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Possible new Cross-Country and Track Assistant - Shens Matt Jones


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Haggy did you run for him or against him? I ran against his teams in his pre-Shen days.

 

Shen T&F alumnus, but only for the field part (jumping). He was always active at the practices, though, so I got to know him even if my talent level wasn't quite up to Shen standards.

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Good thing he's coming in. Where Albany's team lacks the most is in the distance events, mainly 5k and 10k. He'll be instrumental in keeping and maintaining good distance athletes. In the past years the better distance athletes have been coached in a totally different group than the normal distance guys, mainly being coached by Vives as well. Hopefully this will free up Vives for his specialty...hurdles.

 

http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story...?storyID=606945

 

This would be a nice addition. On top of his coaching ability, Jones could help draw some of the top local talent, and this area is loaded with running talent at the H.S. level.

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Good to see. Shen has been a quality program for years. I went to a high school in a town that was made for T&F and X-Country and we always had great respect for Shen, Saratoga and Shaker. Hopefully he can keep some of that local talen here.

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I know how good our T&F teams are, and we usually had decent X-Country teams.

 

My question is this, for those who know T&F in general: HOW CLOSE ARE WE FROM BECOMING A CONSISTENT REGIONAL (I am talking East Coast) POWER...and a household (in T&F) national name.

 

Obviously Jones coming will bolster a sore spot for the Danes. How much further do we need to go. Once we get our outdoor stadium...will this put us over the edge?

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Long ago (1990s), I ran for Coach Jones at Shenendehowa (X-C and track and field). He's a fantastic coach, great at motivating, he cares for his athletes, and he knows his stuff. I wasn't even that good when I ran X-C at Shenendehowa (i.e., maybe 17:30-18:00 5K on a great day) as compared to some of the other varsity kids, but I still felt he cared for those of us who weren't the top runners. And he pushed us to become better runners. I also felt he understood one's limitations and was sensitive to avoiding injury. I'd be damn proud to have him become a Dane and would enjoy following our running programs closely! I think he would only help our program!

 

I'm very proud of the high school x-c programs in this Albany area in general and the emphasis on distance running generally in this area (and the comment above is right; there is absolutely division I high school talent in this area!). I still run to this day, and many of the lessons and workouts that I learned on Shenendehowa X-C stick with me to this day and have helped me (through running or otherwise) through difficult times in my life. They are indeed lessons that I cherish!

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I know how good our T&F teams are, and we usually had decent X-Country teams.

 

My question is this, for those who know T&F in general: HOW CLOSE ARE WE FROM BECOMING A CONSISTENT REGIONAL (I am talking East Coast) POWER...and a household (in T&F) national name.

 

Obviously Jones coming will bolster a sore spot for the Danes. How much further do we need to go. Once we get our outdoor stadium...will this put us over the edge?

 

I'll kind of answer the first part of your question. In the Northeast, my opinion is that we are there in T&F. Albany can compete with any team in the Northeast and most in the mid Atlantic. Villanova finished 37th and Manhattan tied w/Albany at 41st. The National meet scoring can be easily effected by one or two individuals (See National Champions Florida St) so it isn't the end all of defining a program. That said, Albany can step on the track with any team in the Northeast and compete. They are currently not as strong in the long distance (5k-10K) but other than that they are solid in every event.

 

The East Coast however covers your Florida Sts, Floridas, N.C's etc. These teams are tough to compete with. With G. Burns and J. Greene (and soon J. Moore) they already know who Albany is. Coach Vives' name is also a respected name nationally and has been for some time.

 

And yes, a new facility will help but the biggest obstacle cannot be removed. Outdoor T&F in Albany is a short season. The school and program have plenty to offer but "hey kid would you like to run in Sunny Florida with the girls of Florida or..."? Throw Wisconsin out (distance running Mecca) and look at the top programs. Florida St, LSU, Auburn, Tennessee, USC, N.C, Louisville?, UCLA.

 

I would think Greene and Moore both score next year. They should provide 8-12 points. 12 points moves UA up to 25 place.

 

Add to the above that the incoming Hammer thrower would have finished 12th at Nationals. No points for twelth but that is as a H.S.er.

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I know how good our T&F teams are, and we usually had decent X-Country teams.

 

My question is this, for those who know T&F in general: HOW CLOSE ARE WE FROM BECOMING A CONSISTENT REGIONAL (I am talking East Coast) POWER...and a household (in T&F) national name.

 

Obviously Jones coming will bolster a sore spot for the Danes. How much further do we need to go. Once we get our outdoor stadium...will this put us over the edge?

 

3 Years away from National Power. This year the team was in the top 40 at the national level, and that was with a sub-par performance. Albany had 3 capable scorers compete and only 2 score. People know who Albany is now at major track meets, they know we're not from Georgia anymore. Something interesting to point out is that this year's outdoor Albany team beat Arkansas at the national meet. Arkansas is responsible for over 40 national championships between XC, Indoor, and Outdoor track.

 

Coach Jones will help out, but it will take a while to develop national quality distance runners, not to mention Albany moves into dark territory next year. They are no longer considered an East team, they are now a Mid-East team at the Regional meet competing with the likes of LSU, Tennessee, Kentucky, Michigan, Arkansas, Illiinois etc, making it tougher for a spot at Nationals.

 

Next year the Danes should have 5+ people go to the national meet:

Joe Greene (400IH)

John Moore (800)

Mike McCadney (TJ)

Wilfredo Rodriguez (HT)(incoming freshman)

Luke Schoen (PV)

Felipe Reyes (LJ)

 

if all goes well, thats top 20 as a team.

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As an FYI, the Ortman sisters are transfering..so we won't have their services anymore. They're off to run for the Wildcats..Kentucky that is, not UNH.

 

Wow, that is suprising and not good news for the Women's program.

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And yes, a new facility will help but the biggest obstacle cannot be removed. Outdoor T&F in Albany is a short season. The school and program have plenty to offer but "hey kid would you like to run in Sunny Florida with the girls of Florida or..."? Throw Wisconsin out (distance running Mecca) and look at the top programs. Florida St, LSU, Auburn, Tennessee, USC, N.C, Louisville?, UCLA.

 

A lot of good information in your post, but I was curious as to your take on how Oregon fits into the equation. Are they still considered a power, and do you know anything about the weather obstacles that they face?

 

Slightly off topic, but it is an interesting conversation...

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And yes, a new facility will help but the biggest obstacle cannot be removed. Outdoor T&F in Albany is a short season. The school and program have plenty to offer but "hey kid would you like to run in Sunny Florida with the girls of Florida or..."? Throw Wisconsin out (distance running Mecca) and look at the top programs. Florida St, LSU, Auburn, Tennessee, USC, N.C, Louisville?, UCLA.

 

A lot of good information in your post, but I was curious as to your take on how Oregon fits into the equation. Are they still considered a power, and do you know anything about the weather obstacles that they face?

 

Slightly off topic, but it is an interesting conversation...

 

 

(correction from earlier) Wilfredo's last name is Dejesus.

 

haggyland: the weather has seemed to (at least in the past) to play well for the Danes. The reason for this is while most people are peaking a little earlier than they'd like because they can go outside year round, the Danes are lined up (with the weather) to peak right when the season starts to heat up along with the Northeast weather. If you look at how the Danes performed at the end of the year, the majority of their major marks were hit at the IC4A, the East Regional, or at the NCAA meet. Joe went from 50.6, to 50.1, to 49.9 at IC, East Regional, NCAA"s. Pallozi went from 66m, to 69m, to 68.4m, and he was at considerably lower marks the entire season. One thing Roberto knows how to do well is taper his athletes for the bigger meets. But you're still right, its hard to take a kid from FSU or Wisconsin when they have their unbelievable reputation and warm weather. Thats why the Danes are still a few years away, they need to take the "great" kids and turn them into phenomenal kids in college, we won't get too many "phenomenal's" right out of high school just yet. Joe Greene came to Albany unranked in the 400 in high school and never ran the 400 hurdles prior. Pallozi was a walk-on, and Burns was barely on the national radar when he came in as well. The only nationally ranked recruits the Danes have had recently are John Moore, and Jess Ortman.

 

to go with an earlier post as well: the ortman's leaving might have been the best gift the Danes could have ever asked for. They were talented no doubt, but good talent at the expense of not being good people is something UA won't stand for...and I respect that.

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And yes, a new facility will help but the biggest obstacle cannot be removed. Outdoor T&F in Albany is a short season. The school and program have plenty to offer but "hey kid would you like to run in Sunny Florida with the girls of Florida or..."? Throw Wisconsin out (distance running Mecca) and look at the top programs. Florida St, LSU, Auburn, Tennessee, USC, N.C, Louisville?, UCLA.

 

A lot of good information in your post, but I was curious as to your take on how Oregon fits into the equation. Are they still considered a power, and do you know anything about the weather obstacles that they face?

 

Slightly off topic, but it is an interesting conversation...

Distance running Mecca too. Been that way since Prefontaine and Nike. I would guess all of their points are in 5K and up (haven't checked though).

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