Rant From a Seasoned Deac

Deke 73 said:

I went to Wake Forest in 1969 and graduated in 1973 and have missed very few home basketball games over the past 43 years. My Deacon Club rank is fairly high and I have consistently supported our athletic programs over these many years. I rarely post on the "Boards", but read them on occasion to get the pulse of the Wake Forest community

In my opinion, the last two years of the Jeff [Redacted] era have been a pitiful, painful disaster. Ron Wellman's unilateral decision to hire [Redacted], in my opinion, is the worst and most damaging athletic hire in the past 43 years and probably longer. There is no way for me to estimate the millions of dollars that have been lost from combined revenues and donations. Many of my friends, who have been lifelong Deacon fans agree that this is the first time in their lives that their support of Wake basketball has been replaced by apathy and bitterness. How can Ron Wellman continue to have any credibility when he continues to say he is excited about our basketball future, and that Jeff [Redacted] has done all the right things? I know Wellman must be embarrassed by the woefulness of his choice and continuing to try to put a happy face on it, insults the intelligence of most fans.

When Dino was fired, Wellman said the primary reason was Gaudio's lack of success in February/March. Clearly Gaudio's record in those two months is stellar compared to [Redacted], so the story postured toward a culture change. I find this to be a joke as well. I could have come in and gotten rid of a few of the dissidents or so called trouble makers. And I would have done it for a lot less money. Plus, if [Redacted] is all about culture change, his profane outburst and dropping an "F" bomb on a Miami fan, does not speak well of his culture. My observation is that the main culture change over the past two years has been to show many of us that there is life other than Wake Forest basketball during the winter months. The Joel wreaks of culture change insomuch as the empty seats outnumber the filled seats. For the first time in 43 years I found myself not willing to drive 2 1/2 hours back and forth to games. Even though I have floor seats, I was relieved to have not taken five hours out of many of my days and nights to watch the sad debacle on display at the Joel. I hate I feel this way, but I do, and I think many others do as well.

We have a coach with no winning tradition, no charisma, no fan appeal, no student appeal, and no media appeal. In two years our conference record is 5-29 with no wins of note. Our best win RPI- wise this year was our first game of the year against Loyola. Anyone can dig into statistics to see horribly inept [Redacted] has been at Wake and at Colorado. The lack of improvement by the majority of our players this year is abominable. I take absolutely nothing positive from a better record this year. This was his second year and without a doubt, our conference was the worst in the lower tier than I can ever remember.

The times I have heard [Redacted] speak makes me want to throw up. He is willing to throw players under the bus, and as late as today, he makes the case he never looks ahead, yet in many interviews all he has talked about was the recruiting class coming in next year. I know we have some decent players coming in. We are very fortunate to have Coaches Battle and LaRue on our staff. I can guarantee you that the recruiting class that seems to get [Redacted] some props is primarily due to the effort of Battle and LaRue. I have found it humorous in a sad kind of way to think that anyone would believe Battle or LaRue would have a recruit on the fence and think " if we get Jeff [Redacted] in front of this recruit, I bet he could close the deal". What a joke. [Redacted] got involved in the recruiting of Tyler Lewis, and completely botched that one.

I have watched a lot of basketball this year, paying particular attention to the head coaches, many of them at much lower levels than the ACC. It is a treat to watch the enthusiasm and success many of these coaches have with players we would never consider offering a scholarship to. Many coaches just have "it". But [Redacted] does not have what it takes to be a successful head college coach. Never has and never will.

As ESPN said on their website earlier this week about Wake, "sometimes you just have to admit you made a mistake, and move on". The mistake is clear, but Ron Wellman apparently is willing to run our once-proud program further into the ground, in hopes that his friend might have some type of miraculous divine intervention,that would allow him to save face and for [Redacted] to achieve some level of success in spite of himself.

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Deke 73 said:

Sorry for a new thread, but I wanted to post some of my most thoughts and observations surrounding the sad state of our basketball program.

I have consistently supported the Deacon Club and attended almost every home basketball game for the past 43 years. Even though there have certainly been lots of ups and downs over this vast time period, I believe many of us older, or more seasoned Deacs, have consistently looked forward to each basketball season and generally enjoyed attending the games. Unfortunately that changed two years ago, and the anticipation has turned to dread, and the enjoyment has turned to misery. We do not mind fairly significant contributions to the Deacon Club, and have not minded paying quite steep prices for some prime seats in the Joel. But for the first time in decades, many of us have become frustrated and disenfranchised because we expect more from our head coach and ultimately, our administrators.

I felt like removing Gaudio was a good move for a number of reasons. But Ron Wellman took quite a gamble on not conducting a thorough search, and made a quick decision to hire his friend. A friend with no history of college success and clearly a friend with absolutely no personality or charisma. He gambled and clearly lost. I could handle making a mistake, even though we should have had a more thorough, formalized search. But what I, and many of us are having a real issue with, is Wellman's long-term strategy to defend and promote a coach who is clearly a horrible fit for our program. Many of you will remember the many, nauseating, cheerleading sessions Wellman conducted on the post-game radio shows after the first season of futility. He clearly got the word indicating that strategy did not work, and more recently he has chosen to provide written support with patronizing statements such as he could not be happier with the direction of our program, [Redacted] is doing everything right, he is confident we are on the right track, etc., etc. I have been shocked that Ron Wellman, who prior to the [Redacted] fiasco had a good reputation and wonderful legacy at Wake Forest, has chosen to risk all of that in order to blindly support a friend who has made a farce in two years of our basketball program. I would have thought Wellman, by now, would have taken ESPN's advice and admitted a mistake and moved on. But he has now backed himself into an ugly corner and is apparently determined to blindly support his friend until the bitter end. I initially understood his public support, but it now insults and frustrates many of us.

I have been a part of ownership and management of my company for 27+ years. I have often thought that if I hired a divisional manager, and after two years, and losing the company tremendous amounts of money, running off good employees, having no clue how to effectively motivate or communicate, how in the world could I repeatedly tell my employees what a great decision I had made to hire this person.

Initially Wellman said he fired Gaudio and hired [Redacted] because of Gaudio's Feburary/March performance. This was clearly not the case. Then came the culture change justification, which has been a bit of a joke. The main culture change I have seen in two years is a lot less fans and one-time prime time games at home with the likes of Carolina and Dune now being played on Tuesday nights, at 9:00 on ESPNU. Now it as all about the great success with the incoming recruiting class. It is my understanding that this recruiting class is primarily due to the efforts of Coaches Battle and LaRue. If you recall, [Redacted] had a good chance to close the deal with a local McDonald's All American and starting point guard for Oak Hill, but one of [Redacted]'s first acts as head coach was to back off the verbal to Tyler Lewis, and by the time he re-issued the offer, Tyler was miffed and signed with NCSU. We will see how that works out vs McIntyre.

This recent surge of transfers is most troubling. These three transfers are supposedly some of the good guys that were part of the [Redacted] "culture". In my opinion, the primary reason for the transfers is disillusionment with their head coach. Two of the transfers had significant minutes this past year and were in line for significant minutes next year. Once Chenault announced his decision, Fields would have been the back-up next year. Fields was one of [Redacted]’s first three recruits and after one year, he decided to move on. There are clearly serious issues at the core of our program, and merely passing this off as wanting to be closer to home and wanting more playing time is just another insulting act of patronization. The apparent consideration to transfer by Travis McKie is yet another indication of extreme issues between the coach and his players.

We desperately need a head coach that can rally the students, the fans, and the players. Jeff [Redacted] has not done that, and never will. Our program has become a joke and laughingstock in the world of college basketball. I cannot remember any program taking such a nosedive, void of NCAA violations, etc. Both insiders and outsiders are incredulous as to how we are allowing this debacle to continue. More time for [Redacted] is not the answer. Allowing the hole to be dug deeper and deeper makes no sense, and it is past time we get someone to be our head coach who can begin digging out of this hideous hole and restoring or program to a level of respectability.

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Deke 73 said:

a long-time supporter of our program has had November anticipation of fun and excitement, increasingly replaced by feelings of frustration and disillusionment. For 40 plus years, I had always looked forward to the beginning of basketball season and the non-conference games slowly giving way to an exciting ACC season. Starting three years ago, all that changed. Without a doubt, over the past four decades we have certainly seen our share of ups and downs. But in previous downs, I had the belief that our administration was constantly evaluating the program and would make changes when clearly deemed necessary. We are in the midst of an unprecedented situation where our athletic director made a unilateral decision to hire his friend to be our head coach with no coaching search and no other due diligence one could reasonably expect when hiring someone to be the head Wake Forest basketball coach. Early on, we were told Gaudio was dismissed due to his post-season ineffectiveness. That was clearly not true, and that began a litany of distortions intended to mask the horrible decision to hire Jeff [Redacted]. We are entering the third year of [Redacted] and the lack of support for our program, both in attendance and donations, is mind-boggling. Thousands of alumnae like me have become increasingly disenfranchised and student support is almost non-existent. [Redacted] is a horrible fit as a head coach at Wake Forest, as he would be at about any college. He has no personality, whatsoever, and is a joke at public speaking events. He is as bad as anyone I have ever heard with the media, and he is a complete dud at fundraising, etc. I do not think the players can relate to him and he has no clue how to motivate. I cannot imagine him effectively recruiting any highly recruited player. We are very fortunate to have Jeff Battle, Rusty, Larue, Randolph Childress, and others on our staff who can recruit and can connect with recruits. But the problem is at the top, and in my opinion, until a change at the head coach level takes place we will continue to be mired in a miserable place as a conference doormat and a mere shell of what we used to be. I believe Ron Wellman is holding on, hoping that he will be able to eventually say we are improving, and that he told us so. Personally going from 12 to 10th in the conference or rising slightly above the 200 level in the Kenpom ratings, etc., is not what we need nor should be satisfied with. We need a head coach who can rally the students, the alumnae, and other supporters. We need someone who can bring enthusiasm and credibility to the head coaching position. Jeff [Redacted] is not the guy - never was, and never will be. The many levels of futility we have endured these past two years and will endure this year, are beyond belief. Struggling to beat Rollins in year three is totally unacceptable. It is hard to be patient, especially when you hit your 60's, but those of you in your 20's, 30's, 40's etc., should not be satisfied or patient either. The handwriting is clearly on the wall. We all deserve better, and we must have an athletic director and ultimately a President and Board of Trustees who recognize the damage that has been done and continues to be done, and will be pro-active in getting this program moving back to respectability.

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Deke 73 said:

The decision to unilaterallly hire Jeff [Redacted] is the second worst decision in Wake Forest sports I have seen since going to Wake Forest in 1969. The worst decision has been Ron Wellman's decision to retain and support the debacle that began 2 1/2 years ago.

I have avidly supported Wake Forest athletics financially and in other ways for over 40 years. The Jeff [Redacted] era has caused me to withdraw and lose interest in our basketball program and the malaise has carried over to other sports as well.

Many of my friends have also withdrawn their support and have learned to live without Wake Forest basketball in the fall and winter months. We still love Wake Forest, but the way all this has been handled, over a long period of time, has been frustrating and insulting, and has been a huge embarrassment to our once proud basketball program.

For going on 3 years, Ron Wellman has stubbornly and selfishly refused to acknowledge his horrendous mistake in hiring the floundering coach at Colorado. I believe Wellman continues to hope, somehow, some way, there might be some semblance of improvement that might make this fiasco not quite so onerous. But Jeff [Redacted] is not a good fit and never will be.

Ron Wellman made a terrible mistake. His brashness and unabated efforts to try and put a positive spin on this disaster has served to alienate and offend all but the most easily led supporters.

How much longer will it take to stop this travesty and the desecration of our beloved basketball program.

This program has lost all identity and has become a joke to Wake fans and outsiders alike. It is a true shame to have the likes of Jeff Battle, Rusty LaRue, and Randolph Childress associated and brought down by such a disaster of a head coach. These guys work and recruit their butts off, but the head coach sets the tone and is the face and voice of the program. Can you imagine one of these assistants asking [Redacted] to help them close the deal on a wavering recruit? What a joke. The smattering of tie dies and the old motorcycle routine are frequent reminders of what used to be good and what has become very, very stale.

We have a head coach with no personality, no charisma, who has run off most of the students and supporters, has run donations for our program into the ground, and is a pathetic joke with the media. On top of that his statistical performance is horrendous and totally unacceptable in any category you choose to evaluate.

Jeff [Redacted] is Jeff [Redacted]. He is who is. It is not his fault. He was a lousy excuse for a coach when we hired him and he has certainly done nothing to change that reputation. Ron Wellman is to blame for the hire and the continuation of
the tenure that has put our program of life support and begs for change.

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tbird said:

The movement to replace RW and Bz requires national exposure.....how to accomplish that goal is the question...

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coredeac said:

I agree but don't you find it sad and disturbing that it has come to this approach? In other words, does anyone in the administration genuinely give a damn
whether we ever win another game if it has come to this?

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WFU1977 said:

If enough alumni write to Dr Hatch, he will get the point, and be forced to act. Doesn't do a damn bit of good to moan on a message board.

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Deke 73 said:

The decision to unilaterallly hire Jeff [Redacted] is the second worst decision in Wake Forest sports I have seen since going to Wake Forest in 1969. The worst decision has been Ron Wellman's decision to retain and support the debacle that began 2 1/2 years ago.

I have avidly supported Wake Forest athletics financially and in other ways for over 40 years. The Jeff [Redacted] era has caused me to withdraw and lose interest in our basketball program and the malaise has carried over to other sports as well.

Many of my friends have also withdrawn their support and have learned to live without Wake Forest basketball in the fall and winter months. We still love Wake Forest, but the way all this has been handled, over a long period of time, has been frustrating and insulting, and has been a huge embarrassment to our once proud basketball program.

For going on 3 years, Ron Wellman has stubbornly and selfishly refused to acknowledge his horrendous mistake in hiring the floundering coach at Colorado. I believe Wellman continues to hope, somehow, some way, there might be some semblance of improvement that might make this fiasco not quite so onerous. But Jeff [Redacted] is not a good fit and never will be.

Ron Wellman made a terrible mistake. His brashness and unabated efforts to try and put a positive spin on this disaster has served to alienate and offend all but the most easily led supporters.

How much longer will it take to stop this travesty and the desecration of our beloved basketball program.

This program has lost all identity and has become a joke to Wake fans and outsiders alike. It is a true shame to have the likes of Jeff Battle, Rusty LaRue, and Randolph Childress associated and brought down by such a disaster of a head coach. These guys work and recruit their butts off, but the head coach sets the tone and is the face and voice of the program. Can you imagine one of these assistants asking [Redacted] to help them close the deal on a wavering recruit? What a joke. The smattering of tie dies and the old motorcycle routine are frequent reminders of what used to be good and what has become very, very stale.

We have a head coach with no personality, no charisma, who has run off most of the students and supporters, has run donations for our program into the ground, and is a pathetic joke with the media. On top of that his statistical performance is horrendous and totally unacceptable in any category you choose to evaluate.

Jeff [Redacted] is Jeff [Redacted]. He is who is. It is not his fault. He was a lousy excuse for a coach when we hired him and he has certainly done nothing to change that reputation. Ron Wellman is to blame for the hire and the continuation of
the tenure that has put our program of life support and begs for change.

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jamesda3 said:

What about the AD at KSU? He is a Deac and would probably like nothing more than to make us relevant again? He wouldn't do this to us.

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tbird said:

Interesting post...In fact the father of that AD is a retired neighbor & I had a conversation with him this AM...He told me they are all aware of the ongoing situation but would not elaborate further...

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