McLaughlin Gives Whittenburg Vote of Confidence, and Calls for a Team Effort at Fordham
Posted by Fordham SportsNet on April 7, 2009
(This article is Part II of Fordham SportsNet’s series detailing Frank McLaughlin’s thoughts on the current state of the Fordham men’s basketball program. Today, the AD discusses head coach Dereck Whittenburg.)
BY CHARLES COSTELLO
In a strong defense of Dereck Whittenburg, Frank McLaughlin officially ended his public silence by unequivocally stating his support for the Fordham head coach.
“Nobody’s perfect. I’m not perfect. And we all would do things different ways,” McLaughlin said when asked to evaluate Whittenburg’s performance this past season. “Dereck was going through a learning process. To have an inexperienced team and then have a freshman point guard is really hard. You could see some of the comments of the other coaches. They have a great respect for Fordham as an institution. Dereck is very well respected in the coaching profession. He might not be respected here, but he’s well respected in the coaching profession, and he’s been a winner everywhere he’s been.”
Declaring his confidence in Whittenburg and calling for a team effort from everyone involved at Fordham, the AD said he never lost faith in Whittenburg, despite the difficult season that ended one month ago.
“I was as supportive as I could be of Dereck,” McLaughlin said. “When you go through adversity you learn who your real friends are, who your real supporters are.”
When a team struggles through a 3-25 season like the Rams did this past season, a season full of poor performances, injuries, bad luck, and a host of distractions, questions about the head coach’s job security are going to arise. Even though Whittenburg is signed through the 2012-13 season (at a hefty salary by Fordham’s standards), and with a team dominated by freshmen and the hope of the current recruiting class, Whittenburg found himself on the hot seat with an impatient fan base. Still, McLaughlin was in his corner throughout the season, and continued to stand by his coach during an interview with Fordham SportsNet that took place in his office last Thursday.
“We have confidence in Dereck and I think we’re making greater efforts to make sure the program is successful,” McLaughlin said. “I think we have a good freshman class. I think Dereck’s a good coach. He’s hard working. He represents the university the right way. I don’t know if he gets enough credit. All five of our seniors two years ago graduated. We have a great graduation rate. Derek has a tough love. He’s hard on the kids, very demanding on the kids to represent the university the right way.”
In a challenge to everyone in the Fordham community, from administrators, to the team, to the university’s academic offices, to fans, McLaughlin said that in order for the program to be successful, everyone had to be committed and involved.
“It’s not Dereck. It’s all of us,” McLaughlin said. “It’s not an individual thing. When you pick on an individual you’re looking for excuses. This is a team effort. This is our student body. This is our alumni. This is our admissions office. This is our development office. This is all about Fordham. If we all get behind it the right way then we’ll be successful.”
The university’s silence following the season raised suspicions that the administration may have been discussing Whittenburg’s future at Fordham. In reality, McLaughlin said the silence should have told fans all they needed to know about the university’s support for Whittenburg.
“Are we supposed to come out with a statement every week, every time there’s a rumor or there’s speculation?” McLaughlin asked. ”These are personnel matters that we’re dealing with. We do that confidentially. We don’t do that in the media.”
Then, in perhaps his strongest rebuke of criticism over his silence, McLaughlin said this:
“We did say something. By not saying something we said something very strongly.”
So what goes on when two basketball veterans talk during a season like the one that just took place at Rose Hill? McLaughlin, the school’s AD, in charge of 22 varsity sports but none bigger than men’s basketball, and Whittenburg, six years into his Fordham tenure, talk constantly throughout the season.
“I don’t micromanage basketball, but I talked to Dereck after every game and let him know that I was supportive,” McLaughlin said. “I’m very, very supportive of him and working very hard to make sure that we turn this thing around.
“I said [to Derek and to his coaches and players], ’I know what you’re going through. I know you’re not enjoying it. None of us are enjoying it. But on behalf of the university I want to thank you for the classy way you’re representing us. And I want to assure you that we’re all going to roll up our sleeves and we’re all going to go out and get some players here to help you guys turn this thing around.’”
McLaughlin also addressed the NY Daily News article in February detailing Fordham’s struggles in the A-10. For some, particularly those not enamored with Whittenburg and who seem to twist and turn every word he says, Whittenburg appeared to question why Fordham was in the A-10. To McLaughlin, and others who know and understand how much Whittenburg wants to win, the head coach was just being the fiery competitor he’s always been.
“I wasn’t upset,” McLaughlin said about Whittenburg’s comments in the article. ”Dereck is a fierce competitor. He wants us to be in the A-10. He wants us to be successful in the A-10. I think what he was saying was that ‘the decision was made before I was even here. I wasn’t involved in that decision. Ask the administration.’ Anybody who’s looking to be negative will read negative things into any story, try to twist things and make them negative.”
While the university continues to support Whittenburg, McLaughlin is a bit perturbed at just how quickly the fan base has turned on the head coach of the school’s marquee program.
“This year everybody’s really down on Dereck. Last year they were down on Dereck. Two years ago they were saying ‘Oh my God we’re going to lose Dereck. What are we doing to keep Dereck? We can’t afford to lose him.’ [These are] the same people who are [now] saying we should make a coaching change.”
A coaching change not about to be made.
(Coming Tomorrow: A discussion with the AD about Fordham University’s commitment to basketball.)
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Brendan said
I think people would be ok with the loses if the players weren’t jumping ship-it was a rebuilding year after all. However those parts that were supposed to rebuild the program want to quit. That to me indicates a problem.
Tim said
Brendan hit the nail on the head. How are we supposed to have any type of continuity or building when, after a singular season, 4 scholarship athletes on a team that can only have 13 try to leave.
Running kids out of the program is the problem. Well that and losing games on average by 20 points.
ram723 said
I just don’t even know what to say about these articles anymore. They’re painful to read.
acrammer said
There are no excuses for the season Whittenburg had last year. They were competitive in 3 atlantic 10 games all year and had the schools worst record in 106 years. Also, if Whittenburg was able to recruit better and keep players on the team, then maybe we wouldn’t have had a rebuilding year and we could have had a more successful season. Players like Boykin, Phillips, Landisch all left the team and were clearly not A-10 caliber players. While others like Devine and Tanner stayed but couldnt cut it in this league. Finally, lets not forget Everston and Smith who couldnt even stay in school a year and play. Now we have Trey Blue, Mike Moore, and it looks like Jio Fontan transferring. That is our top 3 scorers from a team that was 3-26. How can Whittenburg not be blamed for these personnel problems, and do we really give Whittenburg another rebuilding year?? Billy Gillipsie was fired for losing in the quarterfinals of the NIT, while you may argue its because its Kentucky and they expect more. Well why not expect more at Fordham. Do we strive for mediocrity here. Even so look at BU coach Dennis Wolff. In his past 8 season there, his team has never finished lower then 3rd in the conference and he brought his team to one NCAA tournament and 3 NITs. I think we have more basketball tradition then BU, but they obviously have a desire for success unlike Fordham. Yeah it was great/amazing that Whittenburg had an 18-12 season, but some times you can’t let your view be skewed by one amazing result. Instead of building upon that success we are back to square one, and if something is not done we will be even worse then we were when Bob Hill left. If Jio gets his release as requested we are returning 4 scholarships players. How can next year be any better. Something needs to be done.
Ram 91 said
I suspect the coach and Athletic Department will be greeted next year with copious silent approval in an empty gym.
Fordham81 said
“We did say something. By not saying something we said something very strongly.” This statement couldn’t be truer- it illustrates that we have an AD and Administration that is quite satified with mediocrity, has no plan for the future, and is incapable of defining success. It is stunning to think that DW is a ” fierce competitor”, which is best illustrated by his pouting on the bench during games, his inability to grow as a coach and develop players, or have some type of strategy regarding recruiting. The reason that Frank states that “we can’t afford to lose him” is due to the fact that no one wants this job with the current administration in place. Fordham’s Athletic Administration is the laughing stock of the NCAA as it continues to squander opportunities to become a premier program in NYC, and thus the country. As a college AD told me a couple of weeks ago- Fordham is half pregnant, and are incapable, or unwilling to become successful.
Charlie- Why don’t you spend some time investigating the structure, commitment and achievements of our peer universities who have been able to achieve both academic and athletic success. Compare those to the “lifers” that we have employed, who are quite happy that they will never be held accountable for anything. Ask Frank for his definition of success and how it is measured- and ask the same question to AD’s at our peer universities. You will be stunned at how clueless Frank is, and how far behind Fordham has fallen.
This program is in shambles and Frank (and you Charlie) are apologists for the embarrassment that is Fordham Basketball (Men and Women)- our “marquee” sport.
SIram said
There is a reason why our opinion of DW changed over the past two years. He did a horrible job of recruiting after the Dunston/Stout class and he did a horrible job of coaching those players over the same stretch of time. How or why does Frank or anyone defend failure?
peter said
It’s one thing when a couple of players (Boykin, Landisch) leave the team who probably realized that they were never going to get many minutes. But Moore leaving after 2 years and tons of playing time? Seems to me that he saw the future and 10 wins (junior and senior years combined?) didn’t look very appealing.
We can get a kid every 5 years or so who can play anywhere (Robin, Dunston, Fontan). Problem is that unless you get a kid like that every other year, you’re not beating Xavier or Dayton in the A10 tourney. Listen, I want Fontan to stay for the obvious reasons, but what is Fordham Basketball offering him in its current state? An RPI of 292, and the chance to be double-teamed for the next 3 years? Thoughts?
Turtle said
Accountability…..Accountability is a great motivator. This is all about accountibility. The Fordham adminsitration (Father McShane et all) put no pressure on Frank McLaughlin who in turn puts no pressure on DW. This transcends athletics. This is a university wide problem. We have a group of leaders that balk at doing the right thing in lieu of doing the cheap thing! For example: The radio tower, the location of Walsh Library, and most recently, the cutting of full time faculty positions. This school has great faculty, decent fan support and a strong alumni base. We need to empty the cupboard of the expired food and go organic! Frank has been around since the PJ Carlesimo days. IT IS TIME FOR A CHANGE. Get rid of Jeff Gray and Father McShane also. Mediocrity is contagious.
Ram 91 said
Will the last player to leave the program please turn off the lights?