I didn’t want to post this in the thread that has started in the Coaching Opportunities section since I don’t want to negatively impact Wisconsin’s ability to find a new coach. (Just what they need – a thread below their job posting discussing the potentially negative aspects of working there.)

If you look at the other thread you’ll see a typical head coach job posting, but one sentence caught some people’s eyes. In short, it says that school rules do not allow the team to pay their coaches. The last response in the thread suggested the possibility of funding the coach through a booster club or some other outside source.

Looking at Wisconsin’s club sports handbook (easily found online), the opportunity to find outside sources to compensate a coach is not really addressed. It definitely makes clear that club teams are to be student run in the sense that all paperwork, requests, etc. between the team and the university come from students. This is not uncommon in club sports nationally. I certainly understand that tradition and why it is enforced so often, but most of those schools have never experienced a system that allows more involvement from coaches (like we have here at Michigan, for example). If managed properly it can be a tremendous benefit for the student-athletes and even for the club sports department. They usually don’t want to try it because the traditional system they have in place has worked well enough.

It also makes clear that the coach cannot be paid by the team or the school for that role (although he/she can be a university employee in another capacity, and the handbook suggests they purchase their own insurance, presumably out of their own pocket). I’ve never seen this before, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it exists at a handful of other schools. Their handbook states that a coach must be “highly knowledgeable within his/her specific area of instruction.” Not allowing any kind of compensation would seem to limit the pool of qualified candidates pretty severly, but as the previous poster suggested, there may be other ways for a coach to make it work. An outside booster club that raises funds separate from any current student or university efforts may get around the limitations. Of course, any qualified lacrosse coach can set up a side business teaching the game through tutoring and camps, which can be quite lucrative. That’s the way a lot of NCAA coaches make extra money, with some making significantly more that way than through their university salaries.

A creative coach and a supportive alumni and parent group can probably make almost any club job attractive. The question, in my mind, is more about #7 in their list of coach duties. They can be fired by the players or the department “at any time without cause or justification.” That stipulation is also not uncommon at the club level nationally, and it should scare anyone looking to make the job part of a career or family decision.

My question is to any of the coaches and/or teams that have dealt with either of these issues. How have you handled it? What advice would you give Wisconsin or any other MCLA team dealing with similar issues?

What a disaster. First of all, how many talented lacrosse minds are living in Madison, Wisconsin?

Second of all,  how many of those talented minds are going to want to coach for free or with the understanding that a certain amount of money might be coming from outside sources?

And third of all, what makes this job sound worse than being the head coach for the Washington Redskins is the dreaded #7. Who is going to really take this job if they can  be fired for no reason?

Wisconsin could be an MCLA power when they make the jump. They have a huge roster (field three teams), a bigger alumni network, field space shouldn’t be a problem like it is at beautiful urban Pitt. These revelations brought to light by Coach Paul are troubling however we are working on contacting a Wisconsin official to learn more.

Take a look at their website here

Boathouse Team Locker Rooms

Click here to take a peak at what you can purchase from major lacrosse programs

These catalogs are a great idea for branding your program and as small fundraisers

Navy

St. Mary’s College

Virginia

Gettysburg

Florida State

There are a few more NCAA programs and high school problems also available. I’m definitely hawking the UVA hoody. Click here to see Pitt’s Nike order available to the public

Notes

• Lacrosse Playground interview with Max Seibald, totally dedicated to his lacrosse stick, sick feature
• ESPN covers the Headstrong Foundation Tournament
• Today’s Fireside Chat is with Dan Crawforth from BYU