Free agency vs. Draft
It's an exciting time in the NFL. As a sports fan, I thoroughly enjoy this time of the year as teams jockey for position on players or trades that will help advance their cause during the upcoming season. It's fun reading the reports and seeing how the experts feel about the maneuvers and player picks ups/trades, seeing who they think won or lost, and how signings will affect the futures of both teams.
I struggled with a way to relate this to rowing, and even now as I post, I'm not sure that I can. Rowing doesn't have a free agency period. We do recruit and have signing days, but I don't know that I can make any parallels with the signing of free agents or trades. Most of the thoughts that I came up with are random, and not entirely put together. In general, the topic - free agency, signings, trades - interested me more than being able to connect it to rowing.
What I have considered is the philosophical differences, deciding between what can help now, and what will help in the future. Are you building for now, let's say, the next 2 years, or are you looking for long term stability and sustained success. I suppose it does also help to know what you consider success, whether NCAAs, Vails, IRAs or ACRAs placements are considered success or if simply making the post season is considered a success. Perhaps success isn't based on results, but on the overall progression of the program. I've been told by many experienced and successful coaches that it takes 5 years to turn a program around or make it into your image, so success might be building year to year for a new coach or a new program.
I've seen some instances where college football teams recruit juco players - junior college players - who come in having played beyond high school, or in potential transfers from other schools. I have seen this happen in rowing as well, though to a smaller extent.
I believe what it comes down to is program philosophy. In my experience it's something you use when you're recruiting athletes. Not everyone will fit into your program. Building for the now, in my experience, leads to a "boom/bust" ebb and flow in your program where you're either up or down, and rarely stable.
These are just my thoughts on a subject I find interesting, but have had a hard time relating to rowing.
I struggled with a way to relate this to rowing, and even now as I post, I'm not sure that I can. Rowing doesn't have a free agency period. We do recruit and have signing days, but I don't know that I can make any parallels with the signing of free agents or trades. Most of the thoughts that I came up with are random, and not entirely put together. In general, the topic - free agency, signings, trades - interested me more than being able to connect it to rowing.
What I have considered is the philosophical differences, deciding between what can help now, and what will help in the future. Are you building for now, let's say, the next 2 years, or are you looking for long term stability and sustained success. I suppose it does also help to know what you consider success, whether NCAAs, Vails, IRAs or ACRAs placements are considered success or if simply making the post season is considered a success. Perhaps success isn't based on results, but on the overall progression of the program. I've been told by many experienced and successful coaches that it takes 5 years to turn a program around or make it into your image, so success might be building year to year for a new coach or a new program.
I've seen some instances where college football teams recruit juco players - junior college players - who come in having played beyond high school, or in potential transfers from other schools. I have seen this happen in rowing as well, though to a smaller extent.
I believe what it comes down to is program philosophy. In my experience it's something you use when you're recruiting athletes. Not everyone will fit into your program. Building for the now, in my experience, leads to a "boom/bust" ebb and flow in your program where you're either up or down, and rarely stable.
These are just my thoughts on a subject I find interesting, but have had a hard time relating to rowing.
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