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CoachEmUp wrote:Let me clear up the conspiracy theorist of BC about Johnstown.

First thing the hiring of Dave Roman at Johnstown was genius. Look at his resume; he could probably be hired as a college coach if he wanted too. You will be hard pressed to find a better coach than Dave.

Second they hired Neil Cobaugh who has been a varsity assistant coach for double digit years. Who has coached in multiple D6 title games. Why wouldn't they hire a coach with that much experience?

I feel there was nothing out of the ordinary about the hiring process at Johnstown, and that it was fair. I believe that the decisions that are made at Johnstown are always done with the upmost integrity. Johnstown is no different than any other school.

I have one request; if the post is not dealing with actual on the court topics please stop mentioning my name with all of this non-sense.

Good outlook on the situation but we all know the back door politics of Johnstown and how they come to their decisions. Well not just Johnstown you have this kind of stuff going on all over the country.

Forget those clowns, there going to suck. Its about Central Cambria this year.

CoachEmUp wrote:Let me clear up the conspiracy theorist of BC about Johnstown.

First thing the hiring of Dave Roman at Johnstown was genius. Look at his resume; he could probably be hired as a college coach if he wanted too. You will be hard pressed to find a better coach than Dave.

Second they hired Neil Cobaugh who has been a varsity assistant coach for double digit years. Who has coached in multiple D6 title games. Why wouldn't they hire a coach with that much experience?

I feel there was nothing out of the ordinary about the hiring process at Johnstown, and that it was fair. I believe that the decisions that are made at Johnstown are always done with the upmost integrity. Johnstown is no different than any other school.

I have one request; if the post is not dealing with actual on the court topics please stop mentioning my name with all of this non-sense.

Finally a level-headed post about the Johnstown situation. These few disgruntled former players (or wannabe coaches) posting hate e-mails about the coach is weak. Cobaugh has experience and knows the kids, and there are probably more former players who support him than the few on here that don't. While a coach more devoted to one sport might be preferable in this day and age, the fact is that coaches can't work with the team until a certain point anyway.

At a school like Johnstown, unlike most other area schools, the coaches need to be in the school. There is more to it at Johnstown, than just showing-up to coach basketball. You need someone in the school to keep these kids in line, make sure they are going to class and showing-up for school.

Cobaugh may not have been the popular choice, but he is a good one and let's give him a chance. Danny Shipman was probably the perfect coach for Johnstown, being a teacher, a former Trojan, and strictly a basketball man, but he didn't take care of his business. It would be nice to see him get a second chance, but who knows.

The fact is, if Johnstown wins the critics will say it is because of the players, but if they lose it will be the coaches fault.

When using "Shipman" and "teacher" (as in certificated teacher) in the same sentence, I'd be using the term "teacher" loosely. Very loosely.

Dirt Winston wrote:

Finally a level-headed post about the Johnstown situation. These few disgruntled former players (or wannabe coaches) posting hate e-mails about the coach is weak. Cobaugh has experience and knows the kids, and there are probably more former players who support him than the few on here that don't. While a coach more devoted to one sport might be preferable in this day and age, the fact is that coaches can't work with the team until a certain point anyway.

At a school like Johnstown, unlike most other area schools, the coaches need to be in the school. There is more to it at Johnstown, than just showing-up to coach basketball. You need someone in the school to keep these kids in line, make sure they are going to class and showing-up for school.

Cobaugh may not have been the popular choice, but he is a good one and let's give him a chance. Danny Shipman was probably the perfect coach for Johnstown, being a teacher, a former Trojan, and strictly a basketball man, but he didn't take care of his business. It would be nice to see him get a second chance, but who knows.

The fact is, if Johnstown wins the critics will say it is because of the players, but if they lose it will be the coaches fault.

Well if the talent is there, and they don't win then whose fault is it? If people say well the players don't get along or they don't listen, then that is the coach’s responsibility to get them all on the same page. What a lot of people fail to realize is sports at Johnstown is a lot more than just after school extra curriculum. The only guidance they may have is from their coaches. The only thing inspiring them to stay in school or do well in school sports. Some kids rely on maybe getting a scholarship to advance their education. So that is why it is important to have a coach in there who the kids respect. That's why it is important to have a coach that can dedicate the proper time necessary not just for basketball but outside of school. The kids don't need someone in the school with them that’s what the teachers are for; they need the person to put the time in with them outside of school all year round. That's what it is about. That's where I think Johnstown made a mistake by not hiring YOU KNOW WHO, but hiring Cobaugh.

P.I.T.T. wrote:Forget those clowns, there going to suck. Its about Central Cambria this year.

Get your mind right!

Trojan 4 life,

That was an excellent point and I think a very good post. Johnstown is unlike every other school in this area. What do the kids do after basketball season is over and they don't play another sport? Do they hang out in the streets with a possibility to get in trouble? This is a strong possibility for young men to do with no one in the home to guide them. Now I'm not saying that all the kids at Johnstown has this issue but there is a large amount that do. Now I won't say the current coach is not willing to put in the time after basketball season, but I will say he is unable due to other sports obligations. Most good programs start preseason work outs, leagues, and conditioning mainly to keep the kids busy. This will not be the case at Johnstown. Someone will miss out on time that is deserved to them from their coach. It may be Track, Football, Basketball or kids that just want to lift weights after school. No matter how you look at it, it is not fair to the student’s athletes at Johnstown. All sports suffer, and so do the students, and the students should be the only concern and apparently it is not!

This sound like a real mess at Johnstown. The feeling I'm getting from the post and from people I talk to around the Johnstown area people are a little concerned. I feel that it's not like they don't like N.Cobaugh, but they feel he is not the right guy for the basketball coaching position. I feel they would rather see him as the head football coach, that alone lets me know they don't mind him as a person. Also I think if he was just dedicated to basketball than they would be a lot more comfortable with the idea of him as a head coach. Johnstown is a very proud school and takes a lot of pride in there sports programs "all of them". Like I was told from an alumnus two weeks ago never in the history of Johnstown athletics have we had a person coach every sport in the school, and not win at any of them. That is not my thoughts, but I feel if Johnstown has an awful basketball season, there is no doubt in my mind that there will be a change, a total restructure of their athletic department. I have to agree with I WEAR STRIPES that the students are the ones who are being short changed in this situation.

[quote="Dirt Winston

Finally a level-headed post about the Johnstown situation. These few disgruntled former players (or wannabe coaches) posting hate e-mails about the coach is weak. Cobaugh has experience and knows the kids, and there are probably more former players who support him than the few on here that don't. While a coach more devoted to one sport might be preferable in this day and age, the fact is that coaches can't work with the team until a certain point anyway.

At a school like Johnstown, unlike most other area schools, the coaches need to be in the school. There is more to it at Johnstown, than just showing-up to coach basketball. You need someone in the school to keep these kids in line, make sure they are going to class and showing-up for school.

Cobaugh may not have been the popular choice, but he is a good one and let's give him a chance. Danny Shipman was probably the perfect coach for Johnstown, being a teacher, a former Trojan, and strictly a basketball man, but he didn't take care of his business. It would be nice to see him get a second chance, but who knows.

The fact is, if Johnstown wins the critics will say it is because of the players, but if they lose it will be the coaches fault.[/quote]

Hey Dirt you have it all confused. This is not about Cobaugh this is about what is best for the students. If a teacher taught a math class and then half way through the semester they taught science, and then English, how could they devote the necessary time to learn that subject thorough enough to teach the students at a level they deserve. The students lose out, and the athletes lose out in the sporting world.

Second thing I noticed you said coaches can't work with the players until a certain time anyways: in what world do you live in. Good programs have coaches that work with their team year round. Westmont, BM, Forest Hills, all have been working with their teams for several months now and all summer as well. Unless you want your program to look like Richland Basketball were they kids start 1 week before official practice then have at it. I think we see what happens when you have your head basketball coach who also coaches football.

You were right Cobaugh on paper was a good choice, but if you had a chance to make a GREAT choice why would you just go with good. Personally I don't care what Johnstown does but I do feel for the students every child deserves to get a full time coach. Not a full time pay check collector and part time coach.

First of all no coach is going to keep track of these kids 24/7. Second, their last two coaches quit on them, so why are we bashing someone who is so willing to put in his time. I admitted that someone stretched so thin was not ideal, but he does have the resume for the job, so let's give him a chance. There is a school called Aliquippa a little west of here, where the same guy is the head football and basketball coach. They do all right. I still think someone in the school is important, the teachers aren't going to care whether the kids stay eligible. I know that coaches work with kids off-season, and as far as I know, Cobaugh coached them in a summer league in Indiana and is having open gyms.