Rick’s Advice for Sidney

General NCS Basketball Sidney Lowe26

Sidney,

I am not a basketball coach. I do not even pretend to be but I do feel I possess an accurate perspective on NCSU basketball. I have been watching and playing basketball for 30+ years, have been a State fan as long as I can remember. I have been paying real close attention to the ten year Herb Sendek era. Based on my experiences and observations I believe I can offer a few insights into NC State and its fans.

First, let me thank you for agreeing to be our coach. You knew the situation you inherited was not ideal and would require a lot of hard work to meet the fans expectations. When looking at the situation you saw:
1) a lack of actual players (6 scholarship players to start the year)
2) a lack of traditional positions (i.e. no PG or center)
3) a lack of experience (2 returning players that had played meaningful minutes)
4) media bias towards Sendek (they seemed to love him)
5) a perception that NCSU fans ran off a “successful coach” (I bet you do not define success as trips to the NCAA)
6) UNC and Duke basketball history, programs and coaches (can we start a fund for the retirement of K and Roy?)

So here is some advice from a part time hack:
1) Keep the positive spirit that seems to be your trademark – Both you and the team keep plugging away without complaint when you could easily call it quits. Everyone appreciates this, especially our “don’t give up, don’t ever give up” fans.
2) Keep reminding the players of our tradition – Having DT and other former greats visit the players just reminds them that NCSU basketball is about more than just this team. It is a glorious history filled with great players and spectacular moments. Sometimes players perform better knowing they are part of something greater than themselves. NCSU fans were sick of being told they should know their place. We DO know our place and so do you.
3) Keep selling yourself – I love listening to your interviews. You do not give the esoteric, obtuse and sometimes terse retorts NCSU fans have come to loathe. You are straightforward and direct while being humorous yet confident. Your personality and enthusiasm will have the media eating out of your hand in no time.
4) Embrace our quirkiness – Let’s be honest, NCSU fans can be a pain. All schools’ fans are pains, but all schools’ fans aren’t as knowledgable or passionate as Wolfpackers. After 15 frustrating years, we have no bandwagon fans. That means that what is left is – by nature – the rabid “lunatic fringe”. To compound our problems is a severe little brother syndrome. We want to be better than UNC and Duke and hate the fact that we are not. What this means is when we love someone, we truly love them (see Valvano, Jim). I see the same passion in you and it gives me chills. Let everyone see that school passion, it will only endear you to us.
5) Lastly, and most importantly, really get to know the “big dogs” – Rightly or wrongly, the big donors will make or break your tenure, so I implore you to do your best to connect with them. They love you now, and they will continue to love you. But, as your tenure progresses in Raleigh some of their personal support can potentially be the difference in how you are assessed. Note that I am not telling you to dedicate a phony chair to someone’s deceased relative, but your relationship with them is critically important.

Good luck in your new position as head basketball coach of NC State University. I believe you will succeed and am pulling madly for you to do so. I have enjoyed watching you on the sideline and cannot wait to see what you accomplish!

Thanks from ALL WOLFPACKERS!

About Rick

1992 and 2002 graduate from NCSU. Born and raised an NCSU fan. I remember the good ol' days and they weren't in the last 20 years.

General NCS Basketball Sidney Lowe

26 Responses to Rick’s Advice for Sidney

  1. old13 01/18/2007 at 3:01 PM #

    I concur whole-heartedly! Yes, I felt at the time of his hiring it would have been nice to get an “established” big time college coach. But what I’ve seen so far has made me forget all those feelings. Sid has shown great wisdom in choosing a staff that both lends strength to the program long-term while providing him good input and “training” for the college game while he “catches up!” And Sid is unique among all the “big time college coaches” in that he understands NCSU/Wolfpackers – a MOST important plus.

  2. burnbarn 01/18/2007 at 3:38 PM #

    is this an outline for Sid’s ‘seeds of greatness”?

  3. forst8 01/18/2007 at 3:40 PM #

    I agree wholeheartedly with this advice to Sidney but I suspect he already knows and understands it all.

    I wanted Sidney as our coach 5 years ago and I’m so happy he is here. I am absolutely convinced we will enjoy some great accomplishments from Sidney and his teams over the future years. Cream rises to the top and I think Sidney is pure Cream.

  4. legacyman 01/18/2007 at 4:03 PM #

    ^ I believe NC State can be cream in a few years. Sidney can get us there.

  5. choppack1 01/18/2007 at 4:28 PM #

    I can only offer non-basketball advice to Sid…And here’s what I’d say:

    The reason that you are being a good deal of money is because NC State fans, like other fans of college or pro sports – are a little insane. The price for benefitting from this insanity is that well, the expectations might seem, well, a little insane. So, when those knucklehead folks call your call in show, going, “Sidney, why don’t try to running the picket-fence like they did in Hoosiers”, you’ll have to grin and bear it.

    Just remember, as a very successful man said, the customer is always right.

  6. CarnifeX 01/18/2007 at 4:39 PM #

    Sidney, I support everything Rick has just said; however, I have one request.

    Please get rid of the timeout chairs/stools. These are ridiculous. I couldn’t understand why Herb started using them and they drive me crazy every time I see them brought on to the floor. Don’t get me wrong, I would love to have a couple of these to break out when my house gets to full to watch the pack play; but these thing kinda make our team look like sissy’s (which may be why Herb liked them so much, but thats another topic). Since we are now playing big boy basketball, lets treat this game with the same fire that permeates the rest of your game.

  7. Rick 01/18/2007 at 4:48 PM #

    is this an outline for Sid’s ’seeds of greatness”?”

    This thought actually entered my mind and did cause me some concern.

    In my mind the difference is Sid is not on the hotseat and. I am not comparing him to one of the greatest coaches to ever live simply because he is an introvert.

  8. TomA 01/18/2007 at 4:54 PM #

    Great column! Let me add that even though there have been and will be some rough times this season I feel that there is a difference in the program. There is good but very young talent on this team and Coach Lowe has some great players on the way to bolster the roster talent. I imagine much of what was written is already part of his agenda for the progression of the program. I will enjoy watching this team this year no matter what and heaven’s above I cannot wait to see where the program will go under Coach Lowe!

  9. PapaJohn 01/18/2007 at 5:06 PM #

    Just heard on 850 The Buzz – Adam Gold picked the Pack to beat Duke Saturday. Sid, you get credit for that whether he’s right or wrong.

  10. Woof Wolf 01/18/2007 at 5:39 PM #

    IF

  11. vtpackfan 01/18/2007 at 5:41 PM #

    Maybe push for a tougher OOC schedule. Keep Monte Towe involved and part of your coaching staff for as long as you see fit. Otherwise keep up the good work.

    I agree that an upset could be in the making for this weekend hosting Dook. I’ll try and watch a bit of their game against WF to see otherwise, but I really think Duke is going to struggle this year. We will see, but I’m hoping to see if Fells, Grant, and Horner can post up some the Duke guards and maybe kick it out to Costner for some threes. It will be interesting to see about tempo, but if we can limit out TO’s and play solid perimeter defense, I think its a good match up for us not matter if we push it alot or set up. I could be way off, but if you don’t shoot your own foot this year playing against Dook your going to be in the ballgame to the end. They don’t have guys who can really hurt you on the glass, and besides Scheyer no one can pile up a bunch of threes. There still a good team, but not scary good.

  12. Woof Wolf 01/18/2007 at 5:43 PM #

    IF I knew that Engin was going to play most of the game Saturday and that we were going were going to get at least 30 minutes off the bench, I would bet on us.

  13. vtpackfan 01/18/2007 at 5:59 PM #

    We need Atsur, if only to pester Paulus. Hopefully he is getting healthy real fast. I imagine we will see Davis, Nieman, and Fergueson in pretty health doses. Dook going to try to drive alot and get to the foul line so Sid will have to get these guys in there and burn up some minutes so not to have key guys playing with four fouls down the stretch.

    I’m not changing my stance on this season, it’s still a tall mountain to climb for this team and it’s new coach every time it takes the floor. I think they match up well with Duke IF they don’t revert to throwing the ball to ghost men and letting themselves get picked.

  14. redfred2 01/18/2007 at 8:03 PM #

    It’s a tall order, but we all know what we’re thinking about this one, so let’s try to keep it a secret for once. It’s a little harder to sneak up on people when you’re out there predicting it in public. We’ll all feel better for it in the end, no matter what the end may be.

    Shhh!!!

  15. forst8 01/18/2007 at 8:14 PM #

    Duke is dangerous when people start thinking and talking about how they can be beaten. “K” has a way of motivating them by making them feel like it is them against the world. So, I just want Duke players to know that they can relax because we Pack fans realize they are a great team and will most likely beat us by 30 or 40 points. No special effort needed by Duke to win this game. No sir, all they have to do is run on the court and the game is theirs.

  16. 70wolf 01/18/2007 at 8:56 PM #

    burnbarn – please don’t ever talk about seeds again.

    Everything in this piece was dead on ! Go Pack

  17. vtpackfan 01/18/2007 at 9:52 PM #

    “Duke is dangerous when people start thinking and talking about how they can be beaten.”

    Crap, I thought it was the MCDonlad AA’s they roll in year after year. That’s right, the guys Dook recruits aren’t that impressive when they come out of high school. They need alot of motivating, and gee whiz he’s some kind of motivator.

    Anyway, the thread was started with Sid’s long range success involved. Targeting recruits is going to be huge for Coach Lowe and he is obviously off to a great start. Starting this year and heating up into next year things are going to get real fun for the ’09 class. The ’08-’09 season will be Fells, McCauley, and Degands last hurrah. Figure on Costner being close to jumpin’ by then and Hickson could do the same. Bottom line is that a great start in the area of recruitng is just that unless you keep efforts and successes some what constant. Everything above I agree with, but I think the ’09 class may be bigger then what the fat wallets feel about Sid “the guy”.

  18. VaWolf82 01/18/2007 at 10:13 PM #

    After 15 frustrating years, we have no bandwagon fans. That means that what is left is – by nature – the rabid “lunatic fringe”.

    I never thought of it exactly that way before. Once again we prove that LF is clueless when he starts running down State fans.

  19. forst8 01/18/2007 at 11:41 PM #

    I guess some folks just cannot recognize when someone makes a “tongue in cheek” post. Next time I will try not to be so subtle so everyone catches on.

  20. redfred2 01/19/2007 at 12:09 AM #

    Unlike Rick, I often PRETEND to be a BB coach, and I think I’m pretty good at PRETENDING to be a pretty damn good one. Just to wanted to get that out of the way first off.

    But I think Rick’s header is really more of a summary of what already makes Sidney Lowe…Sidney Lowe, then it is an advise column. The number 5 comment at the bottom of the page is sad, but true. I just hope that Sidney Lowe’s spirit and passion can survive, intact, during his dealings with those who have readily backed and heavily donated thus far, to what seems to be a very misguided administration. Lowe will have to guard his spirit and enthusiasm and he will have to be the one pulling hard, in upward direction, instead of ever stooping down to what has previously considered success, for the past 15 years of forFREAKINGever, at NC STATE UNIVERSITY.

    As far as the bandwagonees and bandwagonettes go, the more, the merrier. There is really no better barometer of a program’s success than pulling into a Walmart parking lot, and seeing the logo of your favorite sports program pasted all over every dilapidated minivan in sight.

    AAaaaaaaawhOooooooooaaa…bark…cough (wolf call)!!! GO PACK!!!

  21. class of 74 01/19/2007 at 5:59 AM #

    Kudos. A very good piece of advice and well reasoned points made in this.

  22. Rick 01/19/2007 at 8:11 AM #

    “As far as the bandwagonees and bandwagonettes go, the more, the merrier.”

    I never said I did not want them, just that there are not any left. You need to be far more succesful than we have been to garner the “Walmart” crowd.

  23. Sw0rdf1sh 01/19/2007 at 8:11 AM #

    Nice piece Rick. I hope Sid reads this as it shows our appreciation.

    …and I’m not offended, but rather proud to be part of the “lunatic fringe”.

    At least it’s probably close to what my wife thinks of my Pack “passion”.

  24. redfred2 01/19/2007 at 9:15 AM #

    Rick,

    I know exactly what you were saying, and you were dead on.

  25. graywolf 01/19/2007 at 12:41 PM #

    Superb post with well thought out advice. I agee whole heartedly.

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