If you’ve been around Pat Summitt very long, you realize she’s unfailingly direct and unflinchingly blunt.
With that as background, I’ll get right to the point:
Was Thursday night Summitt’s last visit to Memorial Gym as coach of Tennessee’s Lady Vols?
Face it: Her future as Lady Vols coach is the elephant in the room. We can attempt to ignore this sensitive situation or steer our conversations elsewhere, but it’s not going away.
Read the full column by Dave Climer of the Tennessean.
Tennessee's signing class for 2012
Softball: Tennessee 2, Georgia 1
Tennessee defeats Georgia 3-2 in…
Scripps Interactive Newspapers Group
Comments » 107
MiserableFloridaVol writes:
She stays as long as she wants. When the court is named after you, it's your timeline. Stop with this mess. This kind of stuff is exactly what led to the mess we're in on the men's side of things. She has a plan in place. Trust it.
Witch_Doctors writes:
Witch Doctor didnt expect any class from this guy. Witch Doctor just didnt think he'd start before the season was at least over...
Bones never lie.
Lane_Kiffins_Daddy_Wears_Diapers writes:
I think most of us know what should happen but Coach Summitt has earned the right and respect to make to determine the appropriate timing to make such a call.
MemphoVol writes:
Mr. Climer, you make a valid point. It seems that in some games the Lady Vols have lost their edge. The kick in the pants, the stare from Pat - something's missing. And sometimes, I think, the players feel the pressure of wanting Pat to finish on top and they lose focus. They try too hard and force things. However, I believe it would be even worse if Pat were to step down before the end of the season. Not sure the players could handle that. I know I couldn't.
WelovePat writes:
Dave Climer....Step lightly...there are wwwwaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyy more PAT SUMMITT fans than Dave Climer fans out there....don't start! She has earned the right to decide when it's time.
govols1981 writes:
stick a fork in the lady vols,without pat summit they are done..thank you pat summit for all you have done for the sport..you will be missed when you retire,the lady vols will never be the same...
etu_vol_fan writes:
This a case where the truth REALLY hurts. What really hurts is that one would think that this team, knowing her condition, would run through a brick wall for her and they aren't doing it. It angers me that this team is so selfish and won't fight for her.
wilsnewt writes:
I think the pressure of Pat's illness is getting to the players and the staff. Pat has said " I want to cut down nets". It won't happen this year. The fact that recruits are reopening the recruiting process to other schools is disturbing too. Imagine what the other coaches are saying to the kids to get them to come to their school.this whole thing is sad to watch. But I do agree her departure should be on Pat's terms only. UT and Women's bball certainly owes her that.
Griswold writes:
I hope she steps down and concentrates on her health before things start to spiral downward and get really uncomfortable for all involved.
FearlessFreep writes:
Kudos to Climer for at least saying what most are avoiding. Pat has lost her ability to lead the program. I love PHS and frankly she can stay for as long as she wants, but there's a reality to face here and hopefully she is strong enough to make the painful decision to walk away when she realizes that fact.
Witch_Doctors writes:
Witch Doctor say the perspective Climer forgets(or never had) the day Pat retires
1. Tenn. Womens BB loses a legend
2. University of Tenn. loses a legend
3. State of Tenn. loses a legend
4. SEC loses a legend
5. NCAA loses a legend
6. Womens sports loses a legend/pioneer
7. Sports fans both men and women lose a legend
Witch Doctor say in that perspective Climer this wasnt for you to ever write.
Bones never lie.
BR_549 writes:
Climer's range of unintelligent, harrassment journalism consists of three topics. Pac Man Jones, Vince Young, and Chris Johnson. After that he is clueless. And he is obsessed to the point of showing his ignorance to his perceived notion that Bud Adams told Jeff Fisher what to do as coach of the Titans. Which may or may not be true, but Climer can't let it go in any Titan article. Climer has been kicked off every talk radio show in Nashville due to his annoying, whining sports talk and being called out by the callers for it. So this article should come as no surprise. His only method to get anyone to read his garbage these days is something sensational like this, be glad K-town he's not in your market regularily.
CrankE writes:
It's Time.
UT must address this. Do it with honor and integrity, but they must do it.
UT must not mistake feeling for facts like we did with Fulmer for all those years. It's not 1998 anymore-not in football and not for the Lady Vols.
This is about the program and the University. If Pat's bigger than all of that, then by all means, let's have her coach until she is incapable of doing so or the program is in the gutter (or both-also similar to Fulmer).
Otherwise, it's time to rip the band-aid off and ask who the second head coach of the Lady Vols will be and when they will be named.
jawbreaker writes:
Witchie, agree 100%. I know you are in Middle Tennessee like me, so you have regular exposure to Climer's self-important drivel. I guess he just felt like it was his duty to expose in print what everybody knows anyway, but are too considerate to write.
pomp_and_circumstance writes:
But his surrogate, John Adams, is.
SneakyPete writes:
What people may not realize is the successor is in trouble.Expectation will be very high and the pressure to produce will be unbearable. No wonder Nikki McCray distanced herself when questioned.What criticism Counzo received will be minimal compared to this next hire. Brace yourself because change is constant.
1dervol writes:
Sad but true. I think the girls are under so much pressure to perform they've lost their will to try and no one seems to be able to push their buttons. Sometimes Pat is "there" and sometimes shes not.
jt45 writes:
Expectations should be high ! I truly hope when that time does come that the university goes after a young intelligent coach who has ties to UT and the passion for winning. Nicki Caldwell would be great IMO at carrying on the winning tradition that Pat has built. I think after how this season has turned out so far that the biggest fear for most fans is that Warlick will take over.
Pat deserves the respect of all UT fans and as much time as she deems fit to decide when that day comes. Climer your reaching for something that might not be good for you with this article !
rockytom writes:
All of this just breaks my heart.
chuckfromwoodberry writes:
Your post is an instant classic. Anytime you can sneak in a Cas Walker reference you get an A+. I miss "The Watchdog" newspaper he printed.
topgun writes:
VOLFANS, we have to realize that the CPS we have all admired, respected and loved over the past decades is no longer with us. She is seriously ill. Just because her body is still sitting on the bench with her players--her mind is not 100% available to her to reclaim that old CPS fire and passion--pacing the sidelines lines, glaring the old Pat glare at the refs, her players and anyone else who was not putting out 100% for the team.
Does it not stand to reason that CPS,now, is incapble of that 100% effort she demanded of others ?? Yeah, I know that CPS at 75% or 80% is better than most coaches at their 100%--but that ain't the point. Besides, all newspaper and TV interviews and quotes, reactions, and anything to do with the game come from Holly Warlick? So, Pat is not coaching this team!!
I literally have tears in my eyes when the TV cameras zoom in on Pat, during the game, and she has that blank, non-responsive stare out in to God only knows where. You have to wonder what's going on in that great mind of hers. No overt passion. No fire. No nothing.
Let's review the results: record lows in LV history against ND, USC, UK, and now Vandy scoring 93 points??
The issue is what to do to help Pat. The state of Tennessee, UT, and the athletic depts should bestow on Pat the highest possible honors in the greatest retirement ceremony in the history of our state/univ---after this season has mercifully ended. Pat should go out as a hero to all lady basketball fans accross the entire sports world. Pat's basketball legacy is dying the death of a thousand cuts. A wounded hero in the arena, Pat needs help. This season, possibly her last, may be remembered as one of her worst ever.
UT needs to hire Nikki Caldwell from LSU to take over for Pat. (Please, under no circumstances should anyone on the current staff be considered for head coach.) Caldwell is an excellent caoch, has strong ties to CPS and UT. She beat Kentucky.
Regardless of how the season plays out, Pat, the wounded warrior and hero, should retire. The illness will get worse over time and our beloved Pat will deterioate beofre our tear stained eyes, Pat deserves better! GOVOLS!!
volnsc writes:
While the article may be untimely and not what everyone wants to hear, it is also timely and exanctly what everyone needs to hear. The players are doing their very best but are being pulled in every different direction imaginable. Remember, these ladies are very talented but are still kids. They are being coached by a committee, they have their own feelings they are trying to deal with and they see the same thing when they look at Pat that we do. Climer's articfle merely opened the door for discussion of what we all know is the final outcome, just not the timing. Keep in mind that Pat's disease may prevent her from knowing when it's time. It is a sad time for Vols, let's try to maintain a little integrity and the process works its way to the outcome.
arkyvol writes:
i wish pat could have coached a gazillion years, but it's not going to happen. what is happening, what will happen is more of what happened last night now that she can not be what she once was. i don't want to have to watch that. nobody who cares about pat wants to.
jdcdjc writes:
Agree, I think Pat has turned her program over to people that don't know how to win the big games, either she didn't teach them right or they were not paying attention. Going in the wrong direction. There is a past Vol at LSU that appearantely knows how to win!!!
SevenT writes:
This Climber must be about as big of a jerk as anyone in the whold state of Tennessee.
I am surprised he didn't say, "here is a box of Depends Pat, now go check yourself into a nursing home"
Unbelievable piece of garbage article.
givehim6 writes:
I was the one to choose my last day of work due to my MS. I had been working on and off from age 9 at a theater, stock boy, dish washer, farm, so on Air Force, TVA. Any way, there is more dignity that way. The Lady Vols are her program she will know when, so they have a bad year. Winning is not every thing. The team, fans, and sports world owe her for years of winning. UT can take it on the chin a year or two for PAT.
CoverOrange writes:
One other sad note to theorize, if she retires, the disease will probably accelerate. Over forty years of sleeping, eating, thinking about basketball then nothing.
larrycook99#274374 writes:
Too many people are assuming that this team is not achieving because of Pat and/or her condition. They didn't achieve the previous 3 years either. Maybe it is the team that is the problem.
marinevol writes:
Pat Summitt will eventually step down, but not in the middle of the season. And,neither she nor UT need a nudge from David Climer.
madrigal writes:
If David Climer ever wrote a POSITIVE column, the sky would fall in. He needs to stay in Nashville and mind his own damn business.
flatrock writes:
Amen. Amen. Amen.
thevoice writes:
It is sad indeed. But I don't think many, including Pat, fans, UT, expected Pat's situation to accelerate and have such an influence. It is quite apparent now what the disease has done to Pat, and in turn the program. I would be completely shocked if she doesn't turn the reigns over after the season and concentrate on more important things. Pat is a class act, and I just hope that she can exit in a likewise manner. I'm hoping Hart will not impose his influence upon this situation.
flatrock writes:
The best post I have ever read.
vol49 writes:
What's your excuse for the crappy articles Climer? At least Pat's got a legitimate one but she doesn't even use it.
Pullingguard writes:
This article is right on... Its time for Pat to sit down and enjoy life outside of basketball for presently I see very little that she is contributing to the game...She may be a Legend, but legends move on, and its time for Pat to do this.. I think she is hurting her legend as it now stands for she is not involved and just a figurehead on the bench. Why should she continue? No one person, regardless of whom they may be is larger than the team, the University, or the workplace..And the Vols certainly have no one on the bench capable of handling the job..
flatrock writes:
Could it be that Pat's condition has been affecting her for the past 2-3 years? Could it be that the intense pain she has had to endure for her arthritis - and the strong medication that it required - has masked the real problem?
tovolny writes:
Climer, wow...only John Adams has WORSE TIMING.
VolinTally writes:
This is the same reasoning that always get used with legendary coaches (e.g. Paterno, Bowden, Wooden, etc.). How is anything Climer said different than what many people are thinking? Perhaps she hasn't given up the reigns, but it certainly looks like it. I think Pat Summit is amazing, but it's not "her" team. She's a coach that has done amazing things that will most likely never be achieved again in any sport. But, ultimately, it's not the University of Tennessee Pat Summiteers. She's just human (granted a super-human in many respect), but she's not a deity. It's hard to swallow, but the change is inevitable. Whether it's this year or 5 years from now. Memories are short, and I'd hate to see her legacy diminished by the last few years. If this year is just a fluke, then great. If next year, given the same coaching arrangement, things improve, then better. But if it doesn't, the discontent and concern will grow even louder. Truth wins out.
SBWB2 writes:
I sent this to Climer this morning:
"You Sir are a joke... I do not take the time to read your poorly written articles anymore... responding here to your classless subtitle. Nobody likes cute or smart mouth either... Go to archives and read some Feddie Russell to see what professional journalism is all about."
To: dclimer@tennessean.com
From: SBWB2
Nashville, Tennessee
halloffamebowler writes:
Witchie from Middle Tennessee? Wrong.
volnsc writes:
Very well said.
Witch_Doctors writes:
Witch Doctor from East Tennessee but live in the boro. Witch Doctor got best of both worlds! lol
Bones never lie.
BR_549 writes:
And his reply to you will be: " You must have a kid using your computer that you don't know about". I got several of those replies from him.
jryevols#222657 writes:
After reading all these comments,seems that we are missing something.You have five McDonalds players on the floor and they cannot win.Give me a break , this is Tennessee should be able to beat Kentucky and Vanderbilt on sure talent.We all love Pat , but the " stars " just aren't playing to potential. If it takes the stare of Pat to scare players into playing , then we have a huge problem. These players have no heart and that is waht Pat has had to coach in the past.They just need to be pulled to the side and told to just play your potential and talent. They need to be playing an old 2-1-2 and they will win , every game.
VolinTally writes:
Some of you may have already read this, but for those who can't seem to grasp the expressed concerns about the coaching situation, you can read this:
http://espn.go.com/high-school/girls-...
This is similar in tone to Climer's article, but it has a national audience. In the scheme of all things, it may be unimportant, but it certainly summarizes the long-term implications for the program. Is this what Lady Vol fans want? Maybe. I'm not even sure where I stand on the issue today.
BR_549 writes:
Playing the "what if" game, if those two aren't available; Sherri Coale at Oklahoma has a winning % of .684, 336-155. Base salary of $550,000. What if she was offered $1 million? Would she leave? CPS makes 1.25 mil I believe. No UT ties but the AD has none either.
Witch_Doctors writes:
Witch Doctor say you should reply "Man just letting ya know but at night apparently the cleaning lady been using yours!" lol
Bones never lie.
BR_549 writes:
Good one! I'll do that.
Witch_Doctors writes:
Witch Doctor send link to friend in Boston(REAL sportswriter) he was like "What?? who is this clown?..man sounds like hes trying to kill her spirit and recruiting." Witch Doctors friend say this is a "look at me!" "Look at me!" article.
Bones never lie.
Griswold writes:
Does Bruce Pearl's show cause count towards womens athletics too?
Share your thoughts
Comments are the sole responsibility of the person posting them. You agree not to post comments that are off topic, defamatory, obscene, abusive, threatening or an invasion of privacy. Violators may be banned. Click here for our full user agreement.