I see a lot of topics on what could be done to improve the game. A lot of them call for the Fox Company or Seble to make changes to the game. We also have all learned that changes are, um, few and far between, let's say (and I'm not sure that's a bad thing). The real question is, what can we as players do to improve the game? I have a short list, I'm sure others have more/better ideas.

1. Recruit more coaches. Word of mouth, internet sites, whatever, we need more coaches trying the game. I know a recent post said go to college basketball sites for schools like Syracuse and post there. I wonder though, do we really need more players who are going to want to get to their favorite DI school, realize it is going to take a long time to do so, and therefore end up quitting. I think in a perfect world, we actually need guys who are fans of certain DII and DIII schools (think mfnmyers at Dickenson). Don't get me wrong, any coaches would be great, but I would think we have a better retention rate with guys whose favorite team in real life is a DII or DIII school (no data to back that up, just guessing). How do we reach those people? Well, like I said above, that is for better minds than mine to figure out.

2. Treat new coaches like gold. When you see a new coach, reach out to them. Heck, if you see a veteran coach who is struggling, reach out to them. Help them be successful as soon as possible (within the rules of the game of course, I'm not saying to collude during recruiting or anything like that). Make sure they know about the forums and all the great information that can be found there.

3. Okay, this one will never fly, but we could theoretically take care of firings ourselves. We would need to come up with a group of requirements for Big 6 schools (I figure only Big 6 schools), probably based off of baseline prestige (the better the baseline prestige the higher the requirements to keep the job) and maybe 5 year contracts. If you meet the requirements, you get another 5 year contract. If not, a person or two in each world would have the job of keeping track of contract years and checking all Big 6 jobs to see who should be fired. They would then be asked to either change jobs at the start of the job process or not renew and wait until after the job process, when they could take any job they wanted. Again, I know this is unrealistic as some coaches simply wouldn't listen and wouldn't fire themselves and we'd never be able to agree on minimum requirements to keep jobs, but it was one out of the box idea that we theoretically could implement.

I like reading the "whatif" whatif did this topics, but as a few people have said recently, they are just purely debate because we can't make those changes. I think if we start to think about what we can do, we could make positive changes to the game. Now, do we care enough about the game to do Fox's job for them, I'm not sure? But we do have some options.

hahaha number 3 would be the best/worst thing ever to happen to HD, i already have a list... although i think 8 seasons would be a good cushion for big 6 jobs if you show improvement, 5 if your players just suck anyways.

would people be accepting of sitemails as new or just weak coaches? im afraid to offend people by sending sitemails offering help, but there are too many people that dont seek help and arent good.

Posted by the0nlyis on 3/1/2016 9:30:00 PM (view original):
hahaha number 3 would be the best/worst thing ever to happen to HD, i already have a list... although i think 8 seasons would be a good cushion for big 6 jobs if you show improvement, 5 if your players just suck anyways.

would people be accepting of sitemails as new or just weak coaches? im afraid to offend people by sending sitemails offering help, but there are too many people that dont seek help and arent good.

Probably going to open myself up to a barrage of "you suck" emails but.. , I welcome constructive criticism..

OK.. No one is going to leave an A+ baseline prestige school because someone asks them to. It's not going to happen.

i think you mean borderline harrasment,, not "asking"

Posted by hughesjr on 3/1/2016 10:18:00 PM (view original):
OK.. No one is going to leave an A+ baseline prestige school because someone asks them to. It's not going to happen.

If you're coaching an A+ baseline school, chances are you're good enough to stay. I think the solution is more geared towards the guys on the lower end of the big 6 spectrum--the guys that have been there for 15+ seasons at these B, B+, even A- schools and only have a handful of postseason appearances to show for it.

well there are a lot of high baseline jobs that people dont deserve, but i was thinking more towards those b+ area schools.

Don't let the craziness of suggestion #3 detract from the importance of very good common sense suggestions #1 and #2.

Yeah, the firing system need to be independant and managed by WIS. I think we need to recruit and try and attrack more coaches. Second, when someone tries to play this game, help him out, encourage him, give him tips, make sure he understands how the game is all about. Because it takes time to learn. I have been here for a year and a half, and I still haven't won a NT. I am finally finding the way I want to play but there are many ways to play this game.

Posted by piman314 on 3/1/2016 9:14:00 PM (view original):
I see a lot of topics on what could be done to improve the game. A lot of them call for the Fox Company or Seble to make changes to the game. We also have all learned that changes are, um, few and far between, let's say (and I'm not sure that's a bad thing). The real question is, what can we as players do to improve the game? I have a short list, I'm sure others have more/better ideas.

1. Recruit more coaches. Word of mouth, internet sites, whatever, we need more coaches trying the game. I know a recent post said go to college basketball sites for schools like Syracuse and post there. I wonder though, do we really need more players who are going to want to get to their favorite DI school, realize it is going to take a long time to do so, and therefore end up quitting. I think in a perfect world, we actually need guys who are fans of certain DII and DIII schools (think mfnmyers at Dickenson). Don't get me wrong, any coaches would be great, but I would think we have a better retention rate with guys whose favorite team in real life is a DII or DIII school (no data to back that up, just guessing). How do we reach those people? Well, like I said above, that is for better minds than mine to figure out.

2. Treat new coaches like gold. When you see a new coach, reach out to them. Heck, if you see a veteran coach who is struggling, reach out to them. Help them be successful as soon as possible (within the rules of the game of course, I'm not saying to collude during recruiting or anything like that). Make sure they know about the forums and all the great information that can be found there.

3. Okay, this one will never fly, but we could theoretically take care of firings ourselves. We would need to come up with a group of requirements for Big 6 schools (I figure only Big 6 schools), probably based off of baseline prestige (the better the baseline prestige the higher the requirements to keep the job) and maybe 5 year contracts. If you meet the requirements, you get another 5 year contract. If not, a person or two in each world would have the job of keeping track of contract years and checking all Big 6 jobs to see who should be fired. They would then be asked to either change jobs at the start of the job process or not renew and wait until after the job process, when they could take any job they wanted. Again, I know this is unrealistic as some coaches simply wouldn't listen and wouldn't fire themselves and we'd never be able to agree on minimum requirements to keep jobs, but it was one out of the box idea that we theoretically could implement.

I like reading the "whatif" whatif did this topics, but as a few people have said recently, they are just purely debate because we can't make those changes. I think if we start to think about what we can do, we could make positive changes to the game. Now, do we care enough about the game to do Fox's job for them, I'm not sure? But we do have some options.

I'm going to start a whatifsports series on my youtube once I get my game capture. I'll promote whatifsports through that series. I'll probably have it next season. in Allen

Posted by zorzii on 3/2/2016 8:25:00 AM (view original):
Yeah, the firing system need to be independant and managed by WIS. I think we need to recruit and try and attrack more coaches. Second, when someone tries to play this game, help him out, encourage him, give him tips, make sure he understands how the game is all about. Because it takes time to learn. I have been here for a year and a half, and I still haven't won a NT. I am finally finding the way I want to play but there are many ways to play this game.

You guys are way more welcoming than my last game who always critcize me and didn't bother to help me at all. I had to find 2 mentors my self.

Posted by the0nlyis on 3/1/2016 9:30:00 PM (view original):
hahaha number 3 would be the best/worst thing ever to happen to HD, i already have a list... although i think 8 seasons would be a good cushion for big 6 jobs if you show improvement, 5 if your players just suck anyways.

would people be accepting of sitemails as new or just weak coaches? im afraid to offend people by sending sitemails offering help, but there are too many people that dont seek help and arent good.

I have literally BEGGED for help from the top coaches of the game since I am very mediocre and cannot advance past that stage after two attempts at Big 6 conferences. Some coaches give me very nebulous advice, which is not very much help...if you don't understand, then nebulous answers CANNOT be of help (though I have always appreciated the fact that they responded). A lot of the coaches would NOT respond at all. The person that I consider the most knowledgeable told me he did not have the time to help me....though I can become a (high) mediocre in an empty SIM conference by employing some of his techniques that I have read on the forums from this particular coach (...and I read everything he posts). I have been unable to understand the game well enough to advance beyond a B- at a Big 6 conference. Personally, I think a lot of the top coaches have a system that they had the time (and made the effort) to learn and they keep a tight reign on what information they share so that they remain at the top. There is nothing particularly wrong with that, I suppose. However, in real life coaches are always mentoring others and freely share their knowledge to others. I have been personally frustrated that I have been unable to find a mentor to get me to that next level.....and frankly, I am resigned to the fact that I will always be a mediocre coach in this game unless my head blows up with knowledge like the purple heads in the TV commercials. Still, I enjoy the game.......

smack, why don't you post more questions on the forums? there are a lot of coaches who are willing to share quite a bit of information, who are not of that mindset you refer to, of keeping a tight hold on it. there is little i hold back in my answers. i think, not positive, but i think you once asked me to mentor you, and i think i turned you down. its a commitment that i take seriously, and don't really have time for. even sitemails are a bit like homework, if you don't get to it right away then its like an obligation - where as the forums, there is no such thing. so, over the years, i've switched to spending most of my question-answering time here on the forums. plus, many questions, more than one person has, anyway.

i would recommend you make an effort to look past the sometimes toxic nature of the forums and pose questions more often. there are a lot of really good coaches who answer questions on the forums, you won't always get one great answer, but sometimes, you'll get several. just have to take what you can get, i suppose. you can also start a "looking for a mentor" thread, you'll most likely get several solid offers from that. im not sure what you struggle with, if its making the most of your team, or recruiting, or what, but you can also start a "why is this team underperforming" thread and usually those get pretty good answers, either about what is wrong with the current setup, or what is missing on the team that is holding you back, that you don't realize is as important as it is, or whatever. a couple conversations like that can really go a long way.

I'll help...

I've been around a year, so I'm a lot newer than most of you, and I wasn't around when "the game was better." I saw Gillispie's post about the diminishing numbers and was concerned; I have become obsessed with this game very quickly and don't want to see it go away. So has my brother, who I got into it. Word of mouth seems to be the best way. I have mentioned the game to a handful of my friends and they seemed curious.

As someone said in Gillispie's post (I don't remember who), even if people are unsure in the beginning, they usually get addicted once they start playing. So the second question: How can we keep the new coaches engaged? Because when you're losing and clueless, paying as much as we do for the game seems ridiculous.

Those of you who are still in college, can you put up flyers on bulletin boards in your dorms and student unions? That could be a good way to reach large groups of college sports enthusiasts. You get a few people that way, they might tell their roommates or classmates or fraternity brothers (and sorority sisters). I'm sure all of these ideas have been mentioned before, as they seem obvious, but these are the things that come to mind for me.

I'll also help make a Facebook page or promote a Facebook page. That's free advertising. I know everyone seems to think Seble needs to fix a lot of things. And maybe that true. But I think we can all agree this is the best game of this sort on the Internet.

And I'll help anyone who has questions.