Softball SEC Tournament

Comin2yourCity

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Oct 14, 2012
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Murphy fell in love with the Arizona style hitting of the 2000’s in which you played small ball and had dominant pitching. That worked for awhile because everyone was pretty much getting used to softball from 2000-2017 and there really wasn’t a better blueprint on photo win besides some of those pac 12 styles. It really helped Murphy because it allowed him to coach hitting, Ally to coach fielding, and Steph coach pitching without very much issues.

However everything changed after Patty Gasso and Clint Myers unleashed the bopper patrol. Now if you don’t have 5 great hitters then you aren’t winning anything no matter how well your pitching is. Murphy has fought the obvious changes needed because ultimately he would have to let Ally go to do it.
Even when Ally retired and he had the opportunity to change he dug in deeper. I love Braud but she is a slapper coach and I still haven't figured out the purpose of Arbour.
 
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TideATL70

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Oct 20, 2020
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8192 nailed it. The game is 180 degrees different than it was from 2000-2017. It served us very well, but to win at the highest level these days takes a deep pitching STAFF and some big boppers- still room for some slappers, but you can't JUST have that and one ace pitcher and expect to be a top 8-10 contender to win it all. I think as the years go on, it will be even more evident how much Montana carried us those 4-5 years. Truly impressed and grateful for her time at the Rhoads House.
 

TideATL70

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Oct 20, 2020
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With the exception of Volleyball, which has a long rebuild ahead of it, you could argue Softball is the most problematic program for Greg Byrne right now. Hard to believe as it felt like it was the second or third most successful program on campus most of the last 20 plus years.
Byrne is gonna earn his keep with getting SB straightened out one way or another.
 

JDCrimson

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It took 10 years to dig WBB out of the ditch and now it looks more promising than SB and that is saying something.

With the exception of Volleyball, which has a long rebuild ahead of it, you could argue Softball is the most problematic program for Greg Byrne right now. Hard to believe as it felt like it was the second or third most successful program on campus most of the last 20 plus years.
Byrne is gonna earn his keep with getting SB straightened out one way or another.
 

4Q Basket Case

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Or K. B. Sides.

Sides and Wallace are two SEC POYs and Kilfoyl is a pitcher knocking it out in the Big 12….no mean feat.

I’ve heard lots of rumors. I don’t know which ones, if any, are true.

I do know that something, whatever it is, is terribly wrong.

After 25+ years in the chair, has any coach ever experienced an existential crisis, and pulled out of it? Bryant was 14 years in, including 3 years of decline. Saban was 8 years in, with only a small decline…if you can define missing a 2-team playoff as a decline at all.

Softball has splatted up against a hardened concrete wall. Now is the time to make a change, before we need a ground-up rebuild similar to WBB.
 
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Krymsonman

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Or K. B. Sides.

Sides and Wallace are two SEC POYs and Kilfoyl is a pitcher knocking it out in the Big 12….no mean feat.

I’ve heard lots of rumors. I don’t know which ones, if any, are true.

I do know that something, whatever it is, is terribly wrong.

After 25+ years in the chair, has any coach ever experienced an existential crisis, and pulled out of it? Bryant was 14 years in, including 3 years of decline. Saban was 8 years in, with only a small decline…if you can define missing a 2-team playoff as a decline at all.

Softball has splatted up against a hardened concrete wall. Now is the time to make a change, before we need a ground-up rebuild similar to WBB.
It's a shame that players like Sides and Wallace had to leave to get the right kind of coaching. I wonder if they would have ever been POY's at BAMA. And I'm pretty sure Kilfoyl would have been a big help on the mound this year.
 

Rama Jama

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From what I've been told he wanted Wallace to move to catcher. May be the dumbest ask of all time. I heard Sides was a internal personality conflict with someone in the team. I am not sure what happened with Kilfoyl. He believes if you have 1 good pitcher that is all you need. He ruins the confidence of all the other pitchers because he jerks them out at the 1st sign of trouble. He leaves his ace in too long and over uses them. Our hitters have a poor idea if the strike zone. We take more strikes than any team I've ever seen. I could go on and on.
 

Bamaatthebeach

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I can imagine that Briski will be the first one into the portal.
If you've followed the program proudly through the years, it's awfully hard watching the likes of Arkansas and Missouri occupying a higher spot than Alabama. Murphy doesn't appear fazed in the least. Maybe that is unfair to say, but that is the vibe he seems to give off. If Byrne doesn't do something now, I'm not sure how much worse it is going to get, and that is really saying something.
 
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Rama Jama

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I can imagine that Briski will be the first one into the portal.
If you've followed the program proudly through the years, it's awfully hard watching the likes of Arkansas and Missouri occupying a higher spot than Alabama. Murphy doesn't appear fazed in the least. Maybe that is unfair to say, but that is the vibe he seems to give off. If Byrne doesn't do something now, I'm not sure how much worse it is going to get, and that is really saying something.
I told a friend who goes to the games that Murphy had checked out after we list to South Alabama when he showed zero emotion. At the trivia night fundraiser Braugh did most of talking. It seems to me she was the heir apparent but I don't think she is ready. We clearly missed Ally this year, maybe she is the answer.
 
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TideATL70

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Oct 20, 2020
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If we don’t see a real change in terms of a hitting coach and a true philosophy change this off-season maybe Rama Jama is onto something- with a back room deal that after 2-3 years Braud takes over. More I think about it, she picked up her whole family and left her home area in Oregon to come back to TitleTown. Maybe the fact there is a succession plan was what really made it worth it.
 

TideATL70

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Good point BasketCase-not a great look there. Got a hunch we’re going to be shipped out West on Sunday night- I know folks fill up the Rhoads House and we did win one in a lot of those three game series, so MAYBE? We host a regional but I think it’s a long shot
 

BamaHoHo

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From what I've been told he wanted Wallace to move to catcher. May be the dumbest ask of all time. I heard Sides was a internal personality conflict with someone in the team. I am not sure what happened with Kilfoyl. He believes if you have 1 good pitcher that is all you need. He ruins the confidence of all the other pitchers because he jerks them out at the 1st sign of trouble. He leaves his ace in too long and over uses them. Our hitters have a poor idea if the strike zone. We take more strikes than any team I've ever seen. I could go on and on.
Tow on both.
 
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81usaf92

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From what I've been told he wanted Wallace to move to catcher. May be the dumbest ask of all time. I heard Sides was a internal personality conflict with someone in the team. I am not sure what happened with Kilfoyl. He believes if you have 1 good pitcher that is all you need. He ruins the confidence of all the other pitchers because he jerks them out at the 1st sign of trouble. He leaves his ace in too long and over uses them. Our hitters have a poor idea if the strike zone. We take more strikes than any team I've ever seen. I could go on and on.
Wallace might have stayed if she was given a position more to her strengths and didn’t play a summer with Tim Walton.

As for Sides… Murphy chose the wrong cat in a cat fight.
 

TideATL70

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Oct 20, 2020
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Did not expect Mizzou and FLA in the championship but kudos to both. Shows how deep the conference is even without OU and Tex

after sleeping on it we’ve got zero chance at a regional host- had to have that LSU game especially since their RPI was 3
Guessing our RPI now is closer to 20 or so

they gave it their all but it was a microcosm of the season, zero clutch hitting and fairly solid pitching
 

81usaf92

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Did not expect Mizzou and FLA in the championship but kudos to both. Shows how deep the conference is even without OU and Tex

after sleeping on it we’ve got zero chance at a regional host- had to have that LSU game especially since their RPI was 3
Guessing our RPI now is closer to 20 or so

they gave it their all but it was a microcosm of the season, zero clutch hitting and fairly solid pitching
Softball RPI is #16. There is a very small chance we host but it would probably only go in our favor if they are deciding between a dump or the Rhoads for the #16 seed. And yes venue and TV opportunities makes a difference when they are selecting.
 

TideATL70

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Great point as it does play into these smaller revenue sports- Now that my disappointment in the SEC tourney is subsiding a bit, getting optimistic that Beab and Briski could dominate in the postseason and we make a run to OKC
But maybe I’ve just had too much coffee…
 
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