Head Coach Russ Rose
Rose’s Milestone Victories 1 vs. Navy Sept. 21, 1979 50 vs. Southern Connecticut Oct. 18, 1980 100 vs. George Washington Oct. 24, 1981 200 vs. West Virginia Nov. 17, 1984 300 vs. Duquesne Sept. 3, 1988 400 vs. Southern Illinois Oct. 29, 1990 500 vs. Rutgers Sept. 3, 1994 600 vs. Illinois Oct. 3, 1997 700 vs. West Virginia Sept. 15, 2000 800 vs. Rutgers Sept. 3, 2004 900 vs. Michigan State Sept. 21, 2007 1, 000 vs. Hawaii Dec. 17, 2009
Rose added to an already crowded trophy case by picking up the NCAA Mideast Region Coach of the Year honor for the fourth time. Still, Rose has had more to do with Penn State’s success on the court than he’s willing to admit. “I think that it’s a reflection of my years of service and the caliber and commitment of players and staff we’ve attracted in the past,” Rose said. “When you retire from coaching, people will look and see the success you had, but I’d like to be evaluated on the success of my players, their feel for their experience at Penn State and the growth that the program has had from the time I arrived here. We had three in-state scholarships and hand-medown basketball jerseys when I arrived at Penn State. I think that’s more of a reflection of what I was hoping to accomplish when I entered the profession.” Yet, the on-the-court accomplishments do speak volumes. In 1993, another dream season, the Nittany Lions surged into their third year of Big Ten play and won their second consecutive conference title. At the NCAA Tournament, the team strung together four victories and earned the right to play for the National Championship against Long Beach State. Rose puts the success in proper perspective. “There are a large number of excellent coaches at great schools that have yet to break into the national semifinals. There are a small number of teams that have made it there, and fewer yet that have reached the final match. I won’t look at it (reaching the final match) other than it was a great ride that the players took us on and it reinforced that there’s validity to how I’ve run the program here at Penn State. “The players need to understand what it takes to be successful and they need to have fun. We showed that winning can be fun and that it isn’t necessary to change in a stressful environment. Every team starts with the same dream but few programs can really talk about competing for a chance to win a National Championship.” Rose’s formula for success was recognized by the media and his coaching peers when he garnered the triple-crown of coaching accolades in 1993 as he did in 1990. Volleyball Monthly named Rose the National Coach of the Year and he also was picked as the NCAA Mideast Region and the Big Ten Conference Coach of the Year. It was the second time Rose was honored nationally (1990), and the second straight year the Big Ten voted for the Nittany Lion leader. In addition, he was awarded Northeast Region Coach of the Year four times, the Atlantic 10 Conference Coach of the Year six times and was District II’s top coach in 1996. “Coach is a great guy,” confided three time All-American Salima (Davidson) Rockwell, who spent time as the captain and starting setter on the U.S. National Team. “He’s very straight-forward and to the point, which is what I like. The thing about him is that you can talk to him and he can help you with any problems you might have. Then, on the court, he’s all business. I like that combination.”
“The players need to understand what it takes to be successful and they need to have fun. We showed that winning can be fun and that it isn’t necessary to change in a stressful environment.” ~Russ Rose So does former Nittany Lion outside hitter and former volunteer assistant coach Jen Reimers. “You learn how to be a better person and a better player,” she said about Rose’s teaching ability. “You learn how to work with everybody else.”
14-Time Big Ten Champions ‘92, ‘93, ‘96, ‘97, ‘98, ‘99, ‘03, ‘04, ‘05, ‘06, ‘07, ‘08, ‘09, ‘10 • GoPSUsports.com • PENN STATE 2011–12
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