WATER POLO FLASH: Sprague no longer coaching at Servite
June 6th, 2008, 9:56 pm · 14 Comments · posted by DAN ALBANO, ocvarsity.com
Yes, I can’t believe I actually just wrote that headline.
Legendary water polo coach Jim Sprague said late Friday night that he will no longer be coaching at Servite. Sprague started at Servite in 1992 and built the program into a Southern California powerhouse (and thus a national powerhouse).
The Friars won three CIF-SS titles under Sprague and fielded teams with some of the best players in the nation. Current national teamer Adam Hewko, for starters.
I spoke to Sprague just hours after Servite announced Friday that Mustafa Hassan had been promoted to head coach. Last season, Hassan and Sprague shared the head coach duties.
Sprague said he will be coaching in the boys and girls programs at Whittier High, where his son, Todd, is the head boys coach.
Sprague said he is following a desire to coach at a school that will implement his water polo systems. He said he will continue to run Servite’s tournaments and might assist in some aspect of the Friars’ film work.
But this much is certain tonight: Servite has lost a living legend when it comes to high school water polo in Orange County. There is simply no denying that.
June 7th, 2008 at 11:50 am
What a sad time for Servite Water Polo. Sprague maybe didn’t have a handle on the kids behavior wise and defensively as a team, however, his offensive system and has been proven for years.An elite coach doesn’t look like
“a deer facing a car’s headlights” as Hassan did in the semi-final versus the Monarchs this past season. Hassan is not a proven coach at the high school level and doesn’t know what it takes to a be a contender yearly. The proven coaches are all set with their years at the public schools and it’s understandable how they cannot take the paycut in moving to a private school. As the decline of Friar Polo set in yesterday with the decision, now Mater Dei will be even that much better than Servite yearly.
June 10th, 2008 at 7:59 am
Servite was NEVER a water polo powerhouse before Jim Sprague, and I will bet they never again attain the success they enjoyed under Jim Sprague. Jim never ran his programs with an iron fist, but instead fostered an environment that with the assistance and “buy in’ from the player’s and their parents, would year in and year out, produce winners. Jim never forced people to want to win. He has always believed that individuals need to make that a personal commitment. Jim’s personality and coaching style has always conveyed his devotion and commitment to his players. The fact that Servite, and the Servite parents wanted Jim out is unbelievable. I guarantee that if Jim coaches at Whittier HS, they will beating Servite handily before you know it. Good luck Jim….
June 11th, 2008 at 4:15 pm
how dare you even think that the Mater dei water polo program comes close to what servite has become. i am also disgusted by the parents wanting a more disciplined coach( im looking at you ,spencer) I had the honor of swimming uder Coach sprague thi syear and i must say, he was the person who inspired me to excell. i went from a scrawny kid who never had swan competitively a day in his life and benching no more than 80 lbs to the runner up champion of the JV 100 breaststroke and lifting 135 lbs. i am thuroghly convinced that without Spragues tutilage, i would not be half the man i am now
June 11th, 2008 at 7:06 pm
Son, I think Mater Dei closed the gap on the Friars this year.It’s not your fault your Coach didn’t know what to do. He had never been there before, and will never return. It’s a difficult situation for the kids when certain parents are only out for the own child’s personal recognition. On top of that, you have the co-coach playing the game with these parents and using this as a springboard to be ” the parent’s favorite,” when this coach’s plan was to never work along side Sprague past this year. Shame on the ignorant parents and administration for engaging in sucn disgrace. Servite is on it’s way to becoming St. John Bosco.
June 11th, 2008 at 11:29 pm
Don’t forget Jim also owns the CIF record for league titles in a row…..along with everything he has accomplished at Servite (that list is too long)
Looks like the lucky one is his son & Whittier….I have learned more coaching aginst Jim than I have from many I have coached with, and it was always done with respect. Good Luck and thank you Jim
June 12th, 2008 at 4:00 pm
dont even get me started on St john bosco. that school is so second rate i laugh when i see their name.
June 23rd, 2008 at 11:27 am
The sad thing is how Servite has gone about this change.Jim was not allowed in any of the “Parent Meetings” to actually comment on or answer all the crap that was being said. The firing was the result of a few outspoken, overprotective parents whose kids will not even go onto to play in college or anywhere else. In fact, there was a comparison to Bobby Knight. That right, Jim Sprague to Bobby Knight.
I also agree with GP,Servite”s loss, Whittier’s gain.
June 25th, 2008 at 12:35 am
It’s a reflection of poor leadership and ignorance on behalf of Coach Clinton and other administration.Clinton doesn’t know a damn thing about successful water polo coaching. Look at the teams at El Modena and their poor coaching in his years there.What kind of AD allows this garbage(parent meetings)? And Coach Hassan played the game with these parents to have sole responsibility of the program. The community knows the truth. Servite’s schedule will lose the good teams as a result of Hasaan’s disgraceful plan. What kind of person helps run out the greatest contributor to high school Water Polo? And not to mention one of the nicest guys around.
July 10th, 2008 at 4:31 pm
Jim Sprague is a water polo genius. I drove two hours every day to attend Servite for no other reason other than the opportunity to play under Sprague. And under his tutelage I gained skills i could not have attained elsewhere in the United States. Yes, his discipline was more relaxed than most other high school programs, but looking at it that way is misleading. His methods of instruction allowed players to develop sound fundamentals while finding their own niche and style of play. When players embraced his methodology they became great athletes. I am shocked that Sprague was forced out of his position at Servite and can attribute it only to the combination of blind stupidity on the part of the team parents, their children who don’t get the minutes they want, and a new administration obsessed with change for the sake of change. Servite will most likely cease to attract talented water polo players, as well as no longer develop some of the smartest players in the sport. It was a sad day for Servite when Sprague left, and a happy one for Whittier.
July 14th, 2008 at 7:23 pm
Mr. Garcia, you summed it up best. Everyone knows what a joke this whole thing has been. You definitely don’t see or hear of anyone rebutting these facts. “Be careful what you wish for, you just might get it all.” applies to the administration,selfish parents, and Mustafa Hasaan. Head Coach of Socal or not, Mr. Hasaan is an unproven high school coach and always will be.
July 23rd, 2008 at 10:46 am
after having spent the first half of summer training with coach Mooses new staff, i must say the program hasnt totally been left for dead. so far the varsity is still destroying everyone they meet, and the froshsoph is still being a doormat for every team that enters the servite pool.
August 21st, 2008 at 12:07 pm
Servites varsity is not dominating everyteam the play. I watched my Servite team lose to Mater Deis Bench players. Servite has already lost the Leuge championships and i wont be surpriesed if we dont even go to CIFs
August 21st, 2008 at 9:42 pm
Jim Sprague is irreplacable. I played against his high school program, under him in college, and coached against him in high school. He does not coach good players, he creates them. Any administration that listens to parents and refuses to speak to their coaches for explanation are worthless. I thank Jim for making me be the player and coach that I am.
August 22nd, 2008 at 2:45 pm
Because of some spoiled brats… a legend has gone. This is only one element of decline at Servite… a once honorable school which has fallen prey to the politically correct.
I thank Coach Sprague for his guidance of my son…one of the few bright spots at Servite