Henderson County dismisses baseball Coach Nanthan Isenberg

[mcpapa]

The Isenberg Tapes. It just sounds scandalous.

 

I think that was a Robert Ludlum novel.

[Oldercoach]

They should have found another way for that kids sake. He is going to get a reputation for doing that, and I hate to think a parent put him up to that. Regardless, if he is a jerk or whether or not he deserves to be fired, this player should have people around him looking out for his best interest better than this. From now on, he'll be referred to as "the kid that set his coach up." Whether or not it was deserved, is irrelevant. Nobody will hear the details. They'll only know him by that.

 

Concur and what is really scary to me is the apparrent trend that technology is being used as tools to destroy careers. I am 71 years old and looking back may not have had, or coached along side, a single coach that did not say something that he regretted saying. We've probably all had the benefit of time to re-evaluate and take corrective steps ( and sometimes apologize) without the threat of technology creating a different outcome.

[spindoc]

Concur and what is really scary to me is the apparrent trend that technology is being used as tools to destroy careers. I am 71 years old and looking back may not have had, or coached along side, a single coach that did not say something that he regretted saying. We've probably all had the benefit of time to re-evaluate and take corrective steps ( and sometimes apologize) without the threat of technology creating a different outcome.

OR, technology won't let you get away with the bullying garbage you could get away with back in the good old days.

[Oldercoach]

OR, technology won't let you get away with the bullying garbage you could get away with back in the good old days.

 

Sorry! Was never a bully, and looking back I am very comfortable in saying that. But, sports performance requires the tolerance of pain that comes with pushing yourself past thresholds that some can't initially achieve on their own. That is where the language issue is often breached by many coaches. Most coaches are just doing their best to help their players achieve levels of performance they rarely even know they are capable. Taken out of context of more than just an isolated utterance, technology probably would have cut the careers short of many great coaches (with John Wooden being one of the very rare exceptions).

[Baseballinmyblood]

Imagine of Bobby Knight coaching during this era, or even Adolph Rupp.

[woodsrider]

They should have found another way for that kids sake. He is going to get a reputation for doing that, and I hate to think a parent put him up to that. Regardless, if he is a jerk or whether or not he deserves to be fired, this player should have people around him looking out for his best interest better than this. From now on, he'll be referred to as "the kid that set his coach up." Whether or not it was deserved, is irrelevant. Nobody will hear the details. They'll only know him by that.

I've heard he's lost at least one offer because of it. That came from a kid I know that was on the team in 2016.

[Baseballinmyblood]

I can't imagine any college coach looking serious at him if they are aware of this. I wouldn't be surprised if his parents put him up to it, but unfortunately it'll fall on him. When you look at good programs over a period of time they all have a "family" atmosphere. There won't be a serious coach interested in this job because that atmosphere is not reachable with that kid still on the team. What happens when a new coach gets hired and this family doesn't like how he is doing things? The coach will know he either plays him or he will be looking over his shoulder the whole time waiting on the other shoe to drop. Kids won't trust him either.

[woodsrider]

I can't imagine any college coach looking serious at him if they are aware of this. I wouldn't be surprised if his parents put him up to it, but unfortunately it'll fall on him. When you look at good programs over a period of time they all have a "family" atmosphere. There won't be a serious coach interested in this job because that atmosphere is not reachable with that kid still on the team. What happens when a new coach gets hired and this family doesn't like how he is doing things? The coach will know he either plays him or he will be looking over his shoulder the whole time waiting on the other shoe to drop. Kids won't trust him either.

For the record the kid in question was one of the best on the team

[Baseballinmyblood]

That probably makes it worse from a team standpoint.

[woodsrider]

That probably makes it worse from a team standpoint.

The team was divided as far as feelings on Isenberg. There are a lot of players, past and present, that do not like him. I'm sure that can be said of just about every coach in every sport.

 

For me, my biggest and really only issue with him was pressuring the kids to not play other sports if they wanted to play baseball. It's inexcusable and because of that alone I'm glad he's gone. If the next does the same I hope they send him packing as well. If any of the other coaches does the same they should be shown the door. It should not be tolerated.

[Baseballinmyblood]

Even the ones that did like him won't trust that kid anymore. He'll either quit or they will have a down year.

[cols]

All the kids liked the freshman coach that was fired that's why over half the team had the pic on Facebook. They will be just as good as they where going to be which is just ok right around .500.

[Emmitt]

500 - Team was 24-14 this year, lost in the region to the winner and return with 7 seniors and 8 juniors and one of the best sophomores in the region, a veteran team who will be one of if not the regional favorite. Yea, it would have been nice to a few if the kid and his Dad could have ousted Isenberg and got the Uncle installed as the new coach with this veteran group coming back. They succeeded in getting Isenberg fired BUT the uncle will not be the new coach.

Edited October 17, 2017 by bugatti

[Baseballinmyblood]

Sounds like a situation every good coach wants to go to. They will end up with having to roll the dice on an assistant coach looking for a head coaching job. I can't imagine a veteran coach going there after this, unless they've been fired from somewhere else.

[Baseballinmyblood]

That seems to happen a lot. A kid gets his feelings hurt, his mom can't stand to see him upset, or maybe he isn't playing as much or playing the position he wants, or even if it was more serious. This is what you came up with? Lol. Why couldn't they meet with the administrators, lay out their case, and let them decide. That would have given the administration a chance for due process and talk to other players to see if this was an isolated incident, or if happened everyday. Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of coaches that have no business coaching baseball at any level. Usually they do themselves in somehow. I can just imagine them sitting around the dinner table cooking up this scheme. Lol. I hate it for the kid because he has that attached to him now. I think maybe he should have gotten better advice from the grown ups around him.