Coach Mihalich's Weekly CAA Teleconference: January 6, 2020

[EvanJ]

https://static.caasports.com/custompage ... _01_06.mp3 is his teleconference, which lasts 8:31.

[triplec2195]

Thanks Evan for the link and I think it speaks volumes that Joe says he needs his bench to contribute in order to get to the NCAA tourney and mentioned contributions from Silverio and Burgess. Hopefully we will continue to get those contributions.

[Wags]

Joe keeps making a point of starting CAA play with 5 of 7 games on the road for the second time in three years, but he's not looking at the flip side of that this year.

First, they already got wins in the first two of those 5, so they only need to win 1 of these next 3 road games to have a winning road record in that 5 of 7 stretch.

But, the flip side is that they close CAA play with 5 of 7 at home, and the 2 road games in that trip are close trips (at Drexel, at Delaware).

So, while it's a bit rough at the start, they have a very favorable schedule for the final 7 CAA games, which is exactly what you want to build confidence and momentum heading into the CAA tourney. I'd rather have that than the reverse (with an easy start and a very tough finish). He doesn't like it, but overall, I think the CAA did his team a favor with the scheduling this year.

[HUSID74]

Agreed Wags, also were on the road when the students are on break.

[EvanJ]

In addition to the sites, we will be done with Northeastern, Charleston, and William & Mary before our last 5 games. We host Charleston before we host UNCW, and that combined with when Charleston's second travel partner game is means that Charleston's games at us and Northeastern are their fifth-to-last and fourth-to-last games. William & Mary also has an easy ending, as the first three teams they finish are the other three I mentioned. They have three home and three away in their last six, with the sixth-to-last game at UNCW. They play one game the final week, and nobody should count on them losing because they end hosting Elon.

[Hof_Judge99]

I’m really getting tired of coach complaining on and on interview after interview about playing 5 of the first 7 conference games on the road. Get over it, all you’re doing is giving the guys an excuse to not play as well. If anything I’d rather have more home games later anyway when the team is more tired.

[Wags]

I’m really getting tired of coach complaining on and on interview after interview about playing 5 of the first 7 conference games on the road. Get over it, all you’re doing is giving the guys an excuse to not play as well. If anything I’d rather have more home games later anyway when the team is more tired.

I think he was just annoyed because it was the second time it happened for his team in three years. Otherwise, he probably wouldn't have mentioned it. But I agree, it's not like complaining about it will change the schedule, so it doesn't help. And they've handled it well so far anyway. Plus, like we both said above, better to have that kind of schedule early than late. Maybe he's only saying it as a motivational tool rather than really complaining though. It's possible it's merely his way of getting his team to play with a little chip on its shoulder by making them feel slighted by what they consider an unfair start to the schedule. If so, it's worked thus far, at 4-1.

[Hof_Judge99]

I’m really getting tired of coach complaining on and on interview after interview about playing 5 of the first 7 conference games on the road. Get over it, all you’re doing is giving the guys an excuse to not play as well. If anything I’d rather have more home games later anyway when the team is more tired.

I think he was just annoyed because it was the second time it happened for his team in three years. Otherwise, he probably wouldn't have mentioned it. But I agree, it's not like complaining about it will change the schedule, so it doesn't help. And they've handled it well so far anyway. Plus, like we both said above, better to have that kind of schedule early than late. Maybe he's only saying it as a motivational tool rather than really complaining though. It's possible it's merely his way of getting his team to play with a little chip on its shoulder by making them feel slighted by what they consider an unfair start to the schedule. If so, it's worked thus far, at 4-1.

Yeah I would think the exact opposite of coach, plus we’ve had a full week between games. I’d much rather be on the road early when school is not in session and my team isn’t burnt out like they may be in the stretch run. Who would want to travel the week before the CAA tournament? I love that we end the season at home this year. It’s not like they’re asking him to go from Northeastern on a Thursday to Charleston on a Saturday, seems like the groupings have worked thus far. If he complained two years ago when we had to play Manhattan at Adelphi, that I would get, but early conference games on the road? Not that I’m the coach but I don’t see the problem and don’t wanna hear him talk about it anymore.

[HofstraMathew]

I’m really getting tired of coach complaining on and on interview after interview about playing 5 of the first 7 conference games on the road. Get over it, all you’re doing is giving the guys an excuse to not play as well. If anything I’d rather have more home games later anyway when the team is more tired.

I think he was just annoyed because it was the second time it happened for his team in three years. Otherwise, he probably wouldn't have mentioned it. But I agree, it's not like complaining about it will change the schedule, so it doesn't help. And they've handled it well so far anyway. Plus, like we both said above, better to have that kind of schedule early than late. Maybe he's only saying it as a motivational tool rather than really complaining though. It's possible it's merely his way of getting his team to play with a little chip on its shoulder by making them feel slighted by what they consider an unfair start to the schedule. If so, it's worked thus far, at 4-1.

Yeah I would think the exact opposite of coach, plus we’ve had a full week between games. I’d much rather be on the road early when school is not in session and my team isn’t burnt out like they may be in the stretch run. Who would want to travel the week before the CAA tournament? I love that we end the season at home this year. It’s not like they’re asking him to go from Northeastern on a Thursday to Charleston on a Saturday, seems like the groupings have worked thus far. If he complained two years ago when we had to play Manhattan at Adelphi that I would get, but early conference games on the road? Not that I’m the coach but I don’t see the problem and don’t wanna hear him talk about it anymore.

Plus the schedule this year had us play Northeastern on Thursday and then a full week off before our next game which also happens to be our furthest road trip of CAA play. And Northeastern had essentially the same schedule except they played at home Thursday. So was that 4 hour bus ride up to Boston Wednesday and then back Thursday night really going to effect us on this road trip? I doubt it. Plus we are 3-0 so far in the road games.

[The Shadow]

So, how is the CAA schedule made up? Do the various teams have any suggestions? Is it all just dictated by the CAA office in Virginia? Are all the CAA sports done in this manner? Some facilities are used by multiple teams, such as wrestling, men's and women's basketball, is this taken into account? I know that this really does not matter to most fans, but it sure seems that some of the coaches have some complaints.

[EvanJ]

The CAA does something similar with travel partners in other sports, but it doesn't work the same way in sports that not all ten teams play. Women's Basketball does travel partners in the same way. Every team played Volleyball except for Drexel. Since Delaware can't be travel partners with Drexel, we went to Towson a week we played only one game, we went to JMU two days after Delaware, and we hosted Towson the day after hosting W&M which was two days after hosting Elon. There are byes when there are an odd amount of teams, and the schedule didn't make 18 days with 4 games each like it could have. Baseball and Softball are done in series, so there aren't travel partners.

The only way to guarantee that you won't start with 5 of 7 away is that the first four teams to be away in their travel partner game would all need to be home for two of the first three weeks that they played 2 games. This season W&M, Delaware, us, and JMU are the first four teams to play their away travel partner game.

[Hof_Judge99]

Of course Joe spends a part of his press conference crying about 5 of 7 on the road. Gimme a break coach.

[Cards]

Of course Joe spends a part of his press conference crying about 5 of 7 on the road. Gimme a break coach.

Getting very, very old!

Almost as old and tired (and no longer true) about the CAA being the best conf no one knows about. It is clearly a middle of the pack conf - no better, no worse. Used to be ranked somewhere in the 9, 10, 11 range - now in the mid teens (Evan, you may have the exact numbers?).

[Wags]

Of course Joe spends a part of his press conference crying about 5 of 7 on the road. Gimme a break coach.

Getting very, very old!

Almost as old and tired (and no longer true) about the CAA being the best conf no one knows about. It is clearly a middle of the pack conf - no better, no worse. Used to be ranked somewhere in the 9, 10, 11 range - now in the mid teens (Evan, you may have the exact numbers?).

RealTimeRPI backs this up. It has the CAA at only 17th out of 32 conferences right now. So yes, practically the definition of middle of the pack.
http://realtimerpi.com/rpi_conf_Men.html

[EvanJ]

Of course Joe spends a part of his press conference crying about 5 of 7 on the road. Gimme a break coach.

Getting very, very old!

Almost as old and tired (and no longer true) about the CAA being the best conf no one knows about. It is clearly a middle of the pack conf - no better, no worse. Used to be ranked somewhere in the 9, 10, 11 range - now in the mid teens (Evan, you may have the exact numbers?).

The CAA was 9th in 2015-2016 when we won our first regular season title, 11th in 2016-2017, and 12th in 2017-2018, but I don't know if the CAA was ever in the top eleven if you made a five or ten year period. The goal should be to be above average like 11th to 13th. The CAA was 18th in the NET last season and is 18th this season.

[Cards]

Thanks Wags and Evan for the info.