Q&A
More than 3,100 fans attended WVU vs. No. 2 Texas on Aug. 29 Q&A With Jill Kramer A sit down with WVU’s fourth-year coach How have things progressed through your first three years at WVU and what changes have you made along the way? Since I arrived in 2010, a lot of things have changed. When I arrived here we were competing in the Big East and we had a plan of action, at that point, of where we wanted to take the program. Then signing week (November) of 2011 we joined the Big 12, which posed another challenge and a great opportunity at the same time. With that, we have the same goal of building a championship program. I believe that joining the Big 12 will only accelerate the level of volleyball that our program will play. We stayed patient with our team last fall, and we could start to see some significant development in the spring. You could really see our growth as a group. We still have a lot to learn, but continue to improve steadily. The biggest change has been how I’ve evolved to adjust to my players and team. Because it’s not about me and how I want to coach, it’s about providing them with what they need in order to be successful. Each player learns differently and each team’s personality and how they function changes a bit from year to year. Our staff has learned to make small adjustments from year to year without compromising our philosophy. The one thing that I have never compromised since my arrival to WVU is the importance of the concept of TEAM. I am a true believer that you are a teammate in all aspects of life, on and off the court. Players have to be com-
mitted to that concept if they want to play here, and I believe that the kids that want to be a part of a culture like that are naturally drawn to this program. What excites you about working with your new assistant coach Kevin Carroll and what does he bring to the WVU volleyball program? Relatively speaking, I think I’m quite young in the volleyball coaching world, and Kevin is, too. I think experience is important, but your attitude toward what you do and your drive to be the best and your energy and enthusiasm toward your passion are equally as important. And he is all of that. He has always succeeded at a very high level and he understands what that takes. It’s a little bit different on the men’s side, but it’s still volleyball. A national championship is a national championship. He gameplans very well. He can break down an opponent and help us put together a great gameplan to compete against other teams. I think he is eager to learn about how some things are done on the women’s side for instance recruiting is very different than on the men’s side, and I think he is going to really be great at it. He has a great personality and can easily connect with others which is a big part of recruiting. I am an avid coffee enthusiast, and funny enough, in 12 years of coaching, I’ve never coached with anyone who has shared my love of a good cup of coffee - Kevin does. I’m pretty excited about talking volleyball every day over a good cup of coffee. It’s the little things. This season marks the 40th anniversary for West Virginia volleyball. What are your impressions of its history and how has it changed since you’ve arrived? In the late 80s, early 90s West Virginia
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| West Virginia University
really saw some success. There are people who played on those teams who are still active in the volleyball world today. They’re very good coaches, and they care deeply about the sport. I have had the great fortune of getting to talk to coach Hammersmith quite often. What I’ve learned from our conversations is that the sport back in the early 70’s was much different than it is now is I feel like it’s taken us about three years to get the culture and environment we want on the team and in the gym. We’re not there yet in the win-loss column, but I feel like we have the right foundation in place to move forward at a much faster pace than we have been, and we will get where we want to be. We have a solid group of returners that have Big 12 experience under their belt. We know what to expect now. Last year was a learning process, and we’re going to continue to learn, but I feel like we’re on the right path of where we want to go. What was the experience like your first year competing in the Big 12 Conference and what did you learn? In the Big 12, you have to show up to play every night. You have to be very, very sharp every point of every set. You have to play the game very well. We developed a formula of how we want to build our team that I’m really happy with, it’s a combination of skilled players and athletes. That’s the direction we’re heading. There are teams in the Big 12 that win with either, or both. We learned that it’s so important for us to stay focused on what a great opportunity it is to play in the Big 12. And to get to play that high level of competition every night. Some of the programs have the best attendances in the country. The crowds know volleyball, and I think that stuff is really cool and it’s really great to be a part of those environments and I think we’re well on our way to building that