"Maybe expecting him to act like a professional will never be realized."
That incendiary remark about Geno Auriemma may tell us more about the commenter than about the coach. It also raises an interesting question: What, in the realm of coaching a college women's basketball team, does "professional" mean?
Obviously it doesn't refer to the classical definition of profession, which was limited to divinity, medicine, and law. Those three fields of endeavor have some fine members, along with a cast of ne'er-do-wells that have brought shame to their respective guilds. But that leaves us asking, "What's the difference between a profession and any paid occupation?"
Is it education? Membership in some sort of accrediting body? Honors bestowed by a self-perpetuating goup? Licensing by a local or state regulatory authority?
Let's see what the dictionaries have to offer for 'professional'.
Oxford-- adj. connected with a job that needs special training or skill, especially one that needs a high level of education.
noun. A person engaged in a specified activity, especially a sport or branch of the performing arts, as a main paid occupation rather than as a pastime.
Merriam-Webster-- adj. characterized by or conforming to the technical or ethical standards of a profession
noun. [This one is too self-referential to be of much use.]
one that is professional
especially : one that engages in a pursuit or activity professionally.
Well, all of that asks at least as many questions as it answers. Let's try another approach. What does a professional college coach do, or what is that coach supposed to do?
1- Recruit team members, ideally people with good potential to help the team.
2- Teach team members, individually and as a group, to
succeed in competition.
3- Plan for specific matches.
4- Prepare a team to execute game plans.
5- Adjust to "realities on the ground" during the course of games.
6- Be an effective spokesperson for the team one coaches, building and maintaining a loyal fan base.
7- (optional. Only for the more succesful practitioners.)
Be an effective spokesperson for the sport, attracting interest directly from potential fans, and indirectly through specialized media.
Of course there's a lot more to coaching, but the above may be a useful summary. Some coaches, certainly including the UConn wbb staff, give lots of attention to personal and academic growth as well as to basketball.
Now that we have some sort of baseline definition, we can get to the question a breathless few have been chomping at the bit to answer: Is Geno a professional?
Before answering, we might wish to take note of a few useful conditions:
A. A coach's professionalism is NOT determined by whether or not somebody likes their style.
B. Professional coaches may choose to fling garments such as jackets during games, but that is NOT a requirement. (The so-called Kim choice.)
C. Professionalism does NOT obligate a coach to forget the names of opponents's star players. (The Muffet exception.)
D. Professionals need not appear to be a merger of Kojak and a fire hydrant. (The Q condition.)
E. Banners. No, there is neither a prescription nor a proscription regarding banners.
F. Presentation style may range from pious (The Wooden manner) to down-home gibberish spewing (We hear you, Mr. Stengel.) to adorable/reprehensible snark. YMMV
G. Some professionals limit their recruiting to high school students; others start with elementary, pre-school, and even toddlers. (The fellow who wears plaid shirts rule.)
Ladies and Gennulmin, Start your engines...
