Terry Pettit's take on 2020 Championship Contenders

[knapplc]

Former Nebraska Volleyball coach Terry Pettit offered some guesses as to which teams are the top contenders this season. 

 

 

He later expanded on these thoughts over on VT:

 

Quote

I was surprised to see this thread on VT. I hadn't given it any thought after posting it on twitter. Wisconsin would have to be the favorite. I put Nebraska and Baylor on the same tier because I believe they have the talent, and the coaching to beat anyone on a given night. Nebraska has it's most experienced team ever with three very strong pin hitters. Baylor has the best end game player (from the back-row) in college volleyball). All three teams have experienced setters who have a good relationship with their hitters and with the head coaches. If I was to go even further out on a limb, I think the National Champion is likely to come from two teams in the Big 12 and perhaps up to 5 teams in the BIG. The thing that could throw a wrench in all this would be if the NCAA decided to regionalize the playoffs and several BIG teams played in the same regional. I probably overvalue setters, as well as coaching. When I finished posting this I realized that I had forgotten BYU. I don't follow BYU but I do have tremendous respect for their head coach and what she has accomplished during her tenure. I also thought it took tremendous courage, talent and coaching for Utah to make a run at Stanford in the tournament. Sometimes a program makes another leap after a season like that. To me, there is a significant difference between being a very good program, having a great season, and competing to win a national championship. The teams in the BIG will benefit from playing each other, and facing great coaching and preparation almost every night. But I wouldn't take what I think very seriously. There are another ten teams (Kentucky, Louisville, Pitt, UCLA etc.) that may be in the mix as well. If D1 volleyball is played this year, the Championship may well come down to who has the team that is able to dodge Covid19. Good luck betting on that.

 

I'd definitely agree with Wisconsin as the front-runner. I think their pins are good-to-great and Rettke is phenomenal. Nebraska went 0-3 against them last year, with three 3-0 sweeps. Those games were a bit more competitive than the results indicate, but the fact is we have to step up a LOT to get to their level. 

[84HuskerLaw]

On 7/22/2020 at 9:12 AM, knapplc said:

Former Nebraska Volleyball coach Terry Pettit offered some guesses as to which teams are the top contenders this season. 

 

 

He later expanded on these thoughts over on VT:

 

 

I'd definitely agree with Wisconsin as the front-runner. I think their pins are good-to-great and Rettke is phenomenal. Nebraska went 0-3 against them last year, with three 3-0 sweeps. Those games were a bit more competitive than the results indicate, but the fact is we have to step up a LOT to get to their level. 

Agree but I would tend to say the difference is probably not that great.  Often matches come down to as few as 2 or 3 points which can be as few as a couple hits or misses as a ball in vs out is a 2 pt swing with rally scoring.  That can be something as simple as a sore shoulder or ankle or something.  

 

I never cared for rally scoring when that changed.  But it is the rule.  Not sure why they adopted it. Maybe somebody can explain the theory of rally scoring being better than the serve - point method.  

 

[knapplc]

On 7/24/2020 at 8:13 AM, 84HuskerLaw said:

I never cared for rally scoring when that changed.  But it is the rule.  Not sure why they adopted it. Maybe somebody can explain the theory of rally scoring being better than the serve - point method.  

 

Rally scoring was adopted to make the game more approachable for TV. One of the biggest issues with sideout scoring is the length of a match. When you can't decently predict when a match will end, it's really hard to televise it.

 

Some sideout matches proceeded very quickly. I remember a match against Missouri in the late 80s or early 90s where the Huskers won something like 15-1, 15-0, 15-2. Whatever the combo was, Missouri literally scored three points for the match. That match was over in MAYBE an hour & ten minutes. But if neither team can score on serve, and you have sideout after sideout, that same match could take twice that long.

 

I initially hated rally scoring, but eventually it grew on me. That you can score without holding the serve is good. And it keeps the pressure on for every point.

[84HuskerLaw]

46 minutes ago, knapplc said:

 

Rally scoring was adopted to make the game more approachable for TV. One of the biggest issues with sideout scoring is the length of a match. When you can't decently predict when a match will end, it's really hard to televise it.

 

Some sideout matches proceeded very quickly. I remember a match against Missouri in the late 80s or early 90s where the Huskers won something like 15-1, 15-0, 15-2. Whatever the combo was, Missouri literally scored three points for the match. That match was over in MAYBE an hour & ten minutes. But if neither team can score on serve, and you have sideout after sideout, that same match could take twice that long.

 

I initially hated rally scoring, but eventually it grew on me. That you can score without holding the serve is good. And it keeps the pressure on for every point.

I gotcha!   I thot maybe it was to shorten matches but then they upped the scores from 15 to 25 so I kind of discounted the time notion.  I see it does fix the duration by a margin.  But I also really enjoy those long nail biters with sideout battles etc.  

One rule I would like to see tried would be adding a fault serve rule like in tennis - two chances for the server before awarding a point. 

I enjoy those monster jump serves and the screwballs and targeted serving.  A bad serve point makes the game a little “amateur” or something. 

For those who watched NU VB kn the colosseum frequently the fans were super and great matches are very exciting.   

[knapplc]

1 minute ago, 84HuskerLaw said:

For those who watched NU VB kn the colosseum frequently the fans were super and great matches are very exciting.   

 

I miss the Colosseum. As great as Devaney is, there was nothing quite like matches in that intimate environment.

[84HuskerLaw]

Yes, the big gym is just not so intimate and close.  The home court advantage there had to be unique.  Sometimes you could almost see the opponents’ amazement / awe in their faces.  The crowd was great - never less than truly great sportsmanship but very Husker friendly.  It had to be very intimidating for teams not used to such environments.  

GBR!