clubonlyforus

Holy cow! I cant believe this hasn't been used in 2 years since half the talk about volleyball in the high school forum is about club ball. haha. Anyway, Happy New Year to All!!

When I mention names, I make sure it is not in a disrespectful way. Believe me, I have wanted to unleash, but I wont put those thoughts in writing. The way YOU have talked about Dave is totally disrespectful. It is apparent to me and others that never post, that you don't know the man. I had no intentions of posting anymore on this site, but I had had enough. Take it anyway you want. That's all I'm going to say about that. The younger teams usually always do good because the competition is not as good. The older they get, the tougher it gets. K2 15s did real good. Lets see if they can keep it up. Merry Christmas to ALL!!

I know that when K2 was being dreamed up, a few people talked about making the facility available for basketball also, but most wanted a volleyball specific facility. It makes it much harder to do financially, but you don't have to compete with basketball for gym space. Chris and J had consulted with other clubs to get their feedback and chose to go volleyball only. Of course they started letting Karate and baseball practice for extra revenue and that took up courts for the volleyball players. So they sometimes had 2 teams on the same court because of non-volleyball people on the volleyball courts.

I never said he didn't start KVA because of his daughter. I actually said that was "part" of it. But there were plenty of us that were fed up with the direction K2 was going and wanted something different. Some were even thinking of going to PR. It sucked having really only one choice in Knoxville. Im not saying KVA was the answer because it has problems as well. But we knew how K2 was being run, and did not like it. I have been here, in the mix much longer than some of you, so I know a little about what I am talking about. I know Dave very well, and have even back before he moved to Knoxville. He thinks the young ladies shouldn't be cussed at and belittled, and neither do I. Not everyone would play at a top D1 school even if it was handed to them because of the treatment. Some of the personal attacks on this board are disgusting. I have ranted in the past as well, but I leave out who I am talking about as to not smear their name. I think it is pitiful.

I have watched these threads from time to time and would grab the keyboard to start typing and back away because I didn't want to show disgust. Mostly on how some people on here have bashed Dave and think they know what has happened in the past. I think some of you should be ashamed at how you have mentioned certain people by name and such. KVA was mostly formed (partly because his daughter got totally lied to and disrespected by J) because a lot of us parents were fed up with K2. They started trying to be like sport performance from Chicago. Players would ride a separate bus, with a separate fee, stay in separate rooms, with a separate fee, parents were not allowed to talk to their daughters during the weekend or even bring them water, and all of this with a coach or two that I wont go into detail about at all, but I would not allow any female member of my family to be near alone. There were a lot of us parents that felt like the "family" part of our time was being taken away. Maybe we were not as serious as some. I don't know. But if K2 was doing everything right, there wouldn't have been so many people leave. My daughter was always on a "1" team except for the last year. She was recruited hard by a couple of good D2 schools but chose to go where she would have a better college experience and not worry about playing. We left K2 not because of being on a "1" team or playing time (she was a star player most of the time). We left because of losing the family side of it, questionable people brought in to coach, and piss poor money management. Oh yea, and the crappiest facility known to man. The girls were literally freezing to death during the winter in that igloo! And it was quite a drive for a lot of us. I don't think there will ever be just one club nor do I think there should be. Different people have different ideas on how to run their business and coach our daughters. I was upset when Chris talked about starting K2. I felt like we were going to water down the talent between SMJVC, PR, and K2, but it worked for a few years. Then they went away from what they started, and that is why another club formed. Not from just one man, but a lot of players and parents that wanted to get back to the roots. That doesn't make them right and me wrong or visa versa, just different ideals. Knoxville is way too small to ever be a power house on the national stage. Every now and then a team of like minded players will come along (like K2's 15s) that are really good and make it far. But that gets harder and harder to do when you start playing against 17s and 18s that are all over 6 feet tall. Sorry to ramble so much, but a lot is coming out. Sorry.

Chicago will probably be a lot tougher than Nashville. K2 doesnt want to play at regionals so it doesnt matter to them about playing SRVA tournaments. KVA does want to play at regionals so they have to play in a couple of SRVA tournaments even so most of them are fairly weak. The rest of KVA's schedule is tough though.

There are only two of you that chose to go to K2 because you were unhappy. Many others have went to KVA. You are in the minority with your opinion. Bearden has played much better with him coaching than they did with the previous coach. That is a fact. If you only knew some of the truth, you would not be so vocal.

Amen!

Appears to be this year. I have not heard of some of the teams. Several of us have been wanting to go back to the Icebreaker for the last few years, but apparantley it has gone down hill. Anyway, we will do our best.

Neither of the 2 K2 tournaments have been good for "elite" teams. Good teams will blow by everyone all day Saturday and up until the semis or finals on Sunday. NKYVC is really good and so is one or two of the Carolina teams, but it is not enough to waste the whole weekend. If A5 sees a weak list of teams, it doesnt bother them at all to not participate. They go where the competition is. Same thing with MAVA, KIVA, etc.

Its funny you brought that up. Dave contacted K2 to set up scimmages a couple of months ago. Chris seemed fine with it but never answered the phone again when Dave called. He had plans of sending several teams to the K2 tournaments, but after K2 would not answer his calls, he chose to not participate. Several of us parents could not understand why pride and ego got in the way of PR not attending the K2 tournaments. They would have kept costs down, been good competition for the teams, and allowed grandparents and friends to see the girls play. But PR would have nothing to do with it. When KVA was started, most of us did not want to be the same way as PR and actually expected to play in the 2 K2 tournaments. But K2 did not want us there. Get your facts straight. We have been around the club scene in Knoxville a lot longer than you.

The Icebreaker used to be one of the best tournaments in the south. It has gotten weaker though the last couple of years. I dont blame A5 for not sending their top teams. I wouldnt have sent K2's top teams to the wilderness either though. The MEPL would have been much better for them. The season is just beginning. Everyone will find their nitch soon enough.

No better coaching than AC. The problem is, they are not in Knox County. Thats why they dont get coverage. Also, it sucks to have a great player on a under performing team because she never gets to have some spotlight even so she may be better than the ones that get all the spotlight just because they are on a really good team. I understand giving the accolades to the team when we are talking about teams, but when they pull out individual players, maybe they should look across the board a little more. There are some really good players outside of Knoxville. AC has the best volleyball tradition in East Tennessee, period. Their volleyball program has the support that most schools have for their football. They may get passed up by another school sometime, but it hasnt happened yet. Like I have said in the past: Bench all of the club players, coach the ones left, and see which school wins every time. AC knows how to coach.

I dont know how in the world we could tell a person they can not start a travel volleyball program with their own time. As long as current rules and laws are not broken, I dont see a problem with it. We are VERY limited in good coaching around here. There are simply not enough coaches to go around, so when we have one that has the desire to help the girls in the off season, we should be happy with that. Luckily we have more than one choice for club. If you dont like your high school coach, MOVE! You have that right! Nobody is stopping you. Or take J's advice and just dont play high school. Otherwise, just put up with it like the rest of us have. I dont think you realize how many girls around here have coaches much worse than what you have at Bearden. At some point you will have to drop the bad attitude and play with the cards you have been dealt, or fold. It is the way it is. We wish everyone a Merry Christmas!

Agree to Disagree

I dont know about that. He has taken a team that didnt have the best talent and took them far each season. There have been MUCH more talented teams in our area fizzle out because of bad coaching yet he was able to win when needed. Its not all the players' doing, its the coach's also. Like I said before, in club, he took his 2 team and beat the 1 team several times because he was a better coach. Just saying.

Funny thing is, if you would ask EVERY player he has coached the last few years, almost all of them really like him. Yes, there will be one or two that dont, but that is usually the player/parent having the problem, not him. I heard there were two players/parents that were "trouble" makers last year. Are you one of them?

Sorry, but I couldnt let a whole year go by without a single post in club volleyball!! lol Hope everyone has a great season!!

Ok, I cant argue with what I dont know. But there was some talk on CoachT back during SMJVC and beginning of K2 with not near the negative talk that we have today. I just cant believe we have all the bad talk about someone wanting to start his/her own club for volleyball in our area. I did not have a problem with K2 being formed. After time, I just didnt like some of their philosophies and chose to go elsewhere. I hope they stay around to keep everyone honest. If one particular club does the right things, then word of mouth will make them the superior club to go to. If not, then we will still have choices.

We have had concerns about playing for our high school too, but it is a lot of court time to miss if you dont play. I think if the player stays in the gym and works out and keeps skills going, then maybe it wont be too bad for her, but that take disipline. If she ends up sitting around a lot during the high school season and not staying on top of things, she will get out of shape pretty quickly. If she is having emotional problems at high school (being belittled, told she cant do anything right, etc.) then maybe its best to not play (that can have long lasting ramifications). But if its just because the high school teams sucks, I say go ahead and play. At least your seeing some court time. Most of us in the volleyball community have sub par coaches for high school (even club sometimes), thats just the fact. We cant all move to the best volleyball schools just because of volleyball. We need to make the best of it and move on. What I would love to hear is from some former high school players and/or parents about how important they think volleyball in high school and club are now that they are done playing. I think we put a lot more importance on it than it really needs to be. Once the young lady is 22, 25, 30, then how important was it that her team was well coached and went to state, or her club played all the best tournaments in the country, or they sucked but had fun, etc.

What you people need to do is go back through all the posts for the last five years and see how many posts were bashing K2 and how many have been bashing KVA. There has been a LOT more bashing KVA than K2 ever was. Another thing I would suggest is to call Dave himself and ask him how long he has been coaching volleyball. Sure, he is new to high school, but has been coaching longer than most of us have ever been a part of the sport. If he started KVA because his daughter did not make the one team, SO WHAT?!? If you dont like it, then keep your money away from KVA. Its that simple.

Ebther, very very good post. Especially your first paragraph. I totally agree about some of the problem parents, we still have them. Their daughters are driving age yet the parent is still at every single practice. Its pityful. I thought the way K2 needed to handle it was to remove the parents that coached from the side lines and tell them its not acceptable to be that way. But leave the parents alone that are not doing that. We had parents driving great distances just to have to sit in their cars or drive around for 3 hours. Some of these parents need to cut the cord and let their child spread their wings on their own. I am not going to elaborate on the belittling, because its just not necessary. The parents "in the know" are aware that it was going on. Enough said. Cant wait for the season to begin!! Good luck to everyone. I agree that luckily we have more than one club in the area so that we have choices. We have to choose what is best for our daughters. Maybe this club is closer to drive, more cost effective, has girls that my daughter knows, better college connections, etc.

Spike, you need to speak for yourself. A lot of us left K2 with our child playing all around or most of the time. It doesnt always have to be about playing time. There have been other things going on.

I know Carmen was at K2 several times the last couple of years. I dont think there was much of a riff between her and Chris. I also know there were some money issues with smjvc. I dont think anyone took any money, I just think they tried to do too much for too little money. I hate having to pay what it costs to do club volleyball, but if you add up everything involved, it is going to cost near what these clubs are charging, then you decide whether or not to pay coaches or look for volunteers. It cant be done for much less.

I dont know, Orcat. We did not.