The Coaches Group Chat
Grab a drink and a seat at the table with hosts Matt Houlihan, Arielle Houlihan and Chad Gordon as we chat about the world of volleyball, coaching, business, and whatever else Arielle feels like!
The Coaches Group Chat
S2E4: New NCAA Rules, Foreigner Limit, NIL & Transfer Portal
This episode dives into the complexities of NCAA volleyball rankings, exploring their quirks, controversies, and significant impacts on team dynamics. We discuss player transfers, upcoming matches, and potential rule changes:
• Insights on coaches' polling and its biases
• Discussion on the world of NIL in college sports
• Preview of key upcoming matches between top teams
• Proposed rule changes (foreigner limit, remove open hand tips, service error foul out)
• The future of NCAA volleyball amid rising financial stakes
Honestly, if I was going to pick a Pringles, it'd probably be sour cream and onion.
Speaker 1:That's a good one. Not everybody likes sour cream and onion, though I like salt and vinegar.
Speaker 2:I like salt and vinegar as well.
Speaker 1:Some are like crowd favorites. It took me a while to get there.
Speaker 3:You know, like when I was a kid, I was like this is disgusting. And then all of a sudden, it was like wait. Senior in high school.
Speaker 2:I was like I love pain have you guys ever tried vinegar? Welcome to the coaches group chat.
Speaker 1:Someone get her more sugar. I think this girl needs an almond joy stat.
Speaker 3:Yes, coconut, let's go. Should we get into our docket? We got a full docket today and week four has provided some very interesting turns of events and we have a huge week. This is actually one of the weeks I circled on my calendar, so I'm like we got some good matchups here in this one. But do you want to start? Because I know you, you don't want to leave the abca poll ever out of our weekly discussion. Would you like to start there?
Speaker 2:yeah, ariel hoolahan, rankings from memory ready go. Number one, long beach. Number two, not long beach number three ucla number four, uh b nope uh hawaii number five byu number six, usc number seven, loyola number eight, uh ball state number nine. Stanford number 10, pepperdine, I got the top 10.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that's pretty good guys For those of you at home. That it was actually pretty impressive for Ariel right there.
Speaker 2:I was not reading that off of a piece of paper. That's crazy.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I know she's got dyslexia, so normally like keeping things in order.
Speaker 2:so many things wrong with me but the fact that I can name those in a row, that is wild.
Speaker 1:Yes, I'm a savant that's what I've heard, always heard.
Speaker 2:I mean yeah when you met me, you're like yep savant.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I had heard the rumors, and salve was definitely one of those girls, definitely a genius. Uh, can we just stop having coaches rank it?
Speaker 3:I know we just go media. Who would be better? Yeah, just have the media out there. Yeah, give me the keys, let me.
Speaker 1:Let me do the rankings I mean, at this point are we?
Speaker 2:we're not the media, but we are now, we're definitely media who's a group of people, though not the media, because media poll is like I just want people who like we're just, we're just your drunk uncles.
Speaker 1:That's okay, you know, let's have uncles out here talking about let's have all the volunteer assistant coaches, rank it oh, they watch a lot. They're not allowed they're not they're not even somewhat biased yeah, but like a little bit, but like we wouldn't mean they're not allowed if the coaches are ranking it, you know? Yeah, it's true, I just want someone who watches a lot of volunteer assistance aren't allowed.
Speaker 3:That's like either way, like we said, I just make it public, like, whatever the code, if it's the coaches voting, great, but they need to put their names to it rather than this lazy yeah, what's the secret secret society of voting? I. Apparently, if you're a member of something within the abca, you get to see that. That's the rumor I've heard really, I'm a member.
Speaker 3:I haven't seen anything I looked so I want to know what secret society I'm missing out on and how I get involved, like what do I need to sacrifice talking in a microphone on a podcast and they'll be like, fine, we'll let you in? No, it's definitely an animal sacrifice that needs to be done.
Speaker 1:Yeah skull and bones, for sure, okay let me.
Speaker 3:Let me just have my gripes real quick with the national poll. My number one gripe is that UC Santa Barbara went to Grand Canyon, beat Grand Canyon in three straight sets and then lost in five. They don't move at all and Grand Canyon doesn't move at all Like that's just laziness on my eyes. We've got to make some switches there. Santa Barbara's got to rise, grand Canyon's got to fall back. Something, something's got to give there. That's one. Beyond that, not going to lie, I thought, see, someone's going to drop back a little bit after their loss to both UCLA and USC, but I guess, because those two teams are ranked pretty high, they're leaving as is where that took a set.
Speaker 1:They're 16.
Speaker 3:Yeah, there's the rank 16. So then it's not like they're super high, but I feel about that. Still, give me an underdog. We all knew CSUN's not going undefeated this year. Are you kidding me? Yeah, but they're taking someone out. Take a couple early lumps. Yeah, get them in the postseason, they're taking someone out at a very inopportune time for somebody. I got no fear.
Speaker 1:I'm pretty sure they smoked. I think they swept USC. I think the box score was wrong. I know they did lose to UCLA, but that was in four for both. It was in four for both.
Speaker 3:yeah, the UCLA game. I watched that one man. Ucla looked good. They looked pissed, they were not happy about that Ohio State loss and they were absolutely bullying CSUN.
Speaker 1:They were not good for a little bit, and then Rama and Robinson and Rowan. I think it starts with Rowan.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it must be something with ours.
Speaker 2:Well, cam Thorne was also very efficient. You need to come up with like a Rama Robinson Rowan triple R something there, we could brand that.
Speaker 3:We could brand that for him.
Speaker 2:We'll workshop that it's like Triple Espresso, but tall white kids. Yeah, right.
Speaker 3:Yeah, Lanky white kids with ours We'll get there Row row, row your boats.
Speaker 2:Boys, boys in the boat rowing redwood trees. I know, I know sprawl likes that.
Speaker 1:Okay, no, sprawl's not there anymore yeah, I know, but it's my he's a puppet master.
Speaker 3:He's basically controlling everything at this point great movie anyway r well, we'll rip on that rr, that's okay you can retire that one moral of the story there not much changes in the avca poll. There, you know, not a a lot of ups, not a lot of downs, even though there probably should have been a little bit of flip-flops, it's got to be the highest ranking for Irvine in a while right.
Speaker 1:I don't know. Define a while.
Speaker 2:I don't remember them cracking the top two. They've been three at highest, last year maybe yeah, I mean two, they've been three at highest last year maybe. Yeah, I mean they've been like they haven't been one or two.
Speaker 3:No, but because there's been legitimate and like juggernaut number ones ahead of them and now they're kind of having their time.
Speaker 2:So I mean, I'm just saying this is that this is the most, uh, highly rated that irvine's been in a while.
Speaker 1:Yeah, did you guys watch BYU yeah?
Speaker 3:Irvine looked really good. They did. Halear didn't look so good in night one and that's why it went five, but yeah, night two was real good. Flexin looks great. On the right side, micah Goss, the freshman middle blocker.
Speaker 1:Yeah, he's good, just kind of like step-closing.
Speaker 2:Yeah, Like where'd you come from? I?
Speaker 3:never saw this kid once at all. I have no idea where this kid died.
Speaker 1:That's the NIF magic. You just pick kids out of the forest and boom yeah.
Speaker 3:You're some 6'8 guy who flies Seriously 6'8 guy who's jetting people. Yeah, physical yeah.
Speaker 1:I mean, he had a couple of back-to-back balls where he's just like I don't know pits over the net. I'm like oh, this guy's a freshman, holy crap he was.
Speaker 3:Good job, niff. That was a good find by you. Good work jesus. Good work my guy. Uh, but yeah, that was a a good weekend. I thought I mean irvine kind of had it in four sets and byu snatched one away there at the very end and forced that fifth and honestly they were. Keone ripped two aces right to start. I was like, oh, he was taking this, yeah, yeah, uh.
Speaker 3:But yeah, they were able to it was a good game they weathered the storm they weathered the storm and it looked good, feeling good about my, my natty champ hey yeah, they look good and they are making their way up to stanford this week and we'll get into that at the end. But, uh, some of the recurring themes we're seeing across all these top teams, we get some high level international talent across the board of long beach state, uc, irvine, uh, ucla, uh, hawaii. Everyone's got something. And so I, uh, I did a little post this week. You guys see this post no probably not yeah, you guys are.
Speaker 1:You. Are you well, well followed, bobby, don't be snorting over there all?
Speaker 3:right, our producer, that was too easy.
Speaker 2:That was too easy. It was too easy.
Speaker 3:But I did a post about.
Speaker 2:I'm really glad you followed me on that one too. That was really nice.
Speaker 3:Rule changes.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3:I did a post. Can I introduce my idea of a rule change and then we can see if you guys would have any additional rules you'd like to add in the NCAA landscape. But my rule change that I'd like to see is similar to the European, russian, japanese professional leagues, putting a cap on the amount of international players that you can have on the court at any one time.
Speaker 2:So on the court, or on the team, I would say, I would say on the court any one time On the court or on the team roster.
Speaker 3:I would say on the court which I think does translate into the amount that coaches go after, but I'd say on the court, you can have two, max of two, you could do the roster whatever you want to do, but when it comes down to it, I think there needs to be a cap.
Speaker 2:We just capped the roster at 18.
Speaker 3:Exactly why I want an international cap.
Speaker 2:So why would you not cap it on the roster?
Speaker 3:You could cap it on the roster, I don't really care. It's more about. The idea of this is that the NCAA is the only developmental pipeline we have for men's volleyball in the United States and therefore it needs to be prioritized that American athletes are getting that opportunity. In that time, no, I'm not saying. Okay, can I double-sadvocate? Take the other side, that American athletes are getting that opportunity, in that time, no, I'm not saying to get rid of.
Speaker 2:Okay, can I double-sadvocate?
Speaker 3:Take the other side. Let's hear it.
Speaker 2:What about schools like Ball State? Ball State how many international kids do they have on that team? A good amount.
Speaker 3:They got a Brazilian setter. They got their outside hitter. I believe I forget where he's from, but he's international. I'm not positive beyond that.
Speaker 2:I don't know beyond that either, but I believe that they have a good amount of international kids, I would think at a school that is not a major UCLA volleyball whatever volleyball powerhouse you have to get creative in the way that you're doing things. You have to get creative in the way that you're doing things and international has been a way for people to be creative and go and find talent and say we can create something here, totally so it really hurts the teams that.
Speaker 3:So the counterpoint I would put to that one is this by putting the cap on rosters at 18, hopefully, what we will see is that you're going to get a spread of the wealth right. Long Beach state isn't going to have 32 kids on it. Ucla is not going to have 31 athletes on this roster. You're going to get a lot of those guys that are going to be looking elsewhere. So take an Austin Buchanan, for example. Was that Hawaii for four years never really played for them, but now is starting for sacred heart in connecticut, um. So you're gonna get guys who normally maybe wouldn't have looked at that school as an option now are looking at those alternative options and are going to have a better chance for playing time, uh, actually making an impact, rather than just being a you know four-year ride the-the-bench type of guy. So because of that 18-man roster limit, I think that's why it's even more important to put a cap on the international side.
Speaker 2:I agree with you. I was just playing devil's advocate for fun.
Speaker 1:One of the most important things is that straw is way too big for that size of a delivery.
Speaker 2:And it doesn't have the spoon. It doesn't have the spoon either, Bobby.
Speaker 3:What are? Doesn't have the spoon either. Bobby, what are we doing? You didn't do a special. It's a lot of reese's chad, while I uh crack into these airheads any rules that you would like to see added in to the ncaa, or just volleyball in general no, I mean I, I like the, the international sub stuff where you can basically re-enter one time so you eliminate the 6-2 and stuff like that, you get 6.
Speaker 1:I like the faster timeouts. They're trying to make the game go faster. I think your idea about the service errors is interesting. A little bit of a nuisance to track, I don't know. I feel like maybe it's because like we're, you know, talking to, like abca, with these guys who are more on the how do we get this in front of more eyeballs? Tv is the answer for that. Therefore, the game flow actually becomes the number one thing. So I love the hey, like let's stop calling doubles and like let's keep it loose and great love, no doubles, just no less judgment calls yeah, just just no, no reason for this.
Speaker 1:you know, what I think will be interesting is you know, does the game actually go farther into the beach side of like? Hey, we don't love all the throws and all this kind of stuff. Hey, no, open hand tips. Yep, right, because now, instead of just being able to like, I don't like it, and you take it with two and you kind of just throw it at somebody Well, I threw it fast, I threw it slow. No, he caught it right behind his head or whatever. Yep, hey, look, he played it. Open hand Can't do that. Yep, hey, now, if you want to recycle, you got to play off speed. You got to be better with your feet. You can't hold on it, but I think it's. It's always in the back of my head of like on the attack is what you're saying yeah, just just on the attack right, just on the ball over net yeah, I'm not.
Speaker 2:I'm not talking about the hey look because I don't understand what the difference overhead or whatever I don't know what the difference is between a set and a push. It's the same motion. What do you mean from like?
Speaker 3:an offensive standpoint. Yeah, you see it a lot, like you know what's the same motion. Oh, you mean from an offensive standpoint. Yeah, you see it a lot. What's?
Speaker 2:the difference between this motion and that motion.
Speaker 1:Let's be totally fair. If you have a lot of beach, when I go out and set in these practices it's deeper. You watch any of these SoCal guys when they're setting high balls. They're catching and throwing. They're on the ball way longer than anybody who's holding it and throwing it and throwing it, other than the attack. If you're just like one 1,000 and a half, you know like it's the same duration. But now it's on the second instead of the third touch, Like hey, how about we just say if you're playing it over the net?
Speaker 1:you can't go open hand at all.
Speaker 3:All right, let's go back. We'll go back to the next rule. We'll go back to the next ruling of my other. My other thing that I brought up and did a post about was the idea of just how much miss serves there are. Men's volleyball, right, and so the idea I put out there was same idea as basketball you foul out if you do five miss serves, okay. So just generally speaking, trying to put an incentive on people to not go back and just rip and miss a ton of balls, which is not viewable for television. But the reason why everyone goes back and just rip and miss a ton of balls, which is not viewable for television, but the reason why everyone goes back and rips a bunch of serves, is because if you don't get them off the net they're going to score at such a high percentage that it's almost the same thing. So the risk reward is there for you just to go back and rip, because if you can get one of your two serves as a point, that's huge.
Speaker 3:So if you can limit some of those offensive things, that again is really hard to determine what's a throw, what's a lift, what's a on these jams and these wipes and these out of system balls. If you get rid of that, then all of a sudden that equation becomes a little bit easier. Where you're like all right, if I can get them off in it just a little bit, maybe it doesn't need to be fully out of system, I can score because we can set up our block, we can play defense around this. There's not as many options for them to score where I need to be worried about that jam throw, like if he roll shots it. We can pick that up, we've got time. Um, so as you start to maneuver that back a little bit and you kind of peel back the actual root cause of the issue, it's because men's volleyball is so efficient offensively. The other one, I want a two-point one.
Speaker 2:I want a two-point play.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 2:I want a two-point play.
Speaker 3:But how do you work that in? Like, what would you do?
Speaker 2:I haven't thought it through completely yet, but like I, think this is not the super point.
Speaker 1:This is like an actual action as two points rather than be like referee, no action two-point play Money ball.
Speaker 3:Bring out the.
Speaker 2:I want an action two-point play that at any point in time you can dramatically change the momentum of the game.
Speaker 3:The other like root cause rule that I've heard that I do someone like and we've heard about this multiple times, they almost did this internationally was get rid of open hand receive, similar to beach. Yeah Right, so you bring back. All right, you can't if you can't use your hands. Now all of a sudden, float serves are much more enticing because it's harder to pass on the platform. So less missed serves because you can now score more off of your float serve if you get rid of that open hand serve receive. So that was one other thing that was floated and almost was tested internationally at the FIVB level for U19s, and then they backed out.
Speaker 1:I'll be honest, I don't hate it Because you see, some of these teams SC has done this for years on the men's side. Pep has done this for years on the men's side.
Speaker 2:Pep said it a long time ago, hey just put your toes on the 10 and chuck it.
Speaker 1:And make them hit a really good ball. That's going to land at 29 30 feet, otherwise it's out. I think that's how you solve that kind of stuff. But now you see the hybrid right. So, hey, look, you know, micah Christensen, I'm going to toss it with spin. I hit it with float, I hit it with spin, you don't know. Hey, you guys stay deep. I float it on you and I make you play it in your platform. Oh, you try and step up. I blast this thing. Yeah, you know, one door closes and it opens to others, and two point play.
Speaker 3:Yeah, but then you have the NBA is getting all the flack right now because everyone's just chucking up threes, because of the arms race of how efficient can I be on a three pointer, and so you lose some of the physicality.
Speaker 2:I want people to shoot from the half court. It's super fun to watch.
Speaker 3:Well, nba viewership numbers would disagree with you. People don't like it as much, they NBA viewership numbers would disagree with you.
Speaker 1:People don't like it as much. They get three points and four points.
Speaker 2:They've switched over to the WNBA. You're right.
Speaker 3:Well, you keep workshopping on what you would be the double point fix volleyball.
Speaker 2:I like Bobby throwing candy at us. I think that's a fun little new thing A little addition.
Speaker 3:My final question, in the same vein as rules, but I think the whole point is trying to make volleyball more television friendly and so like less stoppages. Less, to be frank, stupid stoppages where it's like what, what am I watching?
Speaker 2:like the pepperdine long beach game yesterday.
Speaker 3:Oh my god, that poor down official for pepperdine was, that's olmstead man. I know olmstead was hey, nothing but respect that guy's a legendsted man. I know Olmsted was, hey, nothing but respect that guy's a legend. But man, oh man, he was going through it yesterday. He was in a tough spot.
Speaker 2:He started the game talking to yeah, Nikolaev got the first point of the game.
Speaker 3:Nikolaev got a roof and like kind of looked he didn't chirp too bad, but it was like you know, roof staring that way kind of says something and turns.
Speaker 2:Who cares?
Speaker 3:And then he is on Nikolov's ass immediately. Tweet, tweet, tweet, tweet, tweet, tweet, Turn the other way, turn the other way, relax, so that kind of set the stage and then he got a challenge that he overruled the line judge on, and then Winder for Pepperdine was like what are you talking about?
Speaker 2:he's like wait. And he went back and reviewed it again and then he overturned himself and said no, actually pepperdine point, and so then knife is like what the hell is that?
Speaker 3:oh man, yeah, so everything. He kind of just lost control of that match, uh, in that moment. But yeah, when it comes down to it, we're just looking how do you make this as tv friendly as possible so for the layman's viewer, like getting rid of doubles, getting rid of judgment calls, as best you can. Where it's like gameplay doesn't stop, you get to just keep going and you incentivize the action. That's that's what we're looking for here, with any rule change, with any adjustments.
Speaker 2:I I have different views than everybody about this stuff. I'm making it watchable Like create the WWE of volleyball and let them ride Like let people throw punches and let people go after it. Let people be fun, let people like, make it fun again. Yeah.
Speaker 3:Well, when it comes out like the more eyeballs, the more money, the more sponsorship that comes in which leads us nicely into the next piece. But there's some money getting involved with women's volleyball right now. We've seen the four professional leagues, we've seen the over $200-plus million of investment there. But man, oh man, the transfer portal just closed. And some of the numbers for the NIL collective deals.
Speaker 2:College coaches can sleep easy tonight knowing that the transfer portal is closed.
Speaker 3:It's closed for now.
Speaker 2:Yeah, for now, but man oh, man as they fundraise for the next month or two.
Speaker 3:There's some six-figure deals that were going down for women's volleyball this year.
Speaker 2:Yeah, there were.
Speaker 3:Chad, you got any thoughts on this new restructuring or new world that we're living in, with the NIL recruiting and just the transfer portal in general?
Speaker 1:I mean it's chaos. It's you know of the college coaches we talked to at ABCA, you're just in a whole. It's a new sport, it's a new world, Like it's. Hey, last year I needed 50,000 to go get this kid, or 70,000 to go get this kid. Now we need 170,000. Now I need 275 000. I don't know what tory stafford's getting to to make that move, but I'm like it's, it's a lot.
Speaker 1:300 I think, right, like I mean, that's not crazy in in these times, right? And so you know, even even these rich schools, that you would historically think would have this money. Yeah, man, hey, I had, I had 30 grand to do whatever. Or I had 50 grand to do whatever. I don't have 250 grand to like go get one kid. And so you're seeing some of these schools that have really deep pockets, that are willing to invest in women's volleyball and and try and put all their chips on the table as this thing freaking skyrockets. I think investing now is going to pay off for a lot of these schools, even if that money dries up for them at that institution just because it's going to put their program on the map. Sam Erger, I think, has done probably the best job of this with SMU, but man, it's a new game.
Speaker 1:Yes, it is Because you are legitimately buying for lack of a better phrase professional athletes at this point.
Speaker 3:Yeah, no, it's definitely professionalized. So your thought is all right. Maybe these numbers are a little inflated right now and maybe these come back down to earth in two, three, four years. Whatever it may be, maybe it doesn't, who knows right, this is all still very much up in the air, as things can change.
Speaker 1:There's the rev share part of it right. And how these schools allocate that money. This year it's kind of like, hey, we have all this money, spend it, and that's not how it's always going to be.
Speaker 3:But the schools that get after it right now are going to set themselves up for even when that. Hey, maybe these valuations come back down to earth in terms of what a top Division I women's volleyball player is worth. But the people who establish themselves now are going to reap the rewards for years to come, so you can have a total shuffling or reshifting of where the power centers of volleyball have been into different conferences. Smu is a great example, right, Not your traditional powerhouse, but in terms of NIL money they seem to have struck oil in some capacity here.
Speaker 1:Welcome to the dallas cowboys exactly right.
Speaker 1:I mean I think, uh, I feel like dac is still the highest paid quarterback, I think in the league right now. We're on the richest contract and it's like it's not the best team. But if you want to go make a lot of money, you know, hey, like I'm going to dallas, right, and yeah, I I do. I do hope these things kind of come back down to earth or or, or the professional money matches this kind of stuff, right, because I mean, at the end of the day, I get, I get what you're saying right. I mean, like, at the end of the day, more money in the sport is better for everybody, whether you are coaching or you're in the broadcast or you run an ai company or whatever. It is like more and more money is great, because, hey, this product that was 199 is now 299, great, well, like that's a problem that we'll happily accept, um, but as long as we're willing to accept the other side of it, which is it's the professionalism of collegiate athletics in a way.
Speaker 1:That is you know, football and basketball are, of course, years ahead. On this, you know there's a conversation of like is this healthy for college kids? And in this case I'm 90, 10. Yeah, like, go go make some money. Man, you're bringing money to this institution, go get paid. But at what point does this trickle down? The same way that we've seen this with AAU basketball, and I'm sure this happens on the football side of well, now are people jockeying to hey, if I don't play for this club, I'm never going to make this big salary at the next level or whatever. Does the professionalism trickle down even farther and is there a level of? At what point is that too much? I guess that may be my question. I don't have an answer to. Thanks, jackson.
Speaker 3:We got some big theoretical questions over here.
Speaker 1:More money is good.
Speaker 2:I'm all for it. Shocker, I have a lot of thoughts on this. Would you like to know them?
Speaker 1:Spill it.
Speaker 2:Number one I think the players should unionize. Why All go into the transfer portal together? Ooh, drive up the market, ooh.
Speaker 3:Ooh Well, wouldn't economics say that as supply goes up, demand goes down and therefore prices go down. To match that?
Speaker 1:okay, we don't have all of the economics work through yet. Just the right players from a macro idea was a good idea from a macro perspective, if all talent is available.
Speaker 2:Next, um, I think that that is a hilarious idea of everybody jumping in the portal at the same time and then being like market of like yeah, no, but actually it's a.
Speaker 1:It's a really good point, because it's these schools that have money but don't have the talent, correct, right? So if let's say that you're texas and you're like, hey look, we have some money we've. We've spent a little bit of money on players before, holy crap, smu's in our backyard and they're spending big, big oil money, well dang, then in that case, yeah, obviously it does drive up the price, and whatever they paid for tory stafford like yeah, great, maybe this helps these schools that want to be involved to get involved and, at the same time, benefits the players of like, hey, now the market is just higher in general because more people come into the table with their checkbooks. Maybe that's a good problem. I don't know.
Speaker 2:I think that, for I also think that, for what the kids have endured in collegiate sports for it to get to this point where the this is a player's world. This is for the players. This is a player's world. This is for the players. This is a player's world. This is not a coach's world. These kids are the ones that are getting taken care of now, and for a very long time, specifically in women's volleyball, there's a lot of kids that weren't getting taken care of, and so I think it's kind of funny to watch all of the adults freak out about the money that's involved in this and how the landscape has changed, and the kids are like we're just doing what is like, we're just trying to get paid and it's just a game now. And so there's a part of me that's like what is best for kids? Yes, and there's also a part of me that's like is best for kids?
Speaker 3:yes, and there's also a part of me that's like haha, this is funny oh, don't get me wrong, I'm I'm super happy not being a college coach right now, just watching it all unfold be like, not my problem, but this is fun.
Speaker 2:So I have a lot of thoughts on it. But, like I mean my whole entire tiktok for you pages. This week was full of the trauma, the trauma yeah, a lot of volleyball trauma, a lot of volleyball trauma shared and with collegiate athletes and stuff.
Speaker 2:That is awful. And so I kind of look at this and I'm like, yeah, they have the right to transfer, they have the right to go and find something else. And it shouldn't be what the rules used to be of just like you have to lose a year of eligibility and you get slapped on the wrist and this bad connotation around you that like you're bad because you transferred. Like now it's like everybody transfers, everybody goes, and it's it goes the same way for schools, too.
Speaker 3:Right Like. Schools used to have the problem where if you know you had multiple kids transferred, then everyone's like for schools too, right like. Schools used to have the problem where if you know you had multiple kids transferred, then everyone's like oh, what's wrong with that program? Now it's like everyone's all those kids are getting paid, so that's what? That school doesn't have enough money or they're putting their money elsewhere, so that that whole dynamic has changed I definitely have split feelings on the whole thing, but I like more money being pumped into the sport.
Speaker 2:I like, uh, kids getting what they deserve. I usually side with the players on the way that. I'm sure that the players are all like, yeah, pay me.
Speaker 3:I wouldn't blame them If I was in the same boat. I would be thinking what's my worth? Where do I stand? He's getting paid what I'm better than him want to be paid. Yeah, this much right, like I think I don't blame. I don't blame any athlete thinking that same way and that's where it's. Just call what it is. This is professional sports. You can say it's name, image and likeness. It's not, it's it's what they can do on field, on court. That's how they're getting paid right now. It's all about what they can, what they can do in terms of wins and losses are you?
Speaker 1:maybe this is not the, not the topic, but, like you know, are you worried about that seventh, eighth, ninth, ninth kid right of? Hey man, I wanted to come to this university because I love the coach, I love the team. It feels like a family. I was sold on my recruiting trip. It's great, great institution. Oh, I'm on a one-year contract. I'm making I'm the ninth guy, so I'm making you know 10k or something whatever. Oh, I'm just gone the next year because my contract wasn't renewed.
Speaker 1:Basically right, that was happening before anyways yeah, but like not to this, not to this extent. Right, because you could. You could carry more than 18 kids. You could do the question that we're worried about the 18 cap is a problem.
Speaker 2:I hate that. I think that that is hurting sports, specifically men's volleyball, that we need more opportunity. I don't think that. I think that if coaches can handle bigger rosters, great, but that's their choice, not not, uh, the ncaa that should be mandating how many kids you can have on the roster. I think that that the 18 cap I am so against yeah, I'm, I'm.
Speaker 3:We're bouncing around between a couple subjects, but I mean, I wouldn't say I'm worried about the ninth guy, right, like, I'm only saying I'm worried about it, it's. It's just the marketplace, right, it's. Where do they stand and s everything is one year deal, so sure, if that ninth, ninth player can get a starting spot and get 5x what they were making at the other place and that's what their priority is, by all means they can.
Speaker 3:That's just the the world that we're in yeah when it comes to men's volleyball on the 18 man limit, I'm I definitely lean towards thinking it's going to be a negative, but I am interested to see how it plays out right. Does this spread the talent out wider? Do we we get a better parity amongst teams, or does the rich just stay rich? And those other kids that wanted to go to a UCLA, santa Barbara, whatnot? Just play club volleyball? Now, a lot of schools you take a Concordia, irvine. You take some of these private schools. They use men's volleyball as a revenue-generating sport. They pay four and a half scholarships and then they have 27 kids that are paying full boat tuition. Volleyball's making the school money. Pepperdine's not cheap. You look at Pepperdine's roster. Pepperdine next year is going to have to cut so many kids. They had 24 kids on the bench.
Speaker 1:There's going to be one fewer physics class because they didn't get the revenue from men's volleyball man. They're going to have to start chopping some other stuff.
Speaker 2:I really do think that there's a lot with the NCAA landscape that is going to make changes and have movement. With Trump in presidency here and with the way that they handle the NCAA, I think that it's there's, it's going to be something that everybody has their eyes on, because there I do think that there's going to be some either government step in or some like there's there's going to be some shifting here.
Speaker 3:that happens, I mean that's how the NCAA started. Was the government stepped in, Right? So I'm sure?
Speaker 3:I'm sure, at some point we're going to have something that's going to be, yeah, we're going to go through supreme court case or whatever it may be, that's going to set kind of the standard of of how we do things. Or you're going to have a complete, just restructuring of hey, this is the for-profit ncaa and this is the back to the original roots, like non-profit, amateur and still, and you get to opt into one or the other. But I don't know. That's a again a time that I'm happy that I am not a college coach having to deal with all these shifting sands honestly though, like just figure it out, right, like just fix it like all of these things, it's like what?
Speaker 2:yes, it's, it's difficult and it's this like changing landscape, but all of this stuff is. And like there, there are rules that change and there are things that happen. Like you, just you have to figure it out and like yes, if there's yes, all the coaches are banding together. Being like this is crazy, like it's cause all the players banded together years ago. Being like this is crazy, like we need to be able to make money off of this. Like why is that not happening? That court case goes third done. Now it's a complete explosion of like what are we doing here? So I don't know. I I think it's kind of funny.
Speaker 3:The pendulum continues to swing back and forth.
Speaker 2:That's for sure.
Speaker 3:All right. Well, swing back and forth, that's for sure all right. Well, next up on the docket, we get some big matchups this week.
Speaker 2:Like I said earlier, this is, didn't we talk?
Speaker 3:about that? Oh no, no, this is we were saving it.
Speaker 2:This is we made everybody listen to us talk about women's sports that's great suckers got them.
Speaker 3:We got big matchups. Let me start with this is the top matchup, so we're going to lead with this In my eyes. We got number four, hawaii, traveling to Provo, utah, to take on number five, byu.
Speaker 2:Is that Friday and Saturday?
Speaker 3:I'm not positive of the dates, but it's happening this week and I can't wait to watch because but we're going to UCI Stanford, so how are we going to uci stanford?
Speaker 2:so how are we gonna watch.
Speaker 3:I'll have it on my phone. We've got the return here's. Here's my top storyline, obviously kioni v charlie. That's my, that's the top storyline in my eyes do you? Think like do you think? Do you only make the choice? Because he thought like all right, I've done this enough, I don't want to be the serving sub anymore, it's time. It's time to move along. Or you think that was a conversation? Speculating about whatever I like speculating on this.
Speaker 2:I don't mind speculating I don't like talking about people behind their backs we're not kioni.
Speaker 3:You can listen to this charlie you can listen to this. I'm talking to your face. I'm literally looking at you through the camera you can phone in right now.
Speaker 1:Now, shoot me a.
Speaker 3:DM. I'd love to know the answer to this.
Speaker 1:You're literally probably gaming with Mason right now, like literally in this moment.
Speaker 3:I gotta think Keone's psyched for this game.
Speaker 1:I'm psyched for this game.
Speaker 3:I gotta think if he thought he was gonna be the starter at Hawaii, he would have stayed. That's my thought, but who knows? We'll find out soon enough from a DM from Keone.
Speaker 2:Maybe we'll have him on the pod.
Speaker 3:Guest pod yeah. Open invitation for you, Keone.
Speaker 2:You can stop here.
Speaker 3:Come on in, we'll zoom you in.
Speaker 1:My question is are we in the stand?
Speaker 3:No, this is in Provo. Oh we, we are in Provo. We're in Provo. Yeah, this is in Provo. Byu has run the gauntlet. They just played two at UCI. They play Hawaii this week.
Speaker 1:I like BYU at home, I know.
Speaker 3:I like BYU at home too, Watching them play against Irvine. They had their moments.
Speaker 1:I think they've got some weaknesses for sure. Sea level to Provo.
Speaker 3:Utah.
Speaker 1:That's a lot of elevation. That is.
Speaker 3:That's a big change.
Speaker 1:All right, it's a big change.
Speaker 3:Hawaii's young. I think it's going to be absolutely packed, obviously. So that's why, yes, we will be at the UCI Stanford game.
Speaker 2:I'm going to Provo.
Speaker 1:We'll be in Utah. We'll be in Utah in spirit, yeah.
Speaker 2:Some we'll see so uh, I'm going.
Speaker 3:I gotta think hawaii fans just kidding I'm going to stay for dci. Love kioni though. I think so.
Speaker 3:I think they still, I think they still gotta love that guy, I mean that guy's nothing but good things for uh yeah, he was like the he was their serving spec, for he was like the everybody was like yay, yeah, I mean well, how many hawaiians does hawaii typically have on their roster? Usually it's like three or four but, maybe one of them starts. It's kind of the same boat now. I think they're liberos, the only one who's like a true starter.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's not usually like a ton of kids.
Speaker 3:I know Kainoa's gotten a little bit of time. On the right side they got Justin Todd in the middle. He's from Texas but transferred to Hawaii his senior year of high school. I'm familiar, so we don't count that as a Hawaii. Like local. God, please don't cancel me. Hawaii fans, do you count that, like you tell?
Speaker 1:me that seven people watch this. It's yeah, it's not a big deal. So yeah, I'm stoked for that one all right.
Speaker 3:What's next? What do we got next up? Uci stanford number two.
Speaker 2:Uci returns cameron costi is making the trip to fight his father to take down his dad.
Speaker 3:Yes, burnham pavilion on friday, maples pavilion on saturday yeah finally we got some big matchups. I mean, obviously UCI is legit. We've seen a little bit of up and down.
Speaker 1:It's also.
Speaker 2:Hallie's birthday on Friday. And we've convinced her to go to the Stanford game for her birthday.
Speaker 3:Obviously when else does she even want to?
Speaker 1:go.
Speaker 3:Well, yeah, we're going to the patio. She did request to go to the patio.
Speaker 1:Great, I'm sure.
Speaker 3:Peter's going to be there, peter's going to be there.
Speaker 1:It's not an issue she wants to tell Peter to come.
Speaker 2:That's a good idea.
Speaker 3:I'm going to tell Peter to come right now. Do you have any prediction for this Stanford versus UCI game? I don't.
Speaker 1:I mean I think they're probably going to be in four. I think it's just I like honestly.
Speaker 2:I love the.
Speaker 1:Stanford boys.
Speaker 2:I think Irvine's going to pull this one, but I think it's a great barometer for a young Stanford team.
Speaker 1:Yeah Of just like hey, where are we?
Speaker 2:What are the big rocks? I can see our guys being like, oh, you want to throw the ball?
Speaker 1:Let's throw the ball. Oh, they've been doing this as long as Heno has. They can play that game. They can play that game. Well, we'll see. I just man. The more I watch Irvine, I like, wow, these guys are, these guys are physical. Because, yeah, heno can throw the ball, but heno can just also just go over the top of you.
Speaker 3:Yeah, flexing can go over the top of you goss can act like you're not even there. I mean, it's just yeah, he gave me there was some swings he had. I was like that was very merrick mckenry vibes right there like oh, he's way up there. That's a one and a half yeah, and you can't touch that?
Speaker 1:Where do I put people? Do I have to block at five feet off the net to kind of get the angles right? Literally?
Speaker 3:No, yeah, they definitely have some physicality. I think they're only yeah, obviously, joe Carlos' block is a weakness for them. Sure, how do you attack that?
Speaker 2:Do not talk badly about Joe Carlos. He sent me a very nice message on instagram.
Speaker 3:I'm not talking about I think joe carlos would say the same thing about himself. Yeah, my block is not my strongest suit, but plays great defense. Keeps the ball in play, runs a good offense I'm not talking about that's very clear at all.
Speaker 2:We don't slander can carlos they did have.
Speaker 3:The uci did have to make a couple switches at oh2. That was the one that there was a little bit of weakness there, not weakness per se it was a Canadian kid right. Started with a Canadian kid, and then they swapped to the freshman from Warren Sixpack.
Speaker 2:Oh, yeah, is it from Warren?
Speaker 3:Sixpack. Yeah, I'm pretty sure it's from Warren Sixpack.
Speaker 2:Because that's the only club in New Jersey.
Speaker 3:I just read his bio. It was Warren Sixpack, I believe. Really. Yeah, I'm pretty sure.
Speaker 2:I'm pretty sure we had a conversation and you were like he's from New Jersey and I was like from Warren Sixpack and you were like I don't know, he's from New Jersey, so Warren Sixpack.
Speaker 3:Well, maybe, but either way, yeah, he brought on a freshman and he actually closed out the five-set match against BYU. So, yeah, who do they bring in? Oh2.
Speaker 2:Niff likes to keep everybody involved.
Speaker 3:He does, he'll keep you on your toes. That's one thing about Niff that I do love.
Speaker 2:They could have somebody randomly in there and all of a sudden Niff's throwing somebody in you think you're going to see Heno and Flexin in the national championship, just kidding.
Speaker 1:Never mind Flexin in the middle. Yeah, exactly.
Speaker 3:Serving sub Heno, exactly serving subhenno. Yeah, yes, well, yeah, I mean they got that another, their other massive dude uh darcy, the australian kid on the bench right now too, like I'm sure he could well. He was playing the right last year, right yeah, he was on the right. Last year they, uh, they were switch blocking him into the middle. Uh, against ucla niff loves a transitional middle give me a middle that can set that can set and a setter that can play middle.
Speaker 1:Max, gregorio, I'm waiting to see Kosti in the middle. When is Cameron?
Speaker 2:going to make his debut. That guy can Yahtzee it too. It's like an initiation at Irvine.
Speaker 1:You have to also be able to play middle. I think if you don't hit a one and a half on your recruiting visit they're probably not seriously considering. I did that, I did crack a joke to niff last year.
Speaker 3:Um, when cameron committed to irvine, I was like all right, uci versus stanford national championship 2025? And this response was if that happens, I'm starting. Cameron costi and john costi is going to need to make some serious life decisions about his priorities. We'll see where his true loyalty lies uh, I can't wait.
Speaker 3:Yeah, no, that's gonna be a good one, but we do have one other, one other good matchup I'm looking forward to. Is it season? It's not season. It is, uh, loyola traveling to pepperdine. So this is loyal, is kind of. First west coast, first major test. Uh, pep obviously went, just went to five with Long Beach. That was their first real test, so that's going to be a nice one. We got, I think, yeah, loyola's at seven, pep's at ten. So we'll see, we'll see how kind of that shakes up. Obviously, your guys' MIVA favorite. We've seen Ohio State, we've seen Ball State.
Speaker 2:You watched the Pepperdine-Long Beach game. I watched snippets and then I watch the fifth, not to slander pepperdine, but the entire time I was watching the game I was like who is pepperdine? Like who are these? Who are these people? Great question, and I still can't answer it. I'm like what's who?
Speaker 3:yeah, new faces for them, for sure yeah they brought in. Uh, they had a cuban outside who came in oh yeah, that was halfway through, halfway through. They got their freshman opposite from Sports Performance who's like 6'11".
Speaker 2:Who they called the number one recruit in the country. He's top five. Sean Kelly is probably the number one recruit in the country.
Speaker 3:He's a big boy, he was holding his own, he looked good. Yeah, just some new faces for Pep. They had the UC San Diego setters now setting for them. So just some different, different looks. But, yeah, I I'm interested to see how that that matchup shakes out and I think that'll kind of be be telling of how strong is the Miva, how strong is the West coast? Yeah, um, specifically, kind of who?
Speaker 2:does Loyola come out and play? They play Pep and they've got to play somebody else.
Speaker 3:I don't know. I don't know who the other matchup is for them. I would guess another, yeah, another LA team. It's got to be somebody. What if it's CSUN? They?
Speaker 2:play UCLA.
Speaker 3:If it's CSUN, we're going. I would guess they play UCLA.
Speaker 1:right, we're headed.
Speaker 3:I don't know I'm going to put money play ucla this weekend that would make sense for, uh, that's, this is probably hawks's schedule, right, like hawks made this schedule so with his ucla ties, that wouldn't be a surprise. In which case, my my going for the ramblers. Like you always root you, you always bet on the coach's former team. When the former team plays, do, do you? Yes, yes.
Speaker 2:Really 100%. Wait, is that a well-known thing?
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, that's a, that's a, that's a just a betting before they're playing Pepperdine and UC San Diego. So no, no, you still again, shucks.
Speaker 2:Good scheduling Hawks is like remove that game. Hawks, hawks knew he was remove that game now.
Speaker 3:Hawks knew he was a chess player over there. Trap game for sure. That's it. Any life updates you guys would like to share with the audience.
Speaker 2:Yes, Last night I made a horrible decision. I got on Volley Talk for like five minutes. Not even Not a good idea. Why Bad idea?
Speaker 1:were you on the women's side? You're on the men's side. What were you?
Speaker 2:I was on my side. I was on my page, okay dedicated to me there's not cool there's no need for that oh yeah, I'm like wait, why did I just do that?
Speaker 3:yeah, that was a bad call. I told you the second. You pulled up all the talk.
Speaker 2:I was like yeah, don't go there. What was it? Oh, uh, we were coming up with some brand stuff and I think that I, we Googled my name, and then it was like a Ariel who land Reddit, and then I was like I'm on Reddit.
Speaker 3:No way. And then it was like no, it's volley talk.
Speaker 2:And then, and then I was like, oh, and then I just like looked at it, and then I, and then it was a car crash and you couldn't look away.
Speaker 1:Then it was a car crash and I couldn't look away and I was like, oh my gosh, I know why I never get on this stupid site. So if you post on volley talk, she will see it.
Speaker 2:Keep going no, no, no, give us more.
Speaker 1:I'm, I'm off, like a month later yeah, it'll be delayed, but it'll be worth it post anyway please, everybody who hates me, just go to Volley Talk so that I don't see it anymore.
Speaker 2:Yeah, gross people, sorry.
Speaker 3:Disgusting. Yeah, it wasn't great comments. Someone said something about your dad in there. I was like oh man.
Speaker 2:Get out of here. Yeah, people need to get a life, get a life. That's my comment to anybody who that's your, that's your current event like no, I mean, I've got way more current events than that.
Speaker 3:That just happened last night my current event goes out to jackson jackson jackson has pneumonia. Jackson got pneumonia. Guys, this dog look at them over here sleeping the dude's got pneumonia.
Speaker 2:I thought we were gonna lose him this week okay, well, he didn't eat breakfast one morning and we were like that's it, he's gone. Like I drove him to, I drove to the doctors which he loved. He literally loves his vet.
Speaker 3:Yeah he pees himself with excitement every time we go to the vet. That's how much he loves it. Um, yeah, I was. I was driving down when we had on like some nice country music. I was like, oh man, he's got cancer, I'm gonna lose my dog.
Speaker 2:He doesn't, he's got pneumonia he's chilling thousand dollars later we picked him up at four jackson's got two weeks worth of uh antibiotics and now he farts more.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, you know why he farts?
Speaker 3:because he eats chicken and rice right now that's.
Speaker 1:That's his food.
Speaker 3:No, and maybe it's the antibiotics. But yeah, chicken and rice. So he's he, and he actually does love chicken. Let's just like straight up, it's just boiled chicken and the dude he's going crazy for it, so jackson's alive he's eating.
Speaker 2:I'm not fine, everything's good chad.
Speaker 3:How about you?
Speaker 1:I went to the dentist today and then I got a haircut. Do you have pneumonia?
Speaker 3:no, I'm fine on the pneumonia front.
Speaker 1:I got this airhead that I am looking forward to. That's about it, all right.
Speaker 2:Anything else, thank you for watching our episode. If you got all the way here, thanks to the six people that got all the way here, Like subscribe.
Speaker 3:Thanks Mom.
Speaker 2:Comment only nice things, please, and that's all. And if you want to get, Hallie anything for her fifth birthday bring it to the Stanford game on Friday. Yeah, that's cute, or Lacey for her 20th birthday, oh and.
Speaker 3:Lacey's birthday is on Saturday too. Bobby's fifth birthday is also on Saturday.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:Happy birthday y'all.
Speaker 2:Happy birthday everybody.