This has always been a question that has been tossed around among collegiate officials for years now and might be a good blog post for discussion...
Rather than take a stand one way or another it might be good just to point out some pertinent facts for consideration and then let the discussion begin. Let's consider the facts:
* Women are different than men. (Big surprise!) A great book to illustrate the differences is called, "Men are from Mars, And Women Are From Venus."
* There are obviously logistical difficulties to overcome such as locker rooms, rest rooms, sleeping arrangements and such; however, men who coach women's DI teams seem to deal quite well with these issues.
* The men's collegiate game is considerably different than the women's game. Does being a former player (pro or collegiate level) qualify a woman to coach a men's team?
* Women's temperaments are substantially different than men (and especially young men who are at the height of their testosterone output.) Women are far more moody than men and this might affect the overall morale and production of a team.
* Young men are interested in good looking women. Surprise, surprise! What do you do when a player has a crush on his coach? In today's politically correct society you could never advertise for a men's coach that is "not good looking and very unattractive", so what do you do with this one?
* Women give birth to children and possess motherly instincts. If the coach has children they will naturally want to spend more time with their kids. Does this affect a team or do they just welcome the coach and her kids on the bus and away they go?
* Is a woman strong enough to deal with 10 or 12 type A dominant young men? What type of woman do you think would be able to coach a men's DI team?
* Men tend to be more outwardly expressive (and vulgar) than women (or at least most women). Do you think the players or the coach would have to change on this issue?
* Will collegiate young men respond well to a female coach or would there be conflict and problems from the getgo?
Many of the above issues deal more with psychological makeups than with court strategy but then perhaps that's why there are few (if any) women coaching a men's Division I tennis team.
What do you think?
Note: If it were to happen, I think it would be better for a woman to be the head coach of a DI men's program than for her to be an assistant to a male head coach. Can you just imagine a woman being an assistant to some of the men coaches we all know???
5 comments:
Moody--really? As if male coaches are any less moody and ready to fly off the handle.
Not accusing. Just observing.
The obvious choice for a female head-coach of a men's D-1 team would be someone of the lesbian persuasion.
I wonder how this choice would affect Title 9?
I would suggest a transgender for the Men's coach.
Even the corrective tone of some of these posts are as politically incorrect as the post they are criticizing. Of course, a good female coach can and should be given the opportunity. Only then can we discover if they'd be any good at it, or if there are insurmountable problems.
Post a Comment