The Proof's in the Pelphrey
Reading through a variety of message boards, sports articles, and newspapers over the past week or so, one thing that caught my eye was material that questioned John Pelphrey's head coaching abilities or lack there of.
It's a perfectly reasonable argument because regardless of opinion, this is only Coach Pel's 6th season as a head coach, first in a major conference.
When I look at Pelphrey's history, what immediately stands out to me is how he has so many different ties to the Southeastern Conference. He grew up in the backyard of the most fabled basketball program of the SEC, then played for it, and saw firsthand how it slowly faded as Florida rose to its national prominence.
No, this doesn't make you a good coach but one thing I would never question about John Pelphrey is his understanding of college basketball's evolution within this conference.
That brings us to his first and only previous head coaching gig in college hoops: South Alabama. I look at the history of their program (or lack there of) and the results are convincing. After 3 seasons of .500 ball or lower, the first true senior class of Pelphrey's regime wins 26 games, takes the conference title and the auto-bid to the NCAA tournament.
And after another 20+ win season, even in the wake of the Pelphrey era, South Alabama is only 3 wins away from another 20 win season (17-4).
In a world where coaches can only be judged ultimately in wins versus losses, we only see results, not methods. Good ones can win games, great ones build the foundation of success. Just like the players on the floor, it's all about consistency.
Expect to see it with John Pelphrey.
It's a perfectly reasonable argument because regardless of opinion, this is only Coach Pel's 6th season as a head coach, first in a major conference.
When I look at Pelphrey's history, what immediately stands out to me is how he has so many different ties to the Southeastern Conference. He grew up in the backyard of the most fabled basketball program of the SEC, then played for it, and saw firsthand how it slowly faded as Florida rose to its national prominence.
No, this doesn't make you a good coach but one thing I would never question about John Pelphrey is his understanding of college basketball's evolution within this conference.
That brings us to his first and only previous head coaching gig in college hoops: South Alabama. I look at the history of their program (or lack there of) and the results are convincing. After 3 seasons of .500 ball or lower, the first true senior class of Pelphrey's regime wins 26 games, takes the conference title and the auto-bid to the NCAA tournament.
And after another 20+ win season, even in the wake of the Pelphrey era, South Alabama is only 3 wins away from another 20 win season (17-4).
In a world where coaches can only be judged ultimately in wins versus losses, we only see results, not methods. Good ones can win games, great ones build the foundation of success. Just like the players on the floor, it's all about consistency.
Expect to see it with John Pelphrey.
posted by John Laws at 4:38 PM
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