So Athletes Unlimited tonight looks like less than 100 fans in the stands. Chicago is not a softball town. I realize the stadium was purpose built and there is an adjacent dome where they can work out in poor weather but.....wouldn't there be a great deal more fan interest if they played in a college town...Gainesville, Tuscaloosa, Baton Rouge, Tucson, Seattle or a couple others?
Looking at the ACC Softball Standings, hope we interview someone from a winning program. There are a couple of female pitching coaches at Louisville and UNC. The one from Louisville played in the SEC at UK so Walton would at least be familiar. https://gocards.com/sports/softball/roster/coaches/griffin-joiner/2334
Chelsea Dobbins, UNC associate head coach in charge of pitching and base running, gets high marks from a friend who is very familiar with the Tar Heel program.
Could it be possible that Duke Head Coach, Marissa Young, could come to Florida as Associate Head Coach or co-head coach responsible for pitchers? I know this seems crazy, but her daughter Layla Lamar is a 2024 Gator commit. Her husband, the Lady Dukes Club Coach, James Young, almost died recently and has undergone multiple surgeries within the last couple of weeks. Their oldest son plays football at Miami and maybe they just want a change of venue to prioritize their family. Thoughts?
While I would jump out of my skin if that was true, I highly doubt it. She is building a very solid program at Duke. More important, her husband, who is also the head coach of the elite Lady Dukes-Lamar travel club, is nowhere near out of the woods with his illness. This is very serious. Numerous surgeries. He has been sedated and intubated for the entire month and it continues. I think a greater concern, depending on the extent of his recovery, is Layla may decide she needs to stay home with her mother and decommit. Jo Jo may decide she also needs to stay home and play for Duke. Both decisions would be reasonable and understandable. Edit: Marissa's latest post indicates he has not improved and the doctors are going to do some sort of test to determine if his heart is healing or if he will require a transplant. He is still sedated and on a ventilator.
I'm sure you're right and it's a terrible tragedy that's going on with James Young. Has to have the whole family and Duke program in shock. It's just when I read that the coach coming in this weekend for an interview was from the ACC, I started imagining who the best coach I would want from that conference who might even be remotely available and possibly interested. Florida could, for sure, pay Marissa Young more than Duke is paying her. It was just fantasy, but I threw it out there anyway.
James Lamar. I'm not sure but just judging from the last names, Layla Lamar and Jo Jo Lamar, I'm guessing Marrisa is not their biological mother.
If the pitching coach is the one coming from Marshall, their best player is in the Transfer Portal. Autumn Owen, junior catcher/infielder, just finished the best season in Marshall softball history. Hit .444, OPS 1.444, 19 HR, 74 RBI, .887 slugging %, OBP .557. She was the Sun Belt Triple crown winner & named 3rd team All-American. Marshall's second best hitter is, also, in the portal. Sophomore OF Alex Coleman, hit .427, .914 OPS, .449 slugging %, .465 OBP, 42-51 stolen bases, only 14 K's in 185 AB's. Freshman pitcher Bri Godfrey is also, in the portal from Marshall. She's from Deerfield Beach, FL, was 5-1 this year with a 2.07 ERA in 27 innings, 22 K's, 18 BB. Could we get a pitching coach and 3 portal players all from Marshall? A bunch of schools will be courting Owen.
Pins and needles here... gotta get the offseason started here. Definitely holes to be filled. Especially a GOOD pitching coach and a few arms. "The waiting is the hardest part, Every day you see one more card, You take it on faith, you take it to the heart, The waiting is the hardest part"
