Talked to Cohen the other day

[OleMissAintHereAgain]

I have been meaning to get on here fora week or so to tell you guys this. I was up in Starkville a couple of weekends ago and decided to go to the field since I hadn't been back in a while. No one was there when I got there but Cohen pulled in about 5 minutes after I had been there. He showed me around the dugouts, field, and locker room to let me see all of the changes he had made since he has been there. Quite impressive by the way.

Anyway, we talked for over an hour about any and everything you could think of. We talked about steroids in baseball, the talent level of the team when he got there, and I asked him about how he treats the players. I have been hearing several rumors that people don't like Cohen because of the way he treats the players, cussing at the players, (insert reason here), etc... So I asked him about it. Here is what he told me. He told me that he will "run through a brick wall" for a player when he knows that player is giving everything he's got for him. Meaning that player is going all out for him and the team. The problem that he has is when a player is not giving him everything and he knows it and the player knows it. That is when he will get in a players face and let him know it. Guys, I respect that 100%. There is no one on this planet that wants to win more than Cohen. I can see it in his eyes and hear it in his voice. I hope this answers some of those crap rumors I have been hearing about. I will be gone for a little bit but I will try and get back on and answer any questions any of you have later on.

Oh and we will be back in Omaha before you know it. Book it. Now back to the endless talk of SEC football. I can't wait til Sept. 4th. I'm still holding firm with my 7-5 prediction.

Matthew Brinson

 

[OleMissAintHereAgain]

I have been meaning to get on here fora week or so to tell you guys this. I was up in Starkville a couple of weekends ago and decided to go to the field since I hadn't been back in a while. No one was there when I got there but Cohen pulled in about 5 minutes after I had been there. He showed me around the dugouts, field, and locker room to let me see all of the changes he had made since he has been there. Quite impressive by the way.

Anyway, we talked for over an hour about any and everything you could think of. We talked about steroids in baseball, the talent level of the team when he got there, and I asked him about how he treats the players. I have been hearing several rumors that people don't like Cohen because of the way he treats the players, cussing at the players, (insert reason here), etc... So I asked him about it. Here is what he told me. He told me that he will "run through a brick wall" for a player when he knows that player is giving everything he's got for him. Meaning that player is going all out for him and the team. The problem that he has is when a player is not giving him everything and he knows it and the player knows it. That is when he will get in a players face and let him know it. Guys, I respect that 100%. There is no one on this planet that wants to win more than Cohen. I can see it in his eyes and hear it in his voice. I hope this answers some of those crap rumors I have been hearing about. I will be gone for a little bit but I will try and get back on and answer any questions any of you have later on.

Oh and we will be back in Omaha before you know it. Book it. Now back to the endless talk of SEC football. I can't wait til Sept. 4th. I'm still holding firm with my 7-5 prediction.

Matthew Brinson

 

[OleMissAintHereAgain]

I have been meaning to get on here fora week or so to tell you guys this. I was up in Starkville a couple of weekends ago and decided to go to the field since I hadn't been back in a while. No one was there when I got there but Cohen pulled in about 5 minutes after I had been there. He showed me around the dugouts, field, and locker room to let me see all of the changes he had made since he has been there. Quite impressive by the way.

Anyway, we talked for over an hour about any and everything you could think of. We talked about steroids in baseball, the talent level of the team when he got there, and I asked him about how he treats the players. I have been hearing several rumors that people don't like Cohen because of the way he treats the players, cussing at the players, (insert reason here), etc... So I asked him about it. Here is what he told me. He told me that he will "run through a brick wall" for a player when he knows that player is giving everything he's got for him. Meaning that player is going all out for him and the team. The problem that he has is when a player is not giving him everything and he knows it and the player knows it. That is when he will get in a players face and let him know it. Guys, I respect that 100%. There is no one on this planet that wants to win more than Cohen. I can see it in his eyes and hear it in his voice. I hope this answers some of those crap rumors I have been hearing about. I will be gone for a little bit but I will try and get back on and answer any questions any of you have later on.

Oh and we will be back in Omaha before you know it. Book it. Now back to the endless talk of SEC football. I can't wait til Sept. 4th. I'm still holding firm with my 7-5 prediction.

Matthew Brinson

 

[Shmuley]

with a high school senior who signed with Cohen this summer. When this guy was a kid, he attended the cholk camps and was all in for cholk. You would think he would avoid cohen like the plague. But this kid and his parents were as high on cohen as could be imagined. Absolutely no negative talk about cohen at all. This kid was off the charts excited.

Sure made me feel better about the situation and cohen's image.

 

[DowntownDawg]

There is no one on this planet that wants to win more than Cohen. I can see it in his eyes and hear it in his voice.

He is serious about winning at State. I'm not saying that he is the best coach we could get or that he doesn't do things wrong, but he wants to win at State more than any other coach in any sport that I've seen. He loves State and he hates losing. I think if he can turn it around, we'll really have something with him.

 

[ArlngtnDawg]

The only problem I have with Cohen, and this may make me sound like an old douche, is that when I take my 6, 4 and 3 year olds to a game I don't want them to have to see the coach dropping f bombs or cussing out the players. If he really wants to do that, take them into the clubhouse and let them have it.

Clean up the in game language that fans can hear and I have no problem with him. My father in law who has been going to state games for probably 50 years didn't get season tickets this year because of the things he heard out of Cohen's mouth on the field last year.

 

[chew1095]

The only problem I have with Cohen, and this may make me sound like an old douche, is that when I take my 6, 4 and 3 year olds to a game I don't want them to have to see the coach dropping f bombs or cussing out the players. If he really wants to do that, take them into the clubhouse and let them have it.

Clean up the in game language that fans can hear and I have no problem with him. My father in law who has been going to state games for probably 50 years didn't get season tickets this year because of the things he heard out of Cohen's mouth on the field last year.

It does.

 

[NorthMsDawg]

The only problem I have with Cohen, and this may make me sound like an old douche, is that when I take my 6, 4 and 3 year olds to a game I don't want them to have to see the coach dropping f bombs or cussing out the players. If he really wants to do that, take them into the clubhouse and let them have it.

Clean up the in game language that fans can hear and I have no problem with him. My father in law who has been going to state games for probably 50 years didn't get season tickets this year because of the things he heard out of Cohen's mouth on the field last year.

It does.

SCOOOOOOOORRRE!!!!

Brinson, see you at the VA's this weekend???

 

[AlCoDog]

My father in law who has been going to state games for probably 50 years didn't get season tickets this year because of the things he heard out of Cohen's mouth on the field last year.

Couldn't he have just bought a walk-man and listened to Jim? I'm sure someone gladly took his place getting those tickets.

 

[patdog]

but for your father-in-law to just quit going to games because of it is ridiculous. He should just request a move to a different location if it upsets him that badly. Or maybe just not be quite so sensitive.

 

[8dog]

but it really doesn't put to bed any rumors about how the players feel about the way Cohen treats them.

 

[Shmuley]

"Couldn't he have just bought a walk-man and listened to Jim?"

He said his F-I-L had been going to games for 50 years. Would put the old Fer at 70+. No way he knows how to use a walkman.

[/DamnJapsKu]

 

[Coach34]

.

 

[ArlngtnDawg]

but for your father-in-law to just quit going to games because of it is ridiculous. He should just request a move to a different location if it upsets him that badly. Or maybe just not be quite so sensitive.

Actually he is doing what people should do. Don't just ***** and then continue with the status quo. He voiced his complaint and then backed that up with action.

And for the record my father in law is a preacher so yeah he is kind of sensitive to having his grand kids hear that kind of thing.

 

[maroonmania]

although I personally am not able to get to enough baseball games for this to be an issue to me you still should be able to bring your kids to a game or sit there yourself and not have to hear repeated vile language flying from the dugout. It should not be THAT big of an issue for Cohen to clean it up a little DURING the game when he knows he's in earshod of the fans. In fact, I would think this would be a responsibility of the athletic director to address with John because it does reflect on the university. Baseball is not like football where the fans and the team are well separated and there is so much noise fans can't really hear the coach scream anyway. Now during practices if he feels he needs to use that kind of language to get a player's attention then so be it. OR if he feels so strongly that it can't wait until practice then take the player into the tunnel and let him have it.

 

[patdog]

And if he really feels that strongly about it then he's got to do what he's got to do. But he could have easily gotten him and his grandkids out of earshot if he'd wanted to. Just because he has a moral aversion to swearing doesn't mean everyone else has to share that opinion.

 

[futaba.79]

Cohen should keep it the dugout.</p>

 

[ArlngtnDawg]

And if he really feels that strongly about it then he's got to do what he's got to do. But he could have easily gotten him and his grandkids out of earshot if he'd wanted to. Just because he has a moral aversion to swearing doesn't mean everyone else has to share that opinion.

I agree and he doesn't begrudge anyone willing to sit through the games. If he gets reports that Cohen has cleaned up his act I'm sure he will be back in the stands by SEC play (being a preacher has is advantages when you want tickets). He doesn't dislike Cohen as a coach he just isn't willing to sit and watch/listen to the verbal tirades during a game and I won't either just due to the kid factor. It doesn't bother me personally but I'm not going to put my kids in that position because I'd knock the crap out of anyone of them if they repeated what they heard Cohen saying.

 

[AlCoDog]

transistor with ear piece. He's obviously not hard of hearing something aloong these lines should work.

 

[VegasDawg13]

1) There are rumors players don't like the way they are treated by Cohen.

2) Cohentells youhe only yells at players when they deserve it.

3) You state that fact 2 should put an end to the rumors referred to in fact 1.

Is that what you're saying?

 

[AdamDawgDude]

I imagine that fielding an actual baseball team will cause Cohen to cut back on the profanity.

 

[MaxwellSmart]

for a lot of us, not just Cohen.

 

[AdamDawgDude]

for a lot of us, not just Cohen.

Amen.

 

[Dinkle]

The only problem I have with Cohen, and this may make me sound like an old douche, is that when I take my 6, 4 and 3 year olds to a game I don't want them to have to see the coach dropping f bombs or cussing out the players. If he really wants to do that, take them into the clubhouse and let them have it.

Clean up the in game language that fans can hear and I have no problem with him. My father in law who has been going to state games for probably 50 years didn't get season tickets this year because of the things he heard out of Cohen's mouth on the field last year.

So would you rather have a coach that pumped sunshine 24/7 and instead of saying 17 and **** he'd replace it with kid-friendly terms like rainbow and cookie

 

[MedDawg]

transistor with ear piece. He's obviously not hard of hearing something aloong these lines should work.

If we have another season like the last two, we might start hearingsome f-bombs coming from Jim Ellis, too.

 

[OMlawdog]

For some reason people like to defend Cohen's cursing like somehow the more he curses the more MSU will win, or better yet, the more he curses the more it proves he wants to win.

Im pretty sure no one would care if Cohen did pump sunshine 24/7 if MSU was winning, same goes with cursing.

I just don't understand why some posters are simply glad he is cursing because that shows he cares about winning, I think it shows that he simply likes to curse nothing more, nothing less.

If he throws up another stink bomb of a season, Im pretty sure all the curse words in the world won't make a difference in most people's opinion on the type of job he is doing.

 

[patdog]

he won't be the only one cursing at Dudy Noble Field. I'd prefer he not curse in front of the fans, but most of all I just want him to win some damn games. If he wins enough games, he can do pretty much whatever else he wants to.

 

[Todd4State]

What fans have to understand is this- what happens in the dugout stays in the dugout. It's not meant for them to hear. They're supposed to be paying attention to the game and not what's going on in the dugout. It's not their place to say what does and does not happen in the dugout unless they are a player, coach, or umpire. Cussing, which I don't particularly care for either by the way, goes on in dugouts a LOT. For all teams. If you think that this is a John Cohen only issue, you need to watch MLB Network and watch Tony LaRussa and Dusty Baker throw F-bombs at each other all night- in the dugout.

Not that cussing is right, but it's not the place of a fan to demand that a coach act a certain way. It goes back to the "holier than thou" attitude that I've talked about before. If you don't like cussing, don't do it yourself and see what happens. A lot of people do things in life everyday that I as a Christian don't like, but it's not my place to go around calling everyone out on it. I'd be willing to bet a million dollars that the people complaining have used a four letter word in their life to.

Furthermore, if he's cussing at guys because they aren't doing what they're supposed to do- which I saw an awful lot this year, to be quite frank, then I don't have a problem with it. It's a lot better than defending them by saying "That's baseball". Not saying that cussing is always the best way to handle or deal with players, but I also don't think it's right to tell someone how to do their job when you are not directly involved in the situation.

 

[Shmuley]

nm

 

[RonnyAtmosphere]

...I think by now it's apparent no MSU coach can live up to the high moral standards that the MSU fanbase demands.

 

[OleMissAintHereAgain]

Vegas dawg...my answer is yes and no. The rumors I heard were that some players didn't like the way they were being treated. i.e. being cursed at and yelled at. The players that I heard that from were Polk players who were NEVER yelled at. That was not his style. Now, if you don't think that 18-22 year old kids curse, you are smoking some serious stuff that you need to get off of. That is the only way some of these players will listen. Not all, but some.

Now, here's how i see it...Once all of Polk's players get out then none of this will be a problem. Cohen is bringing his type of players in (talented and very competitive). Those last few years with Polk, we did not bring in very much talent or competitive people. Cohen told me a story that some of you won't like. Here it is. Stephen Head was a huge MSU fan growing up and whileCohen was at Florida he tried to recruit him. Head told Cohen that he wanted to go to MSU and always has and will go if offered. Cohen then talked to Polk telling him that he is getting a good one in Stephen Head. Polk told him that he was not recruiting Head because he already had Brinson at first base. Me and Cohen both said the same thing after he told me that. I don't care if I was at first, put Head in the outfield and also have a dang good reliever too. Recruit talent period. How much better of a team could we have been with Head in our outfield those few years. That would have been unbelievably fun.

Also, winning will alleviate this as well. Imagine that you had a boss that was always nice to you and never got on you but your work had dropped wayyyy below par. That boss gets fired and the new boss comes in and jumps your butt because what you have been doing has not been successful. It is time for a change. You wouldn't like it either because you are used to your old boss being Mary Sunshine all the time. Not in today's world. In today's SEC baseball world, bad years=unemployment. Basically, he's not going to please everyone but as soon as we start winning, none of this will be a problem.

To close and sorry to be so long, I also agree with Todd4State's opinion.

 

[Bulldog Bruce]

Matthew gave a honest post about what seemed to be an honest conversation. I can appreciate that John talked that openly. Obviously he has not had the success he would like to have and all he can do is do it like he knows how to do it. So thanks Matthew for the commentary.

The "cussing" discussion is basically bull----. You can have all sorts of discussions about the psychology of that and the effects on players. It will always be some players can handle it and other players will not be able to. Some players perform better with a pat on the butt and others need a kick in the butt. I will say however, if you have aspirations of playing at the next level, you better get over it. As to effecting the fans, like Todd4State says, it has nothing to do with you so no comment is warranted.

 

[Coach34]

alot of the "problems" with players not liking Cohen is the realization by Polk's guys that they aren't very good. Many of them grew up their whole life as one of the best in their areas, but the higher level you go, the harder it is to compete. And Polk and Raffo simply made some very bad decisions here at the end.

Since 2003 or 2004 (Can't remember which)- we are last in the SEC with only 4 players drafted in the top 10 rounds. Mississippi is 1st with 23 guys. That is a huge disparity. That's like the difference in Bama and Vandy in football- yet people think we should be competing on the same level with them. Nobody expects Vandy to beat Bama in football.

When we get more talent on the field, there will be less cussing due to idiotic decisions and bad plays. When you are losing, people nitpick everything to get on you about, and this is just one of those things. Polk's guys graduating will make the situation much better.

Thanks for the info Matt

 

[AlCoDog]

nm

 

[ArlngtnDawg]

Here's a question for everyone who says his antics are fine.

If I were to get pissed off after an error costs us 2 runs and start dropping f bombs in the stands what do you think is going to happen to me? Why are my f bombs any different than his?

Cussing out players is fine, doing it in front of women and children is disrespectful, that's all I'm saying and this will be my last post because some people just aren't going to agree.

 

[patdog]

Because you're not on the field. The coaches and players are.

 

[Shmuley]

brings the subject of that conversation to multiple message boards without Cohen's blessing, so I look at the post as Cohen's attempt to rebut cholk's players'/families' ********.

Frankly, I'm ready to move on past this tiring **** and win some baseball games.

 

[Buford T. Justice]

Stephen Head's dad, Tony, works as an estimator atMid-State Construction (he did then, I assume he still does). I used to deal with Mid-State Construction a good bit, and when Stephen was a junior and senior at Hillcrest, he always told me that Stephen wanted to go to MSU.

 

[Roy Munson.sixpack]

you in the stands to him on the field, are you? Sheesh, thats your problem. Not saying it is right or wrong, but it goes on all day every single day. There are more curse words flung on a 4 down series in football than the entire game from cohen. Just so happens to be that you can hear cohen. You ever sat courtsideat an nba game or college for that matter? Same ****..oooppppssss

Not saying it is right but to compare you in the stands to "action" on the field just isnt the same.</p>

 

[patdog]

It's pretty safe to say that his opinion of Polk isn't too high. They tried to get Polk to recruit Stephen, but Polk wouldn't even talk to them. I'm glad things worked out well for Stephen because Tony's agood guy. I just with things could have worked out well for him at MSU instead of UM.