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Ohio Volleyball Topic
Topic: The return of Geoff Carlston
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BoomBobcats
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Posted: 7/12/2021 5:54 PM
Carlston returns to Athens as the new Head Coach of the Volleyball program.

https://ohiobobcats.com/news/2021/7/12/womens-volleyball-...
Jeff McKinney
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Posted: 7/12/2021 6:37 PM
Welcome back, Geoff!
shabamon
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shabamon
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Posted: 7/12/2021 7:40 PM
What?
OhioCatFan
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OhioCatFan
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Posted: 7/13/2021 12:15 AM
In my best Sgt. Schultz voice: "This is verry interesting!"
The only BLSS Certified Hypocrite on BA

"It is better to be an optimist and be proven a fool than to be a pessimist and be proven right."

Note: My avatar is the national colors of the 78th Ohio Veteran Volunteer Infantry, which are now preserved in a climate controlled vault at the Ohio History Connection. Learn more about the old 78th at: http://www.78ohio.org
rpbobcat
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Posted: 7/13/2021 8:59 AM
I'm sure I'm in the minority here, but I have some concerns:

1.His record for his last 3 years at OSU:
2017 15-16
2018 12-20
2019 15-17 (fired)

What happened ?

2.How come no other school hired him since he was fired ?

3.He's not a kid.
How much "gas is left in the tank" ?

4.He left O.U. for "greener pastures".
Assuming he's as successful this time, does he jump again ?

That being said, I hope this hire turns out to be a big "get' for O.U.
Last Edited: 7/13/2021 9:11:12 AM by rpbobcat
UpSan Bobcat
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Posted: 7/13/2021 9:17 AM
rpbobcat wrote:expand_more
I'm sure I'm in the minority here, but I have some concerns:

1.His record for his last 3 years at OSU:
2017 15-16
2018 12-20
2019 15-17 (fired)

What happened ?

2.How come no other school hired him since he was fired ?

3.He's not a kid.
How much "gas is left in the tank" ?

4.He left O.U. for "greener pastures".
Assuming he's as successful this time, does he jump again ?
Those are legitimate concerns, but if there weren't any, there's no way he'd come back. Ohio isn't going to get a coach who was 100% successful on a higher level. I doubt too many people follow college volleyball on high enough level to understand what happened at Ohio State, but I'm sure his fading success there meant he was going to have to take a step back.

I think 3 could be the answer to 4. He's less likely to be chasing higher-level jobs at this stage in his career (though I think he's young enough to have plenty left to give). Even if he is super successful again with the Bobcats, major programs may be less likely to hire him because he didn't have sustained success at that level before and because he is getting older.

I think there's a lot of potential he could return the program to a higher level.
stub
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Posted: 7/13/2021 12:54 PM
Hiring someone from the outside 2 months before the start of the season would be a disaster in the short term, so hiring Geoff makes perfect sense. And hopefully he will move the program forward again.

Geoff had a solid run at THE osu although it didn't end well. He coached in the most powerful conference in the nation, taking over a mediocre program and qualifying for the NCAA tourney 7 times with 5 sweet 16 teams.

Geoff's run at OHIO will unlikely be surpassed.He made the NCAA tourney every year and won 5 straight MAC championships.

Geoff loved Athens, and came back a few times when he was the OSU coach to greet his former players at alumni events. He even posted on this message board before he left, maybe the only OHIO coach who ever has.

Welcome home Geoff!
Last Edited: 7/13/2021 1:11:59 PM by stub
Jeff McKinney
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Posted: 7/13/2021 1:16 PM
Age is not a big deal. I think the idea of an "energetic young coach" is overrated. To me, this is not a concern in this situation.
brucecuth
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Posted: 7/13/2021 1:35 PM
Geoff certainly won't need OJT and has some idea of the lay of the land. I also assume he knows what he's getting into. Ohio is a different school, with a different VB program and different competition than when he left.

The school he's coming back to has serious, if not severe, financial issues. A little more than a year ago, the school negotiated a settlement with the NCAA over VB recruiting violations that were seemingly minor but repeated. The settlement included recruiting restrictions. I have no idea if they remain in place.

What will the staff look like and how large with it be? What is the recruiting situation?

Further, interest in the VB program waned under Deane Webb. By the end of his tenure we were no longer serious contenders for the MAC championship. Attendance plummeted. The BobcatAttack VB thread went weeks without comments. Remember how the board blew up when Geoff left? He's back now and the number of comments is still in single digits. Women's hoops garners far more interest at Ohio now.

As far as I can tell there was no announcement of a 2021 recruiting class, the VB page at Ohio Bobcats still has last year's roster (who's on it now? Doesn't practice begin in a couple weeks?) and last year's schedule. Interestingly enough, if you go on the Marquette website, you'll find we will take on old friend Ryan Theis in the Redbird Classic at Illinois State on Sept 4.

I believe Geoff can recruit and can coach. But he'll need support, financial and otherwise (like simply keeping the webpage updated) from the university and support from fans other than the alumni band. Without it, he'll find his first act at Ohio will be difficult to follow.
J.B.Hoy
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Posted: 7/13/2021 2:26 PM
I hope that Geoff can stabilize the program, get us back to being a MAC powerhouse and national contender. Then perhaps hand over the keys to one of our own some day.
Welcome back and good luck.
71 BOBCAT
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Posted: 7/13/2021 4:33 PM
It is possible that Geoff has time left on his OSU contract and we were able to snatch him up and save some $'s. Additionally we may not have to relocate him as he lives in Columbus like Boals does.
Someone, I am sure, will do some digging into the financial aspect of this hire.



GO BOBCATS
brucecuth
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Posted: 7/13/2021 4:43 PM
brucecuth wrote:expand_more
Geoff certainly won't need OJT and has some idea of the lay of the land. I also assume he knows what he's getting into. Ohio is a different school, with a different VB program and different competition than when he left.

The school he's coming back to has serious, if not severe, financial issues. A little more than a year ago, the school negotiated a settlement with the NCAA over VB recruiting violations that were seemingly minor but repeated. The settlement included recruiting restrictions. I have no idea if they remain in place.

What will the staff look like and how large with it be? What is the recruiting situation?

Further, interest in the VB program waned under Deane Webb. By the end of his tenure we were no longer serious contenders for the MAC championship. Attendance plummeted. The BobcatAttack VB thread went weeks without comments. Remember how the board blew up when Geoff left? He's back now and the number of comments is still in single digits. Women's hoops garners far more interest at Ohio now.

As far as I can tell there was no announcement of a 2021 recruiting class, the VB page at Ohio Bobcats still has last year's roster (who's on it now? Doesn't practice begin in a couple weeks?) and last year's schedule. Interestingly enough, if you go on the Marquette website, you'll find we will take on old friend Ryan Theis in the Redbird Classic at Illinois State on Sept 4.

I believe Geoff can recruit and can coach. But he'll need support, financial and otherwise (like simply keeping the webpage updated) from the university and support from fans other than the alumni band. Without it, he'll find his first act at Ohio will be difficult to follow.
I was wrong and apologize. There indeed was an announcement of a 3-person 2021 recruiting class
https://ohiobobcats.com/news/2020/12/2/12_2_2020_505.aspx
BoomBobcats
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Posted: 7/13/2021 4:56 PM
71 BOBCAT wrote:expand_more
It is possible that Geoff has time left on his OSU contract and we were able to snatch him up and save some $'s. Additionally we may not have to relocate him as he lives in Columbus like Boals does.
Someone, I am sure, will do some digging into the financial aspect of this hire.



GO BOBCATS
Geoff lives in Colorado, and he wasn't fired from Ohio State, his contract wasn't renewed. So, Ohio is saving $0 in regards to financial considerations with him coming from Ohio State.
Alan Swank
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Posted: 7/13/2021 5:45 PM
brucecuth wrote:expand_more
Geoff certainly won't need OJT and has some idea of the lay of the land. I also assume he knows what he's getting into. Ohio is a different school, with a different VB program and different competition than when he left.

The school he's coming back to has serious, if not severe, financial issues. A little more than a year ago, the school negotiated a settlement with the NCAA over VB recruiting violations that were seemingly minor but repeated. The settlement included recruiting restrictions. I have no idea if they remain in place.

What will the staff look like and how large with it be? What is the recruiting situation?

Further, interest in the VB program waned under Deane Webb. By the end of his tenure we were no longer serious contenders for the MAC championship. Attendance plummeted. The BobcatAttack VB thread went weeks without comments. Remember how the board blew up when Geoff left? He's back now and the number of comments is still in single digits. Women's hoops garners far more interest at Ohio now.

As far as I can tell there was no announcement of a 2021 recruiting class, the VB page at Ohio Bobcats still has last year's roster (who's on it now? Doesn't practice begin in a couple weeks?) and last year's schedule. Interestingly enough, if you go on the Marquette website, you'll find we will take on old friend Ryan Theis in the Redbird Classic at Illinois State on Sept 4.

I believe Geoff can recruit and can coach. But he'll need support, financial and otherwise (like simply keeping the webpage updated) from the university and support from fans other than the alumni band. Without it, he'll find his first act at Ohio will be difficult to follow.
The website is an embarrassment. Less than a month till official practice begins and we have last year's information up there. Enthusiasm for the program starts with the enthusiasm or lack thereof from the department.
J.B.Hoy
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Posted: 7/13/2021 6:32 PM
They did create a Twitter account yesterday, prior to the coaching announcement.
OhioCatFan
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Posted: 7/13/2021 11:01 PM
Count me as one who considers this a great hire, unlike my friend rpbobcat. While he is pessimistic, I'm optimistic. I think Geoff will get OHIO volleyball back to being competitive again in the MAC and a factor on the national stage as well. His lack of success as the leader of the Poison Nuts in Cowtown doesn't bother me all. We know what he did here previously, and I think given time he can do it here again.
The only BLSS Certified Hypocrite on BA

"It is better to be an optimist and be proven a fool than to be a pessimist and be proven right."

Note: My avatar is the national colors of the 78th Ohio Veteran Volunteer Infantry, which are now preserved in a climate controlled vault at the Ohio History Connection. Learn more about the old 78th at: http://www.78ohio.org
Last Edited: 7/13/2021 11:03:01 PM by OhioCatFan
100%Cat
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Posted: 7/16/2021 10:23 AM
J.B.Hoy wrote:expand_more
They did create a Twitter account yesterday, prior to the coaching announcement.
Ohio volleyball on Twitter? There has been a Twitter account for vball for years. It's how I track scores on away games.
UpSan Bobcat
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Posted: 7/16/2021 10:37 AM
100%Cat wrote:expand_more
They did create a Twitter account yesterday, prior to the coaching announcement.
Ohio volleyball on Twitter? There has been a Twitter account for vball for years. It's how I track scores on away games.
Apparently the original account (@Ohio_Volleyball) was restricted for some reason and a new one (@OhioBobcatsVB) was created.
mcbin
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Posted: 7/24/2021 11:40 PM
Way back when, it was @ohiovolleyball. I think we're on #3 now...
AttackU
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Posted: 8/25/2021 5:09 PM
BoomBobcats wrote:expand_more
Carlston returns to Athens as the new Head Coach of the Volleyball program.

https://ohiobobcats.com/news/2021/7/12/womens-volleyball-...
Wow, just now seeing this. Haven't been active on Bobcat Attack in a long time. Thought I'd check to see what is going on with Ohio U sports, clicked on Volleyball and saw this. Somehow missed seeing Geoff was hired. I'm a little surprised but I'm optimistic that Geoff will get the program back to winning ways. The years he had at Ohio U were remarkable and their success was truly amazing. Really enjoyed going to games when he was the coach. Went to one of their camps years ago. Planning to follow the upcoming season closely to see how things go. Wishing Ohio Volleyball the best of luck this season! Go Bobcats!
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