2025-2026 Season

[gfhockey]

Chavez really rolled up his sleeves on this hire

[bystandingparent]

1 hour ago, GoodGood said:

You’re a players parent but yet you say “I can’t imagine what was being said to them in the locker room, bus, and plane.”  I don’t know, maybe ask your daughter?? 

I raised my daughters to handle their issues with their coaches directly. All I have been told is "you don't want to know what is being said"...

[GoodGood]

4 minutes ago, bystandingparent said:

I raised my daughters to handle their issues with their coaches directly. All I have been told is "you don't want to know what is being said"...

I find it hard to believe it would be as toxic as you describe but no details are shared. You do you though!! 

[Oxbow6]

5 minutes ago, GoodGood said:

I find it hard to believe it would be as toxic as you describe but no details are shared. You do you though!! 

 

[Siouxperman8]

4 hours ago, bystandingparent said:

I won't leave anyone guessing here...I am a parent of an athlete from this past year's UND Women's basketball team. We have experienced a LOT of basketball over the years following our daughters through their basketball careers. We have been apart of many different coaching regimes over these years; from early grade school, middle school, JV, varsity, AAU and college. We have invested a pile of money, miles, hotels and time in basketball and are due our two cents among the arm chair professionals and psychiatrists. Sorry, this just needs to be said.

This past year was not at all fun to be apart of! Of course, everyone wants to be part of a winning team. It's not easy for the athletes or us parents. We as parents want our daughters to give it their all for the sport they love. Believe me, these young ladies want to give everything they have also. Many have weight trained, managed diets and practiced shooting/moves in the off season. They rigorously practice and compete hard for their positions...as they should. We may have been missing some talent/skill this year, but we were definitely not lacking work ethic or determination! These ladies have dedicated years of their lives to basketball and genuinely love(d) the game. However, they ended this season; belittled, discouraged, broken and defeated. Could you see it throughout the last game at the Summit League Tournament??? You should have, it was evident they were beaten before they hit the court. It was a summation of a season that reached its low point unfortunately. We all expected and deserved better from this team and its leadership.

For those rushing to defend this coach, you are likely doing so without understanding what many of these players actually experienced this season. What people see during games is only a small glimpse. If you paid close attention to the sidelines and truly listened to what was being said to these players, you might begin to understand the problem here. I can't imagine what was being said to them in the locker room, bus and plane. You don't treat "family" like that, at least we don't in ours. You don't argue with and belittle your assistant coaching staff in front of the players. Lying, frustration, humiliation and manipulation are not successful coaching technics. Some of these ladies have now expressed their hatred for basketball and everything it represents. That should concern anyone who cares about the UND Women's basketball program.

Coaching should be about teaching the game, developing skills, exploiting strengths and weaknesses, building confidence and helping athletes grow both on, and off the court. A good coach will scout his players talents/skills and exploit them to the team's benefit, not take the player out of the role they're good at.  A good coach should be tough and demanding, but honest and respectful towards his staff and players. Talking about "family" and living living family are two completely different things. Shouldn't a person in this position take responsibility for their actions, or lack there of? Should he continually blame it on lack of player D1 skills for their loses? Or, assistant coaches for not having the expertise to work on defense or offense? You are the head coach, you are the one who is ultimately accountable. The lack of skill here is largely at the top. We were out coached soo many times, it was obvious and embarrassing These ladies deserved better!

Chaves was made aware of this by some of the parents and only lame apologies where offered up. For anyone who truly cares about UND and this once proud program let's start out all new. A nationwide search for a QUALIFIED D1 coach should be the only logical solution. This program deserves and is capable of being better. There is another Aaron Johnston or Jory Collins out there, and Grand Forks has just as much to offer a coach and his/her family.

On a bright note, our daughter is receiving a world class education and that shouldn't be over shadowed here. In the end, that's what is most important.

 

 

 

 

 

It's usually easy to discount complaints from parents but this is well written and raises a lot of troubling concerns.  It also seems to fit with what we saw on the court.   I'm sorry your daughter is experiencing this and we should expect better. 

There are a lot of over the top parents out there but this sounds legitimate to me.  Anybody that's played or had kids play at any level has seen some terrible coaches.  Hopefully Chaves will get to the bottom of it and is willing to move on from Hutter if needed.  

[bystandingparent]

Believe me I'm not here to burn down this program.  Or, throw baseless accusations around here. I want nothing more than for this program to succeed and rise again. UND and Grand Forks are the best of the best. It's a hard working, proud, prosperous, safe community that deserves to have top notch collegiate teams, ALL around. It is good for the surrounding communities as well.

I've heard there are friends of this coach on here, one being an AD from one of the Grand Forks high schools. That's all fine, but don't you want to see this program thrive and compete in the Summit and beyond??? WE SURE DO!

This program is at a crossroads here. Do we stay the course and have yet another train wreck season or two? Or, do we cut ties, move on and start totally fresh with a D1 competent coach and possibly SOAR?!

[Kab]

Not up to parents or fans, if there are problems the AD and president need to handle it 

people choose sides which can only hurt the program because soon too many accusations are thrown around which looks like it’s happening now 

aren't there exit interviews with players, does the AD see these ?

I’ve been in these situations in business and its ultimately up to the head person to make decisions 

[bystandingparent]

21 minutes ago, Kab said:

Not up to parents or fans, if there are problems the AD and president need to handle it 

people choose sides which can only hurt the program because soon too many accusations are thrown around which looks like it’s happening now 

aren't there exit interviews with players, does the AD see these ?

I’ve been in these situations in business and its ultimately up to the head person to make decisions 

I have run a few businesses of my own and understand all too well the chain of command and decision making. The decision ultimately comes down to the head of the company to make. I'm not suggesting anything other. However...customer feedback weighs heavily on those decisions a successful company makes. 

[Kab]

2 minutes ago, bystandingparent said:

I have run a few businesses of my own and understand all too well the chain of command and decision making. The decision ultimately comes down to the head of the company to make. I'm not suggesting anything other. However...customer feedback weighs heavily on those decisions a successful company makes. 

That’s why I asked about exit interviews 

[SiouxFan100]

Sad state of affairs. No end in sight.

Ugh

[undwbbdeservesbetter]

1 hour ago, Kab said:

That’s why I asked about exit interviews 

the AD isnt involved in an exit interview

[undwbbdeservesbetter]

3 hours ago, GoodGood said:

I find it hard to believe it would be as toxic as you describe but no details are shared. You do you though!! 

if your in the know its actually more toxic mysoginistic verbally and mentally abusive than they describe, i stand firmly on my former comment that 2 3 assistant coaches will not be with this team by next season, if you were any type of human at all you couldnt sit and watch the toxicity without saying to yourself this isnt right i cant support this anymore

[Long Snapper 92]

Way too many current players & parents in this thread to actually know what is what. Obviously they’re going to be pissed after the season they just had. Think the truth is probably being stretched quite a bit. 
 

As they say, winning solves everything. 

[tnt]

50 minutes ago, Long Snapper 92 said:

Way too many current players & parents in this thread to actually know what is what. Obviously they’re going to be pissed after the season they just had. Think the truth is probably being stretched quite a bit. 
 

As they say, winning solves everything. 

Exactly.  I don’t know what to believe when I hear parents.  When I hear “they should be treated like family”, does that mean not raising your voice when people need to be held accountable?   I also cringe when I hear a parent say the players aren’t being used with their talents.  Where have I heard that before?
  Maybe it is the talent level on the team that is the issue, and the coaching staff will ultimately be held accountable for that.  Using a message board to make changes is hardly optimal, and if things are as bad as people say and the AD isn’t addressing it, then maybe the media is the way to go.

[fightingsioux4life]

23 minutes ago, tnt said:

Exactly.  I don’t know what to believe when I hear parents.  When I hear “they should be treated like family”, does that mean not raising your voice when people need to be held accountable?   I also cringe when I hear a parent say the players aren’t being used with their talents.  Where have I heard that before?
  Maybe it is the talent level on the team that is the issue, and the coaching staff will ultimately be held accountable for that.  Using a message board to make changes is hardly optimal, and if things are as bad as people say and the AD isn’t addressing it, then maybe the media is the way to go.

To be fair, Sutter is the one that introduced the concept of the team being a "family".

[tnt]

14 minutes ago, fightingsioux4life said:

To be fair, Sutter is the one that introduced the concept of the team being a "family".

True, and Dane Jackson and Eric Schmidt say the same, but I guarantee you, they don’t treat their players with kid gloves when they aren’t performing or doing the things they’re supposed to be doing. 

[Kab]

Listened to an interview with Mr. Wonderful, 

when he does an interview to hire someone if they bring a parent with to an interview the interview  is over.  He said he is hiring the person he is interviewing and not their parent.  He wants no input from a parent.

[fightingsioux4life]

9 minutes ago, tnt said:

True, and Dane Jackson and Eric Schmidt say the same, but I guarantee you, they don’t treat their players with kid gloves when they aren’t performing or doing the things they’re supposed to be doing. 

I wasn't implying that. I just think if a coach proclaims his team as a "family", people are going to hold him to that. And there are certain lines you never cross with your players. A parent is claiming that is what's happening behind closed doors. Whether or not he is doing that is what we are debating here.

[sioux24/7]

1 minute ago, Kab said:

Listened to an interview with Mr. Wonderful, 

when he does an interview to hire someone if they bring a parent with to an interview the interview  is over.  He said he is hiring the person he is interviewing and not their parent.  He wants no input from a parent.

Why would someone interviewing for a job bring their parent with to the interview? I get that with NIL, college athletes can be treated more like professionals but I don’t think that’s the case for our women’s program. I am not saying their parents should be involved with the coaches constantly *cough* Schiller *cough* but they should certainly be part of the process of where their kid should be going to school. 

[EternalOptimist]

The way I look at it is - no matter what is true or not, an AD should have a eyes on the situation and ears open on any new hires.  The AD should be in communication with others close to the program. Maybe not the players (but maybe), but he should be touching base with assistants, large donors, others that have contact with the head coach.  The AD is the top of that chain and should make sure the hire is working out. The AD should be able to weed out parents complaints that are "parent" problems, but should also have an understanding of the culture - especially of a new hire.  

 

[Kab]

18 minutes ago, sioux24/7 said:

Why would someone interviewing for a job bring their parent with to the interview? I get that with NIL, college athletes can be treated more like professionals but I don’t think that’s the case for our women’s program. I am not saying their parents should be involved with the coaches constantly *cough* Schiller *cough* but they should certainly be part of the process of where their kid should be going to school. 

I don’t know why they would bring a parent, just saying what he passed along

I've seen many parents try get involved with coaches 

‘let the AD handle this if he thinks it needs to be addressed 

[forksandspoons]

17 hours ago, gfhockey said:

Chavez really rolled up his sleeves on this hire

Soon he will need to elevate an assistant for the third time in a row for WBB. Give the guy a break - that’s not easy! He’s constantly analyzing the landscape of intercollegiate athletics and is the only AD in the Dakotas who has to deal with cold weather, the portal, NIL, etc. 

[gfhockey]

1 minute ago, forksandspoons said:

Soon he will need to elevate an assistant for the third time in a row for WBB. Give the guy a break - that’s not easy! He’s constantly analyzing the landscape of intercollegiate athletics and is the only AD in the Dakotas who has to deal with cold weather, the portal, NIL, etc. 

Covid too per source 

[undwbbdeservesbetter]

36 minutes ago, Kab said:

I don’t know why they would bring a parent, just saying what he passed along

I've seen many parents try get involved with coaches 

‘let the AD handle this if he thinks it needs to be addressed 

of course he doesnt think it needs to be addressed he was a coached hired on an interim low budget annual basis with no long term contract and low budget assistants with little d1 experiance to pay, hiring a new coach and new assistants with extensive d1 experience would likely cost a half a million more annually than what hes currently paying now, if the AD can ride this storm out for another year or 2 without serious pressure to replace him he can save that million to million and a half for hockey and football... the AD doesnt care that much about womens sports hes looking at the 1.5 million trade off that hes obviously willing to take right now... its not about whats doing right for players involved its about the money he can save

[jdub27]

12 hours ago, undwbbdeservesbetter said:

the AD isnt involved in an exit interview

Coaches have their own end of season meeting with the AD.
I believe the AD does talk to members of the team, though which ones and how it is done I'm not sure.

Whether or not it was the right hire (valid reasons for both sides of the decision), I think the other sports are all in a spot where WBB will be focused on. Don't know the details of the coach's current contract but barring something completely out of bounds, he will likely get next year and possibly the year after to fix things (part of which he was involved in, part of which he inherited).