Stephanie Glance served as interim head coach for the women’s basketball team for the latter part of the 2008-2009 season and seemed to be a shoo-in for the head coach position next year.
However, now it looks as though Lee Fowler and crew are looking to take the team in a different direction. The Athletics Department can host as many pink football games as it wants and raise millions of dollars for her personal charity, but the best way to honor legendary late coach Kay Yow’s legacy is to honor her wishes.
Yow indicated that she wanted Glance to be her successor, even though it was not technically her choice. However, several media outlets and Yow’s brother have reported that Glance is no longer in the running for the position of head coach and that Fowler is looking to hire someone outside the University. This is not only poor recompense for everything Glance has done for the team, but a poor decision for the women’s basketball program.
I covered women’s basketball games several times this season, and Glance received supportive vouches from every coach questioned on the topic–from Carolina coach Sylvia Hatchell to Virginia’s Debbie Ryan.
If Glance is released, the entire coaching staff Yow assembled will leave as well. All three of Yow’s right-hand women, Jenny Palmateer, Kristen Gillespie and Trena Trice-Hill, completed successful careers under Yow. Yow created a family within the N.C. State organization, and half of the reason the players Yow signed came aboard is because of the much-heralded support system N.C. State had to offer.
If State brings in a new coach, that tradition will come to a screeching halt. I understand that Fowler wants the team to grow and progress instead of basking in Yow’s incredible legacy while toiling in statistical obscurity. But Glance could bring this team back to its former glory.
Glance has coached the N.C. State women alongside Yow for fifteen years. She knows this school, this program, and has earned the respect of the players currently on State’s roster. She has given a large portion of her life to this program. Why wouldn’t the job go to her?
As Fowler has not publicly stated his reasons for opting to go with an outside hire, we are left to guess his motives. Perhaps he thinks the program is stale and new blood is needed within the organization. Perhaps he was less than pleased with the team’s play during the end of the past season, while Glance was at the helm. Glance can not be faulted for the Pack’s early ousting from the ACC tournament. The Wolfpack players, as well as Glance, underwent a severe emotional shock after the death of their friend, guide and mentor, and the team performed quite well given the circumstances, defeating No. 17 Virginia and several other ACC opponents. If Fowler wants immediate results, hiring a brand new coach is a risky move. Plus, more upheaval probably isn’t what the doctor ordered for the current roster.
Look around the NCAA. Every successful coach was an assistant coach at one point. Glance lacks experience as a head coach, but how is she supposed to step into that role if she is not given a chance? Glance would provide a practically seamless transition for a team in turmoil, and she has earned that opportunity.
