Football, Basketball coaches earn the most, and LAcrosse Coaches in Maryland are well-compensated
By Alexander Muldrow
College baseball coaches are used to standing in the shadow of bigger-name coaches on their campus.
“Unless you’re a Power Five school it's a really good chance that you’ll fly under the radar and not have the same opportunities offered to you while at a mid-level university,” said Matt Tyner, the manager of Towson University's baseball team.
The Power Five schools in Division I include the Atlantic Coast Conference, Big Ten Conference, Big 12 Conference, Pac-12 Conference and the Southeastern Conference. Most coaches in the state of Maryland do not have the luxury of making the large sums of money that those in the Power Five can receive.
It's no surprise that, on average, coaches at University of Maryland, College Park (a Big Ten member) make more money than coaches at any other university in the state of Maryland on a sport-by-sport basis. An analysis of public salary data found that the average salary for a coach at Maryland is $505,588 per year (this analysis includes coaches from every sport that its competitor Towson University offers).
The average salary for all coaches at Maryland's public universities is $134,649. Without College Park -- which includes the million-dollar salaries paid to its football and basketball coaches -- the average annual coaching salary in the state of Maryland is $69,639, which almost cuts the average coaching salary in half.
“Unless you’re a Power Five school it's a really good chance that you’ll fly under the radar and not have the same opportunities offered to you while at a mid-level university,” said Matt Tyner, the manager of Towson University's baseball team.
The Power Five schools in Division I include the Atlantic Coast Conference, Big Ten Conference, Big 12 Conference, Pac-12 Conference and the Southeastern Conference. Most coaches in the state of Maryland do not have the luxury of making the large sums of money that those in the Power Five can receive.
It's no surprise that, on average, coaches at University of Maryland, College Park (a Big Ten member) make more money than coaches at any other university in the state of Maryland on a sport-by-sport basis. An analysis of public salary data found that the average salary for a coach at Maryland is $505,588 per year (this analysis includes coaches from every sport that its competitor Towson University offers).
The average salary for all coaches at Maryland's public universities is $134,649. Without College Park -- which includes the million-dollar salaries paid to its football and basketball coaches -- the average annual coaching salary in the state of Maryland is $69,639, which almost cuts the average coaching salary in half.
The lowest-paying school in regards to college athletics is University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES). Currently, UMES pays their coaches an average salary of $49,615 per year.
As far as gender is concerned, male coaches continue to make more money than female coaches in the state of Maryland.
Men also coach the majority of the collegiate teams regardless of whether it is a men’s or women’s sports team. Out of the 117 coaches in this data analysis, 88 are men and 29 are women. There are 33 men coaching women's sports in comparison to the 29 women coaching overall, and there are only three women coaching men’s sports. The women coaching men’s sports are in cross country, track and field, and tennis, which are co-ed teams where the coach oversees all athletes regardless of gender.
According to Tyner, it is very difficult to achieve pay equality in coaching because certain sports can simply generate far more money than others.
“Because of the revenue that football and basketball are able to produce for their university it is a very difficult task to place all sports as well as genders on a level playing field,” Tyner explained. “To put us all on a level playing field, I don’t know if that is ever going to happen.”
According to Tyner, it is very difficult to achieve pay equality in coaching because certain sports can simply generate far more money than others.
“Because of the revenue that football and basketball are able to produce for their university it is a very difficult task to place all sports as well as genders on a level playing field,” Tyner explained. “To put us all on a level playing field, I don’t know if that is ever going to happen.”
Men’s lacrosse is the third highest-paying men’s sport in the state of Maryland. Matt Hamilton, a staff writer for US Lacrosse Magazine, says the high salary for lacrosse coaches can be attributed to the popularity of the sport in the state of Maryland. He even went as far as to say Maryland may be the most popular state for lacrosse in the country.
“I definitely think the popularity of lacrosse here in Maryland plays a significant factor on the amount of money a coach makes,” said Hamilton. “Lacrosse coaches definitely benefit from the attention that they get in Maryland. If you’re coaching college in a hotbed, you’re gonna get more fans, draw more people. And the more success you have obviously will translate to more money.”
Hamilton also explained that there are ways for people in field of lacrosse to make money, and that includes both coaches as well as players.
“Lacrosse is a very tight-knit community where the biggest names are very accessible,” said Hamilton. “The players, once they graduate from college, they’re are a lot of them who are able to make a living off of camps based off their name alone in the community.”
Baseball programs pay surprisingly low, and rank fourth for annual salary for coaches in the state of Maryland. Tyner said he was not surprised that baseball places forth, behind football, basketball and lacrosse. When he began his college coaching career in 1993, Tyner was originally caught off guard when he found out about the salaries of baseball coaches.
“A close friend of mine said, ‘are you ready to take the sworn oath of poverty?’… I laughed at it at first because I was under the impression that we were all relatively equal. But when I got deeper and deeper into college sports I understood the disparity between different sports,” Tyner said.
Here are the highest paid men's sports and the differences in pay between them.
“I definitely think the popularity of lacrosse here in Maryland plays a significant factor on the amount of money a coach makes,” said Hamilton. “Lacrosse coaches definitely benefit from the attention that they get in Maryland. If you’re coaching college in a hotbed, you’re gonna get more fans, draw more people. And the more success you have obviously will translate to more money.”
Hamilton also explained that there are ways for people in field of lacrosse to make money, and that includes both coaches as well as players.
“Lacrosse is a very tight-knit community where the biggest names are very accessible,” said Hamilton. “The players, once they graduate from college, they’re are a lot of them who are able to make a living off of camps based off their name alone in the community.”
Baseball programs pay surprisingly low, and rank fourth for annual salary for coaches in the state of Maryland. Tyner said he was not surprised that baseball places forth, behind football, basketball and lacrosse. When he began his college coaching career in 1993, Tyner was originally caught off guard when he found out about the salaries of baseball coaches.
“A close friend of mine said, ‘are you ready to take the sworn oath of poverty?’… I laughed at it at first because I was under the impression that we were all relatively equal. But when I got deeper and deeper into college sports I understood the disparity between different sports,” Tyner said.
Here are the highest paid men's sports and the differences in pay between them.
Here are some overall data on the average annual salaries for collegiate coaches on the sport-by-sport basis in the state if Maryland. Gymnastics (average annual salary of $81,500), men’s soccer (average salary of $56,000), men’s tennis (average salary of $38,000), and women’s golf (lowest average salary of $28,000) have been excluded from the chart do to small sample sizes in the because the majority of public universities in the Maryland do not have teams of in that sport.
TOwson Athletes are mostly from near, but a few are from far
By Phil Marshall
Source: Towson University Athletics
Nicole Shakhnazarova made it to Towson University and onto the women’s tennis team based on pure talent. Coach Jamie Peterson found her highlights on YouTube and brought her to the United States from London after Shakhnazarova had sent Peterson an email to see if Towson had interest in recruiting her.
This is a common practice in women's tennis as many recruits come from overseas, according to Peterson. “I get two or three emails a day from international players looking to come here to play,” Peterson said. “I also like to have a team that is diverse in culture.”
In the spring of 2015 Shakhnazarova started playing tennis at Towson. She is far from the lone international player. The Towson tennis team consist of nine players, four of whom are from abroad. That is the highest rate for any Towson sport, according to an analysis of rosters. Towson has 13 international players from eight different countries, led by Canada with five. International players also come from Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, Slovakia, Spain, Thailand and Ukraine.
Shakhnazarova said that being recruited is a huge deal because of the opportunities.
“International players don’t have the opportunity to go to school and play sports at the same time,” she said. “America welcomes the opportunity, which brings in more players at higher international rates.”
Towson University’s 385 athletes included in this analysis are mainly from the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic region. They come from 28 different states. This is a very diverse group for a school that has a population of more than 20,000 students.
The sports teams with the highest stare of Maryland residents are the men’s and women’s lacrosse teams. For the men’s team, 28/52 are from Maryland and 18/31 women are from in state. The men’s basketball team has the lowest ratio of Maryland athletes among men's teams with 5/13 and women’s golf among women's teams with 1/7.
“Maryland athletes are the most common in lacrosse because of the in-state tuition that is offered,” said Brian Hemming, Towson's director of lacrosse operations. “On average we give out 12.8 scholarships a year per team which allows others to utilize in-state tuition.”
Lacrosse is a growing sport that roughly 70 Division I schools participate in nationwide. Of the 70, five major programs are in Maryland.
“Maryland is one of the hotbeds of lacrosse in the country,” Hemming said. “Towson, Johns Hopkins, University of Maryland- Baltimore County, University of Maryland and Loyola have primarily Maryland-born players because schools have the ability to recruit them locally.”
With that comes intense competition between five local schools that are located within an hour of each other. Scouts are sent out to local high schools in Maryland to recruit players, according to Hemming.
“Maryland athletes are the most common in lacrosse because of the in-state tuition that is offered,” said Brian Hemming, Towson's director of lacrosse operations. “On average we give out 12.8 scholarships a year per team which allows others to utilize in-state tuition.”
Lacrosse is a growing sport that roughly 70 Division I schools participate in nationwide. Of the 70, five major programs are in Maryland.
“Maryland is one of the hotbeds of lacrosse in the country,” Hemming said. “Towson, Johns Hopkins, University of Maryland- Baltimore County, University of Maryland and Loyola have primarily Maryland-born players because schools have the ability to recruit them locally.”
With that comes intense competition between five local schools that are located within an hour of each other. Scouts are sent out to local high schools in Maryland to recruit players, according to Hemming.
Source: Towson University Athletics
Aside from lacrosse, other Towson University sport teams did not have the same high rate of Maryland residents.
Maryland residents are a total of 38 percent of the Towson University athlete population. The Pacific Northwest was not represented when determining where all Towson athletes are from. Of the 28 states represented, most were from the eastern half of the United States. Some of the top states where athletes are from are Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Virginia.
For instance, the football team consists of 68 players and 44 out of them are from Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia.
Maryland residents are a total of 38 percent of the Towson University athlete population. The Pacific Northwest was not represented when determining where all Towson athletes are from. Of the 28 states represented, most were from the eastern half of the United States. Some of the top states where athletes are from are Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Virginia.
For instance, the football team consists of 68 players and 44 out of them are from Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia.
Towson Athletes most often come from Public High Schools
By: Nicole Damico
Jay Sanford, a junior at Towson University, attended Pope John High School, a private high school in Sparta, New Jersey. Sanford has been on the Towson University baseball team for three years -- and in his third year he is on a team that is roughly split between athletes who went to public and private high schools.
At Towson, he is in the minority -- most athletes (71 percent) came from public high schools, according to an analysis of rosters on TU's athletic website. The analysis shows that private school athletes were largely male. And sports that one might expect to be overwhelmingly made of private school athletes -- like lacrosse and women's tennis -- are largely split down the middle.
Amanda Pratt, a junior Towson University gymnast, went to a public high school. Pratt said as far as she knew, “none of my teammates went to a private high school. The private high school in my are was small, so any of the gymnasts I competed with went to public college or university.”
As a gymnast, going to a private or public school and competing on the high school’s team did not make the athletes compete differently, but the private school athletes usually had better equipment and training facilities. Pratt also felt that many of the private school athletes that she has known from her small town or that she has met in college were usually better because of the better facilities and equipment they were given.
As a gymnast, going to a private or public school and competing on the high school’s team did not make the athletes compete differently, but the private school athletes usually had better equipment and training facilities. Pratt also felt that many of the private school athletes that she has known from her small town or that she has met in college were usually better because of the better facilities and equipment they were given.
Anthony Pool, a former private high school baseball coach, said that “most private school athletes will chose smaller schools because they have a better chance of playing there, as well as feeling more comfortable at a smaller school due to the size of their high school.” Because Towson is a public school, it is more likely that a public high school athlete will attend.
Sports like football, soccer and softball have among the largest ratios of public to private high school players. The only sport that had a large split with more private school athletes was golf, with many of the sports athletes coming from IMG Academy.
Both Sanford an Pratt are from the most popular states that bring in athletes to Towson University -- With Sanford being from New Jersey and Pratt being from Pennsylvania, the two athletes are a part of the 383 student athletes from the top five states that are represented in Towson sports. Of these states Pratt matches the findings of being an athlete from Pennsylvania who came from a public school, while Sanford is a part of the smaller grouping of athletes from New Jersey who attended a private school.
in choosing a major, Towson athletes debunk jock stereotypes
By Shaylin Best
On the field, Keon Paye is fully committed as a linebacker for Towson University's football team.
On days when he does not have a game, football is still on his mind. Between practices, meetings, traveling and lifts, Paye trades his shoulder pads for a backpack. He is a sport management major and a business minor.
When he arrived at Towson in 2015, he knew what he wanted to study.
“I chose sport management because sport is basically what I grew up around and I wanted to pursue that interest,” Paye said. “The decision was not by the athletic department, my advisors, coaches, or anybody else besides myself."
College athletes are often stereotyped as jocks whose academic interests pale in comparison to their interest in playing sports. Stories abound of athletes majoring in general studies, physical education or other programs designed to allow athletes to stay eligible without having to do much work. But an analysis of Towson athletes' majors, based upon data provided by the athletic department, shows that TU athletes are far from that stereotype.
At Towson, sport management is the most common major of athletes. Business administration, psychology, exercise science and communication studies are also among the most popular. Among the least popular majors for athletes are geography, political science, pre-athletic training and education.
Elysa Newman, director for athletic academic achievement at Towson, said Towson athletes have autonomy in deciding their field of study. She said that personal interest and family are the most influential factors when athletes pick their majors.
“For athletes, you’ll often find that they choose something to do with sports – like sport management or exercise science -- because that is what they like and it is human nature to surround themselves with sports,” Newman said. “Business is also popular because some see it as a catch-all and they think they’ll definitely get a job with that degree when they leave...With athletes whose parent are teachers or in law enforcement, you’ll sometimes find them studying education or criminal justice."
On the field, Keon Paye is fully committed as a linebacker for Towson University's football team.
On days when he does not have a game, football is still on his mind. Between practices, meetings, traveling and lifts, Paye trades his shoulder pads for a backpack. He is a sport management major and a business minor.
When he arrived at Towson in 2015, he knew what he wanted to study.
“I chose sport management because sport is basically what I grew up around and I wanted to pursue that interest,” Paye said. “The decision was not by the athletic department, my advisors, coaches, or anybody else besides myself."
College athletes are often stereotyped as jocks whose academic interests pale in comparison to their interest in playing sports. Stories abound of athletes majoring in general studies, physical education or other programs designed to allow athletes to stay eligible without having to do much work. But an analysis of Towson athletes' majors, based upon data provided by the athletic department, shows that TU athletes are far from that stereotype.
At Towson, sport management is the most common major of athletes. Business administration, psychology, exercise science and communication studies are also among the most popular. Among the least popular majors for athletes are geography, political science, pre-athletic training and education.
Elysa Newman, director for athletic academic achievement at Towson, said Towson athletes have autonomy in deciding their field of study. She said that personal interest and family are the most influential factors when athletes pick their majors.
“For athletes, you’ll often find that they choose something to do with sports – like sport management or exercise science -- because that is what they like and it is human nature to surround themselves with sports,” Newman said. “Business is also popular because some see it as a catch-all and they think they’ll definitely get a job with that degree when they leave...With athletes whose parent are teachers or in law enforcement, you’ll sometimes find them studying education or criminal justice."
Sport Management is the Most Popular Major For Towson University Student-Athletes
The largest share of athletes -- roughly 30 percent -- are in the College of Health Professions. The College of Business and Economics is second at nearly 23 percent.
“There are stereotypes [about student-athletes]," Newman said. “However, I wholeheartedly disagree with them. I think it’s a generalization. Working in this field for 12 years, I have seen that you can’t judge an entire team on a few individuals that might have their priorities skewed... there are many athletes who are motivated academically and high achieving and unfortunately, they do not get the same recognition.”
“There are stereotypes [about student-athletes]," Newman said. “However, I wholeheartedly disagree with them. I think it’s a generalization. Working in this field for 12 years, I have seen that you can’t judge an entire team on a few individuals that might have their priorities skewed... there are many athletes who are motivated academically and high achieving and unfortunately, they do not get the same recognition.”
Most Towson Student-Athletes Are in the College of Health Professions
The most popular majors for athletes who play in the fall are exercise science, communication studies and business administration. For Winter athletes, they are sport management, business administration, pre-business administration and exercise science. For spring athletes, the most common are sport management, psychology, exercise science and communication studies.
All the top majors for the fall, winter and spring respectively are on the list of most popular majors across all Towson athletes.
All the top majors for the fall, winter and spring respectively are on the list of most popular majors across all Towson athletes.
Most Popular Majors in the Fall, Winter, and Spring
Football is a popular sport during the fall at Towson. According to records from the Towson University Athletic Department, the most popular majors among football players in 2017 were sport management, communication studies, and sociology and anthropology.
Women’s indoor track is a winter sport at Towson University. The team’s most popular majors in 2017 were exercise science, sociology and anthropology, and psychology.
Men’s lacrosse is a Spring sport at Towson. Athletic Department records indicate that the most popular majors among players are pre-business administration, sport management and business administration.
Women’s indoor track is a winter sport at Towson University. The team’s most popular majors in 2017 were exercise science, sociology and anthropology, and psychology.
Men’s lacrosse is a Spring sport at Towson. Athletic Department records indicate that the most popular majors among players are pre-business administration, sport management and business administration.
Top Three Majors for Football, Women's Indoor Track and Men's Lacrosse
Towson offers 83 majors to undergraduate students. Student-athletes are enrolled in 64 out of those 83 majors. That equates to roughly 77 percent.
When asked whether being an athlete impacts academic performance, Paye stated that it does. “We have to take the same classes as other students, but it’s not that simple. We have the same classes that everyone studies for, but we have less time to do everything because of traveling, practices, games, etc..Sometimes we have to miss classes for games. Being a student-athlete requires a lot of extra time and hard work but we get it done."
When asked whether being an athlete impacts academic performance, Paye stated that it does. “We have to take the same classes as other students, but it’s not that simple. We have the same classes that everyone studies for, but we have less time to do everything because of traveling, practices, games, etc..Sometimes we have to miss classes for games. Being a student-athlete requires a lot of extra time and hard work but we get it done."
Towson Student-Athletes Study 64 of the 83 Majors Offered
Towson athletes study a wide variety of different majors. Their busy schedules do not deter them from balancing school and sport. “Being in a culture where people value the academic piece as well plays a big role,” said Newman.
In '17-'18, Small ball worked in the CAA
By Will Villatoro
On the basketball court, Eddie Keith II moves the ball, rebounds, blocks shots and has the versatility Towson men’s basketball coach Pat Skerry desires.
The graduating senior, a 6-foot-5 guard, is a moving chest piece for Towson. Last season he spent most of his time playing point guard, while this season he took on a bigger role playing power forward.
“I played the four because we didn’t have depth at first,” Keith said. “I played point guard last year. I played a little smaller so we can play smaller, faster and punch more.”
Skerry strategically uses Keith to create mismatches for opponents. Keith’s frame doesn’t resemble a prototypical guard or forward; he uses his unique skill set to over-shadow his physical deficiencies.
“He’s not a guy you can put in the box -- he’s versatile,” Skerry said. “People get caught up in positions a lot. We talk about getting good players out on the floor who can help us win ball games."
That’s the formula for Towson and many other basketball teams in the modern era.
Skerry often plays four guards at the same time and a has forward playing small, power or center. The team doesn’t have any centers listed on the roster, and that has become a trend in the Colonial Athletic Association. Many teams are going with smaller lineups and for a few it has worked out.
The CAA this season saw the shortest team win the conference tournament, when the College of Charleston beat Northeastern in March for a bid to the NCAA tournament. The Conference also witnessed James Madison University, the tallest team, finish dead last with six conference wins and 10 overall.
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Towson has the tallest guards in the conference with an average height of 6’4, and its forwards are in the middle of the pack at five with an average of 6’8. It’s the reason why Skerry is comfortable enough to play more than two guards or forwards at the same time.
“I would like to think we have the ability to play a little bit of both ways," Skerry said. “It's why you want to be deep.”
Towson has depth at both the guard and forward position, but this season it fell victim to their smallest opponent, the University of North Carolina – Wilmington.
UNCW used the smallest rotation out of any team Towson faced. The Seahawks had both smaller guards and forwards than Towson. The tallest guard starting for UNCW with a height of 6’3 was the shortest starting guard Towson had on the floor. Comparing both rotations, Towson had the advantage by two inches overall.
Towson’s next opponent would fall doom to what Towson faced the week prior.
William and Mary used a rotation with an average length of 6 foot 7. The Tigers in comparison used a smaller line up of more than an inch. Rarely is Towson out lengthened at the guard position, but William and Mary had close to an inch of an advantage.
Also, Towson played against two forwards who are taller than anyone on their roster. They faced a 6’10 Nathan Knight and 6’11 Cole Harrison. Towson used the small-ball concept to win the game, 96-82. This is nothing new to Keith, his role this season gave him matchups like this every so often.
“I played against guys bigger than me all season, maybe on the offensive end they would put a guard on me because I was a mismatch on the offensive end,” Keith said.
“I would like to think we have the ability to play a little bit of both ways," Skerry said. “It's why you want to be deep.”
Towson has depth at both the guard and forward position, but this season it fell victim to their smallest opponent, the University of North Carolina – Wilmington.
UNCW used the smallest rotation out of any team Towson faced. The Seahawks had both smaller guards and forwards than Towson. The tallest guard starting for UNCW with a height of 6’3 was the shortest starting guard Towson had on the floor. Comparing both rotations, Towson had the advantage by two inches overall.
Towson’s next opponent would fall doom to what Towson faced the week prior.
William and Mary used a rotation with an average length of 6 foot 7. The Tigers in comparison used a smaller line up of more than an inch. Rarely is Towson out lengthened at the guard position, but William and Mary had close to an inch of an advantage.
Also, Towson played against two forwards who are taller than anyone on their roster. They faced a 6’10 Nathan Knight and 6’11 Cole Harrison. Towson used the small-ball concept to win the game, 96-82. This is nothing new to Keith, his role this season gave him matchups like this every so often.
“I played against guys bigger than me all season, maybe on the offensive end they would put a guard on me because I was a mismatch on the offensive end,” Keith said.
Towson this season played its best basketball when facing a taller opponent. The Tigers defeated William and Mary twice and had a win against Charleston, who had less than half an inch advantage.
In the three games against William and Mary, Towson was always the shorter opponent. Towson won the first two meetings, but on the third meeting, the Tribe went with a smaller rotation then its previous two and that generated a win.
Coaches often like sticking to their preseason eight- or nine-man rotation, but when you face an opponent who presents a certain challenge, adjustments have to be made.
“If you’re playing against a William and Mary type of team, who shoots a lot of threes and very perimeter oriented, you sometimes have to play smaller because of match ups,” Skerry said.
On the opposite end, Towson played with a heavier rotation 13 times this year, that gave them a record of 5-8. Towson often used two rotations of the four during that stretch of 13 games. The rotation comprised of guards Keith, Zane Martin, Brain Starr, Mike Morsell, Deshaun Morman and Jordan McNeil. Towson’s forwards were Alex Thomas, Justin Gorham and Dennis Tunstall. That rotation gave the team an average height of 6’5, which usually works to their favor, but teams decided going small, resulting in defeat.
The second most often used line up in that stretch was also Towson’s second tallest rotation. It consisted a rotation of guards Keith, Martin, Starr, Morsell and McNeil. Towson’s forwards were Thomas, Gorham and Tunstall.
In the three games against William and Mary, Towson was always the shorter opponent. Towson won the first two meetings, but on the third meeting, the Tribe went with a smaller rotation then its previous two and that generated a win.
Coaches often like sticking to their preseason eight- or nine-man rotation, but when you face an opponent who presents a certain challenge, adjustments have to be made.
“If you’re playing against a William and Mary type of team, who shoots a lot of threes and very perimeter oriented, you sometimes have to play smaller because of match ups,” Skerry said.
On the opposite end, Towson played with a heavier rotation 13 times this year, that gave them a record of 5-8. Towson often used two rotations of the four during that stretch of 13 games. The rotation comprised of guards Keith, Zane Martin, Brain Starr, Mike Morsell, Deshaun Morman and Jordan McNeil. Towson’s forwards were Alex Thomas, Justin Gorham and Dennis Tunstall. That rotation gave the team an average height of 6’5, which usually works to their favor, but teams decided going small, resulting in defeat.
The second most often used line up in that stretch was also Towson’s second tallest rotation. It consisted a rotation of guards Keith, Martin, Starr, Morsell and McNeil. Towson’s forwards were Thomas, Gorham and Tunstall.
Thomas is the tallest player on the team and there are times when the starting forward runs in to mismatches. According to Keith, Thomas has never played center before.
Typically, one would assume it’s easier for taller player to score buckets, but that’s not the case in the CAA.
The league’s leading scorer plays for Hofstra University. The guard is only 6’1, but scores a league-leading 24.4 points per contest. The tallest guard in the conference stands at 6’7 and scores 14.7 points per game, ranking him 14th in scoring. The shortest guard in the top 50 in points is a 5’9 guard from Drexel University.
When it comes to forwards, the four tallest players at the position with measurements of 6’11 are not present in the top 50 scoring list.
Typically, one would assume it’s easier for taller player to score buckets, but that’s not the case in the CAA.
The league’s leading scorer plays for Hofstra University. The guard is only 6’1, but scores a league-leading 24.4 points per contest. The tallest guard in the conference stands at 6’7 and scores 14.7 points per game, ranking him 14th in scoring. The shortest guard in the top 50 in points is a 5’9 guard from Drexel University.
When it comes to forwards, the four tallest players at the position with measurements of 6’11 are not present in the top 50 scoring list.
Most would assume the tallest players are the ones who lead the conference in rebounds.
The CAA’s leading rebounder is a 6’7 forward from UNCW, Devontae Cacok. The Seahawk averages 13.5 rebounds per game. While, the shortest guy on the list ranks 6th on the list with 7.5 rebounds a game with a height of 6’1.
The CAA’s leading rebounder is a 6’7 forward from UNCW, Devontae Cacok. The Seahawk averages 13.5 rebounds per game. While, the shortest guy on the list ranks 6th on the list with 7.5 rebounds a game with a height of 6’1.
Based on the data, height does not guarantee rebounds or points. The game has transitioned to favor players with skillsets that outweigh height. Fortunately Towson is well balanced in terms of height. It doesn’t hurt the team that it has the tallest guards, it gives them more options to space the floor and help out their fellow forwards.
Charleston is living proof that height doesn’t always translate into wins, let alone championships.
Charleston is living proof that height doesn’t always translate into wins, let alone championships.