Hamshire Fannett Basketball Program

[hfmom08]

True Blue you are right and I for one have asked the questions face to face and the reply was "we understand your concerns."

I also found out that administrators contracts renew(or not) in February and teachers/coaches renew(or not) in March.  Believe me I will be keeping an eye on all of these activities from school board elections to contract renewals.

CLT, to respond to your post, you are correct in most that you say also but saying that "it can be turned around if parents will get involved" is not correct because I know many parents who are involved from Little Dribblers/Youth Football/Little League Baseball and Soccer to placing their kids on select leagues and even wanting to volunteer to help coach at the middle school/high school and even during the summer.  Many parents are willing to give of themselves but when you're told you can't use your home facilities it makes it hard.  I know that some have resorted to using other schools and communities facilities just to try to help the kids stay active.

[Guest baseball25]

talent lackin HF, you have no Delords on the team. I mean when you have Silsbee,HJ, WOS in the district its always going to be tough, I mean Fannett struggles on the football field and basketball court, there out matched athletically.

[hfmom08]

baseball, it's about grooming, investing and spending time with the talent you do have.  Not pointing a finger at any one person because it takes a village to raise a child and that same village to produce an athlete.  The community needs to invest in the athletes, the program needs to groom the athletes and the parents have to be willing to spend/take the time,money and effort to help the athlete determine which sport is right for them and encourage them to pursue their dreams.

[Guest baseball25]

Well mom, I will say this they do need to put money into things and ETC, but you have to have talent too, They have some good talent coming up from middle school but if you don't have ATHLETES/basketball players that have knowledge of the game then you can't hang with silsbee,HJ, and WOS, you still have to have basketball players that are basketball savy and I have seen Fannett the last 2yrs, and Athletic wise they are down. I mean its just the truth, I am not being rude but years back when they had Delord and some other players they were a good basketball team, and you have no delords on the team rightnow, you got to HAVE BASKETBALL PLAYERS and athletes TO COMPETE.

[Guest speechless]

-the last time hf was successful in basketball was when that bald coach was here(his name slips my mind at the moment)

-everyone is reading too deep into this hf has always had a good LD program the drop off happens at high school
all you gotta do is go see what happens on a daily basis there and i mean what the athletes do when a sport is in season
go see what their typical day is like basketball gets no time in the gym
half the kids on the team are in one athletic period and half are in a different athletic period and go find out why it is set up thisway
then go on a game day and see if the basketball players are goingover their game plan for that night or if they are maxing out on weights or getting their 40 times instead

- its not real hard to figure out they have been down in talent but the talent is coming back but watch
theyll get passed by in high school

[Guest Coffee Black]

At some point all of these whining parents need to realize that the coaches and the administration are not fully to blame.
If you want better athletes/basketball players, it starts with the parents....

1. It's called GENETICS.  If you want better athletes, produce them!  Coaching can only do so much.

2. The kids need to play more than the 3 month basketball season.  This is true in any sport: baseball, golf, soccer, tennis, swimming, and so on.  There is no real commitment from the kids and PARENTS.

3. Fundamentals and skill development need to start young, in intermediate and elementary age children.  A "player" can not walk into a varsity level sport with terrible mechanics or no experience and be good.  Maybe Little Dribblers needs to focus on solid fundamentals. I've seen H-F play, some kids shoot from the hip, dribble with their eyes down, dribble only with the right hand, etc.  Those are all things that are "developed" at an early age and are extreamly hard to change in a highschool age kid. 

4. Some kids mature at different times.  Just because a little dribbler program is succesful does not guarantee that the same highschool age kids will be.

5. The bald coach was Keener by the way.  He left H-F and did quite well at Hitchcock.  The kids he had at H-F could shoot the lights out, jump out of the gym, basically they were talented.  Was he a good coach, the answer is yes.  Were his players talented, that answer is yes too.

6. To whom ever was griping about the non district schedule.  Maybe the H-F needs to schedule Yates, Lamar, The University of Texas, and then the Rockets to get ready for district.  Be realistic, H-F is trying to get a win.

7. The parents obviously don't like the current coach. Maybe they can get Bobby Knight to quit ESPN and coach at H-F and try to win.  The parents would probably gripe and whine then too.  His reply would be to bury him upside down so the parents can kiss his A$$!!!!

8. Some parents/posters need to quit threatening to move their kids to Kelly and instead support the school and their kids.

To sum things up.........Parents need to start supporting the kids and coaching staff.  H-F is not Kelly.  They can't recruit disgruntled parents children, so H-F plays with who they have.

[Bobcat1]

Everyone keeps talking about Little Dribblers programs...They used to teach fundamentals at a young age, but now it seems the trend is more about having ten different plays, only one kid scoring, and winning only. That's not teaching anything.

[AggiesAreWe]

[quote name="Fed up" post="755098" timestamp="1265304253"]
At some point all of these whining parents need to realize that the coaches and the administration are not fully to blame.
If you want better athletes/basketball players, it starts with the parents....

1. It's called GENETICS.  If you want better athletes, produce them!  Coaching can only do so much.

2. The kids need to play more than the 3 month basketball season.  This is true in any sport: baseball, golf, soccer, tennis, swimming, and so on.  There is no real commitment from the kids and PARENTS.

3. Fundamentals and skill development need to start young, in intermediate and elementary age children.  A "player" can not walk into a varsity level sport with terrible mechanics or no experience and be good.  Maybe Little Dribblers needs to focus on solid fundamentals. I've seen H-F play, some kids shoot from the hip, dribble with their eyes down, dribble only with the right hand, etc.  Those are all things that are "developed" at an early age and are extreamly hard to change in a highschool age kid. 

4. Some kids mature at different times.  Just because a little dribbler program is succesful does not guarantee that the same highschool age kids will be.

5. The bald coach was Keener by the way.  He left H-F and did quite well at Hitchcock.  The kids he had at H-F could shoot the lights out, jump out of the gym, basically they were talented.  Was he a good coach, the answer is yes.  Were his players talented, that answer is yes too.

6. To whom ever was griping about the non district schedule.  Maybe the H-F needs to schedule Yates, Lamar, The University of Texas, and then the Rockets to get ready for district.  Be realistic, H-F is trying to get a win.

7. The parents obviously don't like the current coach. Maybe they can get Bobby Knight to quit ESPN and coach at H-F and try to win.  The parents would probably gripe and whine then too.  His reply would be to bury him upside down so the parents can kiss his A$$!!!!

8. Some parents/posters need to quit threatening to move their kids to Kelly and instead support the school and their kids.

To sum things up.........Parents need to start supporting the kids and coaching staff.  H-F is not Kelly.  They can't recruit disgruntled parents children, so H-F plays with who they have.
[/quote]


Well said, Fed Up, well said!

[Go-rilla]

I will say that when I was in school (mid 90's) HF was good in everything.
Hope that they can get back to that.

[hfmom08]

Well Fed up you brought up a lot of points that have already been addressed and imo i dont think any parents are whining just trying to get to the bottom (or top) of the situation.  There is no dislike of the current coach and it has been stated that the blame doesnt lie in one place.  Also i havent seen anyone talking about moving their kids.  Yes there has been some suggestions made to that effect and some statements made that there are some HF kids that have moved to Kelly and of that i am not aware but i can say this...i have several athletic children of my own and i thank God that they have brains too.  Yes my kids have athletic abilities but it's not all we focus on because with all the ability in the world you still need academics and that's one of the reasons my kids are at HF.  It would just be nice to have the same athletic scholarships offered as you have for academics.  But that won't happen when you have loosing seasons.

[Guest baseball25]

lol give me a break lol, Come on now you got to be a great athlete to play Div 1 sports, you have to be a descent athlete to go play at any other level. Just be realistic, you have to be a hell of a player to go play at the div 1. Yes, academics means a ton, but if your not a great athlete your not going to get a good athletic schloar.

[bullets13]

I've seen HF play.  They're lacking in talent, athleticism, size, and poise.  There's no way they're going to compete with their undersized, underperforming team that is easily rattled and doesn't shoot well.  In order for them to compete, they're going to have to master the fundamentals of the game.  you can't teach size, but you can sure teach a proper jumpshot, or how to handle a full court press.  You can work on the things that you can control, like freethrows.  Without superior athletes, i doubt that HF will be playing for a district championship anytime soon, but they can certainly get more competitive.  There definitely needs to be a change of mindset in HF before it's going to happen, though.  

[hfmom08]

Well we'll see baseball25,  I've known some great athletes and I've known some decent ones and in both instances some have gone to D1 schools and some just to JCs but I've also known some great athletes who have gone on to become nothing because of poor academics too.  It's goes deeper than we need to go on this forum.

[BadMedicine]

[quote name="True Blue" post="755013" timestamp="1265295973"]
School board elections will be in May. So if you are realy wonting a change, when that person comes and knocks on your door, and asks for your vote, man up and ask them right there face to face. What is you stance with the program. Dont hide behind this sreen and wait for someone to do the dirty work.  If you wont to change anything it will only start at the top and work down
[/quote]

If I'm not mistaken, the HF school board elections are in November not May.

[ForeverADog]

It starts with the elementary school pe coach teaching the basics. None of these kids playing seem to have the fundamentals down. Then there is very little pride in any athletics at hf. I went to a pep rally last year and it was one of the most boring 45 minutes of my life. No school spirit! So if very few care as it strongly appears to be the case then no one will put in the hard work to be good. To be good you have to work hard before during and after practices and games!

[team first]

Genetics,,sure thats anywhere. The H. F. lit. Dribblers program ha been good for years..Problem? Kids have to keep working and progressing. Not sure how the H.S. program is set up..Ex. Bsketball kids with their coach when they should be, or all-sports and kids together in off-season? hard to get any better in any other place except the gym..3a Universal off-season is my bet. tough to win.

[BH85]

[quote name="Bobcat05" post="755100" timestamp="1265304651"]
Everyone keeps talking about Little Dribblers programs...They used to teach fundamentals at a young age, but now it seems the trend is more about having ten different plays, only one kid scoring, and winning only. That's not teaching anything.
[/quote]

I agree on this as I see players and team from many programs.  The teams may look better but the individual skills are not as good and many coaches focus more on winning and not correcting poor shooting form or dribbling form.  This really hurts the players as they get into Middle school and they have a bad habit that has developed for 5 or 6 years.  Don't get me wrong, there are still some very good coaches at the LD level in quite a few of the local programs, but the percentage of good ones seem to be going down in my opinion.

You also see this with some of the Select/AAU programs.  The teams that spend time on player development as well as tournaments tend to produce the players that are successfull as they get older.  Practice doesn't make perfect, but it does make permanent, so if kids are not being corrected then they will still be carrying the ball in high school and shooting from the hip.

[BadMedicine]

[quote name="team first" post="755165" timestamp="1265311879"]
Genetics,,sure thats anywhere. The H. F. lit. Dribblers program ha been good for years..Problem? Kids have to keep working and progressing. Not sure how the H.S. program is set up..Ex. Bsketball kids with their coach when they should be, or all-sports and kids together in off-season? hard to get any better in any other place except the gym..3a Universal off-season is my bet. tough to win.
[/quote]

Hamshire Fannett High School has produced teachers, doctors, nurses, lawyers, engineers, accountants and all other professions.  The most recent Texas Education Agency ratings (2008-09) are as follows:

Hamshire-Fannett - Exemplary
Bridge City - Recognized
Hardin Jefferson - Recognized
Orangefield - Recognized
Silsbee - Academically Accepted
WOS - Academically Unaccepted

They must be doing something right.

[hfmom08]

Thank you BadMedicine, 

Yes HF is definitely doing something right when it comes to academics but I don't think having a quality athletic program would hurt the academics program.  My kids have athletic abilities and still can keep up in the classroom and at test time and one has already graduated top 10 percent of his graduating HF class and is away in college on scholarships (academic scholarships that is) and participating in intramural sports while keeping his GPA high.  Did someone mention genetics?

[Kris_Gilmore]

Just out of curiosity how many D1 Athletes have come out of HF in all sports in the last 10 years?  Not that many.  I am a coach and people don't realize how talented you have to be in order to get an athletic scholarship.  I can think of 3 or 4, and D2, D3, and Junior colleges don't count.

What people don't understand is at the 3A level it sometimes takes more than being the District MVP or making it to the state meet in a particular sport in order to get an athletic scholarship.

[sleepy]

There are not many athletes that go D1 period besides football anywhere in 3a.  Period.  HF has had a run of bad athletes and I don't mean to offend anyone because my son will soon be a longhorn but it I watched HF play OF and if we cannot beat them then we should not be blaming anything on the coach!!!  We do not have the players these other schools have and that is just a simple fact.

[no-look]

Whats the enrollment at HF?

[whsalum]

[quote name="Kris_Gilmore" post="755331" timestamp="1265332507"]
Just out of curiosity how many D1 Athletes have come out of HF in all sports in the last 10 years?  Not that many.  I am a coach and people don't realize how talented you have to be in order to get an athletic scholarship.  I can think of 3 or 4, and D2, D3, and Junior colleges don't count.

What people don't understand is at the 3A level it sometimes takes more than being the District MVP or making it to the state meet in a particular sport in order to get an athletic scholarship.
[/quote]The only thing I disagree with in this statement is D2,D3 and JUCO don't count.You have to be a great player at the 3-a level to even get a look at these colleges.The only basketball player I can remember recently that even got a D1 look was Donahoe from HJ and he was state MVP.

[whsalum]

There seems to be a misconception on here about the power a school board member has in hiring a coach.Actually it's not as much as some of you think.A really good coach can turn a program in the right direction but ultimately it's up to the kids to get in the gym and put in the work to be successful.

[Kris_Gilmore]

The only reason I say they don't count because honestly if you do a little hard work a talented athlete could get on at one of these places.  They don't all give ATHLETIC scholarships...  How many of these kids that don't go D1 initially end up at a D1?  If they do end up at a D1, then it was probably an academic problem initially that kept them from going D1.  How many kids, besides drafted baseball players, want to go play D2, D3 or JC?

If they don't go D1, we all know that they have aspirations to end up at the D1 level.  The whole point about my post earlier was that kids and parents don't realize what it really takes to get an athletic scholarship.  They get a letter in the mail, and then you hear that kid a week later saying they are being recruited by Texas, USC, LSU....So, then every kid assumes that hey surely some of the smaller schools like Lamar or Sam Houston would give me a scholarship if he is getting looks from Texas.