The Official I love Chris Lamb thread

[shoxlax]

In light of all of the Jodygate drama I want to point out how much I appreciate Coach Lamb. His product, the student athlete, has been a model of excellence both on and off the court (not unlike the women's team) yet his girls seem to want to continue to be part of the program after they graduate. This is a testimony to his ability to mentor, teach and connect with the player. He has no issues with being tough and demanding and players do leave the program but there seems to still be a respect for his staff when they are gone. I know a parent of a former player quite well and he summed it up: Lambo could coach almost anywhere he wants but enjoys the idea that he is WSU Volleyball and can make a difference in the perception of the sport in the area.

[1972Shocker]

enjoys the idea that he is WSU Volleyball and can make a difference in the perception of the sport in the area.

If that is how you measure Lambo's success then he has been wildly successful.

[WuShock16]

Another example of a coach who will not EVER be considered soft but yet doesn't have abuse allegations thrown in his direction. It seems like a very unique but effective to have a husband and wife on a staff together. It creates a literal family environment. Having Chris and Shannon as coaches (even if Shannon doesn't fill an official coaching role anymore) seems to be a great way to have a good cop-bad cop system with the team. Chris is right there with Gregg as my favorite current Shocker head coach...maybe even ahead of Gregg.

[1972Shocker]

Another example of a coach who will not EVER be considered soft but yet doesn't have abuse allegations thrown in his direction. It seems like a very unique but effective to have a husband and wife on a staff together. It creates a literal family environment. Having Chris and Shannon as coaches (even if Shannon doesn't fill an official coaching role anymore) seems to be a great way to have a good cop-bad cop system with the team. Chris is right there with Gregg as my favorite current Shocker head coach...maybe even ahead of Gregg.

Shocker women's tennis Coach Colin Foster and his wife Kewa are also a husband and wife coaching combo. Not sure how tough Colin is with his choir boy looks and demeanor plus it is tennis. However, the man has yet to lose a match to another Valley team in his 6 years leading the Shocker women's tennis team. That ain't bad.

However, that combo also is not the only way to skin a cat. Allegations of abuse or mistreatment are pretty much non-existent as far as I can tell outside of the WBB program. Let's hope we have heard the last of those. The last time I can remember any such issues was maybe with Judy Favor and the softball team who was here for 3 seasons from 2000-2002.

The key to me seems to be the development of a bond of mutual respect and trust between players and coaches. That bond is no doubt earned (both by the coach and the player), it can't simply be created on demand. As far as the coach is concerned there probably has to be some positive reinforcement worked into the mix somewhere.

[1972Shocker]

According the kansaspengov.org website Chris Lamb made a total of $189,237.00 in 2014. Very good pay for a college VB coach I would think and Lambo is worth every penny IMHO.

However, I noticed that Jody Adams made a total of $256,641.97 in 2014 as the Head Women's Basketball Coach.

Question: Is Lambo being undervalued? If so let's take care of him. We need to make sure Lambo retires at Wichita State.

[1972Shocker]

Lambo by the numbers.

With the 2 wins this past weekend Lambo has now won 354 matches in his 16 year career (an average of 22.13 wins per year and still counting). In the 24 years prior to Lamb's arrival the Shocks won 342 matches (14.25 wins per year).

Here is a great article from back in 2010 that looked back at the beginning of the Lambo regime. Lambo went 8-23 his 1st year in 2000. Had his first winning season in 2003 and his 1st Valley Championship in 2004.

I would love to see Lambo retire at Wichita State with 800 to 900 wins to his credit although the parity in College VB seems to be getting better and better so maintaining the same winning pace in the future may not be such an easy task.

[Kung Wu]

Lambo by the numbers.

With the 2 wins this past weekend Lambo has now won 354 matches in his 16 year career (an average of 22.13 wins per year and still counting). In the 24 years prior to Lamb's arrival the Shocks won 342 matches (14.25 wins per year).

Here is a great article from back in 2010 that looked back at the beginning of the Lambo regime. Lambo went 8-23 his 1st year in 2000. Had his first winning season in 2003 and his 1st Valley Championship in 2004.

I would love to see Lambo retire at Wichita State with 800 to 900 wins to his credit although the parity in College VB seems to be getting better and better so maintaining the same winning pace in the future may not be such an easy task.

Interesting. How do fan attendance compare between VB and WBB?

[1972Shocker]

Interesting. How do fan attendance compare between VB and WBB?

When Lambo started the VB team played their matches in Heskett Center and that tells you a lot. I recall Lambo saying the players, coaches and officials outnumbered the fans.

WBB average attendance is helped by their Schoolhouse Screamfest game that artificially inflates the attendance. Just based on my experience in attending games I would say VB has consistently outdrawn the WBB program on a butts in the seats basis by about 1,000 per game give or take a little over the past 10 years.

WBB has the problem of competing with Shocker Men's BB for attendance while Volleyball is pretty much the only game in town during the fall as our only other fall sport, Cross Country, is really not a spectator sport.

[flyingMoose]

WBB has the problem of competing with Shocker Men's BB for attendance

Plus some of those who like above-the-rim MBB just don't care for the different type of game that WBB is.

I know - actually the wrong thread.

[WuShock16]

I know volleyball played at Heskett for the 2002 season because of the arena renovation. Did they really play at Heskett even before that? If that indeed is correct, I just learned something new today. That makes what Lambo has done even more impressive.

It always seemed to me that more emphasis was put on WBB than VB by the athletics department, which I never understood. Granted, volleyball is more of a niche sport than basketball, but there are also limited ways to experience volleyball (live or on TV). If you want to watch volleyball in the Wichita area, your best bet is to watch Shocker Volleyball live. If you really want to watch basketball, not only does WSU women's basketball have to compete with the men's team, but it also has to compete with high school basketball (much more prominent than volleyball at the high school level), Friends/Newman/Juco basketball in the area (lesser extent...but still a competitor), and also all of the televised basketball that is available. I remember people speculating years ago that WSU women's basketball could average 5-6K fans a game if they could win consistently. Now that the program is successful, it looks like that theory has been proven wrong.

[Kung Wu]

When Lambo started the VB team played their matches in Heskett Center and that tells you a lot. I recall Lambo saying the players, coaches and officials outnumbered the fans.

WBB average attendance is helped by their Schoolhouse Screamfest game that artificially inflates the attendance. Just based on my experience in attending games I would say VB has consistently outdrawn the WBB program on a butts in the seats basis by about 1,000 per game give or take a little over the past 10 years.

WBB has the problem of competing with Shocker Men's BB for attendance while Volleyball is pretty much the only game in town during the fall as our only other fall sport, Cross Country, is really not a spectator sport.

Pay the man his money.

[flyingMoose]

Did they really play at Heskett even before that? If that indeed is correct, I just learned something new today.

I first starting watching Shocker volleyball under Phil Shoemaker (in the mid-to-late 80s?), and they definitely played in the Heskett Center then.