"Amy coached me as a beginner at the club level. Honest, direct, positive and provides focused feedback. Her in-gym fitness workouts were (are) legendary! Any athlete at any level would benefit from Amy's coaching!"
"Stephen loves the sport. He cares about the women. He is not strategic or playing to win. His communication with athletes and parents needs improvement. He is a nice person."
"Has admitted to lying to team in communication. This behavior would lead to immediate termination in a corporate job -- however he is still in place. Team is run by favoritism and not performance -- as a result the team does not perform to actual ability. I never thought this would be allowed at a power 5 D1 college team -- however I have since learned that lying and intimidation is acceptable. The opportunity to have a tremendous program is there with both facilities and athlete. Something needs to change and it starts with Clemson's athletic administration. Does not set a good example for student athletes -- the athletes deserve better. "
"Overall, terrible team culture created. many constantly injured— not many cared about unless you are Jamaican or running consistently fast. Bad and last minute communication, good guy one on one; very business oriented. but as an athlete under program, can prove difficult."
"It’s time for Ted to be promoted to head coach and Stephen should be fired. Every problem that comes from the coaching staff starts with Stephen. The program will never make it to ncaa’s with him as the head coach. "
"It is time for Clemson Rowing to have a new coach. The environment he creates is absolutely terrible, and he dehumanizes his athletes. On a team with girls that really do care about their academics and the sport, it is never good enough for him. Stephen constantly reminds the team that they are not doing enough and are not working hard enough, when it is him that is the issue. There will be team guidelines for hitting standard and being able to race, but then he decides to pick and choose who has to follow those guidelines. Stephen acts like the girls are robots and doesn't allow for them to be humans. It is quite sad the amount of girls who get told lies during recruitment, then come to Clemson and see the truth of things. I understand that this is a division one sport, and there has to be hard work, but there is a fine line between being a hard/fair coach, and outright being a terrible coach. When girls who are great at the sport and love rowing are quitting the time one after another, it is time to really focus on the main person who is the problem. "
"He continues to expect things to change, while not making any changes. He is entirely unfair in his approach to coaching and refuses to listen to anything his rowers tell him. He does not respect that these are COLLEGE athletes by not putting academics first. He also does not seem to understand that people can grow and develop their skills, one test and that is all you are for your entire college rowing career. When everyone on the entire team thinks what you are doing is wrong, how can you expect to create a good environment? It's time he either step down or take a long look at the way he coaches, because it is extremely ineffective to the point of being detrimental to the rowers mental, emotional, and physical well-being."
"Coach has been nothing but supportive towards all athletes. She is knowledgeable in the sport and knows how to coach towards people’s strengths. Is is able to coach her boats to be some of the best in the nation. When I was going through a mental block with edging she was able to coach me through it. She has made me a better rower and a Better person. Everyone in our shell house loves getting coached by Coach Amy, you won’t be able to find one person in our program with negative things to say. "
"Coach Swinney is the best coach in college football, and it’s not even close (respectfully). His resume on the field speaks for itself, but that pales in comparison to the man he is off the field. He is more interested in your development as a man rather than how great of a player you are. He treats the last walk on the same as the “star player”. "
"Means well ultimately but can definitely come off as condescending, brash, and not understanding at all. He definitely needs to consider what he says vs. how he acts. Transparency and honesty could be improved significantly. No one ever knows what he's thinking besides him, though he expects otherwise."
"Sexist, brings you down instead of building you up, always makes inappropriate comments. Has told us not to dress like whores. Plays favorites. Terrible character, very sneaky. I was told by administration directly that he doesn't have many strikes left before he's gone. Argues with the other coaches. He had no respect for coaches or players. "
"One of the best coaches I had in my soccer career. He pushes you to be the best version of yourself, in all facets of your life. Sometimes hard to approach, just based on his demeanor and serious approach to the job. But, at the same time, always has your best interest in mind and is exceptional at his job. "
"Coach Swinney is a great coach. He demands the best from his players. He holds us to a high standard. He is incredibly detailed in installing his program values. There's no one else I'd rather play for. "
"Coach Bakich is a very detail oriented and intense young coach. Brings it each day and will fight for his guys. He makes every attempt to gain the knowledge necessary to make the best baseball players. "
"SFW took over my senior year. Terrible transition and way to end my rowing career of 8 years. No respect for team traditions. Got the sense he was embarrassed by our performance, and thought making the team feel bad about losses was a way to motivate. Relationship with alumni is pitiful. Rowing is a family, insulting to forget about us once we left"
"Though he is knowledgeable about rowing, he doesn't know how to communicate that to the team as a whole. One on one he does a better job of connecting. I personally don't find his leadership or coaching styles to be motivational, so thankfully we have 4 other coaches to go to for that."
"Stephen is incredibly knowledgable. That's about all he has going for him. He pushed out the classes that he didn't recruit. He had zero control of his team. The team lost all trust in him in 6 months, that has to be a record. He cannot effectively communicate in any way and he would boat favorites as long as they met the minimum standards. Awful."
"Has an odd sense of humor that can come sometimes come across as derogatory. He wants to see his team succeed but I'm not too sure he knows how to create a successful team.
Not someone I was able to form a close relationship with. "
"When I took my official visit, Stephen seemed like a really cool and outgoing coach with a passion for speed and a heart exploding with positivity. Quickly after arriving my freshman year, I was heartbroken to learn he's the complete opposite of all those qualities and have added manipulative dictator to the list. I now hate rowing because of him."
"He's making improvements from last year and really trying to bring everyone together as a team. He's focusing on making us better by also making himself better."
"Coach Stephen has made a lot of efforts to connect more with the team over the years.
He struggles with large groups and communication, but one-on-one he is more personable. He respects most the team members who are most committed. He tries to be motivational but there is such a divide within the team that it doesn't usually work."
"Stephen is not cut out to be a head coach. He will be a different face on your official but then once you commit and join the team he's completely different. He says every year he is going to change but you dont see any change in him. I dont know why Clemson has kept him around, our team has gone downhill since he has arrived. "
"He knows a lot about the sport, but does not know how to teach it. His coaching style does not make sense because he punishes people by not letting them do their sport. I do not understand how that is effective. All it does is tear the team apart. The team could be so much stronger if he allowed for a more uplifting and supportive environment."
"Stephen is knowledgeable about the sport of rowing and has the experience to back that up, yet lacks some of the qualities of a head coach. Struggles with communication and creating meaningful relationships with athletes. He is a nice person, but has favorites whom he treats differently."
"Stephen is very knowledgable about the sport. He is not transparent with his athletes and has sudden mood swings. If you are a favorite of his, you will be just fine. But if you are not a top performer, he unfortunately will not pay much attention to you. "
"I really enjoy being coached by Coach Elliot. He really cares about the athlete's interests and wants each of us to improve to help the team and program. "
"Can be tough to talk to and has a tough time connecting with players, however I think she is knowledgeable in the sport and truly does care about her players. I think she is starting to figure out the balance she needs to have as a head coach and improved with every year I played under her."
"Coaches have an opportunity to impact the lives of players, this coach is a terrible role model, mentor and coach. No integrity a bully and very dishonest. "
"Its hard to find someone who wants to win and be successful more than Coach Bakich. Bakich is always the first one to the field and the last one to leave. Bakich focuses on developing his players as men just as much as he does baseball players. There are times where practices or workouts seem excessively difficult, but everything Bakich does has a purpose. The time commitment to baseball is extensive, but I think that he will lead the Michigan program to multiple championships in the future."
"He is a great coach. Really knows what he's talking about. Every single one of his athletes improve a lot from high school. He can be really blunt though. Not afraid to call you out if you're doing something wrong."
"Have to be one of the favorites or top recruits for him to actually talk to you and tell you how you are doing even if you are a walk on killing practice and beating out his favorites he seems like he doesn't really care still"
"I was hoping Stephen would get better as he got more comfortable with us, but that has not happened. He seems uninterested in us as people, let alone as his athletes. He is very knowledgeable about rowing but unable to communicate this knowledge effectively. Stephen also lacks the ability to be inspiring and does not make us want to improve. This team is full of amazing girls, the athletic support and community at Clemson is unlike any other school but SFW is not setting this team up for success"
"I was not recruited by Coach Stephen, so I am unsure about his involvement in the recruiting process. Coach Stephen can be hard to talk and relate to, which can make for a difficult transition, and when he took over the program we had a hard time believing he actually cared for us as people. He has been making an effort and progress in trying to change this, and it is very appreciated."
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