I guess I have been gone too long...

[stang4life]

Here I sit reading the boards and I go to put my two cents in and the doggone thread gets locked.  Just wanted to know if there will be ANY threads allowed on this FORUM discussing COACH BRYANT, BASEBALL, and POSTERS' OPINIONS about what went on in BC?

If it gets locked, then I guess I know the answer to two questions...NO DISCUSSIONS regarding COACH BRYANT and why I HAVE BEEN GONE SOOO LONG!!!

[PNG Proud]

Is it really locked?  I don't see the lock.  ???

[stang4life]

I don't know whether "it" is locked, but I do know that the particular thread that I was reading (Mark Dunn's article...) was locked when I was reading it. 

[Cardfan]

Welcome back stang it has been  awhile.  Always enjoy reading your post. ;D :-*

[injun]

Such a shame how they decide to lock a thread or delete a reply..They have actually edited my

    reply before...I would rather them delete it than edit it, that way at least they are not completly

    changing the point I am trying to make...

   

[injun]

Stang4life--- I feel like you were dogging out the Little League programs and the

  Dads and Grandads that spend their time trying to " Teach "  these youngsters

  how to play baseball...I can't believe that people do not see that this is where

  great ball players come from...Look at the teams that are sucsessfull year in and

  year out ...PNG , Nederland , Bridge City , LCM....What do all these Schools have

  in common??? Great Little League programs...When they get to High School they

  know how to play ball, because their dad or someone else spent countless hours

  teaching them the Game of Baseball...I'd be willing to bet, most "above average"

  players at the High School level spent more time in their lives (and learned more)

  being coached by their Dads than by their High School coach.... 

 

[Justme]

i agree with the point that it is important that the dads and granddads take a part in their sons baseball. It keeps them on the right tracka nd out of trouble.

The problem occurs when the dad thinks he knows more than the coach or gets involved with his sons high school team too much and over steps his bounds. When a player reaches the high school level parents need to cut some of those strings and let their kids fend for themselves. Trust me the real cream will always rise to the top.

On the other hand coaches need to be aware that they are playing players for the right reasons not because who their dad is or how much money he has and so on. The best player with the best attitude should be on the field.

[topgun95]

I second that point. Well put Justme

[ksagrl1]

Injun-  By your way of thinking then, the numerous kids from the LCM program that are playing college, minor league, and major league baseball are a direct result of their dads?  :

I will agree that good coaching at a young age is important and certainly contributes to a player's success.  However, if your kid is learning more from dad than his high school coach (which you mention is the case for all above-average players), my suggestion is to find somewhere else to play.

[Cardfan]

Well said Just me if all the parents or grandparents want to coach get your degree then apply.  If not go to the games sit in the stands and enjoy watching your kids.  Try supporting the coaches not bad mouthing them.  A coach gives up a lot of their time to be out there with our children. 

[injun]

Injun-  By your way of thinking then, the numerous kids from the LCM program that are playing college, minor league, and major league baseball are a direct result of their dads?   :

I will agree that good coaching at a young age is important and certainly contributes to a player's success.  However, if your kid is learning more from dad than his high school coach (which you mention is the case for all above-average players), my suggestion is to find somewhere else to play.

I did not say " all " I said most..... Do you think Billy Bryant taught Dishon the fundamentals

  of baseball or do you think he learned that before he got to High School??

[3amagic]

Injun-  By your way of thinking then, the numerous kids from the LCM program that are playing college, minor league, and major league baseball are a direct result of their dads?   :

I will agree that good coaching at a young age is important and certainly contributes to a player's success.  However, if your kid is learning more from dad than his high school coach (which you mention is the case for all above-average players), my suggestion is to find somewhere else to play.

I did not say " all " I said most..... Do you think Billy Bryant taught Dishon the fundamentals

   of baseball or do you think he learned that before he got to High School??

Congrats to those that help these kids progress to the level where they can compete for and win a starting spot on their high school team.  Congrats to the high school coaches for teaching them an offensive philoshophy and defensive techniques and strategies to defend anything that might come at them during a contest.  This is called developing a player and teaching them the game.  Congrats to all of those along the way that help these kids have success in high school ball and to those that can consistantly put their kids in position to keep playing after high school ball is over.  I think it is no coinsidence that it seems to be the same schools doing it over and over and over for many many years.  In one instance a high school team was winning and their players were being signed all of the time.  The coach changed schools and then his new school rose to that level and his former school quickly dropped off the map in playoff appearances and in college signees.  I don't think it had anything to do with the dads. 

Billy Bryant is one of only a handful of coaches in this area that has taken a team to Austin.  He has not only done it at BC he has done it at Buna as well.  Do you think he just happened to have had great little league coaches send him ready made teams?  No.  He prepared the group of kids he had to work with and got them ready to compete against the other schools.

The adults in Dishon's life got him to Billy Bryant and playing baseball and football at Brdige City High School helped prepare Dishon for college baseball. 

[643]

How many area HS coaches actually played college ball, Im thinking you can count them on one hand. Do you guys actually think with the rules UIL has in place a HS coach has time to teach 'the swing' or recongize a minor flaw in a pitchers mechanics and correct ...some can do one but very few can do both, most don't know themselves. Without dads and 'summer ball' any HS coach would be hard pressed to field a competive team out of your ave HS talent. Most players that go to the next level are noticed in the summers before their Sr yr not on a HS team be it in a camp or showcase, and this is something a HS coach has nothing to do with. A HS coach sould not have to teach fundimentals (most can't) just take what they get and run with it and the ones that do well is a direct result of 'offseason' work. 

[injun]

How many area HS coaches actually played college ball, Im thinking you can count them on one hand. Do you guys actually think with the rules UIL has in place a HS coach has time to teach 'the swing' or recongize a minor flaw in a pitchers mechanics and correct ...some can do one but very few can do both, most don't know themselves. Without dads and 'summer ball' any HS coach would be hard pressed to field a competive team out of your ave HS talent. Most players that go to the next level are noticed in the summers before their Sr yr not on a HS team be it in a camp or showcase, and this is something a HS coach has nothing to do with. A HS coach sould not have to teach fundimentals (most can't) just take what they get and run with it and the ones that do well is a direct result of 'offseason' work.   

Amen bro...I was begining to think I was the only one who could see this...I just don't understand

  some of these posters that don't believe this...To me it is very obvious...How many "hundreds" of  dads

    know as much (or more) about baseball than some of these High School coaches??? I wouldn't want to

    take a $60,000 a year cut in my pay to coach High School ball....

[injun]

Injun-  By your way of thinking then, the numerous kids from the LCM program that are playing college, minor league, and major league baseball are a direct result of their dads?   :

I will agree that good coaching at a young age is important and certainly contributes to a player's success.  However, if your kid is learning more from dad than his high school coach (which you mention is the case for all above-average players), my suggestion is to find somewhere else to play.

KSAGRL:Yes I do think they are better because of their dads or someone else that helped them at a

      young age....I think coach Griff is a great coach, but I have never thought of Bryant as a good one..

      How many LCM (or PNG, Nederland) vs Bridge City players have advanced past college ball...The dads

     teach them baseball it is the High School coaches job to "Fine Tune" them if they want to continue playing

     ball....If you know any of the BC players from the 2006 or 2007 teams, ask them if their High School coach

      was the reason they went as deep in the playoffs as they did....I bet 3 out of 4 will tell you no !!!!

 

[Guest BC boy 17]

There seems to be two major points going in this discussion thread, first is the argument of who gets credit for success of high school sports program and the other is yet another opportunity to rag Coach Bryant. I'd like to share a couple of points on both of these.

During the '07-'08 Bridge City Athletics sports banquet commented on the very subject of coach dads. The man himself acknowledged the baseball program in Bridge City would not have the success it has without the base work done by the hundreds of dads (and moms) who spend countless hours working with the kids from the time they first step onto a baseball diamond. Johnny Dishon didn't find his baseball skills in high school and I don't think you would ever see someone have success in baseball that first picked a glove up in the 9th grade. It takes years and many hours of dedication to develop those skills. The success Bridge City has had is not because of the dads or because of the coaches, it is because of both. Coach Bryant was smart enough and big enough to recognize it.

As for the players support of Coach Bryant, you might want to go back and recheck the results of your poll. There have been comments on here from former players showing their support and the '08 BC team was very unified in their support of their coach. Yes, you would be able to find players, former and current, that didn't like playing for Coach Bryant but that would be the same for any program you checked. My son taught me a lesson about Coach Bryant that really opened my eyes. There was a play with a ground ball hit to the infielder during an intersquad scrimmage. The ground was really wet so the ball was slowed. The infielder was playing a little deeper than he probably should. When the ball was fielded and thrown to first the runner was safe. We'll discount for now that the runner was Dishon. Coach Bryant talked to the fielder and said something like, I'm not going to tell you were to position for a play. Think about what just happened and how you could have done that differently. Talking about a very positive coaching style. He made the correction without the player realizing it. The coaching lesson was taken as a positive by the player and he has gone on to handle that position very well. Partly because he doesn't feel threatened or intimidated by the coach.

This is yet another thread that has managed to turn into a Coach Bryant ragging. You want to compare coaching ability by the way of college signings? Think about Coach Bryant having success with less talent than Griff. Maybe you made the best point yet that Bryant is able to get more from his players than Griff. Don't get excited because you will twist this that I am downing Coach Griff, I am not. I am only wanting to say that Coach Bryant has shown in many ways he is a very capable coach. As 3A Birdman said on another post it is time for all of us to move on. There's not really much to say than has already been said. Coach Bryant will land somewhere and be just fine. BC baseball will be just fine. A new coach will come in with the same love of the game and find that he has a bunch of players with talent, drive and determination to get back into the play-offs and to go far. 

[Terrier]

Being a good coach is not just about teaching the game. It is also knowing how to "manage" your players. Where to put players so they can be successful, when to pull your pitcher, when to hit and run. Some coaches are better at it then others. But a coach still has to have talent to win. PNG, LCM, Bridge City and Nederland consistently provide their schools with baseball talent. The main problem I see is that baseball is becoming a game for the wealthy that can afford the private lessons and pay for their sons to travel the country playing baseball. A regular kid that comes up through the local league hardly stands a chance anymore.

[shadow1]

Again injun your at it again... The man no longer coaches at bridge city. but here is a question for you... Did you play high school ball? He did. Did you play college ball? He did. Did you get a baseball scholarship? He did. Did you get any help from your coach to play college ball? He didn't, he did it on his own. Did you coach 2 different high schools to the state touney? He did. And as for summerball and the importance of dad's in a young athletes development, i have never seen or heard anyone deny that. But being an all-star in little league doesn't determine who will become a pro.

[bleachercreature]

Dynasty

In response (not defense, because you were not "downing our coach") to your statement that one coach gets more from his players than the other, LCM has beaten BC 20 of the last 21 in baseball.  This would include a victory by the 2006 team over a left handed pitcher that was to be a high draft pick.  We started our number two pitcher in that game and he struck out 17 cards.  I am not "downing the cards", I am just responding in support.

I am also going to guess that our 4A bracket was a little tougher than yours was that year.  After our first round bye, we opened up with Klein Oak (former 5A state champion) and then lost by one to Brenham (former 4A state champion many times over) which was the second ranked team in the nation that year.

   

[mustang]

How many area HS coaches actually played college ball, Im thinking you can count them on one hand. Do you guys actually think with the rules UIL has in place a HS coach has time to teach 'the swing' or recongize a minor flaw in a pitchers mechanics and correct ...some can do one but very few can do both, most don't know themselves. Without dads and 'summer ball' any HS coach would be hard pressed to field a competive team out of your ave HS talent. Most players that go to the next level are noticed in the summers before their Sr yr not on a HS team be it in a camp or showcase, and this is something a HS coach has nothing to do with. A HS coach sould not have to teach fundimentals (most can't) just take what they get and run with it and the ones that do well is a direct result of 'offseason' work.   

Amen bro...I was begining to think I was the only one who could see this...I just don't understand

   some of these posters that don't believe this...To me it is very obvious...How many "hundreds" of  dads

    know as much (or more) about baseball than some of these High School coaches??? I wouldn't want to

    take a $60,000 a year cut in my pay to coach High School ball....

There are hundreds of dads that THINK they know more than the high school coaches but it doesn't make it so.  Dads  need to sit in the bleachers and eat the popcorn.  They could have coached if they had went to college, its not the coaches fault that the dads feel inferior. 

[Terrier]

Coaches expect criticism. You are never going to make everyone happy. Somebody has to sit the bench. Parents are way more involved in their kids live then they used to be. The reason all the criticism has risen to a new level is the money factor. The parents are investing large sums of money in private lessons , equipment and traveling from the time these kids are 7 or 8 years old. So when the High School coach doesn't play their kid they go nuts. 

[Guest etbu]

Coaches expect criticism. You are never going to make everyone happy. Somebody has to sit the bench. Parents are way more involved in their kids live then they used to be. The reason all the criticism has risen to a new level is the money factor. The parents are investing large sums of money in private lessons , equipment and traveling from the time these kids are 7 or 8 years old. So when the High School coach doesn't play their kid they go nuts. 

Bingo good post

[Guest BC boy 17]

Bleachercreature - I wasn't trying to start any kind of debate about heads-up school records, talent or coaching abilities. I was only trying to respond to the continued bashing of an undeserving coach.

That #2 pitcher threw at the weakness of BC hitting by staying off speed. A very good tactical coaching move.

Wouldn't an annual all Orange County tournament be a lot of fun to watch? 

[bleachercreature]

You won't hear any coach bashing from me.  And I bet you won't hear any Billy Bryant bashing from any bear fans. We respect what he has accomplished over there.

And I was not debating, I was responding in support.

[Terrier]

I am not a coach basher by any means. But I do think some coaches open the door for criticism. One of my pet peeves is a double standard when it comes to behavior. When a coach allows some players to do anything and punishes another for the same thing. Or allows a player to make mistake after mistake on the field but benches another after one mistake.