Coach G was the guest speaker Thursday at the Austin Longhorn Club at the Erwin Center. She was poised, classy, humorous and confident. She said a number of things that I don't now recall, but I'll mention a few things that I do (things that I don’t think are inappropriate to put out on the internet): Coach G said that, although Austin was the largest city she had ever lived in, she was adapting to Austin really well. She stayed in a downtown hotel the first few weeks she was here and she got a chance to get familiar with that area and she said she loved it. She bought a house close enough to the university so that she doesn't have to navigate I-35 or MoPac. She said she had been warned about those (my words: horribly overloaded and unbelievably under-capacitied) freeways. She said she had been very happy at Duke and had no intention to leave there. But she said when Texas contacted her (and when they recruited her really hard), she had to take a look at the program and the facilities. She was enormously impressed during her conversations with Mack, Augie and Rick. She said that she just couldn’t pass up such an opportunity. She said that now that she is here, she has felt very welcomed by the fan base as well as the athletic department staff. Regarding conditioning standards, she said that all the players met her mile run times this year, even though one player (whose name she did not mention) didn't think she would make it, but was encouraged to meet the standard that was set by the coach, and did make it on the next try. She said that she has told the players if they want a lot, they have to be willing to give a lot. She said that Erika was the best pure shooter she has ever seen. She mentioned that in one practice session, Erika made 43 out of 50 shots from BTA. She said it was good to get Carla back as well, and that her impact on the team and the game was obvious against ISU. She was complimentary of a number of the players and said that she thought they would work hard and that the team as a whole would grow this year and would be much better by the end of the season. She said she was encouraged that the light would go on occasionally for individual players, and she looked forward to more of that. She clearly values hustle and pure effort in a player. She said she spent time individually with each player when she first got here. She said that she needed to get to know each of them really well so that she could understand what motivated them. (Editorial comment: some of those conversations must have gone really well, because some of those young ladies are playing much better than last year). She couldn't talk about any specifics, of course, but she said that she was quite optimistic about recruiting prospects over the next couple of years. She talked about how at Duke she had recruited nationally and that she was already familiar with the top recruits in Texas. She is already involved in the community. She loves to read and is already participating in a reading program in local schools. Asked about her coaching in the Olympics, she said walking into the stadium with the United States team during the opening ceremonies was a tremendously uplifting experience. She said with a big smile that she was relieved that the team beat ISU since she knew she'd have to face the Austin Longhorn Club today. She said that the press she employed against ISU was a high risk/high reward strategy, but that she felt it worked out mostly to Texas's advantage since it forced some turnovers. She's a classy person and a wonderful replacement for Jody. I spotted Jody at a game the other night (in a very discreet location). I know Jody has to be pleased with what Gail has done so far. I'm certainly pleased. Coach G is a great fit at The University of Texas.
Wonderful synopsis! I love reading/hearing about Coach G and what she has to say about Austin, Texas, UT, the team, the players, and the like. The more I read/hear, the more I admire her and feel so fortunate to have her here - and to have the rest of the coaching staff here! This program is in good hands - of that, I am confident! The future is bright!
Thanks for taking the time to recap. I've watched and admired Coach G for years since she was at Duke, and I believe Texas has a true gem in her as the Longhorns coach in the same way I'm appreciative of Coach Barnes on the men's side.
