their 2-0 halftime deficit.

There was good energy in the stands coming from adults and soccer youths alike, many of whom were probably there because each of the UP players wrote a note to season ticket holders asking them to buy pink t-shirts they had designed in partnership with Portland Gear. They sold out early, but there should be more available for all future women's games at Merlo in October.  All proceeds go to the American Cancer Society.

My lengthy note came from Rachel Lusby....without it, I would not have known of the pink shirts.

SoreKnees wrote:

Corrado Kid wrote:
There is little doubt this will not be a successful season. The only question now is how bad it'll be.

There's one more question, which speaks to the title of this thread: "How will UP officials react?" The historical record in the table clearly shows that they have been extremely patient with the current staff. Extremely.

Thought I'd add this year's line to my chart from above, even though we're only four games in:

Year  Fin   Team    Pts  G  PPG    GD
2007    1        8    21   7  3.00   +19
2008    1        8    21   7  3.00   +20
2009    1        8    21   7  3.00   +32
2010    1        8    19   7  2.71   +11
2011    5        9    12   8  1.50   +4
2012    2        9    17   8  2.13   +12
2013    1       10    24   9  2.67   +12
2014    5       10    13   9  1.44   -2
2015    5       10    12   9  1.33   +2
2016    6       10    10   9  1.11   -7
2017   10      10     0    4  0.00   -7

In a battle between two teams at the bottom of the conference standings, the double-overtime loss to San Francisco was the first ever for the Pilots since the two schools began playing in 1986.

Susie Que wrote:In a battle between two teams at the bottom of the conference standings, the double-overtime loss to San Francisco was the first ever for the Pilots since the two schools began playing in 1986.

Some of us stayed until the bitter end, but some like the Villa Drum Squad and other students, didn't even show up to support their classmates.....sad.

DoubleDipper wrote:Some of us stayed until the bitter end, but some like the Villa Drum Squad and other students, didn't even show up to support their classmates.....sad.

Neither here nor there, but I noticed that the Drum Squad hasn't posted anything on their Facebook or Instagram pages yet this season. They are active on Twitter still, but it seems to me like that's probably the least-impactful of the social media options when it comes to spreading the word among students.

DoubleDipper wrote:
Some of us stayed until the bitter end, but some like the Villa Drum Squad and other students, didn't even show up to support their classmates.....sad.

To be fair, there wasn’t much of a showing from the drum squad for the Men’s most important game of the year.

Kudos to the few who did show ( I counted 8 at the Anthem), but it doesn’t say much for the overall dorm support.

On Saturday the Pilots close out the season at Pepperdine, now in first place but coming off a 0-0 tie with Saint Mary’s. Last year’s best Portland result was a scoreless tie with a then-ranked Pepperdine team. The Pilots have already had the upset of the season with a win at Loyola Marymount. Since this is soccer, one can expect anything, even another stunner. If that were to not happen though, it should be a very long trip home for some. The weekend will be nervous time.

Last season’s team was bad. This one was worse, arguably the worst ever.

This year’s Pilots had the fewest wins in 34 years and was the worst scoring team in program history with a school record low in goals scored, 11.

In conference standings with two teams it had lost to, the Pilots finished in a three-way tie for last place and had the poorest overall record. It was their worst finish ever.

Is there a direction here?

2005: championship
2006: quarterfinal
2007: quarterfinal
2008: quarterfinal
2009: quarterfinal
2010: second round
2011: second round
2012: second round
2013: second round
2014: not in playoffs; WCC - tied for 5th
2015: not in playoffs; WCC - 5th
2016: not in playoffs; WCC - 6th
2017: not in playoffs; WCC - tied for 8th

It’s time for a change.

Final update from my chart above:

Year  Fin   Team    Pts  G  PPG    GD
2007    1        8    21   7  3.00   +19
2008    1        8    21   7  3.00   +20
2009    1        8    21   7  3.00   +32
2010    1        8    19   7  2.71   +11
2011    5        9    12   8  1.50   +4
2012    2        9    17   8  2.13   +12
2013    1       10    24   9  2.67   +12
2014    5       10    13   9  1.44   -2
2015    5       10    12   9  1.33   +2
2016    6       10    10   9  1.11   -7
2017   10      10     6    9  0.67   -11

There's always the scary possibility that a last place finish next year might not be enough to prompt a change.

After a last place finish next year, they’ll call it the Garrett Smith Level.

Eventually, we’ll get a new coach, I suppose.

That coach will recruit top Canadians. West Virginia and Memphis have lots. We used to have the greatest ever and more. Now we have none.

And that coach will attract transfers, particularly the ones who can score.

Everyone can dream.

Even the old and grouchy.

I was in error in stating Portland had lost to Gonzaga while finishing last with them. The Pilots defeated Gonzaga, 1-0.

Garrett Smith is out!
http://portlandpilots.com/news/2017/11/7/portland-announces-womens-soccer-coaching-change.aspx

For those who don't wish to click through:

PORTLAND, Ore. – Garrett Smith will not return as head coach of the University of Portland women’s soccer program, Vice President for Athletics Scott Leykam announced on Tuesday.

“We sincerely thank Garrett for all of his hard work and dedication to the University as a student-athlete, assistant coach and head coach,” said Leykam. “He will always be a big part of our program’s tradition and everything that has been accomplished at the Clive Charles Soccer Complex and Merlo Field.”



Smith, who was also a men’s soccer student athlete on The Bluff, served 11 years as an assistant coach to both the men’s and women’s programs under Clive Charles before transitioning to women’s head coach for the last 15 seasons. Smith was an assistant coach during the Pilots’ 2002 run to the title and was at the helm during the team’s undefeated 2005 championship season. Smith also led the Pilots to NCAA Championship quarterfinal appearances five other times (2004, 2006-09), won seven West Coast Conference Championships and was named WCC Coach of the year on six occasions.

Portland finished the 2017 season with a 5-13-1 overall record and tied for ninth with a 2-7-0 mark in league play to miss postseason play for the fourth consecutive season.

“This decision was a difficult one and was made after lengthy and thoughtful consideration,” Leykam said. “We will begin the search for the next head coach immediately and I am confident we will find an outstanding candidate to both continue the great tradition of UP women’s soccer and fulfill the missions of the University and Athletic Department.”

The University of Portland has a strong and proud women’s soccer tradition and is one of just four programs to win multiple NCAA Championships in the sport (2002, 2005). The Pilots have made eight Final Four appearances (1994-96, 1998, 2000-02, 2005) and won 13 WCC Championships. The Pilots led the nation in average attendance for 10 consecutive seasons from 2005 through 2014.

I don't know how big of a net the Pilots intend to cast, but I know a coach, a former Pilot, that has a strong work ethic of her own and coaches others to be that way; has coaching experience (albeit a younger group); and has a friend network of coaches at the younger levels where she would be able to recruit with their blessing. I have dropped hints to her before...today the hint will have merit.

It might be a reach but I see that Laura Harvey from the Seattle Reign just left her job as coach and GM. Ms Harvey has been on campus several times in the past when she was observing players. I think that she would be great. However unless I am in Disneyland miracles such as this most likely wont happen.

Zogman58 wrote:It might be a reach but I see that Laura Harvey from the Seattle Reign just left her job as coach and GM.  

With Harvey's departure and the signing of Vlatko Andonovski as the new coach, there's a very good chance Reign assistant Stephanie Lopez Cox will be looking for a new opportunity.

I know nothing about Ms. Harvey, but I think anyone who knew Stephanie during her time on the Bluff and during her international competition will agree she'd be welcomed back to UP.  She may not have the coaching experience required for the head coaching position, but as an assistant, and not that far enough removed from her playing days (2 years), she should have some recruiting advantage with high school age girls.

From my perspective, it was not necessarily the coaching that has allowed the UP program to fall on hard times, but the recruiting....especially the recruiting of foreign players, including Canada!!

DoubleDipper wrote:Garrett Smith is out!
http://portlandpilots.com/news/2017/11/7/portland-announces-womens-soccer-coaching-change.aspx

The Pilots were tied for eighth, not ninth.

It’s too bad they waited a year to make the change. We might have snagged Louise Lieberman from UCLA, instead of watching her now at San Diego.

First off: I want to thank Coach Smith for everything he and his staff have given UP over the years. Many great memories (2002 and 2005) and players have passed through in his tenure. He was a fellow Pilot and represented the university and program well. It could not have been an easy decision to let him go. That being said, I wish Coach Smith (and the assistants like Sari-Chambers) all of the best of luck in the future. If he wants to continue coaching, many programs would be lucky to have him.

We have to be one of the best open positions in the country regardless of what else opens up. I am not attached to hiring a UP alumna but that would be nice. I would prefer our hire to have some splash that revitalizes the program much like Coach Carlin-Voigt.

This was inevitable. I could publish detailed stats about the descent in the Pilots' RPI ratings, which has been monumental, but that's no longer necessary. This season simply was the capper on what was almost certain to happen anyway. The decision has been made, so there's no need to say more on that account.

I do, however, have a theory that the Pilots' history appears to support. It has to do with how long the "good will" a great coach builds for a program lasts. Clive, who was one of the greatest, if not the greatest, Division I women's soccer coaches ever, left us in 2002. The Pilots continued at or near the top for the next 8 years. Following the 2010 season, the descent began, and believe me it was precipitous. I am entertaining the possibility that Clive's legacy kept the program going for 8 years, and that it was only after that period that we began to see how the staff would perform without him. This may seem harsh towards the staff, but I'm inclined to believe that's the case.

What's sad is that almost all of the good will that Clive built for the program, and almost all of the benefits of it, now appear to be gone. Hopefully, not all, so that a new coach won't be beginning from nowhere, but it's going to take a truly great coach and a huge amount of work to build the program back to even close to what it once was.

I do have some opinions on who the new coach should be. I can see Shannon Mac, Michelle French, and Lauren Orlandos Hansen as possibilities. All three of these are potential great recruiters. Of these, Lauren, to me, is the choice since she now is the head coach at San Jose State, has built that program into an excellent mid-major program, has experience as an assistant at both Portland and Oregon, and was a great recruiter when she was with the Pilots. Whether there are too many burnt bridges between her and the University, I don't know, but she's the one I would pursue and I would pay mightily to get her.

I'd be happy with Frenchie or Shannon Mac, but to me the obvious one to pursue is Lauren.

Nice comments...I would not oppose any of the suggested names.