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Post by jojonito on Nov 7, 2019 17:44:40 GMT -5
I found it interesting that some Nebraska fans were ragging on Kendall White cuz she had less digs than 3 Nebraska players: White 17 Miller 18 Knuckles 24 Hames 22 especially hi-lighting Hames who, as a setter, had 5 more digs than Kendall. I was surprised that nobody brought up the fact that Nebraska had many more soft blocks than PSU did. (This is one of the things that the blocking statistics don't show. Total blocks are nice, but in some cases, the soft-blocks are more important than the actual blocks for points as they make it easier to be in system and get a good set for the next attack.) This made it much easier for the Nebraska players to dig attacks that were soft-blocked. So it would have been surprising if some Nebraska players didn't have more digs. I'm not trying to downgrade the Nebraska back court skill. They are very good. But, I would take Kendall over anybody on the Nebraska team.  My own prejudice maybe. |
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Post by stillkicking on Nov 7, 2019 18:39:02 GMT -5
I found it interesting that some Nebraska fans were ragging on Kendall White cuz she had less digs than 3 Nebraska players: White 17 Miller 18 Knuckles 24 Hames 22 especially hi-lighting Hames who, as a setter, had 5 more digs than Kendall. I was surprised that nobody brought up the fact that Nebraska had many more soft blocks than PSU did. (This is one of the things that the blocking statistics don't show. Total blocks are nice, but in some cases, the soft-blocks are more important than the actual blocks for points as they make it easier to be in system and get a good set for the next attack.) This made it much easier for the Nebraska players to dig attacks that were soft-blocked. So it would have been surprising if some Nebraska players didn't have more digs. I'm not trying to downgrade the Nebraska back court skill. They are very good. But, I would take Kendall over anybody on the Nebraska team. My own prejudice maybe. I agree, I would take Kendall over any player in the conference or country for that matter. |
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Post by jojonito on Nov 8, 2019 5:28:56 GMT -5
I was just reminded of some comments that the announcers made about Kendall White from a conversation that they had with Coach Rose prior to the match. He said that she was "an acquired taste". He also said that she and he were a lot alike and consequently worked well together. The announcers asked how much leeway she had on court, and he answered, "I give her a lot of rope. But sometimes I run out of rope." Thought that was pretty funny. Also, a number of fans on Volleytalk seemed to be very surprised that they saw Coach Rose smiling, and also that he had Jonni Parker laughing on the sidelines during a challenge. It seems that a lot of people are unaware of his great sense of humor. I've heard incidents where, he had the team laughing during a timeout in an important match. Another funny incident happened during the 2007-2009 time frame (I think) after a match and one of PSU's best players was talking to some boosters after the match, when Coach Rose walked by, and without missing a step, said to her, "You sucked". Pretty funny. This anecdote was mentioned by the player herself, who, at least in retrospect, thought it was pretty funny. I do wonder what she thought about it in the moment. (This was mentioned on one of the articles about Coach Rose where many players were commenting how they appreciated (and wanted) his honesty with them.) |
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Post by NittanyLions on Nov 8, 2019 6:15:26 GMT -5
LOL! Those are some funny comments. You gotta appreciate Russ' dry humor and wit.
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Post by stillkicking on Nov 8, 2019 7:11:15 GMT -5
Yes, the most important thing in life is honesty, Sugarcoating anything does not help anyone, especially the person who needs constructive criticism to improve.
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Post by jojonito on Nov 8, 2019 7:50:11 GMT -5
By the way nyline, while on the subject of Russ Rose, I was searching the internet for various interviews, articles that I had seen about Russ Rose. I ran across your interview of him on June 26, 2016 on Dignittany. What a fabulous interview. I highly recommend it for those who would like to understand RR better. See link below. Nyline Russ Rose Interview |
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Post by traveler on Nov 8, 2019 9:22:36 GMT -5
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Post by elliotberton on Nov 8, 2019 11:31:56 GMT -5
I found it interesting that some Nebraska fans were ragging on Kendall White cuz she had less digs than 3 Nebraska players: White 17 Miller 18 Knuckles 24 Hames 22 especially hi-lighting Hames who, as a setter, had 5 more digs than Kendall. I was surprised that nobody brought up the fact that Nebraska had many more soft blocks than PSU did. (This is one of the things that the blocking statistics don't show. Total blocks are nice, but in some cases, the soft-blocks are more important than the actual blocks for points as they make it easier to be in system and get a good set for the next attack.) This made it much easier for the Nebraska players to dig attacks that were soft-blocked. So it would have been surprising if some Nebraska players didn't have more digs. I'm not trying to downgrade the Nebraska back court skill. They are very good. But, I would take Kendall over anybody on the Nebraska team. My own prejudice maybe. Your points are well taken. This is a team game. Each player helps the rest to succeed, and moreover, a particular team's system or match strategy can dictate statistics too. Both teams had lots of digs because the hitters were not as terminal as some players on other teams, and instead kept the ball in play (how many long rallies did we see in this match?). Also, Kendall often plays middle back, but not always (such as on rotations where Jonni is put in the middle back so she can swing from there). The list of reasons for dig totals goes on and on.
What is perhaps best to say is that Kendall does what the Coach wants and the team needs her to do. Whether or not she would have more digs in someone else's system is amusing to think about but not significant. We are lucky to have her.
This season, Nebraska is leading the BiG in opponents' hitting percentage. Watch them a few times and you can see why. On the other hand, we shall have to see if Miller, Knuckles or Hames ever gets invited to the National Team camp.
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Post by traveler on Nov 8, 2019 15:18:07 GMT -5
My daughter played L in HS. I sat behind a coach who was instructing the varsity players ahead of time “don’t hit near her!” So it’s possible part of the NE game plan was to avoid White when possible. # of digs doesn’t equate to excellence. Correlates.
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My own prejudice maybe. 
