So! What Do You Think So Far?

[1KCSoonerFan]

Bottom post of the previous page:

I always wonder about how much former coaches and assistants from one team give up the goods to their new team....maybe why they were hired away with an offer they can't refuse? Just speculation and a question I've had rattling in the ample spaces of my brain. I really don't want to set foot into Conspiracy Land now....or ever, really. It's gotta happen to some degree. Does it really matter to outcomes though?

So, if I take it on its merits that, for example, the Commander of the True Death Star (where stars go to die) is Mike White, and he Jedi mind-tricked a former assistant coach to get a leg up on OU, then he has more problems than I thought, not less.

OU has the Culture.
OU has the Commits.
OU has the Consistency, Charisma, Confidence, and Championships that are leading the transformation of women's softball.

Those things don't travel with hiring away a coach. (Personally, I just can't imagine Mike The Fright White being the face of women's softball going forward.)

There are a few miles to go for the ol' Schooner before things get serious. We may have to circle the wagons before, during, and after the trip to Arlington, or any other series of games. I am confident in Coach to make every moment of the journey count from beginning to end.

There is offensive production in the line up. Lots of it. I don't know when it will emerge, but I do have a real sense it is there. This year, I am trying to adopt my version of the Championship Fan Mindset.

[waddy's ghost]

To this point I would say that while defense and pitching appear close to PG standard OUr offense is not. Patty herself has voiced frustration at not getting timely hitting with runners on base . I recall her citing 2 times in which we left bases loaded in same game .

[TropicalSooner]

My thoughts on Zaleski spilling the beans to White about the "Sooner Sauce"?
So what?
Kristin was a Texan long before she came to OU for one year. In fact, from her college years back in 2002 through her assistant coaching and head coaching years, have mostly been in Texas. I don't know her personal or family history before that, but UT is probably a natural fit for her.
As for the Sooner Sauce, I don't think that is hiding from anybody....it's just something that is hard to replicate no matter where you are. There are many coaches now that have been involved in 'seasoning' the Sooner Sauce if you will....just look at Patty's coaching tree---Courtney Diefel at Arkansas, Missy Lombardi at Oregon--along with Syd Romero (!), Michelle Gascoigne at Northwestern, DJ Gasso at Arkansas for heaven's sake.
The sauce is really only available at OU. Secrets?? Nah---way too much film out now on everything---how to pitch our to our hitters----how to hit our pitchers.
It's just something that we have--and nobody seems to be able to get it anywhere else.
You want to get a taste of the Sooner Sauce? Step right up.
You can only get it here.

[inconnu]

Over time, Patty has sharpened her skills, as well. She has had to, in order to get back to the top of the ranks. She went from 2000 to 2012 before she started having consistently top tier teams. She seems to me comparable with the skills of Nick Saban at his peak, and so far has also handled the transfers phenomenon extremely well.

[1KCSoonerFan]

inconnu and Tropical have put a finger on something important: The willingness to change, open mindedness, open heartedness, and blue collar experiences of Coach Gasso have been as important to OU's success as any recruiting class or portal maneuver. She, too, sharpens her iron every day, just as she expects her team to do. I think Patty' holds HERSELF to a higher standard on every level....which fundamentally includes her empathy and service to the community that supports OUSB and the people of Oklahoma. The entire program feels that on a visceral level.

I am evolving in my understanding of the Championship Mindset as a fan and student of the game. I just realized what I think is an essential part of it:

It is not about winning or losing - it is about the PURSUIT of EXCELLENCE. We try. We fail. And at the end of the day, we pick each other up and try again! That's the noble part, that's the growing part, that's the winning part.....the trying again - together. Tiare Jennings said, "This team is unbreakable." There it is in its simplest terms.

[waddy's ghost]

Coach Dufus White will unravel PG's secret sauce if Patty sits down with him and writes it all out for him in crayon .I am hard pressed to think of another coach in any sport who is as petty and classless as White . Thank goodness he is also largely clueless .

[Sooner Cal]

My assessment after weeks 1 & 2, Patty has been way too soft on our seniors. I understand why and I’mnot being critical because I knew she’s figure it out. As she put it in the media meeting, “they saw the old me today”. Warmed my heart. Coaching is an art as well as a science. Only one other coach has been in her situation and I’m not sure he had 5 seniors with 3 rings when he went for #4. Patty is in very rare air. I study the best coaches because they are the ones you learn from. Study ones from every team sport. Obviously eras are different, motivations are different and so on, but the best coaches navigate it and they adapt. This year is special. Fans need to enjoy this, it is extremely rare. I know the girls want a 4th, I know Patty wants it too. To do it, they need that championship mindset and Patty’s job is to instill it. It wasn’t ther the first2 weeks.

[Brisket]

Coach Dufus White will unravel PG's secret sauce if Patty sits down with him and writes it all out for him in crayon .I am hard pressed to think of another coach in any sport who is as petty and classless as White . Thank goodness he is also largely clueless .

Agreed!!! White is the biggest horses @$$ in college sports, and maybe all sports - college & pro - put together.