LCS 2016 Roster Changes: Team Solo Mid Removes Woodbuck as Head Coach

Woodbuck worked with the team for around half of the spring split.
Woodbuck worked with the team for around half of the spring split. Team Solo Mid

Last night Team Solo Mid announced yesterday that KC Woods would be stepping down as head coach. Known by Woodbuck, he came from traditional sports. He played baseball and basketball on professionally ranked teams, until an injury sidelined him. Hiring Woodbuck was a long shot to begin with; he had little to no knowledge of League of Legends before starting. Other teams like Team Liquid and Counter Logic Gaming have had success in the past bringing in sports psychologists.

Woodbuck seems to be taking it well and harbors no animosity. On reddit he wrote:” I am extremely thankful for the opportunity that TSM gave me. I came into this position not knowing what to expect, and in the end I learned a lot about myself that will help me improve in all facets of my life. I have never worked with a more driven group of players who are willing to do anything to be the best.”

Reginald, the owner of TSM, had to create a new team and coaching staff from nothing at the end of last season. Slapping together a new team out of nothing isn’t an easy feat, especially one as high profiled as TSM. Bjergsen was the only member from last season to retire or move to a different team. Being the risk taker that he is, Regi brought Woodchuck to the team alongside former Fnatic analyst, Jarge.

Regi’s pick up of Woodbuck was going to be a big step in eSports. Sports teams have large coaching staffs, made of many people to handle specific player’s issues. Woodbuck was TSM’s “life coach” or “out of game coach,” to help team atmosphere and growth. His job, according to a video introducing TSM’s coaches, is to use what he’s learned from traditional sports and apply them to eSports. What those skills actually are still isn’t clear.

TSM started off with a sloppy split. They showed poor performance, winning and losing one game each week for three weeks. Side lanes were ignored and team coordination was nonexistent. Since then they have gone undefeated, even though they have played teams in the bottom tier of the LCS. At the end of last week’s TSM Legends, a sports psychologist was brought in to talk with the team. Hopefully TSM doesn't have any more problems getting in their way this split.

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