|
 |  |
|
AD PARTNERS
|  |
Reactions Legendary Louisiana Tech coach set to retirePosted: Wednesday March 22, 2000 04:57 PM
CNNSI.com asked users to submit their thoughts on the departure of Louisiana Tech coach Leon Barmore. A collection of some of the most interesting responses follows:
Coach Barmore's record speaks for itself. He has consistently recruited good players to a small school and created GREAT basketball teams. I believe that the excitement and competition created by Coach Barmore started the interest in women's basketball. The Lady Techsters had a great following in the '80s when women's basketball was almost ignored by the rest of the sports world. This has led to the WNBA and national recognition at the college level. I believe the best team was the 1984 team with Kim Mulkey. They had an excitement and talent that has not yet been equaled in my opinion. As a Louisiana Tech alumnus, I would like to thank Coach Barmore for his dedication and wish him luck in future endeavors.
I lived in Ruston, La. for nine years. In my time there I saw the most exciting basketball I've ever seen in my life. And Leon Barmore is why. His work ethic, which he instilled in every player he coached, was impeccable and resulted in beautifully executed basketball. Barmore is a great coach and a great person. He fears nobody, and that shows in the way his teams play. He grew up poor in Ruston, but his hard work earned him a spot on the Ruston High basketball team. He also cares deeply about the girls he coaches. I've seen him grab the microphone from announcer Jimmy Washington after a Techster win and berate the home crowd for its apathy. His desire to win is incomparable. Barmore will be sorely missed. He's an institution in Ruston. I'm just thankful for having had the opportunity to root on his team in those wonderfully exciting games against Tennessee and Western Kentucky, et al. He has meant more to the women's game than anyone can imagine.
Being a graduate of La. Tech, Coach Barmore has been a true source of pride for the university. His winning percentage has been largely forgotten about, the spotlight being placed on other coaches. His impact has been huge on the sport based on the fact that La. Tech has been a force in women's basketball from the FIRST year of existence up to today. He has had so many great teams, ones that won the national titles and ones that fell close. He will be greatly missed.
Leon brought the man-to-man (woman-to-woman) defense to Louisiana Tech, and showed the nation how defense should be played. Hustle and extra effort was the norm for his teams. His teams often led the nation in many defensive categories. Team play was also foremost in his teaching strategy. Even when working as assistant coach under head coach Sandra Hogg, Leon was recognized as an invaluable asset to the team's success. Coach Hogg was a great coach also (also retiring this year from Baylor), but was known more for being a people person, who could relate to her players very well. I salute you Leon, for all those great years of Louisiana Tech Lady Techster basketball, and what you brought to the national sport. You helped Louisiana Tech pride flourish in Texas!
Leon and the Techster program have never gotten the respect they deserve. Everyone is always talking about Pat Summitt and the Tennessee program, but La. Tech has been the class program for more than 20 years. They have never received the media attention of other programs, yet they continue to win year after year. Each year the tournament committee and the national rankings try their hardest to overlook this program. Why? What other programs have gone where this one has gone? Leon will be truly missed. Hopefully Tech has the insight to name Kim Mulky as his replacement. She has earned it. No one else can continue the tradition the way Leon intended it.
Leon Barmore helped set the standard of excellence and competition for the women's game. Without his presence, the women's game would still be an afterthought relegated to the back page box scores of the sport's page. Not bad for a White, Anglo-Saxon male!
After taking over the Lady Techsters from Sonja Hoag, Leon continued the Techsters winning ways. He also was a very early leader in NCAA women's basketball. By keeping his cool and continuing building the Techsters into a national powerhouse basketball team that you could count on to be in the polls nearly on top. If the Techsters had been from a school better known than Louisiana Tech, they would nearly always be on top of the polls (can you find Ruston on a map?). Leon's biggest advantage as well as his biggest disadvantage was being in Ruston. It made it harder for him to recruit players because Ruston doesn't have the pull of a New Orleans, or even a Knoxville. Once the player does attend Louisiana Tech, they find that the distractions help them both with their class schedule as well as their athletics. It also means that the players that Leon has actually want to be with the Techsters in Ruston and are more dedicated to him and his program. Leon Barmore will be greatly missed in NCAA women's basketball. One of the reasons that his winning record is so great is that winning wasn't the most important thing to Leon. He was also interested in the members of his team. His winning record is not only the games that he won, it is also the number of his team members who got their degrees, and later went on to succeed in life as well. Leon may have been upset when his team didn't play up to their potential, but he really pushed his players to be their best off the field as well. Leon, we will miss you and wish you as much success in retirement as you had in your career.
Without a doubt, Barmore's finest hour and best team was the 1988 National Championship team that featured Teresa Weatherspoon and Venus Lacy, among other standouts. Having worked hand-in-hand with the program while attending Louisiana Tech in the early 1990s, you can't measure Barmore's impact by wins, although his 517 wins and 76 losses sure make a tremendous case. Leon Barmore is simply a magician. In an age of huge athletic budgets and power conferences, he kept Louisiana Tech at the top of the women's game despite working with a budget the fraction of those schools he battled year-in and year-out for the national championship. What Leon Barmore did for Louisiana Tech and all of the women who played under him is immeasurable. And, ask any coach or any player who has ever walked on the court inside the Thomas Assembly Center to battle the Lady Techsters, and to a person, they will agree that it's toughest place to play in the women's game. Those of us who have been lucky enough to see Barmore at work realize his impact on the game -- keeping the program on top is a victory for all underdogs. The women's game will sorely miss his fire and passion, not to mention his annual presence at NCAA Final Fours.
I can't believe Leon Barmore is retiring. He is one of the greatest coaches of all time! I go to a different school in the Sun Belt Conference, and I have had the joy of watching him, in person, coach over the last 4 years. I still think he has several years left in him. That is why I think this is such a shock! Women's basketball will definitely miss him.
The women's game will suffer a big loss with Coach Barmore's resignation, unless of course he moves on to the WNBA. As a former Louisiana Tech student and part of his Dream Team practice squad I want to wish him the best of luck.
What can you say about Leon Barmore? His success has been phenomenal, but the way in which he won is what stands out the most. Showboats in other sports are often told to "act like you've been there before" when they win or make big plays. I guess Coach Barmore has just "been there" often enough to know how to win with class. It's obvious that he teaches more than just basketball (just look at what his assistant coaches have done). I hope the Lady Techsters can send him off in the way he deserves. Thanks for your loyalty Coach, we'll miss you.
|
