The Book: TrackFieldXC 2005-06

[haha300]

Well excuses, excuses. Worst men's and womens cross country teams, worst men's and women's indoor track and field teams, and Worst men's and womens outdoor track and field teams. And to think they won CC conference and the men's team was runner up just two seasons ago. Excuses mean nothing. The proof is in the pudding. Something must be done. Lets face it. There is no team in this conference that is just that good that ULL can't compete with them. To put on this type of performance in front of a home crowd is just down right ridiculous. This is nothing against the kids who have worked their butts off all year. The problem lies much higher. You obviously have people who could care less about what happens to this program in the drivers seat. This includes coaches and administrators . They lack guidance, preparation, and motivation. Now some might see most of us "naysayers" as just people wanting to relive the glory days. The fact of the matter is that the glory days should have been this weekend. Losing is not an option.

[cajun nation]

Well excuses, excuses. Worst men's and womens cross country teams, worst men's and women's indoor track and field teams, and Worst men's and womens outdoor track and field teams. And to think they won CC conference and the men's team was runner up just two seasons ago. Excuses mean nothing. The proof is in the pudding. Something must be done. Lets face it. There is no team in this conference that is just that good that ULL can't compete with them. To put on this type of performance in front of a home crowd is just down right ridiculous. This is nothing against the kids who have worked their butts off all year. The problem lies much higher. You obviously have people who could care less about what happens to this program in the drivers seat. This includes coaches and administrators . They lack guidance, preparation, and motivation. Now some might see most of us "naysayers" as just people wanting to relive the glory days. The fact of the matter is that the glory days should have been this weekend. Losing is not an option.

Ok. You guys keep bagging on Coach but do any of you realise that there is no support from the university for the mens or womens program. No finacial or moral support at all. Lancon had been a fixture in the track community here for a very long time. Half of the budget he generated came from his salary. You guys want to change the track program start by donating large sums of money for recruiting, hell for that matter fund a scholarship because the university will not fund all of the ncaa allowed scholarships. You think there are great track athletes in this state you are sadly mistaken. The program will turn around due to the new track. We will hot the conference meet again next year also. Why don't you guys help out instead of _____ing about it, donate time, money, equipment ect.

I can promise you the results this year will not be duplicated next year.

[Carmon]

The program will turn around due to the new track.

The time to recruit to a new track is before it is built.

[DaddyCajun]

I'd be willing to bet that those point totals from this year's conference meet are an all-time record for lowest amount scored. And this coming from the team that once owned everybody in the conference. Is the UL administration blind?

What I want to know is why in the heck are we SPENDING all this money to HOST the conference meet when our program is such an imbarrassment?:confused: Our head track coach in a few years has taken a once dominant program and tanked it right into "DEAD LAST"!! Something must change! I know track and field is not a big money maker but some of our other programs are not either and they(golf, tennis, volleyball, etc) compete still near the top year in and out as of late and some have even won championships. Coaching change? I do not know, but something drastic has to happen, yesterday!

DaddyCajun

[Xlettrman]

Lancon had been a fixture in the track community here for a very long time.
---True, he worked to build relationships...that's a huge reason as to why he was successful.



Half of the budget he generated came from his salary.
---False, Lancon made less money b/c of LA Teacher Retirement System. He and EEk went out and got sponsorships and help 100 a ticket raffles and invested time with people that could help the program.

You guys want to change the track program start by donating large sums of money for recruiting
---Veazey is a horrible recruiter; talk to any head high school track coach from Sulphur to New Orleans.

Hell for that matter fund a scholarship because the university will not fund all of the ncaa allowed scholarships.
---Lancon got major corporations to do this and a couple of big money people.

You think there are great track athletes in this state you are sadly mistaken.
---No, I think you should reexamine this statement and go to the three major regions in th state and look at times and distances, etc. If you understood college track recruiting more, you wouldn't say this.

The program will turn around due to the new track.
---Because of rubber, I will go to UL....OK...get off the crack. In north Louisiana, there are high school tracks just as good as UL's.

Why don't you guys help out instead of _____ing about it, donate time, money, equipment ect.
---How do you know we are not.

I can promise you the results this year will not be duplicated next year.
---OK...sure; you're misguided.
[/QUOTE]

[cajun nation]

Lancon had been a fixture in the track community here for a very long time.
---True, he worked to build relationships...that's a huge reason as to why he was successful.



Half of the budget he generated came from his salary.
---False, Lancon made less money b/c of LA Teacher Retirement System. He and EEk went out and got sponsorships and help 100 a ticket raffles and invested time with people that could help the program.

You guys want to change the track program start by donating large sums of money for recruiting
---Veazey is a horrible recruiter; talk to any head high school track coach from Sulphur to New Orleans.

Hell for that matter fund a scholarship because the university will not fund all of the ncaa allowed scholarships.
---Lancon got major corporations to do this and a couple of big money people.

You think there are great track athletes in this state you are sadly mistaken.
---No, I think you should reexamine this statement and go to the three major regions in th state and look at times and distances, etc. If you understood college track recruiting more, you wouldn't say this.

The program will turn around due to the new track.
---Because of rubber, I will go to UL....OK...get off the crack. In north Louisiana, there are high school tracks just as good as UL's.

Why don't you guys help out instead of _____ing about it, donate time, money, equipment ect.
---How do you know we are not.

I can promise you the results this year will not be duplicated next year.
---OK...sure; you're misguided.

No, I think you should reexamine this statement and go to the three major regions in th state and look at times and distances, etc. If you understood college track recruiting more, you wouldn't say this.
---I have looked over the state results and they are not very good. We have to recruit against other universitys.


Were you at the meet this weekend?

[Xlettrman]

No, I think you should reexamine this statement and go to the three major regions in th state and look at times and distances, etc. If you understood college track recruiting more, you wouldn't say this.
---I have looked over the state results and they are not very good. We have to recruit against other universitys.


Were you at the meet this weekend?

I have been at virtually every meet for 1 and 1/2 decades; this is one of the few that I have ever missed. And my reason for missing definitely outweighed the meet.

[VObserver]

OK, Xletterman. The sky is falling.

Look; you won't find a single person associated with the Track program at UL who is happy right now. You also won't find one who will disagree with your assessment of Charles Lancon. We all loved and respected him. We all looked on in wonder as he did things that NO other D1 head coach anywhere in the country had to do.

That being said; Charles is no longer with us, and he's not coming back.

There are a number of factors at work here, many of which have nothing to do with who the head coach is.

1. 2 years without a track to practice on [or recruit to].
2. A head coach who is an excellent assistant, but seems unprepared to be a head coach at this time at a program with no adminstrative support.
3. An athletic administration that totally dismisses track as a part of the success of the University.
4. Ricky Bustle. [He has convinced the S&C coach to only allow the track athletes into the weight room 2 days a week in the fall and 3 days, one of which is Friday, during the Spring].
5. A throws coach who doesn't do squat. In fact, he showed up for only about 2 hours during the ENTIRE conference meet, and has not worked with the throwers at all since before Easter.

The importance of each of these factors varies according to event, but I'll give a shot at analysis. I'll only do men, but the women are similar.

If you look back at our domination of the conference over the years, you will find that our dominance has not been universal. Far from it. We have rarely been very good in the distances or sprints. Our strengths have been:
1. Javelin: This is an event that UL has traditionally scored 20 or more points.
2. Triple Jump: 10-20
3. High Jump: Another 15 point event.
4. 110 m Hurdles: At least 10
5. Shot: Usually 6-10
6. Discus: Usually 6-10
7. Decathlon: Another 20 point event
8. Pole Vault: 8-16
9. Long Jump: 6-10
The common threads in all the events of our traditional point base are strength, technique and Coach Lancon.
Not having unlimited access to the weight room has KILLED these events, as has losing Lancon and not replacing his event coaching [as distinguished from head coaching] with someone of similar ability and dedication.
The little bubble we had in distance/cross country strength was killed by a combination of factors: The graduation of a strong class two years ago co-inciding with the destruction of the track and the cutting of the track budget to the extent that one of the distance coaches left for greener pastures. No track plus no coach equals no recruits.

If you add together the points above, you will see an average of 100+ points. This week we scored under 10.

The quickest fix we can do is to get a new decathlon coach whose specialty is technique events [throws, hurdles, vault]. This alone could add 50 points next year. Getting unlimited access to the weight room would add 20-30 more. Add it up, and we are back in the hunt.

[Xlettrman]

You have great points and I agree with virtually everyone. This weight room issue is BS...What head coach and AD would let something like this go on?

One problem with your plan, in my opinion, is that there are no "decathalon coaches" out there...for the most part. There are one or two high school coaches in the area that can get it (field events) done though...from recruiting, discipline, coaching expertise, you name it.

Nice to see someone who understands what's going on!

[VObserver]

You have great points and I agree with virtually everyone. This weight room issue is BS...What head coach and AD would let something like this go on?

One problem with your plan, in my opinion, is that there are no "decathalon coaches" out there...for the most part. There are one or two high school coaches in the area that can get it (field events) done though...from recruiting, discipline, coaching expertise, you name it.

Nice to see someone who understands what's going on!

Actually, there are more 'decathlon' coaches out there than you might think. As for high school coaches; there are none in the Acadiana area, and few [if any] in the State who I would consider adequate for that particular job. Those that could do the job wouldn't take the pay cut.

Best bet for us, all things considered, is a GA who was a decathlete. Lots of those floatinng around looking to work on a Masters or whatever.

The reason I say that is MONEY. I'm not sure you know how really badly the University treats track. Coach Veazey is the lowest paid head coach in Division 1-A in any sport. Assistant coaches basically get expense money [if that]. I could give you a number, but you probably wouldn't believe me. Let's just say the guy who serves your burger at Mickey D's probably makes more than an assistant track coach at UL.

Add in a travel and equipment budget [from the University] of $0.00, and you start to get the picture.

[VObserver]

What I want to know is why in the heck are we SPENDING all this money to HOST the conference meet when our program is such an imbarrassment?:confused: Our head track coach in a few years has taken a once dominant program and tanked it right into "DEAD LAST"!! Something must change! I know track and field is not a big money maker but some of our other programs are not either and they(golf, tennis, volleyball, etc) compete still near the top year in and out as of late and some have even won championships. Coaching change? I do not know, but something drastic has to happen, yesterday!

DaddyCajun

I can give you two reasons why we hosted this meet.

1. UNO was supposed to host. Katrina sort of took care of that. We were already scheduled to host next year, so we took this one on short notice to 'practice' putting one on.

2. It cost the Athletic Department less money to host the meet than to send the team to Miami or Murphysboro. The AD doesn't check to see how good we are when he makes decisions based on economics.

As to our performance, see my other posts on the subject here and elsewhere.

[NewsCopy]

ERATH - Nathan Cormier plans to study architecture, so it makes sense for him to get in on the ground floor of a rebuilding project. The Erath High standout signed with the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns in track and field on Wednesday and should help the program climb out of an unaccustomed last-place finish this spring in the Sun Belt Conference. "Until this year, I didn't think about it (college track) too much," said Cormier, an Academic All-State performer in cross country at EHS who has qualified for TOPS assistance. "I've been interested in architecture since my sophomore year. After that, I started to draw more and read up on it more." UL's interest led to an open door for Cormier, who will get reacquainted with familiar faces already on the Cajun roster in D.J. Hebert (Catholic High) and Brennan Bernard (Erath). "I ran with them when I was a freshman and they were seniors," Cormier said. "That's good. I'm more comfortable. The atmosphere is more inviting." Cormier is an accomplished competitor at several distances, starting with cross country in the fall and including the 400, 800 and 1600 in the spring. He was fourth among Acadiana's Area Bests in the 800 with a time of 2:00.72 this spring and anchored the Bobcats' 4x400 relay team to fourth place at the LHSAA Class 3A State Meet at LSU in a school-record time of 3:27.26. The rest of the story Bruce Brown bbrown@theadvertiser.com