Don't blame Wellman -- as I recall there were about 20 people on the boards who wanted to fire Gaudio although we were #1 in the nation under his leadership and made it to the 2nd round of the NCAA right before he was fired. Nobody in their right mind would've come to Wake to coach after that. In a sense we were lucky to get Bzzz because nobody else would be willing to come here after the way we treated Gaudio.
Wellman
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DeacLaw05
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This is utter baloney. Dino Gaudio was a terrible coach. Terrible. He had no more business being the head coach at Wake Forest than Bzz. It was right to fire him, and it should have been done a year sooner than it was, immediately after Cleveland State.
The problem after the firing was the horseshit hiring process that led Wellman to Bzz. To say that "nobody" else would come to Wake Forest--a job on Tobacco Road, in the ACC, where the right coach can get top seeds in the NCAA Tournament and compete for championships, is just laughably false.
bym051d
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Maybe I'm missing something, but whomever is in something the "longest" is the only one.
ProbationDeac
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I questioned the timing of the firing but did feel long term that Gaudio wasn't the answer. I didn't know it was going to end up like it has and he would hire someone like Bz.
RacerDeac
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Exactly. I don't think Gaudio should have been the head coach. Interim coach should have been his job. He should have either been gone a year earlier, or a year later, but certainly not 6 months after giving him a contract extension (that never should have happened anyway), and certainly not when Bzz was the candidate to replace him.
I understand the decision to make him head coach and not interim head...it was an emotional time and it made more sense then than it does a year or two down the road. But everything since has been botched. Extension, timing of firing, the hiring of Bzz, the unwavering support of Bzz that makes the Iraqi Information Minister look sane.
You didn't enjoy being #1 in the nation? How can a terrible coach reach that point? And you're wrong -- when a school inexplicably fires a coach who performs well in the ACC and makes it to the second round of the NCAA, no competent coach is going to want to go there and be subjected to the same nonsense. If Bzz wasn't friends with Wellman he certainly wouldn't have come.
And BTW, since Gaudio was so horrible, how does your new coach compare?
Ralph Medlin
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ProbationDeac
Well-known member
Are you like a family member of Dino ie daughter?
Complacent Deac
Well-known member
There is no chance there were 6000 people in the seats last night. I would go with 1/2 that number.
It was peaceful in the Joel - we are most gracious hosts for our special Wofford guests.
It was peaceful in the Joel - we are most gracious hosts for our special Wofford guests.
DeacLaw05
Well-known member
I'm not going to re-hash all the different ways Dino Gaudio sucked as a head coach. Late season collapses, failures to adjust, inability to coach anything resembling an offense to attack a zone defense--it was all horrible. He out-talented people for a while with Skip's recruits until other, smarter coaches figured out that you throw a little junk defense at Wake Forest and watch them crumble.
And please don't ever call Bzz "my new coach." He is Ron Wellman's coach, and Ron Wellman's coach alone. NOBODY wanted Bzz when he was hired amongst our fan base. No one. As I recall, the reactions to the hiring on the old board ranged from "What the Fuck?" to "You've Got to be Fucking Kidding Me."
Your argument that no coach would want to come here is asinine, unless you first assume that all basketball coaches are afraid to take a job where there are expectations that you will win games. Coaches don't think that way.
And please don't ever call Bzz "my new coach." He is Ron Wellman's coach, and Ron Wellman's coach alone. NOBODY wanted Bzz when he was hired amongst our fan base. No one. As I recall, the reactions to the hiring on the old board ranged from "What the Fuck?" to "You've Got to be Fucking Kidding Me."
Your argument that no coach would want to come here is asinine, unless you first assume that all basketball coaches are afraid to take a job where there are expectations that you will win games. Coaches don't think that way.
deacvision7
Mod Emeritus
No truer words have ever been spoken.
Coaches at this level are extremely self-confident. Just because a different dude got fired won't deter them from the same job. Especially if said job is in one of the top conference's in men's college basketball.
Really? You really think that Wake draws more talented athletes than Duke and UNC in the ACC? Thats your excuse for Gaudio's success (#1 ranking, NCAA tournament wins, etc.)?
ChrisL68
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That line of reasoning worked great for State after they fired Herb Sendek and ended up with their 8th choice. And that is a school that has won 2 Natties.
deacvision7
Mod Emeritus
They also went after coaches that were already in the top conferences. Those coaches had far less incentive to move to a job in a premier conference, simply because they were already in one, IMO.
DeacLaw05
Well-known member
Fixed it for you.
The reason Gaudio won games early in seasons was that most teams play man-to-man as their base defense. Unless there is some reason to come out of it, they will stay in a man defense almost exclusively. Gaudio's teams feasted on man defenses because he had Ish and Teague to beat their man off the dribble and other athletes to attack the rim and crash the glass. Those Wake teams could play with anybody that wanted to play man-to-man and run the floor. Ironically, that was why Gaudio's teams usually played well against UNC and Duke--both of those programs had enough talent on the floor (and enough pride in their respective "systems") that they wouldn't switch to a zone.
However, other teams did, and that was when the collapses would start. Throw a zone at a Gaudio team, and watch a bunch of guys stand around for 30 seconds until someone would have to chuck up some horrible shot to beat the shot clock. Then repeat ad nauseum. Dino was completely unable to coach any other style of play than the fast-paced, open-floor game. Slow it down, and you got that wide-eyed, clueless look on his face that we all remember.
For an example of how teams used adjustments to beat Wake Forest, go back to Dino's last season. We went to UNC in early January and thumped the Heels. Just crushed them, running up and down the floor. Get to February and what happened? Carolina came to Winston, junked up the defense, and kicked our asses. Dino was helpless to stop it. So, there's your answer. Dino was able to get to #1 until it was discovered that Wake was a one-trick pony. From the point that we lost to VaTech at home when we were 17-0, he never got it back.
It is ridiculous that people have to be reminded of this.
Whats ridiculous is your contention that "our superior talent" beat UNC (who gets their pick of McD's AA every year), but when we lose to UNC it was the coach's fault. Wake has had some excellent athletes over the years, but its amazing how some people want to rewrite history and take all credit away from the coaches when we win yet put all the blame on the coaches when we lose.
THE DEUCE
Well-known member
Both coaches were terrible hires but I understand the Gaudio hire. There is a reason why Dino has not landed a coaching job in 2 years.