[Rosiak's Blog] The Buzz in NYC

[ToddRosiakSays]

The Buzz in NYC

Written by: Todd Rosiak


Was able to catch up with Buzz Williams as he was on his way to the TV/electronic portion of media day at Madison Square Garden.

Here's what he had to say:

That's your first Big East media day. What's it been like for you? I think that's just part of the responsibilities of being a head coach. Everything that we do is going to be scrutinized because our institution cares about the success of our students -- not just on the court, but in the classroom as well. I think it's just part of it. I don't know if I handled it well or poorly. I'm the same way with these guys as I am with you; I just tell the truth.

MU was picked sixth by the coaches in the pre-season poll, and Jerel McNeal was named all-Big East. Any reaction to that? I didn't even know we were picked sixth until somebody asked me in an interview awhile ago. I didn't know. Obviously the coaches voted on it, and that's what the coaches said as it relates to Marquette, so that's where we're at in the pre-season. I don't think it has any bearing on whether it plays out that way. I don't spend a lot of time trying to predict or being a prophet about the future. I just want to make sure we're accountable for today, and the 120 days or 150 days from now we'll add them up and see how good we were, and next time we have that interview I'll be able to tell you whether we were good enough to be sixth or not.

How did the 'training camp' in Chicago go over the weekend? You know what? I think it was absolutely phenomenal. Really, really pleased with how it went. Thought the forethought of our staff in regards to some of the things we were able to accomplish was excellent. Our players were really, really good, and not just being sharp in practice. We were able to be away from campus for about 82 hours because of the dinner on Thursday night, and thought it was really, really productive. Thought it was extremely beneficial in regards to our team being able to spend time together on the court, off the court. It was just our core group -- our players, our core support staff, our coaching staff. So I thought it went really well.

Was the primary goal to increase the familiarity with each other? I don't know if that was our biggest goal. That's always going to be one of our goals, that our chemistry continues to get better and more efficient. But obviously I think our guys are pretty familiar with me. That was the first time that all of our players and all of our staff were together, for three straight days. So that was a priority. But the thing that was most beneficial was that we were all together all the time, without anyone else. We had walkthroughs in the morning, we had practices in the late afternoon, we had team dinners in the evening, we had team breakfasts in the morning. So our days were somewhat scripted, but it was beneficial. Because of the walkthroughs we had in the morning, we were able to concentrate on those things during practice. There was just a lot of benefits to it, all of which were positive.

As far as the actual practices went, were the returnees ahead of the curve and did the newcomers struggle a little bit? That seems to be how things go for most teams over the initial weekend. I think the maturity of our returning players obviously is a benefit in regards to their wisdom. They've been around and they're able to pick things up quicker. What I think happens is because our returning guys are so mature, it forces our younger guys to be on a learning curve on a much more accelerated path. Our returning guys are picking it up so quick that the new guys don't have a choice but to pick it up quick. That's obviously a benefit of coaching a mature team. It was all new to our young guys, every bit of it. But I think they were able to pick it up faster than most new guys are, and that's because of the maturity of our older guys.

Everybody make it through healthy? Liam (McMorrow) wasn't able to practice, but he hasn't practiced yet. He has a stress reaction -- which is not a stress fracture, but I guess it could potentially turn into a stress fracture if you don't treat it the appropriate way -- so he hasn't practiced yet. I would say he's probably 4-5 practices away. Wes is fine. He's doing absolutely great.

So once you get back into town, it's pretty much nose to the grindstone until Marquette Madness on Saturday? Yeah, everything will be nose to the grindstone every day (laughs).

But it'll be good to have the early stuff out of the way, and to return back home and eliminate any potential distractions, correct? Yeah, I agree. Obviously we're not practicing today. We'll practice tomorrow and then Friday, and then Marquette Madness on Saturday. Then we'll practice all next week and then we'll have Haunted Hoops and leave for Nebraska. So I think we have 11 practices left before we scrimmage at Nebraska, and we've got to be accountable for every day because the season will be here before you know it.

As far as Marquette Madness goes, I don't want to give away any potential surprises, but what should fans expect? No, I honestly don't have any surprises. I'm not very good at surprises. I hope that our fans will come, I hope that our students will be a part of it. I think our players have been accountable for every day thus far this fall. They will appreciate it, and appreciate any support they get from the outside. I hope that it's an opportunity for our fan base, in a couple-hour span, to connect with our players and see some of them for the first time. I hope that the turnout will be absolutely phenomenal.



http://blogs.jsonline.com/muhoops/archive/2008/10/22/the-buzz-in-nyc.aspx