TERRY MOSHER
TOP OF THE TOWN ‑ It’s like a huge hurricane hit major sports in Seattle, tearing apart foundations and hurling us into unknown territory. Think about it, when in the past had we experienced so much upheaval? First, the long tenure of Pete Carroll came to a sudden ending when the Seahawks did the unexpected and fired him as head coach. As surprising as it was, I had written two years ago Carroll’s time was up. I thought the game had passed him by and players were no longer listening to him. He created a positive atmosphere and allowed players to be themselves. That was fine in the beginning but as years rolled on it was not. It was not because we all need a kick in the butt sometimes to get us motivated. It is not good enough to be yourself in a violent sport. We need to be held accountable and if allowed to be just ourselves it’s probable they aren’t getting all it can from us. We need to be held to a higher standard and unless we are pushed we might not reach that higher standard. We might be good, but we need to be great, and Pete’s methods were no longer working. Now the top question is how will players react when asked to be better than they believe they can be by new coach Mike Macdonald? Will some say hell no? We will have that answer soon in the 2004 season. … Then just a few miles away, the Washington Husky football team is going through it is own remake. Popular and successful Husky coach Kalen DeBoer shed his purple skin quickly when the country’s top college football program came to him to replace legendary Nick Saban, who surprisingly retired. DeBoer was Alabama’s first choice and he quickly accepted the challenge to replace a legend. Just as quickly over 20 players either left for the NFL draft or hit the transfer portal. They could not get out of their purple uniforms quick enough. Their departures left the roster almost bare and new coach Jedd Fisch jumped ship from Arizona to try and rebuild a depleted Washington program. It’s a terrible time to do that because the Huskies are stepping up a few levels and joining the tough Big Ten. So Fisch not only has to build from scratch but build it tough enough to withstand heavy blows from some of the best college football teams in the country. Good luck Jedd… Staying at Washington, new athletic director Troy Dannen has a gigantic problem to solve. Dannen has a history of success in his background, but this challenge of fixing the school’s men’s basketball program is vexing, to say the least. Coach Mike Hopkins is a wonderful man. He could not be nicer. Nice doesn’t cut it, however. In recent seasons Hopkins has been faced with a large amount of turnover in players. To fill the roster each year Hopkins reaches into the transfer portal.
What he gets, however, is second and third tier players who can’t compete successfully in the Pac-12. The Huskies are currently in 10h place with a 4-7 record. What is further daunting is next season the Huskies are in the tougher Big Ten. It is obvious, and has been obvious for some time, a new coach is needed. Hopkins will be thrown into the coaches transfer portal at the end of this season and another rebuild will ensue with a different coach. That’s it for today. Stay safe.
Be well pal.
Be careful out there.
Have a great day.
You are loved.