2008 Woodie Awards
McDonnell deserves more
Off the foul Pohl
Bart Pohlman
Issue date: 4/25/08 Section: Sports
"I'm not going to tell you why I'm up here; you all have figured it out."
Those were John McDonnell's words Monday when he announced his retirement as men's cross country and track and field coach at Arkansas.
And while many had figured out that McDonnell was retiring before he said those words, many still haven't figured it out.
There are many who simply don't understand McDonnell, his impact and his legacy.
It's sad, really.
After McDonnell announced his retirement, the only reference about it on ESPN.com was a small story that was last on the news list. Two hours later, it was gone.
Tuesday morning, there was nothing written about McDonnell in the USA Today or the New York Times. Nothing. Zip. Zero. Nada.
McDonnell has won 42 NCAA championships - more than any other coach in the history of sports - and his retirement registers little more than a blip on the radar. Something is wrong with this picture.
There was more national publicity when Houston Nutt resigned and Stan Heath was fired, and neither of them came within 42 national titles of matching McDonnell's mark.
Other coaches in football and basketball come and go, and often times, it's treated as breaking news on ESPN.
But the most successful coach in the history of college athletics announces his retirement, and he barely gets any notice.
In 2004, ESPN released a list of the top 25 coaches of the last 25 years, dating back to the inception of the network.
McDonnell was nowhere to be found on the list. But Dan Gable, the great Iowa wrestling coach, made the list. Gable won 15 NCAA titles, which is impressive, but it's not 42.
Also on the list is hall of fame gymnastics coach Bela Karolyi, hockey coaching great Al Arbour and North Carolina women's soccer coach Anson Dorrance.
All four are some of the best coaches of all time, but if they make the list, then there's no reason McDonnell shouldn't.
Actually, out of all the coaches on the list, only Dorrance (18) and Gable (15) have more than 10 championships. But 18 and 15 don't even add up to 42.
Those were John McDonnell's words Monday when he announced his retirement as men's cross country and track and field coach at Arkansas.
And while many had figured out that McDonnell was retiring before he said those words, many still haven't figured it out.
There are many who simply don't understand McDonnell, his impact and his legacy.
It's sad, really.
After McDonnell announced his retirement, the only reference about it on ESPN.com was a small story that was last on the news list. Two hours later, it was gone.
Tuesday morning, there was nothing written about McDonnell in the USA Today or the New York Times. Nothing. Zip. Zero. Nada.
McDonnell has won 42 NCAA championships - more than any other coach in the history of sports - and his retirement registers little more than a blip on the radar. Something is wrong with this picture.
There was more national publicity when Houston Nutt resigned and Stan Heath was fired, and neither of them came within 42 national titles of matching McDonnell's mark.
Other coaches in football and basketball come and go, and often times, it's treated as breaking news on ESPN.
But the most successful coach in the history of college athletics announces his retirement, and he barely gets any notice.
In 2004, ESPN released a list of the top 25 coaches of the last 25 years, dating back to the inception of the network.
McDonnell was nowhere to be found on the list. But Dan Gable, the great Iowa wrestling coach, made the list. Gable won 15 NCAA titles, which is impressive, but it's not 42.
Also on the list is hall of fame gymnastics coach Bela Karolyi, hockey coaching great Al Arbour and North Carolina women's soccer coach Anson Dorrance.
All four are some of the best coaches of all time, but if they make the list, then there's no reason McDonnell shouldn't.
Actually, out of all the coaches on the list, only Dorrance (18) and Gable (15) have more than 10 championships. But 18 and 15 don't even add up to 42.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
james truth
posted 4/25/08 @ 6:23 AM CST
This is an excellent article, but the difference is that the Arkansas university PR machine does not promote the program and your coach conducted himself with class to his teams. (Continued…)
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