WEBVTT

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Hi volleyball fans and welcome back to Volley

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Talk, the podcast created for volleyball lovers

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who want to dig deep into what is going on in

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NCAA and international volleyball. I'm your host

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Sarah Pavan. I'm an Olympian, beach volleyball

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world champion, former Nebraska Cornhusker, and

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longtime pro both indoor and on the beach. And

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I'm Adam Schultz, former indoor player, international

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volleyball coach, and the show's resident stat

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guy. There were a couple key matchups this week

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yes there were that we are going to talk about

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and something that came up last week sparked

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a lot of conversation online so we are going

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to do a segment devoted to that the hint is it

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started with some comments on bergen -reilly

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and evolved from there we have some happenings

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and news that happened outside of the NCAA world

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that have got people buzzing so we're going to

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touch on that as well. We are very excited so

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let's get started. All right for the NCAA rankings

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for last week Seeds 1 through 19 held their spot.

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I think that's virtually unheard of. We also

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had no new teams enter the top 25. Which means

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Penn State is still hanging around. Penn State

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is still hanging around. They were 24. Somehow

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I think they're going to go up in the rankings

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even though they lost this week. This makes no

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sense. Somebody actually asked, why does Penn

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State have the NCAA tournament on their schedule?

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Does this mean they think they're going to make

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it? I mean, their RPI puts them in a good place,

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but it's just a baffling situation. They have

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the tournament on their schedule 100 % because

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they expect to be in the tournament. And in fairness.

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And they should. They're the only team that's

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played in all of them. Yeah. I mean, we joke

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about it, but they're going. I can't, guys. I

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don't agree with it, but they're going to go.

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There's no way. Yeah. They have this tournament

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on their schedule because they're fully expecting

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to be there. And I bet whoever created that web

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page did it at the beginning of the season. Which

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would have been a fair assumption. But the fact

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that they're still in the top 25. This is actually

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outrageous. They better not be next week. They

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actually beat Ohio State in five. But Ohio State's

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been baggled all season. Yippee. Ohio State's

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not on the top 25. Anyway, yeah, that's what

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the rankings. were doing last week. Not a ton

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of unexpected results this week, but guess what

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conference handed us the most? The Big 12. Ding,

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ding, ding. All right. Kansas State beat Baylor

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in four. We kind of watched that game. I don't

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even know what to say anymore. There's just the

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highs are good. The lows are not good. And whichever

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team can serve the ball consistently tough seems

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to win those matches. TCU lost both of their

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games to Colorado in five and Iowa State in four.

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I've stopped being surprised. I take everything

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back that I said a couple weeks ago about TCU

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finishing second in the Big 12. Let's move them

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down to sixth. I just don't understand how you

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can become a tire fire so quickly. They looked

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so good at the beginning of the season. For like

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over half the season. And then literally. But

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I think they've hit a wall. They've changed their

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setter now. They're trying to slow the offense

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down. They don't know what to do. They're lost

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in the desert at this point, and it's not coming

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back. Yeah. Utah, BYU in five. We got a question

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about BYU, which we'll probably address maybe

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next week. But they also just can't seem to finish.

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And Utah's not a bad team. Again, all of those

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teams are, they can win on any given night depending

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on how they play. And the lack of consistency,

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especially when you're trying, like it's tournament

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time. Like the Big 12, I'm like, I roll over

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here at this point. Okay, you guys just figure

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it out and just send us a few teams for the tournament.

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Thank you. It's not even about playing well at

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this point. It's about just being marginally

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consistent to win matches. And they're not great

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to watch. I mean, from like an execution standpoint,

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no. Is it entertaining in the sense that you

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never know what's going to happen? Well, sure.

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Again, that comment was purely about the level

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of volleyball. It's play really well for half

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a set or a set, and then they can't get a serve

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in, and it's just all over the map. Watching

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it with a critical eye is a little aggravating

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at times. Yeah. The only other upset was Oregon

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took down Purdue in five. That's it for the Big

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12. That's it. Oregon beat Purdue in five. Again,

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I'm not surprised any time Oregon wins a match.

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Except they're like 12th or 13th in the Big 10

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right now, which shocks me. I was a little shocked

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to see that as well. But they're capable of playing

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good volleyball. They've got some really dynamic

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players. Alana Clemente. I really like her. I

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think she's in the running for freshman of the

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year. Big 10 freshman of the year. Yes, but I

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think she'll be in the conversation. I don't

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think she's going to beat out Spears. For National

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Freshman of the Year. For National Freshman of

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the Year. But I think she will be in the conversation.

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Like if it's a vote, she's getting some votes

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for top three, I think. Oh, she's so good. New

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program, new coach, all new players. There's

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definitely inconsistency there. Purdue, you're

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like second in the Big Ten right now. See, the

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caveat with Purdue is they're consistent, but

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they're not particularly big. So if they make

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you beat them. But if you come out to beat them,

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they're beatable. They're just incredibly disciplined.

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I didn't get a chance to watch that game. I think

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I might try either Monday or Tuesday because

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I'm curious to see that. But I personally really

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like Oregon. Last one, ACC, SMU beats Stanford

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in four. I am just going to say, I feel like

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people are not going to. like a lot of what I

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have to say this episode I feel like SMU is getting

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the sloppy seconds from Pitt for a lot of matches

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this year Miami comes in beats Pitt and then

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SMU plays them like the next day or two days

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later and Miami can't beat them same thing happens

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to Stanford Stanford goes all out against Pitt

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huge win down to the wire and then SMU swoops

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in two days later for like the come down after

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those huge upsets you know what i mean like i

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don't want to call it like a stanford pit thing

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is like a huge upset but you you get the idea

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it's a big win though but it's like these teams

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can prepare for pit all week long and then like

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smu is like the second match like the turnover

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match that you have one day in between to prepare

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for and then they like do you know what i'm saying

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it's a bit of a trap game because you played

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pit who's a very good team Always go to the Final

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Four for first in the ACC. You both have the

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best records. You come out and win. That's an

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emotional win. That's a long game. You pulled

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it out. Yeah, you're right. And then you've got

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to come back and you've got to play SMU, who

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is a good team in their own right. It's a tough

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back -to -back. SMU has come and swooped in after

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huge upsets that teams have against Pitt. Granted,

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I think it was the opposite against Louisville.

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I think SMU played Louisville first, but still.

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And then there's Stanford. I'm not sure. Their

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setter went out in the second set. Yeah. Concussions

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and that whole thing, which is serious. She took

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it off the forehead. Right. But I don't know

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if she came back or not. I didn't finish watching

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that match. So that's definitely a piece of it.

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But you've got to take care of that match. That

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would have locked them in to first in the ACC.

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Only playing Louisville at the very end. But

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now there's three teams tied with two losses.

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SMU and the next teams are there with three losses.

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It is tight, and it's going to be down to the

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wire. That's my issue with a lot of these teams

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this year. Stanford could have locked it up and

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let it go. How many opportunities? These teams

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come off huge wins and then can't string it together

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two nights in a row. Come on. Let's get it going

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here. You have a chance to lock it up, and Adam's

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upset because his prediction might not come true

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now. That's fair. If they can beat Louisville,

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they have the head -to -head with Pitt, I believe.

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But we'll see. I have to look into the tie -break

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procedures. They made their life more difficult

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than it needed to be, that's for sure. Story

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of the season for everybody, I would say. Well,

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that's it. Those are the unexpected results of

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the week. Okay, big news. Not great news. Out

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of the beach world, which bridges the indoor

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world, bridges the Nebraska world, Allie Batenhorst

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has tested positive for a banned substance. And

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so she is suspended. So we've gotten a bunch

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of questions about how this all works and different

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scenarios and comparisons. So let's spend just

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a minute or two kind of going through how testing

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works internationally and how it's different

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than college. So, I mean, if you're part of a

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national team program, your country's governing

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body can test you. So in the U .S., it's called

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USADA, U .S. Anti -Doping Agency. Canada has

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one. Every country has one. That is for internal

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athlete testing. And as we've seen, those results

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are not binding. We won't dive into that one

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too deep. But in Canada, they are. Well, I bring

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that up because there was a direct comparison.

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Somebody asked and brought up the Alex Kleinman

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situation from last Olympics saying, you know,

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she tested positive going into the cycle and

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she was allowed to continue to compete. Do you

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think this will happen with Batenhorst? Now there's

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a very large difference in the positive test

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results. So Alex Kleinman was tested by the USA.

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governing body and tested positive. Now they

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have the choice of handling those situations

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in whatever regard they would like. As you said,

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those results are not binding. And she was, I

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believe she was tested out of competition. So

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technically, I guess you could say that the country's

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test to potentially cut off any potential issues

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when the international bodies test. Correct.

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Canada's not so nice. Yeah. Canada is not the

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same way, but the U .S. has operated in that

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regard in a bunch of different cases. The difference

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here is that bait and horse tested positive with

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a governing, a global governing body test. Yeah.

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So at the Newport beach tournament, the FIVB

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hired an agency to conduct tests on their behalf

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is my understanding. Correct me if I'm wrong.

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So when the international governing body decides

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to do these tests, it's out of the US's control.

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It goes international. That is the big difference

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here. Because Alex Kleinman, when she tested

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positive indoor, I believe that was an international

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body and she was suspended for that one. Correct.

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It's not looking great for Batenhorst. Her agent

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has said that it's a prescription and they just

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haven't filed the paperwork. But in general...

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The global governing body. They said they filed

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the paperwork now. Yeah. The question is, did

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they file? Because you can have what's called

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a therapeutic use exemption. And so if you get

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notification from a doctor that you need a certain

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medication, you fill out this paperwork and then

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it's a therapeutic use exemption. If you are

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tested with that in your system, it is fine.

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But it has to be approved. I'm not sure you can

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do it retroactively. And I don't know if she

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filled out the TUE before she was tested. And

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we've seen this happen before. There have been

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other athletes who have missed the Olympics,

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specifically in beach volleyball, for using specific

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creams that had banned substances. And there

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was no exemption for the Italian player. I think

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it also happened to a Czech player at one point,

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if I am not mistaken. This is a big deal. And

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there's no guarantee that it's going to go away.

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It will be interesting to see how this plays

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out. I think it all depends on what the prescription

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is, when the timeline for filing the TUE happened.

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But I don't know. I can only speak from a Canadian

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perspective and the way that Canada handles anti

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-doping education, anti -doping infractions,

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etc. is incredibly strict. So I only have my

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experience from that. So I don't know how this

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is going to play out, but that might be the shortest

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beach volleyball career in history. Yeah. We'll

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keep you updated if we hear anything, but these

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things don't get resolved quickly in general.

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And so this could be an ongoing saga. So another

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thing in what is normal, I think, is if you are

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under investigation, you are not allowed to train.

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With your partner, you can't train in a USA environment

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at all. So she has to completely remove herself

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from all USA volleyball affiliations. She cannot

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legally train with Sarah Hughes, with her coach,

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have any interaction with USA people. That is

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how it goes. Because it's beach volleyball and

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they train out in their own court on the beach,

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will they get around it? Maybe. I don't know.

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Typically, the framework is that you have to

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remove yourself completely while under investigation.

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That's a super unfortunate situation and we'll

00:14:11.100 --> 00:14:13.019
see what happens. On the pro side of things,

00:14:13.179 --> 00:14:16.159
it has been announced that the Orlando Valkyries

00:14:16.159 --> 00:14:18.980
are going to be competing in the Club World Championships

00:14:18.980 --> 00:14:23.000
happening in Sao Paulo, Brazil from December

00:14:23.000 --> 00:14:27.279
9th to 14th. For those interested in the men's,

00:14:27.279 --> 00:14:30.740
that is happening December 16th to 21st in Belém,

00:14:30.899 --> 00:14:34.679
Brazil. Basically how this came about is three

00:14:34.679 --> 00:14:40.940
Asian teams declined the offer to go, leaving

00:14:40.940 --> 00:14:45.659
a spot available. And the Orlando Valkyries are

00:14:45.659 --> 00:14:48.820
going. So for Club World Championships, we've

00:14:48.820 --> 00:14:52.820
got Corneliano. That game will be close. Scandici.

00:14:53.379 --> 00:14:59.559
Also close. We've got Osasco, Praia Clube from

00:14:59.559 --> 00:15:02.860
Brazil. We've got a team from Egypt, a team from

00:15:02.860 --> 00:15:05.559
Kazakhstan. And I'm probably, oh, a team from

00:15:05.559 --> 00:15:08.820
Peru, which I think Kira Van Rijk actually signed

00:15:08.820 --> 00:15:12.179
with that Peruvian team to play Club World Championships.

00:15:12.220 --> 00:15:14.779
And then she's going to go play China after that

00:15:14.779 --> 00:15:18.080
is what I read. Somebody confirm that for me.

00:15:18.440 --> 00:15:21.759
We've gotten so many people reach out about this

00:15:21.759 --> 00:15:26.220
development. Questions ranging from why not love?

00:15:26.259 --> 00:15:29.639
Like, why did they pick an MLV team instead of

00:15:29.639 --> 00:15:32.919
love? Does this propel MLV as being more prestigious

00:15:32.919 --> 00:15:35.759
than love? How do you think love will respond?

00:15:36.200 --> 00:15:39.440
Then a lot of cheeky comments like... Well, those

00:15:39.440 --> 00:15:41.759
games are going to be close. So what are your

00:15:41.759 --> 00:15:44.019
thoughts? I don't know who was approached. I

00:15:44.019 --> 00:15:47.460
don't know what the... I have heard that Love...

00:15:47.460 --> 00:15:50.620
This is through a third party, one of my sources,

00:15:50.820 --> 00:15:53.919
you know, love my sources. Love has said that

00:15:53.919 --> 00:15:57.440
they were offered a spot and they said no because

00:15:57.440 --> 00:16:01.500
of prior contractual agreements they have in

00:16:01.500 --> 00:16:04.179
place. Not sure what contractual agreement would

00:16:04.179 --> 00:16:06.159
ever make it so that your team can't play in

00:16:06.159 --> 00:16:09.100
Club World Championships, but... The baby is

00:16:09.100 --> 00:16:12.720
sucking on her hand if you hear a sound. I don't

00:16:12.720 --> 00:16:15.500
think any of the North American teams are at

00:16:15.500 --> 00:16:20.519
a point where they will be competitive with the

00:16:20.519 --> 00:16:24.840
best teams at Club Worlds. Do you remember when

00:16:24.840 --> 00:16:27.059
I went to Club Worlds and they sent that team

00:16:27.059 --> 00:16:32.259
from Iowa? Yes. That was a disaster, you guys.

00:16:32.779 --> 00:16:35.200
First of all, every team there was like, who

00:16:35.200 --> 00:16:40.279
is this team? Secondly. Those games were destructions.

00:16:40.460 --> 00:16:44.059
I think that there is a... Why is Adam trying

00:16:44.059 --> 00:16:46.480
to be nice here? That's not what we do here.

00:16:46.539 --> 00:16:50.179
What's going on? My initial instinct is that

00:16:50.179 --> 00:16:52.840
if you're trying to create a league that you're

00:16:52.840 --> 00:16:55.419
branding as one of the best in the world, you

00:16:55.419 --> 00:16:58.919
can't go get hammered by the best teams in the

00:16:58.919 --> 00:17:01.720
world. Are you talking about love? Yes. We all

00:17:01.720 --> 00:17:03.860
know... And Turkey's not even sending a team.

00:17:04.140 --> 00:17:06.259
I think you're going to be competitive with the

00:17:06.259 --> 00:17:08.720
team from Egypt, potentially the team from Peru,

00:17:08.880 --> 00:17:10.700
but maybe not depending on if they've stacked

00:17:10.700 --> 00:17:12.940
their roster with players like Kira van Rijk.

00:17:13.079 --> 00:17:16.400
You have a team from Kazakhstan coming, probably

00:17:16.400 --> 00:17:18.359
be competitive with there. But we're talking

00:17:18.359 --> 00:17:20.619
about going up and playing against Scandici,

00:17:20.940 --> 00:17:25.599
Osasco, Conegliano. You can't go out and score

00:17:25.599 --> 00:17:30.500
12 points and seem like you're competitive. I

00:17:30.500 --> 00:17:34.650
completely understand. the decision not to go

00:17:34.650 --> 00:17:38.490
given where they are in their growth as a league

00:17:38.490 --> 00:17:41.309
compared to these other teams. It's, it's not

00:17:41.309 --> 00:17:43.730
quote unquote fair. They're not competing on

00:17:43.730 --> 00:17:47.089
even ground. So I understand why they don't want

00:17:47.089 --> 00:17:49.349
to go. Do you think if you're going to put yourself

00:17:49.349 --> 00:17:52.309
out there and continually say we're one of the

00:17:52.309 --> 00:17:54.670
best leagues in the world, do you think that

00:17:54.670 --> 00:17:57.769
that's fair to just not show up? Like, I feel

00:17:57.769 --> 00:17:59.329
like you need to back up what you're saying.

00:18:00.059 --> 00:18:02.660
I understand why they're not going, but I'm saying

00:18:02.660 --> 00:18:04.299
if you're going to put it out there, put your

00:18:04.299 --> 00:18:05.700
money where your mouth is. But you're putting

00:18:05.700 --> 00:18:07.940
it out there to your local markets who don't

00:18:07.940 --> 00:18:09.640
understand how good international volleyball

00:18:09.640 --> 00:18:12.160
is. This is what we've been saying now. Do you

00:18:12.160 --> 00:18:14.180
think this makes the MLV seem more prestigious

00:18:14.180 --> 00:18:16.460
than love? For the two weeks until they play,

00:18:16.559 --> 00:18:19.019
maybe, but not really. Honestly, I don't think

00:18:19.019 --> 00:18:21.059
anyone cares. There are certain markets that

00:18:21.059 --> 00:18:24.579
definitely care about club worlds. Here. Like

00:18:24.579 --> 00:18:26.400
in the U .S. Oh, you don't think it matters in

00:18:26.400 --> 00:18:27.779
the U .S.? I don't think it matters in the U

00:18:27.779 --> 00:18:30.420
.S. Oh, yes. Don't get me wrong. Winning Club

00:18:30.420 --> 00:18:32.000
World Championships is prestigious. There are

00:18:32.000 --> 00:18:34.680
teams who definitely want to do that. Well, let's

00:18:34.680 --> 00:18:37.740
be honest. No love team and no PVF team or MLV

00:18:37.740 --> 00:18:41.140
team or whatever they are is going to make the

00:18:41.140 --> 00:18:43.900
final four of that tournament. And those games

00:18:43.900 --> 00:18:46.700
won't be close. You get to go. You get to compete.

00:18:46.799 --> 00:18:49.480
I think it's a cool feather in the cap for MLV

00:18:49.480 --> 00:18:52.500
to say we went and competed at Club Worlds. In

00:18:52.500 --> 00:18:53.920
the grand scheme of things, I don't think anyone

00:18:53.920 --> 00:18:55.900
in the U .S. cares. And I don't think it really

00:18:55.900 --> 00:18:59.319
materially means anything. If anything, it would

00:18:59.319 --> 00:19:01.640
hurt you more than it would help you by going.

00:19:01.960 --> 00:19:04.779
Be sure to tune in. Those games are going to

00:19:04.779 --> 00:19:08.400
be on VBTV, I believe. And those start December

00:19:08.400 --> 00:19:11.279
9th. So we'll give you a heads up when those

00:19:11.279 --> 00:19:14.460
are coming. But that was the big news. I can't

00:19:14.460 --> 00:19:18.319
even tell you the number of messages we got on

00:19:18.319 --> 00:19:21.049
Instagram about this. I don't think it's going

00:19:21.049 --> 00:19:23.710
to go too well. This to me is a definition of

00:19:23.710 --> 00:19:26.190
a lose -lose situation. There's nothing to gain

00:19:26.190 --> 00:19:28.210
and you're only going to not be competitive.

00:19:28.589 --> 00:19:31.509
So those are kind of the happenings of this week.

00:19:31.569 --> 00:19:36.150
We had a couple non -NCAA things, big things.

00:19:36.349 --> 00:19:39.150
Big things. Big things. So let us know your thoughts.

00:19:39.269 --> 00:19:41.730
I'm sure there are lots of opinions out there

00:19:41.730 --> 00:19:44.089
about what is going on. So be sure to hit us

00:19:44.089 --> 00:19:47.130
up. So last week we were specifically talking

00:19:47.130 --> 00:19:50.509
about... bergen -reilly and her international

00:19:50.509 --> 00:19:55.769
potential and that sparked a little bit of a

00:19:55.769 --> 00:19:59.890
bigger conversation uh online about what do we

00:19:59.890 --> 00:20:03.410
look for for international players for people

00:20:03.410 --> 00:20:05.349
who we think have potential to make it to the

00:20:05.349 --> 00:20:07.630
next level and there were lots of comments about

00:20:07.630 --> 00:20:09.849
bergen -reilly already playing on the national

00:20:09.849 --> 00:20:12.150
team a couple other players already playing on

00:20:12.150 --> 00:20:15.869
the national team and so i wanted to clarify

00:20:16.859 --> 00:20:19.140
our position on this in terms of how we look

00:20:19.140 --> 00:20:20.960
at this. And then we had some great questions

00:20:20.960 --> 00:20:24.000
on position by position, what would we look for

00:20:24.000 --> 00:20:25.799
and things like that. So we're going to have

00:20:25.799 --> 00:20:28.880
a conversation now about college potential and

00:20:28.880 --> 00:20:31.779
moving to the next level and just how the two

00:20:31.779 --> 00:20:33.759
of us view it and how that might be a little

00:20:33.759 --> 00:20:37.160
different from how the casual college fan might

00:20:37.160 --> 00:20:39.279
think about it. Let's make one thing straight

00:20:39.279 --> 00:20:44.019
here too. B team, U23 team, Pan Am Cup team.

00:20:44.509 --> 00:20:47.890
We do not consider that national team. National

00:20:47.890 --> 00:20:52.069
team, we consider you're on a VNL roster, you're

00:20:52.069 --> 00:20:56.130
on the Olympic roster, World Champs roster. We'll

00:20:56.130 --> 00:20:59.250
even extend that to the wide roster for those

00:20:59.250 --> 00:21:02.069
teams. Burke and Riley was not on any of those.

00:21:02.269 --> 00:21:06.369
So the only current college players who were

00:21:06.369 --> 00:21:10.779
on the national team in our eyes. Or Olivia Babcock

00:21:10.779 --> 00:21:13.599
and Logan Litnicki. I think the frame of reference

00:21:13.599 --> 00:21:16.819
is important. Age group is a great accomplishment.

00:21:16.980 --> 00:21:19.000
But a lot of times the people who play age group

00:21:19.000 --> 00:21:21.559
don't go on to actually play national team. Or

00:21:21.559 --> 00:21:24.579
Pan Am Cup roster. That's the B team. Yes. I

00:21:24.579 --> 00:21:28.059
personally don't consider that the national team.

00:21:28.259 --> 00:21:32.039
No, me either. And so when we talk about international

00:21:32.039 --> 00:21:35.259
experience, we don't count that. For all of those

00:21:35.259 --> 00:21:37.539
kind of comments that we got, we understand that

00:21:37.539 --> 00:21:40.089
she's played with the national team. But we're

00:21:40.089 --> 00:21:43.829
talking about making that jump to the U .S. national

00:21:43.829 --> 00:21:47.690
team and having your number called when it matters.

00:21:48.190 --> 00:21:49.950
That's kind of our definition. And don't get

00:21:49.950 --> 00:21:52.509
me wrong, Bergen -Riley and lots of the players

00:21:52.509 --> 00:21:55.509
we talk about can play pro. They can play love.

00:21:55.630 --> 00:21:58.509
They can play in a bunch of different leagues

00:21:58.509 --> 00:22:01.829
and have that experience. But we're talking about

00:22:01.829 --> 00:22:05.470
moving to the top of the top. So I wanted to

00:22:05.470 --> 00:22:10.000
make sure we were all on the same page. Playing

00:22:10.000 --> 00:22:13.940
pro. Playing pro. You know, like you're in a

00:22:13.940 --> 00:22:16.859
Champions League, going the distance in Champions

00:22:16.859 --> 00:22:20.640
League. You're playing, putting yourself forward

00:22:20.640 --> 00:22:24.220
as a national team contender because of the teams

00:22:24.220 --> 00:22:26.220
and level you're playing at pro. And then there's

00:22:26.220 --> 00:22:28.279
like people who play pro to say they played pro.

00:22:28.500 --> 00:22:31.440
Yeah. The next piece of that is you have to consider

00:22:31.440 --> 00:22:33.799
like the number of athletes who get to play college

00:22:33.799 --> 00:22:37.930
sports is a fraction of the population. The number

00:22:37.930 --> 00:22:40.069
of players who get to go on to play for the national

00:22:40.069 --> 00:22:44.609
team is infinitesimally small. It's crazy. And

00:22:44.609 --> 00:22:46.670
the other thing you have to consider, and I'm

00:22:46.670 --> 00:22:48.410
going to use Bergen Riley as an example because

00:22:48.410 --> 00:22:52.009
we've talked about her. She is probably one of

00:22:52.009 --> 00:22:55.150
the best college setters currently playing the

00:22:55.150 --> 00:22:57.430
game, and you will not get an argument from the

00:22:57.430 --> 00:23:01.529
two of us about that. I would argue, and we've

00:23:01.529 --> 00:23:05.380
had questions about this. She is, this season,

00:23:05.480 --> 00:23:09.480
I would say the best setter in the NCAA. People

00:23:09.480 --> 00:23:13.579
have asked about her versus Alexis Stuckey. I

00:23:13.579 --> 00:23:18.539
would say pre -injury, Alexis Stuckey had really

00:23:18.539 --> 00:23:23.039
high potential. Her physicality, I would have

00:23:23.039 --> 00:23:26.359
argued that she could be national team potential.

00:23:26.440 --> 00:23:30.539
I'm not sure that she has come back from this

00:23:30.539 --> 00:23:34.299
injury in a way that can... make her part of

00:23:34.299 --> 00:23:37.279
that conversation anymore I would have put Izzy

00:23:37.279 --> 00:23:40.460
Stark on that level I still think she is on that

00:23:40.460 --> 00:23:43.599
level no clue if she's coming back or what her

00:23:43.599 --> 00:23:46.880
future plans for the sport are Stucky and Stark

00:23:46.880 --> 00:23:50.859
I would say have that it factor for national

00:23:50.859 --> 00:23:53.420
team I just wanted to highlight because people

00:23:53.420 --> 00:23:56.339
have brought up the Alexis Stucky Bergen Riley

00:23:56.339 --> 00:24:00.210
conversation in numerous questions. Totally fair.

00:24:00.269 --> 00:24:01.890
And we can build on that a bit more later. So

00:24:01.890 --> 00:24:03.970
the other thing we need to think about is nobody

00:24:03.970 --> 00:24:07.349
ages out of the national team. You have to either

00:24:07.349 --> 00:24:09.670
take a step back where you're not good enough

00:24:09.670 --> 00:24:12.170
to play anymore, but if you're good enough, you

00:24:12.170 --> 00:24:14.089
can stay. Or make different life decisions. Yeah,

00:24:14.109 --> 00:24:16.569
totally. You can stay and play forever. So you

00:24:16.569 --> 00:24:20.230
don't have that same filtering through of athletes.

00:24:20.430 --> 00:24:23.289
It's not to say that Bergen -Riley's class gets

00:24:23.289 --> 00:24:26.380
a setter on the national team. It may skip. whole

00:24:26.380 --> 00:24:29.680
generation because somebody is just that good

00:24:29.680 --> 00:24:32.579
and I put it in context of think about Jordan

00:24:32.579 --> 00:24:35.000
Larson she played on the national team for 15

00:24:35.000 --> 00:24:38.519
to 20 years and nobody didn't matter where how

00:24:38.519 --> 00:24:40.519
good you were you weren't taking the p2 spot

00:24:40.519 --> 00:24:43.339
away from you so there was 15 years where it

00:24:43.339 --> 00:24:45.579
didn't matter how good you were you weren't taking

00:24:45.579 --> 00:24:46.920
that spot from her because you weren't better

00:24:46.920 --> 00:24:48.579
than Jordan because you weren't better than Jordan

00:24:48.579 --> 00:24:51.740
there's no guaranteed window for national team.

00:24:51.859 --> 00:24:54.980
And that's what makes it so hard to play. I liken

00:24:54.980 --> 00:24:58.759
it to thinking like Sarah and Jordan, if they

00:24:58.759 --> 00:25:01.660
played for Nebraska for 15 years, you would never

00:25:01.660 --> 00:25:03.420
have needed another left side or a right side.

00:25:03.500 --> 00:25:05.460
Just nobody would ever got that opportunity.

00:25:05.579 --> 00:25:08.500
And that's what makes it so difficult to play

00:25:08.500 --> 00:25:10.799
in those teams. People don't leave. You have

00:25:10.799 --> 00:25:13.839
to beat them out. And that, I think that that's,

00:25:13.839 --> 00:25:18.019
we've talked about this at length. I think that

00:25:18.019 --> 00:25:23.059
this year in the NCAA, It's not good. It's not

00:25:23.059 --> 00:25:26.779
a good year for talent and skill level. And I

00:25:26.779 --> 00:25:28.299
know people are going to be like, we're crazy.

00:25:28.460 --> 00:25:33.119
No, trust me. The number of athletes from this

00:25:33.119 --> 00:25:37.500
generation that you are going to see play on

00:25:37.500 --> 00:25:41.099
the national team, I think is very small. I think

00:25:41.099 --> 00:25:46.140
the generation from like 05 to 08 was a special.

00:25:46.910 --> 00:25:51.690
where you had so many athletes from that group

00:25:51.690 --> 00:25:57.369
go and have really long, really successful professional

00:25:57.369 --> 00:26:00.990
and national team careers. We're talking the

00:26:00.990 --> 00:26:04.349
Jordan Larsons, the Megan Hodges, Nicole Fawcett,

00:26:04.450 --> 00:26:09.230
Krista Harmato, Feluka Akinradowo, me. A bunch

00:26:09.230 --> 00:26:13.690
of setters. Alicia Glass. You had that generation

00:26:13.690 --> 00:26:16.329
of athlete was... They were built different.

00:26:16.670 --> 00:26:21.130
It was just a special time in NCAA volleyball

00:26:21.130 --> 00:26:25.490
where those players made really long and successful

00:26:25.490 --> 00:26:28.849
pro careers. You're not seeing that. You're not

00:26:28.849 --> 00:26:32.789
seeing that same number of athletes coming through

00:26:32.789 --> 00:26:37.589
the NCAA at the same time and staying with the

00:26:37.589 --> 00:26:40.849
national team. So when people are like, how can

00:26:40.849 --> 00:26:43.089
you say Bergen -Riley won't be? Is she better

00:26:43.089 --> 00:26:45.309
than Jordan Poulter? Is she better than Micah

00:26:45.309 --> 00:26:49.339
Hancock? No, she's not. And so this is where

00:26:49.339 --> 00:26:52.400
you get into the conversation of, okay, how do

00:26:52.400 --> 00:26:53.960
you make a national team? And somebody asked

00:26:53.960 --> 00:26:55.920
like position by position, what do you guys look

00:26:55.920 --> 00:26:57.819
at for this? Which I think is a great question.

00:26:57.900 --> 00:27:01.279
If you look at the setters who have played for

00:27:01.279 --> 00:27:05.200
the US in the near past, let's think about them.

00:27:05.279 --> 00:27:08.079
You as an athlete, you need to find a way to

00:27:08.079 --> 00:27:10.880
differentiate yourself. Everybody is a good setter.

00:27:10.980 --> 00:27:13.640
Everybody can locate the ball. Everybody can

00:27:13.640 --> 00:27:17.210
do. all of the things, but you need something

00:27:17.210 --> 00:27:20.049
that makes you special or sets you apart. And

00:27:20.049 --> 00:27:23.009
I think that's where, at least for me, when I

00:27:23.009 --> 00:27:24.809
look at Bergen -Riley, I'm not sure what that

00:27:24.809 --> 00:27:28.150
is. She's great for Nebraska because she's so

00:27:28.150 --> 00:27:30.789
consistent. She sets the ball. She works hard.

00:27:30.930 --> 00:27:33.910
She's good defensively, not great. She's pretty

00:27:33.910 --> 00:27:36.829
good defensively. Okay, but who's the best U

00:27:36.829 --> 00:27:39.210
.S. defending setter, would you say? Harlini,

00:27:39.269 --> 00:27:41.700
probably. Okay. She's not. She's done with national

00:27:41.700 --> 00:27:44.519
team. I know that. But that's the level of defense

00:27:44.519 --> 00:27:46.519
we're talking about. And can Bergen -Riley get

00:27:46.519 --> 00:27:49.680
there? Maybe. But I haven't seen that yet. You

00:27:49.680 --> 00:27:52.779
know, you look at Jordan Poulter. Super fast

00:27:52.779 --> 00:27:55.880
offense. Very physical. Really good blocker.

00:27:55.980 --> 00:28:00.660
6 '2". You know, Micah Hancock. Serve. Serve

00:28:00.660 --> 00:28:02.920
sets her apart. Like for me, for Bergen Riley

00:28:02.920 --> 00:28:05.119
to make that jump and for any player from college,

00:28:05.200 --> 00:28:07.619
you need to have something special that sets

00:28:07.619 --> 00:28:10.220
you apart from those athletes. And I'm not sure

00:28:10.220 --> 00:28:13.559
I can pick what that would be. Well, and I'm

00:28:13.559 --> 00:28:16.180
going to go back to the Nebraska UCLA discussion

00:28:16.180 --> 00:28:18.819
and what I have been saying about Bergen Riley

00:28:18.819 --> 00:28:22.559
since last year, her out of system setting is

00:28:22.559 --> 00:28:26.039
inconsistent and her back setting is inconsistent.

00:28:27.180 --> 00:28:29.839
Because you are going to have to set. Big right

00:28:29.839 --> 00:28:32.420
sides who are physical in tempo. And she has

00:28:32.420 --> 00:28:34.519
struggled with that with Adriano. And with the

00:28:34.519 --> 00:28:36.539
personnel that the U .S. national team currently

00:28:36.539 --> 00:28:39.140
has on the left side, the passing is their biggest

00:28:39.140 --> 00:28:41.160
issue. We've talked about this all VNL season.

00:28:41.279 --> 00:28:44.680
Again, I don't know if Kelsey Cook is going to

00:28:44.680 --> 00:28:46.440
come back after her pregnancy. I don't know if

00:28:46.440 --> 00:28:48.140
Justine is going to come back after her pregnancy,

00:28:48.299 --> 00:28:52.180
which were the two remaining top ball control

00:28:52.180 --> 00:28:55.390
players for the U .S. Do I want Bergen -Riley

00:28:55.390 --> 00:28:58.349
setting the passes that Logan Eggleston and Sarah

00:28:58.349 --> 00:29:01.029
Franklin are putting up? No, I don't because

00:29:01.029 --> 00:29:04.029
I don't love how she sets out a system. You might

00:29:04.029 --> 00:29:07.150
love her, but there's no predictor. Just like

00:29:07.150 --> 00:29:10.009
there's no predictor how a top high school recruit

00:29:10.009 --> 00:29:11.750
is going to make the transition to the college

00:29:11.750 --> 00:29:16.150
game, it is even harder to predict. how a top

00:29:16.150 --> 00:29:18.750
college player is going to translate to the international

00:29:18.750 --> 00:29:20.650
game because, and we've talked about this so

00:29:20.650 --> 00:29:23.109
many times, the NCAA sets it up so that their

00:29:23.109 --> 00:29:25.529
athletes can have success with the substitutions,

00:29:25.529 --> 00:29:27.029
with this, with that, with the rules that they

00:29:27.029 --> 00:29:29.470
have. So you can't predict. Look at all the draft

00:29:29.470 --> 00:29:33.150
picks in the NFL, in the NBA, et cetera, who

00:29:33.150 --> 00:29:37.470
were expected to be huge assets in the pros who

00:29:37.470 --> 00:29:41.160
just didn't cut it or were underwhelming. in

00:29:41.160 --> 00:29:43.339
their performance. It's the same thing with volleyball.

00:29:43.500 --> 00:29:46.380
You can't necessarily predict. And maybe five

00:29:46.380 --> 00:29:48.140
years from now, you're all going to be like,

00:29:48.240 --> 00:29:50.099
you guys are so stupid. You were wrong. Maybe.

00:29:50.279 --> 00:29:52.700
And Bergen -Riley definitely has a chance to

00:29:52.700 --> 00:29:55.220
separate herself. We're not saying she can't

00:29:55.220 --> 00:29:58.099
do that, but she's going to have to go find her

00:29:58.099 --> 00:30:00.160
niche, which she hasn't had to do at Nebraska.

00:30:00.500 --> 00:30:03.140
That's the thing. There's no indicator right

00:30:03.140 --> 00:30:06.700
now for me looking at her that goes, that's what

00:30:06.700 --> 00:30:08.380
sets her apart. That's what's going to make her

00:30:08.380 --> 00:30:12.279
wanted on the national team. Okay, the Izzy Stark

00:30:12.279 --> 00:30:15.059
discussion. When I think about Bergen -Riley,

00:30:15.259 --> 00:30:18.140
do I think that Bergen -Riley could have taken

00:30:18.140 --> 00:30:21.099
the Penn State team from last year and won a

00:30:21.099 --> 00:30:24.099
national championship with them? I don't, honestly.

00:30:24.559 --> 00:30:28.980
So Izzy Stark, why did she help propel Penn State

00:30:28.980 --> 00:30:31.259
to the top? The Penn State was not a good passing

00:30:31.259 --> 00:30:34.440
team. The way that she was able to pinpoint her

00:30:34.440 --> 00:30:38.420
set location and keep her hitters in rhythm from

00:30:38.420 --> 00:30:44.339
all... over the floor was so impressive. Not

00:30:44.339 --> 00:30:46.700
to mention, she's 6 '1". She put up a decent

00:30:46.700 --> 00:30:49.200
-sized block. Her defense was actually pretty

00:30:49.200 --> 00:30:53.000
good, and her offensive ability was much better.

00:30:53.680 --> 00:30:56.819
I don't see that same thing from Bergen -Riley.

00:30:57.259 --> 00:30:59.180
That's kind of the setting position. Let's move

00:30:59.180 --> 00:31:03.099
on and say you're evaluating left sides. What

00:31:03.099 --> 00:31:06.039
are you looking at from a left -side point of

00:31:06.039 --> 00:31:07.660
view to go, okay, there's national team potential.

00:31:08.519 --> 00:31:11.819
good international potential and well you go

00:31:11.819 --> 00:31:14.319
first and then I can I'll throw in my piece well

00:31:14.319 --> 00:31:16.119
I think you have to be a six rotation player

00:31:16.119 --> 00:31:18.859
at minimum there's no getting around that minimum

00:31:18.859 --> 00:31:20.900
like you can't be one of those left sides that's

00:31:20.900 --> 00:31:23.240
just like subbed out of the back row you need

00:31:23.240 --> 00:31:25.859
to be able to pass you need to be able to play

00:31:25.859 --> 00:31:28.279
defense you need to be able to hit a faster ball

00:31:28.279 --> 00:31:31.880
in system and hit a decent high ball is the high

00:31:31.880 --> 00:31:34.279
ball a necessity no if you have a good right

00:31:34.279 --> 00:31:36.789
side The U .S. currently doesn't. There's an

00:31:36.789 --> 00:31:39.349
example, though, of something that can be a differentiator.

00:31:39.410 --> 00:31:42.509
If you become a really good out -of -system highball

00:31:42.509 --> 00:31:44.970
hitter as a left side, you become more valuable.

00:31:45.109 --> 00:31:47.410
Your currency increases. So it's about finding

00:31:47.410 --> 00:31:50.049
those areas because everybody can pass. Some

00:31:50.049 --> 00:31:52.710
people better than others, but, you know, marginally.

00:31:53.210 --> 00:31:55.450
Play defense. All of those things. If you can

00:31:55.450 --> 00:31:59.210
pass an attack, that's step one. If you can pass

00:31:59.210 --> 00:32:02.849
an attack and hit a highball, bonus. But you

00:32:02.849 --> 00:32:05.420
need, again. If you're going to play P1, you

00:32:05.420 --> 00:32:07.180
need to be physical. You need to be able to score.

00:32:07.279 --> 00:32:09.519
You need to have all of the shots. If you're

00:32:09.519 --> 00:32:12.299
going to be a P2, your ball control, your defense,

00:32:12.480 --> 00:32:14.400
your out -of -system setting, all of that has

00:32:14.400 --> 00:32:16.240
to be better than everybody else's. And that's

00:32:16.240 --> 00:32:19.420
why we see a player like Kim Hill who didn't

00:32:19.420 --> 00:32:23.059
play at a great program. She played at Pepperdine.

00:32:23.680 --> 00:32:25.819
Not in the conversation for national championships.

00:32:26.160 --> 00:32:29.019
She was able to make a great national team in

00:32:29.019 --> 00:32:31.579
pro career. Why? Because she played on both sides

00:32:31.579 --> 00:32:34.200
of the ball. She could pass. She played defense.

00:32:34.420 --> 00:32:37.720
She was really big. So she could hit at the net,

00:32:37.819 --> 00:32:39.799
but she could hit out of system as well. She

00:32:39.799 --> 00:32:43.380
could do it all. And it wasn't about maybe she

00:32:43.380 --> 00:32:47.440
didn't fit into the mold or didn't come into

00:32:47.440 --> 00:32:51.019
her own in high school to be recruited to a top

00:32:51.019 --> 00:32:52.339
program. Maybe she didn't want to go to a top

00:32:52.339 --> 00:32:54.160
program. I don't know what the reasoning was

00:32:54.160 --> 00:32:57.279
for her to go to Pepperdine. But the fact that

00:32:57.279 --> 00:32:59.680
she was able to develop all of her skills as

00:32:59.680 --> 00:33:02.700
a six rotation player. Gave her a great pro career.

00:33:03.180 --> 00:33:05.680
Finally. I mean, I think the opposite is pretty

00:33:05.680 --> 00:33:07.799
straightforward. You got to be big. You got to

00:33:07.799 --> 00:33:09.400
be physical. You got to score. You got to have

00:33:09.400 --> 00:33:12.079
a good score. Just like score points. You need

00:33:12.079 --> 00:33:14.599
to hit in system. You need to be good at hitting

00:33:14.599 --> 00:33:17.680
out of system, which I am forever going to be

00:33:17.680 --> 00:33:20.299
shocked at how people don't train their hitters

00:33:20.299 --> 00:33:23.470
to hit out of system anymore. Hello. Just. Do

00:33:23.470 --> 00:33:25.829
it. And you can't be an absolute liability on

00:33:25.829 --> 00:33:27.309
defense. You need to put up a good block. You

00:33:27.309 --> 00:33:29.670
need to have an aggressive serve. And don't be

00:33:29.670 --> 00:33:31.710
a black hole on defense. We're not asking for

00:33:31.710 --> 00:33:33.529
spectacular. You can be a gray hole, but you

00:33:33.529 --> 00:33:36.250
can't be a black hole. You can be gray. Okay?

00:33:36.309 --> 00:33:39.829
But don't be like Stiszak from Poland and be

00:33:39.829 --> 00:33:41.769
a literal black hole where the ball will hit

00:33:41.769 --> 00:33:44.190
you and you don't dig it. And then in the middle.

00:33:44.700 --> 00:33:47.119
We're on one today. Yeah. Well, but it's, it's

00:33:47.119 --> 00:33:49.359
a fascinating conversation. And I've spent a

00:33:49.359 --> 00:33:50.859
lot of time thinking about this this week because

00:33:50.859 --> 00:33:52.799
I've loved the questions that have come up. In

00:33:52.799 --> 00:33:55.200
the middle, everybody can block. So you've got

00:33:55.200 --> 00:33:58.119
to have. No, I think, but you see in the NCAA,

00:33:58.119 --> 00:34:00.859
you usually have one blocker, one middle who's

00:34:00.859 --> 00:34:02.960
a good blocker and one middle who's a good attacker.

00:34:03.559 --> 00:34:07.059
You don't often see. True. Middles that can do

00:34:07.059 --> 00:34:09.860
both. There are exceptions. I'm not, this is

00:34:09.860 --> 00:34:12.820
like generally speaking. Yeah. But at the bare

00:34:12.820 --> 00:34:16.440
minimum. You need to be a good blocker. And you

00:34:16.440 --> 00:34:20.719
need to be able to hit something. You need a

00:34:20.719 --> 00:34:23.719
differentiator offensively. So why we like Annie

00:34:23.719 --> 00:34:26.559
Jackson, she's super dynamic on the slide. So

00:34:26.559 --> 00:34:28.599
you can plug her into that offense and you know

00:34:28.599 --> 00:34:30.860
it's going to work well. And she does that incredibly

00:34:30.860 --> 00:34:33.599
well. For me personally, if I find a middle who

00:34:33.599 --> 00:34:36.480
can run in front very effectively, that sets

00:34:36.480 --> 00:34:38.800
you apart because not a ton of middles are really

00:34:38.800 --> 00:34:40.920
good at that. Obviously, you have some middles

00:34:40.920 --> 00:34:43.409
who are just exceptional blockers. and they're

00:34:43.409 --> 00:34:45.630
not great offensively, you can have one of those

00:34:45.630 --> 00:34:47.570
on your team, but then you need... You can't

00:34:47.570 --> 00:34:50.150
have two. No, you need an offensive threat. But

00:34:50.150 --> 00:34:53.210
even at the top levels, I would say internationally,

00:34:53.429 --> 00:34:56.670
your middle, who might not be as good offensively,

00:34:56.670 --> 00:35:00.289
needs to be competent enough to hold a block

00:35:00.289 --> 00:35:03.789
defense. True. Yeah, and again, that's the baseline.

00:35:05.030 --> 00:35:07.869
Last one, just for argument's sake. What about

00:35:07.869 --> 00:35:09.590
Libero? Well, you know what I'm going to say.

00:35:10.250 --> 00:35:13.869
You need to know how to set. set the ball period

00:35:13.869 --> 00:35:16.670
know how to set obviously if you're a libero

00:35:16.670 --> 00:35:19.090
on the national team you should be able to pass

00:35:19.090 --> 00:35:21.989
you shouldn't be able to play defense well you

00:35:21.989 --> 00:35:24.829
have to be you have to pass a ton of court and

00:35:24.829 --> 00:35:27.530
you have to be consistent okay yeah defense especially

00:35:27.530 --> 00:35:29.909
if you're on the u .s national team be comfortable

00:35:29.909 --> 00:35:32.789
passing close to half the court yeah to cover

00:35:32.789 --> 00:35:34.969
for those front row left sides maybe not on a

00:35:34.969 --> 00:35:37.849
spin serve but defensively defensively you're

00:35:37.849 --> 00:35:40.619
covering Like you're not looking around. You're

00:35:40.619 --> 00:35:45.840
able to cover from zone three attack line. So

00:35:45.840 --> 00:35:48.219
the attack line in zone three down to the back

00:35:48.219 --> 00:35:51.880
corner in zone five. I would often even say five,

00:35:51.920 --> 00:35:55.320
six seam. For those who are exceptional. Yeah.

00:35:55.719 --> 00:35:59.920
And set the ball. Lots of conversations about

00:35:59.920 --> 00:36:02.079
making national teams, different levels of national

00:36:02.079 --> 00:36:04.519
teams, what kind of potential there is. And again,

00:36:04.579 --> 00:36:07.699
predicting somebody's potential is not a science.

00:36:08.110 --> 00:36:10.190
You look at it. Can I add something? Go ahead.

00:36:10.309 --> 00:36:12.789
For hitters, when we're talking about being able

00:36:12.789 --> 00:36:15.989
to hit, I mean hit against a solid, well -formed

00:36:15.989 --> 00:36:19.389
block. Anybody can score in a one -on -one. Anybody

00:36:19.389 --> 00:36:22.409
can score with a truckload of seam. When we're

00:36:22.409 --> 00:36:25.469
talking about you can hit, I mean you can hit

00:36:25.469 --> 00:36:28.969
with four hands in your face. Consistently. Yes.

00:36:29.440 --> 00:36:31.760
In system and out of system. Very good point.

00:36:31.840 --> 00:36:33.820
It's hard to understand. If you don't watch a

00:36:33.820 --> 00:36:35.820
lot of international volleyball, you maybe don't

00:36:35.820 --> 00:36:38.380
understand the level or the jump or just how

00:36:38.380 --> 00:36:42.079
small the opportunity is. And I heard a lot of

00:36:42.079 --> 00:36:44.840
comments that were to the point of, well, this

00:36:44.840 --> 00:36:47.420
person got invited to the gym. 70 or 80 athletes

00:36:47.420 --> 00:36:50.659
get invited to the gym in the summer. And if

00:36:50.659 --> 00:36:53.300
you have a decent college career, you get an

00:36:53.300 --> 00:36:55.019
invite. You get to come. They want bodies there.

00:36:55.099 --> 00:36:56.960
You're looking at all of them. They want to see

00:36:56.960 --> 00:37:00.050
their potential. Being selected for rosters,

00:37:00.070 --> 00:37:01.690
that's what kind of sets you apart. And so that's

00:37:01.690 --> 00:37:04.070
what we look at and kind of think about. Yeah,

00:37:04.150 --> 00:37:07.090
it was a lot of questions and a very interesting

00:37:07.090 --> 00:37:09.789
dialogue that I saw this week online. And so

00:37:09.789 --> 00:37:12.289
I thought it was worth kind of discussing and

00:37:12.289 --> 00:37:14.190
talking about. And I will give a shout out. I

00:37:14.190 --> 00:37:17.650
had somebody do a statistical analysis that compared

00:37:17.650 --> 00:37:23.170
Bergen -Riley and Poulter college careers. And

00:37:23.170 --> 00:37:26.719
I found that... And Bergen -Riley was better

00:37:26.719 --> 00:37:29.800
in a bunch of the categories. It's easy to be

00:37:29.800 --> 00:37:32.059
better when you're in system and when you have

00:37:32.059 --> 00:37:35.340
just everybody can score on your team. True.

00:37:35.480 --> 00:37:38.119
That's a luxury in college. It is. And I will

00:37:38.119 --> 00:37:40.340
say. You guys are going to think I hate Bergen

00:37:40.340 --> 00:37:42.760
-Riley. And I'm not doing anything to make you

00:37:42.760 --> 00:37:45.739
change that thought process. I'm aware. I do

00:37:45.739 --> 00:37:50.780
think she is good. But this is the thing. She

00:37:50.780 --> 00:37:54.139
is very consistent. She's like all of the other

00:37:54.139 --> 00:37:57.059
Nebraska players. She's very consistent. She

00:37:57.059 --> 00:38:00.099
doesn't make a ton of errors. She's well -skilled

00:38:00.099 --> 00:38:04.659
around all of the skills, but she doesn't have

00:38:04.659 --> 00:38:07.099
anything that sets her apart, and she will need

00:38:07.099 --> 00:38:09.559
to be put into a situation where she is required

00:38:09.559 --> 00:38:13.179
to elevate, and it will be interesting to see

00:38:13.179 --> 00:38:15.420
if she can do that. Well, and here's the thing.

00:38:15.519 --> 00:38:17.360
I think Bergen -Riley has potential in Player

00:38:17.360 --> 00:38:21.400
of the Year. Oh, yeah. 100%. Again, she's an

00:38:21.400 --> 00:38:24.960
incredible NCAA athlete. There are certain players

00:38:24.960 --> 00:38:29.059
that could play for any program and be outstanding.

00:38:29.380 --> 00:38:31.659
There are just players who are built different.

00:38:31.940 --> 00:38:35.699
There are players who fit well into a system.

00:38:36.179 --> 00:38:41.199
And they are excellent, outstanding players within

00:38:41.199 --> 00:38:44.880
a certain framework. I want to see Bergen -Riley

00:38:44.880 --> 00:38:48.199
outside of the Nebraska framework. And see what

00:38:48.199 --> 00:38:51.579
she would do. Going back to the statistical analysis,

00:38:51.920 --> 00:38:56.340
I don't think collegiate success is the best

00:38:56.340 --> 00:38:59.079
indicator of professional success. There's too

00:38:59.079 --> 00:39:02.619
many variables. There's coaching style. There's

00:39:02.619 --> 00:39:05.659
playing time. There's teammates. There's all

00:39:05.659 --> 00:39:09.119
of these different things that you can't really

00:39:09.119 --> 00:39:13.179
compare one person's situation to another person's

00:39:13.179 --> 00:39:15.239
depending on. you know, what conference they

00:39:15.239 --> 00:39:16.940
play in, who their teammates are at any given

00:39:16.940 --> 00:39:19.579
time. Those direct comparisons I don't think

00:39:19.579 --> 00:39:24.559
are good future predictors of international potential

00:39:24.559 --> 00:39:28.360
or success. It's an interesting thing to do and

00:39:28.360 --> 00:39:31.760
to talk about, but I don't think it's super relevant

00:39:31.760 --> 00:39:36.119
in this conversation. All right, so we had a

00:39:36.119 --> 00:39:41.820
couple big matches this week, namely the battle

00:39:41.820 --> 00:39:46.039
for first in the ACC. and Nebraska losing their

00:39:46.039 --> 00:39:50.579
first set in 48 sets, I think, or something crazy

00:39:50.579 --> 00:39:53.320
like that. So we watched both of those matches.

00:39:53.360 --> 00:39:56.059
We're going to dive into those and just spend

00:39:56.059 --> 00:39:58.960
a little time talking about what we saw. So do

00:39:58.960 --> 00:40:00.539
you want to start with Pitt versus Stanford game

00:40:00.539 --> 00:40:04.099
or the Nebraska -UCLA game? Let's do Pitt -Stanford.

00:40:04.199 --> 00:40:08.460
Give me your initial impression of that match.

00:40:09.340 --> 00:40:12.599
Okay, full disclosure. I was calling a game.

00:40:13.250 --> 00:40:16.150
when this match was happening. I only saw the

00:40:16.150 --> 00:40:18.809
last three sets, but you watched the whole thing.

00:40:18.849 --> 00:40:20.829
I watched the whole thing. I actually don't think

00:40:20.829 --> 00:40:22.889
Stanford should have won that match. Based on

00:40:22.889 --> 00:40:26.650
what I saw, which Pitt was up 14 -11 in the fifth,

00:40:26.969 --> 00:40:29.610
no. The same thing happened in the first set.

00:40:29.690 --> 00:40:34.150
Pitt was up 24 -20, lost 26 -24. Two of the three

00:40:34.150 --> 00:40:37.550
sets that Stanford won, they went on six and

00:40:37.550 --> 00:40:41.389
five point runs and with nothing, with no response

00:40:41.389 --> 00:40:44.199
from Pitt. Okay, what happened in the first time

00:40:44.199 --> 00:40:47.780
that happened? Error after bad passing. You know,

00:40:47.800 --> 00:40:50.300
Stanford made a couple plays. Good serving. I

00:40:50.300 --> 00:40:52.619
will say in the first two sets, Stanford served

00:40:52.619 --> 00:40:55.940
really, really well. And they managed to keep

00:40:55.940 --> 00:40:59.000
Pitt off the net. They knew where the ball was

00:40:59.000 --> 00:41:02.059
going to go. And they were able to force really

00:41:02.059 --> 00:41:04.420
good blocks on Babcock. They got a lot of block

00:41:04.420 --> 00:41:07.099
touch slowdowns, which turned into transition

00:41:07.099 --> 00:41:09.039
opportunities. They did that very well in the

00:41:09.039 --> 00:41:11.559
first two sets. Well, and you also messaged me.

00:41:12.190 --> 00:41:15.989
And you said Logan Parks is really good. And

00:41:15.989 --> 00:41:19.289
you said Elliot Rubin is really good. Elliot

00:41:19.289 --> 00:41:21.989
Rubin, I thought, was really good at the beginning

00:41:21.989 --> 00:41:25.230
of the match. And then I actually thought Blashov

00:41:25.230 --> 00:41:29.469
played really well down the stretch. Somebody

00:41:29.469 --> 00:41:32.750
correct me. She wasn't playing at the beginning

00:41:32.750 --> 00:41:35.010
of the season, was she? I think E. Park Kurt

00:41:35.010 --> 00:41:37.610
was in there for a while. Yeah. But I don't,

00:41:37.610 --> 00:41:41.030
I've seen Stanford play a few times and I. Unless

00:41:41.030 --> 00:41:44.309
I blacked out, which has been known to happen.

00:41:45.170 --> 00:41:48.090
I don't recall her playing, but she was like

00:41:48.090 --> 00:41:53.449
unstoppable. She went 20 for 43 and hit 394 or

00:41:53.449 --> 00:41:57.809
349. Sorry. She was. She was very good. Stanford's

00:41:57.809 --> 00:42:01.010
outside core played really, really well. Harvey

00:42:01.010 --> 00:42:04.590
also. Their middles did play well. More on the

00:42:04.590 --> 00:42:06.469
defensive side of the ball. They scored, but

00:42:06.469 --> 00:42:09.130
they didn't get set a ton. Every time I saw Lizzie

00:42:09.130 --> 00:42:11.630
Andrews swing, she scored. I think she had maybe

00:42:11.630 --> 00:42:13.630
seven or eight points. I think she got 15 or

00:42:13.630 --> 00:42:16.730
16 sets. Okay. But she had like seven blocks.

00:42:17.170 --> 00:42:19.630
Yeah. In the fourth set, they posted that stat.

00:42:19.829 --> 00:42:23.409
She was a factor for sure. To me, Stanford ran

00:42:23.409 --> 00:42:28.090
the middle enough to keep Pitt honest, and Stanford's

00:42:28.090 --> 00:42:30.289
outside scored. The other thing I will say, and

00:42:30.289 --> 00:42:33.829
we had this discussion a couple weeks ago, Stanford

00:42:33.829 --> 00:42:37.449
ran the pipe a whole bunch in that match. which

00:42:37.449 --> 00:42:41.349
is not something that they have done super well

00:42:41.349 --> 00:42:43.530
this season, in my opinion. I know that we've

00:42:43.530 --> 00:42:45.750
been critical of that before. Here's the one

00:42:45.750 --> 00:42:48.630
thing I really like about Stanford. A, you know

00:42:48.630 --> 00:42:51.190
their athletes are smart because they got into

00:42:51.190 --> 00:42:53.210
Stanford. They have to actually get accepted

00:42:53.210 --> 00:42:56.010
on their own merit, not just because they're

00:42:56.010 --> 00:43:02.090
athletes. Yes. And historically, Hambly does

00:43:02.090 --> 00:43:06.130
a really good job of building towards the tournament.

00:43:06.510 --> 00:43:09.489
So I wouldn't be surprised if this was running

00:43:09.489 --> 00:43:12.789
the pipe was always on his roadmap. But with

00:43:12.789 --> 00:43:14.650
a bunch of young players like, hey, we can't

00:43:14.650 --> 00:43:15.750
we're not going to add this yet. We're going

00:43:15.750 --> 00:43:19.130
to add this moving into so that we have another

00:43:19.130 --> 00:43:21.739
weapon come tournament time. I think he does

00:43:21.739 --> 00:43:23.440
a really good job of progressing through the

00:43:23.440 --> 00:43:26.440
season and his teams always get better. To see

00:43:26.440 --> 00:43:29.000
them running the pipe, I thought, man, this is

00:43:29.000 --> 00:43:31.820
a really good addition for them on top of what

00:43:31.820 --> 00:43:33.340
they had already been done. Their middles are

00:43:33.340 --> 00:43:35.039
a threat. Their outsides are starting to play

00:43:35.039 --> 00:43:38.800
better. Again, I think Parks is a fantastic setter.

00:43:38.800 --> 00:43:40.940
I really liked what she did. Pitt should have

00:43:40.940 --> 00:43:44.340
won because Babcock was just so good. Stanford

00:43:44.340 --> 00:43:47.260
doesn't give up. They're disciplined. They get

00:43:47.260 --> 00:43:49.659
lots of really good block touches. In the sets

00:43:49.659 --> 00:43:52.539
where Stanford did a good job, they applied really

00:43:52.539 --> 00:43:54.239
good service pressure. Now they missed a whole

00:43:54.239 --> 00:43:57.159
ton of serves. And in sets one and two, Pitt

00:43:57.159 --> 00:43:59.860
was off the net quite a bit, which eliminated

00:43:59.860 --> 00:44:02.059
their middles. They kept with that service pressure

00:44:02.059 --> 00:44:04.860
over the whole match. And even if they were missing,

00:44:04.960 --> 00:44:06.480
they kept going at it. And I think that mentality

00:44:06.480 --> 00:44:09.000
stands them in really good stead. We actually

00:44:09.000 --> 00:44:12.519
got a question recently about Logan Parks. Okay.

00:44:12.940 --> 00:44:16.659
She can set and hit maybe like a Campbell -Flinton

00:44:16.659 --> 00:44:20.579
situation like we see at Nebraska. In her prep

00:44:20.579 --> 00:44:23.760
days, did both. The question, its essence basically

00:44:23.760 --> 00:44:27.900
is, what do you do when you have an athlete who

00:44:27.900 --> 00:44:30.820
can play multiple positions? What is the thought

00:44:30.820 --> 00:44:34.480
process in making them, or not making them, but

00:44:34.480 --> 00:44:38.420
having them specialize in one? You put them where

00:44:38.420 --> 00:44:41.719
their skill set most values the team. So if she's

00:44:41.719 --> 00:44:43.500
setting this year because they don't have a better

00:44:43.500 --> 00:44:45.840
option, great. But in the back of your mind,

00:44:45.880 --> 00:44:48.320
when you're doing your recruiting, you know that

00:44:48.320 --> 00:44:51.000
if you get a blue chip setter, you can keep her

00:44:51.000 --> 00:44:53.039
on the court and move her to swing. So it just,

00:44:53.099 --> 00:44:55.980
it gives you flexibility as a coach, A, in terms

00:44:55.980 --> 00:44:59.440
of your recruiting, but B, in terms of maximizing

00:44:59.440 --> 00:45:02.199
potential and putting pieces where you need them.

00:45:02.320 --> 00:45:05.719
And I, like right now, setting is where she brings

00:45:05.719 --> 00:45:08.280
the most value to the team. Maybe when Elia Rubin

00:45:08.280 --> 00:45:11.130
leaves, that's not the case. I had a similar

00:45:11.130 --> 00:45:14.130
experience, albeit not at the same level. So

00:45:14.130 --> 00:45:20.030
I set. My club team ran a 6 -2 forever. Like

00:45:20.030 --> 00:45:23.590
I was a setter and a hitter. I did both for our

00:45:23.590 --> 00:45:27.190
national team programs as well. And then in my

00:45:27.190 --> 00:45:30.530
junior year of high school, it was like, okay,

00:45:30.570 --> 00:45:33.190
yeah, we need you to hit way more than we need

00:45:33.190 --> 00:45:36.369
you to set. And so I became exclusively a right

00:45:36.369 --> 00:45:39.329
side hitter and the rest is history. The exact

00:45:39.329 --> 00:45:41.429
same thing as you just described as like the

00:45:41.429 --> 00:45:43.730
thought process of what to do when players can

00:45:43.730 --> 00:45:47.570
do both happened to me. It's totally situational

00:45:47.570 --> 00:45:49.690
dependent. And there might be nights where if

00:45:49.690 --> 00:45:51.670
your left side goes down and you need her to

00:45:51.670 --> 00:45:53.369
play left side, you put another setter in. It's

00:45:53.369 --> 00:45:55.510
just it's a security blanket to have a player

00:45:55.510 --> 00:45:57.630
who can do multiple things. And she's just an

00:45:57.630 --> 00:46:00.710
incredible athlete. On to Pitt, because let me

00:46:00.710 --> 00:46:03.389
tell you, you're out 14 -11 in the fifth. They

00:46:03.389 --> 00:46:06.849
rolled in set three and four. Like they found

00:46:06.849 --> 00:46:10.039
their rhythm. Well, they started passing. And

00:46:10.039 --> 00:46:13.139
Babcock was unstoppable. Yes. Bayless came on

00:46:13.139 --> 00:46:16.320
hot, too. Bayless stunk in the first two sets

00:46:16.320 --> 00:46:19.179
and then got much better, and they started getting

00:46:19.179 --> 00:46:21.619
Brie Kelly the ball. Complete turnaround. Yes.

00:46:22.000 --> 00:46:24.840
Okay. We were looking at a potential reverse

00:46:24.840 --> 00:46:26.880
sweep, and it should have been a reverse sweep.

00:46:27.159 --> 00:46:30.360
We get to 14. What? No, it should have been a

00:46:30.360 --> 00:46:32.019
reverse sweep, but it should have been over on

00:46:32.019 --> 00:46:35.300
four. If they had gone their act together in

00:46:35.300 --> 00:46:37.960
the beginning. Okay, fair. Yeah, yeah. You have

00:46:37.960 --> 00:46:41.179
your go -to hitter who had been virtually unstoppable

00:46:41.179 --> 00:46:45.599
in the sets three and four. In the front row,

00:46:45.780 --> 00:46:50.019
okay, at 14 -11. I will give Ilya Rubin credit.

00:46:50.500 --> 00:46:54.159
She went back to serve at 14 -12 because Stanford

00:46:54.159 --> 00:46:58.639
sided out. Ice in the veins. Nailed her serve.

00:46:58.760 --> 00:47:01.079
I'm not just talking like, oh, let's keep them

00:47:01.079 --> 00:47:04.280
in. She targeted the French girl, whose name

00:47:04.280 --> 00:47:06.980
eludes me at the moment. Faders to the sideline.

00:47:07.139 --> 00:47:10.119
Oh. Like, we're not talking like, oh, let's keep

00:47:10.119 --> 00:47:11.960
it in. We're not talking like, oh, just make

00:47:11.960 --> 00:47:15.219
this person pass. We're talking make this person

00:47:15.219 --> 00:47:18.519
pass and go to the ground. And she nailed it.

00:47:18.760 --> 00:47:23.300
Every ball. That might have been the most impressive

00:47:23.300 --> 00:47:26.840
part of that whole match was just her ability

00:47:26.840 --> 00:47:31.260
to keep Pitt under pressure in that moment. But

00:47:31.260 --> 00:47:33.820
here's the thing. Pitt gets a free ball back.

00:47:34.670 --> 00:47:40.309
At 14 -12. And their libero passes it too tight.

00:47:41.150 --> 00:47:45.190
I knew this was coming. I wanted to punch the

00:47:45.190 --> 00:47:50.090
TV. You're the libero on one of the top teams

00:47:50.090 --> 00:47:52.469
in the country, and you are not going to execute

00:47:52.469 --> 00:47:55.750
a free ball pass at match point? Do your job.

00:47:55.989 --> 00:47:58.230
Single -handedly, I'm like, it's your fault you

00:47:58.230 --> 00:48:01.190
lost. Quite frankly, that ball should have gone.

00:48:01.880 --> 00:48:03.260
to Babcock, and it should have been game over

00:48:03.260 --> 00:48:05.940
15 -12. We're talking the most basic skill here.

00:48:06.159 --> 00:48:10.659
Free ball passing. Focus in. Pass the ball. It's

00:48:10.659 --> 00:48:14.360
your job. Okay, putting that aside. French girl

00:48:14.360 --> 00:48:18.320
can't pass. I repeat, you have your go -to hitter

00:48:18.320 --> 00:48:22.000
in the front row. She's a right side. If you

00:48:22.000 --> 00:48:26.920
are unable to get a high ball to the right side,

00:48:27.159 --> 00:48:31.360
front row, what are you even doing? That is how

00:48:31.360 --> 00:48:35.260
bad the passing was. Correct me if I'm wrong,

00:48:35.320 --> 00:48:37.860
but I don't think she got a swing. She got one

00:48:37.860 --> 00:48:41.159
that was set by the libero behind the attack

00:48:41.159 --> 00:48:44.739
line. Roll shot. She couldn't do anything. I

00:48:44.739 --> 00:48:48.659
want to say two players just completely melted

00:48:48.659 --> 00:48:50.860
down. Girl. Get the ball high in the middle of

00:48:50.860 --> 00:48:52.360
the court. You've got the best player in the

00:48:52.360 --> 00:48:54.019
country in the front row. Just give her a high

00:48:54.019 --> 00:48:56.119
ball. The game will be over. We're not looking

00:48:56.119 --> 00:48:58.219
for a three pass here. Get it high in the middle

00:48:58.219 --> 00:49:00.360
of the court. Outrageous. These are the kinds

00:49:00.360 --> 00:49:02.860
of things that can happen in pressure situations.

00:49:03.199 --> 00:49:06.900
You have to give Stanford credit. They didn't

00:49:06.900 --> 00:49:09.800
give up. They kept their foot on the gas in both

00:49:09.800 --> 00:49:12.199
those sets where they were down. But man, you've

00:49:12.199 --> 00:49:14.579
got to close that out. That's got to be. And

00:49:14.579 --> 00:49:16.420
that's for Stanford. Here's what Adam's going

00:49:16.420 --> 00:49:18.780
to call back what his. previous comment was.

00:49:18.960 --> 00:49:23.320
No. Stanford plays SMU on Sunday. They need to

00:49:23.320 --> 00:49:26.500
win that game to wrap up the ACC. So we're clearly

00:49:26.500 --> 00:49:28.159
recording this before that happens. Correct.

00:49:28.360 --> 00:49:32.860
You're playing to host to the Final Four. Yeah.

00:49:32.900 --> 00:49:36.980
A regional. And you can't close on two occasions.

00:49:37.340 --> 00:49:40.059
And one of those is a free ball. Yeah. That is

00:49:40.059 --> 00:49:42.260
not a good headspace to be in. You give up five

00:49:42.260 --> 00:49:44.420
match points. You give five points in a row.

00:49:44.980 --> 00:49:47.880
Yes. Gross. I didn't know, I don't know what

00:49:47.880 --> 00:49:50.360
to say. I kind of laughed on the first set. Like

00:49:50.360 --> 00:49:52.039
it happens and you're like, okay, Stanford came

00:49:52.039 --> 00:49:54.320
back. Way to not give up. Pitt's going to roll

00:49:54.320 --> 00:49:56.380
here. Then they lose again. Then they play incredibly

00:49:56.380 --> 00:49:58.800
well. And then you cough up another lead. Like

00:49:58.800 --> 00:50:01.380
that is, it's concerning, quite frankly. And

00:50:01.380 --> 00:50:04.699
this is what we've talked about. They're a one

00:50:04.699 --> 00:50:07.380
trick team if they can't run the middle and run

00:50:07.380 --> 00:50:09.599
the left side. Blair Bayless played really well,

00:50:09.679 --> 00:50:11.960
sets three, four, and five. Bree Kelly played

00:50:11.960 --> 00:50:14.739
well when they passed the ball. They're very

00:50:14.739 --> 00:50:17.280
hard to stop. When they're clicking like that.

00:50:17.320 --> 00:50:18.860
This is what we've been talking about all season.

00:50:19.000 --> 00:50:21.960
Not only could they not get anybody else a ball,

00:50:22.039 --> 00:50:23.699
they couldn't even get Olivia Babcock the ball.

00:50:23.800 --> 00:50:26.460
This is the exact scenario we have been talking

00:50:26.460 --> 00:50:29.500
about. And when we talked about it in the past,

00:50:29.539 --> 00:50:32.199
it was like, okay, well, if Olivia Babcock isn't

00:50:32.199 --> 00:50:35.980
on, then what? Well, guess what? She was on.

00:50:36.079 --> 00:50:38.000
She was on. And you couldn't get her the ball.

00:50:38.219 --> 00:50:40.739
Now, I did think that Brooke Mosher set a good

00:50:40.739 --> 00:50:44.349
game. I really like her serve. I thought. She

00:50:44.349 --> 00:50:47.070
played well when she had the ability to run the

00:50:47.070 --> 00:50:49.869
offense. So that's a good combination with both

00:50:49.869 --> 00:50:53.530
her and Babcock hitting pretty good serves. They

00:50:53.530 --> 00:50:55.570
can put some teams in trouble. You just can't

00:50:55.570 --> 00:50:58.449
melt down at the end of sets. So I'm curious

00:50:58.449 --> 00:51:00.269
to see. And a good job by Stanford for sticking

00:51:00.269 --> 00:51:02.190
with it. And I'll say it again, Ilya Rubin, those

00:51:02.190 --> 00:51:04.670
serves at the end could not have been better.

00:51:04.909 --> 00:51:07.530
Stanford did an incredible job playing defense.

00:51:07.869 --> 00:51:12.030
They were prepared. They didn't give... Babcock's

00:51:12.030 --> 00:51:15.239
going to score. they did a really good job on

00:51:15.239 --> 00:51:18.199
getting slowdowns and touches and taking care

00:51:18.199 --> 00:51:20.099
of their transition opportunities when they had

00:51:20.099 --> 00:51:22.739
them. To me, that's the game plan against Pitt.

00:51:22.860 --> 00:51:25.460
You serve really well, try and take out the middle.

00:51:25.659 --> 00:51:28.099
Again, Bayless struggled in the first two sets.

00:51:28.219 --> 00:51:30.360
She found her own way, good for her, but you're

00:51:30.360 --> 00:51:33.099
making life difficult for Babcock or trying to

00:51:33.099 --> 00:51:35.239
take her out with kudos to them. They have a

00:51:35.239 --> 00:51:36.840
really good chance of finishing first in the

00:51:36.840 --> 00:51:39.820
ACC, which is good for them. And good for Adam

00:51:39.820 --> 00:51:44.449
because he was the only one. in our Power 4 forecast

00:51:44.449 --> 00:51:47.909
episode that picked Stanford to win the ACC.

00:51:49.130 --> 00:51:50.929
I'm not going to lie. Being right is pretty fun.

00:51:51.849 --> 00:51:53.949
That's actually why he wanted to talk about this

00:51:53.949 --> 00:51:57.230
match, but whatever. Nebraska comes to the West

00:51:57.230 --> 00:51:59.809
Coast. Everybody comes to the West Coast hoping

00:51:59.809 --> 00:52:05.170
for sun, warmth, and escape from winter. They

00:52:05.170 --> 00:52:07.530
arrived in the middle of an atmospheric river

00:52:07.530 --> 00:52:12.750
event. It's cold. It's raining. Which I love.

00:52:13.289 --> 00:52:15.769
I'm all about that. Yeah, but we live here. We

00:52:15.769 --> 00:52:18.889
get the sun. I love it when it rains. The Nebraska

00:52:18.889 --> 00:52:23.590
fans turned up in LA. But some of the Nebraska

00:52:23.590 --> 00:52:25.630
players stayed home. What were your thoughts

00:52:25.630 --> 00:52:28.090
on that game? As you mentioned, they dropped

00:52:28.090 --> 00:52:31.550
their first set in a couple months. So that pressure's

00:52:31.550 --> 00:52:33.730
off. I actually think that's a positive. I agree.

00:52:33.809 --> 00:52:35.789
I think it's a positive. It just looked like

00:52:35.789 --> 00:52:38.610
an uninspired performance to me. Well, they kicked

00:52:38.610 --> 00:52:41.030
the snot out of them in the first set. UCLA hits

00:52:41.030 --> 00:52:44.179
zero. For all intents and purposes, they should

00:52:44.179 --> 00:52:47.719
have kept that rolling. Yes. They started and

00:52:47.719 --> 00:52:50.360
they looked like Nebraska. They just didn't continue

00:52:50.360 --> 00:52:53.559
that. No. Some of the players looked disengaged

00:52:53.559 --> 00:52:57.579
to me, looked disinterested. To UCLA's credit,

00:52:57.699 --> 00:53:02.139
their outsides did really well. And I call some

00:53:02.139 --> 00:53:04.579
UCLA games, so I've seen them play a bunch. Maggie

00:53:04.579 --> 00:53:06.619
Lee played the best game she's played all season.

00:53:06.900 --> 00:53:09.579
I think that was the team's best game I've seen.

00:53:10.010 --> 00:53:12.269
Lola Schumacher holds it down for them all the

00:53:12.269 --> 00:53:16.150
time. She's incredible. Singletary is near the

00:53:16.150 --> 00:53:18.230
top of the Big Ten in blocks per set. She blocks

00:53:18.230 --> 00:53:21.710
really well. Their outsides played an outstanding,

00:53:21.949 --> 00:53:25.150
fearless match. Singletary blocked really well.

00:53:25.329 --> 00:53:28.550
Their right side still does nothing. Non -factor.

00:53:28.730 --> 00:53:31.590
But Nebraska, I'll say it again, uninspired.

00:53:31.929 --> 00:53:34.690
And I'm probably going to get crucified for this,

00:53:34.769 --> 00:53:37.369
but I did not like... Bergen -Riley setting.

00:53:37.670 --> 00:53:40.269
I thought it was all over the place. I thought

00:53:40.269 --> 00:53:42.750
Nebraska was out of system more than they usually

00:53:42.750 --> 00:53:44.949
are. And her out of system sets, which I was

00:53:44.949 --> 00:53:49.130
critical of last season, came back and were spraying

00:53:49.130 --> 00:53:52.590
all over the place. I just, I don't think she

00:53:52.590 --> 00:53:54.630
set a great match. I'm going to put a small caveat

00:53:54.630 --> 00:53:56.550
on what you said. I thought she set the middles

00:53:56.550 --> 00:53:58.570
well. I thought she ran the middle of the court

00:53:58.570 --> 00:54:00.849
well. So their middles were their best players.

00:54:01.050 --> 00:54:04.469
They had 28 kills on the match. And I thought

00:54:04.469 --> 00:54:07.489
her choice of running the pipe was also good.

00:54:07.670 --> 00:54:11.289
She ran Alec really well, like nine or 10 feet

00:54:11.289 --> 00:54:13.530
off the net, pushed the middle in that way, connected

00:54:13.530 --> 00:54:17.190
with Jackson. But I agree, her sets to the outside,

00:54:17.489 --> 00:54:20.130
specifically the right side, but out of system

00:54:20.130 --> 00:54:22.480
on the left side as well. Or the distance off

00:54:22.480 --> 00:54:25.500
the net was not good. But inconsistent too. Like

00:54:25.500 --> 00:54:27.900
it wasn't the same type of error. It was way

00:54:27.900 --> 00:54:30.039
too far off the net, then tight, then way too

00:54:30.039 --> 00:54:32.300
far off the net, then tight. And then the outside

00:54:32.300 --> 00:54:34.420
ball way too far off the net, then too wide.

00:54:34.559 --> 00:54:37.019
Well, this is not good. This is something I've

00:54:37.019 --> 00:54:39.880
talked to other coaches about. You can't fix

00:54:39.880 --> 00:54:43.880
the error you just made. You have to make the

00:54:43.880 --> 00:54:45.960
right play afterwards. And that's kind of what

00:54:45.960 --> 00:54:48.360
I saw where she would yin -yang mistakes. So

00:54:48.360 --> 00:54:50.300
she would set one here and then she would overcorrect.

00:54:50.340 --> 00:54:53.079
Or yo -yo. Either way. Yeah, that's kind of what

00:54:53.079 --> 00:54:54.760
I was looking for. Well, and she got pulled in

00:54:54.760 --> 00:54:57.139
the third set, too. Which is another big respect

00:54:57.139 --> 00:54:59.500
move I have for Danny Bostrom. Like, she does

00:54:59.500 --> 00:55:02.380
not mess around. Do you think she pulled the

00:55:02.380 --> 00:55:03.900
right side because she wasn't playing well or

00:55:03.900 --> 00:55:06.460
to give... Jack a chance? Yeah. I don't think

00:55:06.460 --> 00:55:08.539
she cares if anybody gets a chance. Okay. But

00:55:08.539 --> 00:55:10.280
did you think that Adriano played poorly in the

00:55:10.280 --> 00:55:12.960
first set? Yeah. Okay. Well, there you go. I

00:55:12.960 --> 00:55:14.739
don't think she hit well, but I also don't think

00:55:14.739 --> 00:55:16.400
she was put in a great position to score. But

00:55:16.400 --> 00:55:18.460
we've seen her being inconsistent all season.

00:55:18.619 --> 00:55:20.880
But then she put her back in in set four. Yo,

00:55:20.880 --> 00:55:22.960
I didn't think Sheck was very good either. I

00:55:22.960 --> 00:55:25.099
think Sheck started out well in set two and then

00:55:25.099 --> 00:55:28.280
was just like neutral for me. Well, in set three,

00:55:28.320 --> 00:55:30.940
Nebraska hit 190, which might be their worst

00:55:30.940 --> 00:55:33.400
team hitting percentage on the season maybe.

00:55:33.980 --> 00:55:36.019
Here's something else that was interesting that

00:55:36.019 --> 00:55:38.699
I noticed as well. I actually think Nebraska

00:55:38.699 --> 00:55:43.199
is the perfect matchup for UCLA in the way they

00:55:43.199 --> 00:55:48.800
run their team. I think that their staff is incredibly

00:55:48.800 --> 00:55:53.050
well prepared. for opponents. I don't think,

00:55:53.050 --> 00:55:55.010
and I've said this before, that they make very

00:55:55.010 --> 00:55:58.190
good in -game adjustments. Now, when you play

00:55:58.190 --> 00:56:00.949
the best team, they don't make adjustments because

00:56:00.949 --> 00:56:03.329
they make you beat them at what they're good

00:56:03.329 --> 00:56:05.250
at, and they know that they're probably going

00:56:05.250 --> 00:56:07.789
to win. Our good is better than your good, so

00:56:07.789 --> 00:56:13.230
try to stop us. 100%. And so you started to see...

00:56:13.530 --> 00:56:16.610
He clearly told Maggie Lee to swing down the

00:56:16.610 --> 00:56:19.110
line at the outside hand. And she did that really

00:56:19.110 --> 00:56:20.710
well. Nebraska didn't really make an adjustment.

00:56:21.210 --> 00:56:23.630
They clearly had game plan that Bergen Riley

00:56:23.630 --> 00:56:25.969
loves to run the middle from nine or 10 feet

00:56:25.969 --> 00:56:27.929
off the net. The number of times I saw Singletary

00:56:27.929 --> 00:56:32.369
commit block on those passes was almost automatic.

00:56:32.409 --> 00:56:36.309
It was definitely the game plan. And so UCLA

00:56:36.309 --> 00:56:39.699
was prepared for their tendencies. And they didn't

00:56:39.699 --> 00:56:42.519
change them. And so they were able to get success

00:56:42.519 --> 00:56:44.760
and get some touches and make some transition.

00:56:44.940 --> 00:56:47.980
I thought Lola Schumacher was unbelievable. Some

00:56:47.980 --> 00:56:50.639
of the digs that she made. She has honestly been

00:56:50.639 --> 00:56:53.760
the reason UCLA is in any conversation this whole

00:56:53.760 --> 00:56:57.159
season, I think. She's their MVP. 100%. Hands

00:56:57.159 --> 00:57:00.019
down. I think the fact that they could prepare

00:57:00.019 --> 00:57:03.139
for Nebraska. And Alfie Reft, he's been part

00:57:03.139 --> 00:57:05.380
of the U .S. national program. He's seen how

00:57:05.380 --> 00:57:07.960
Karch prepares game plans. They were ready. They

00:57:07.960 --> 00:57:09.619
had done their homework. They're just not as

00:57:09.619 --> 00:57:13.719
good as Nebraska. And that's the issue. If a

00:57:13.719 --> 00:57:17.280
better team had implemented that game plan against

00:57:17.280 --> 00:57:19.940
Nebraska, I'm not sure they would have won that

00:57:19.940 --> 00:57:23.679
match. But their middles saved them, quite frankly.

00:57:23.960 --> 00:57:25.880
Oh, their middles saved them for sure. I didn't

00:57:25.880 --> 00:57:28.530
think Harper Murray did much either. I'm sure

00:57:28.530 --> 00:57:29.849
people aren't going to like to hear that either.

00:57:30.309 --> 00:57:33.190
Well, defensively, she had some hip bends or

00:57:33.190 --> 00:57:35.630
some bends at the waist for some token dig. Yeah,

00:57:35.630 --> 00:57:37.750
the balls were coming seam and I saw like baby

00:57:37.750 --> 00:57:39.929
giraffe move, like keep your legs straight, just

00:57:39.929 --> 00:57:42.050
bend at the waist. Oh, too bad I didn't dig it.

00:57:42.070 --> 00:57:44.409
Like, what are you doing? Where's the effort

00:57:44.409 --> 00:57:46.769
here? I kind of think they, after the first set,

00:57:46.849 --> 00:57:48.030
they figured they were just going to roll them

00:57:48.030 --> 00:57:48.949
and that they were going to go away. Well, I

00:57:48.949 --> 00:57:50.969
don't care what your thought process was. You

00:57:50.969 --> 00:57:53.349
lost the third set because of that. I would say,

00:57:53.389 --> 00:57:56.110
what, three, at least three of her kills came

00:57:56.110 --> 00:57:59.489
from overpasses. created by other players like

00:57:59.489 --> 00:58:02.210
offensively she didn't really do a lot for me

00:58:02.210 --> 00:58:05.570
either i thought land fair land fair did great

00:58:05.570 --> 00:58:08.590
and i think she blocked really really well particularly

00:58:08.590 --> 00:58:11.670
the first couple sets she just owned pk kong

00:58:11.670 --> 00:58:15.110
it looked a little uninspired by a couple nebraska

00:58:15.110 --> 00:58:18.349
athletes but i agree with you their middles scored

00:58:18.349 --> 00:58:21.429
more points than everybody else combined What

00:58:21.429 --> 00:58:23.250
is your thought process on, I mean, they come

00:58:23.250 --> 00:58:25.309
to the West Coast. It's obviously much later

00:58:25.309 --> 00:58:28.429
back home. You know, they're playing at 11, 12

00:58:28.429 --> 00:58:31.789
o 'clock local time. Is that a factor? Does that

00:58:31.789 --> 00:58:33.789
matter? Well, what are you going to do at a national

00:58:33.789 --> 00:58:36.210
championship where you have to wait until the

00:58:36.210 --> 00:58:39.429
match before you end? Like, if the match before

00:58:39.429 --> 00:58:42.630
you goes five sets, you're playing late at night.

00:58:42.730 --> 00:58:44.449
They've played late at night before. For me,

00:58:44.570 --> 00:58:48.510
that's just a bad excuse. Fair enough. We have

00:58:48.510 --> 00:58:50.510
gotten a question, though, about Bergen -Riley.

00:58:50.690 --> 00:58:53.429
I'm curious about your thoughts. Okay. This question

00:58:53.429 --> 00:58:58.309
was, do you think Bergen -Riley repeats to a

00:58:58.309 --> 00:59:01.210
hitter after an error too often to the point

00:59:01.210 --> 00:59:03.969
that it's become too predictable? And do you

00:59:03.969 --> 00:59:08.389
think that that will be a problem against better

00:59:08.389 --> 00:59:10.710
teams later on? I have a couple thoughts about

00:59:10.710 --> 00:59:12.730
this. So basically what this question means is,

00:59:12.769 --> 00:59:15.880
like, if a hitter goes up and gets blocked, Bergen

00:59:15.880 --> 00:59:17.780
-Riley tends to set that player again. Or if

00:59:17.780 --> 00:59:19.920
a hitter goes up and hits the ball out, she will

00:59:19.920 --> 00:59:22.559
set that player again right away. So this is

00:59:22.559 --> 00:59:25.300
an interesting, I'm going to call it a tendency

00:59:25.300 --> 00:59:28.559
in air quotes for a second. As a hitter, I love

00:59:28.559 --> 00:59:31.780
this. 100%. For me, if somebody blocked me and

00:59:31.780 --> 00:59:35.000
then I saw their reaction, I'm like, F this.

00:59:35.099 --> 00:59:37.000
Give me the ball again. I'm going to shut these

00:59:37.000 --> 00:59:40.079
people up. Correct. Let's be honest. We are occasionally

00:59:40.079 --> 00:59:42.780
critical of some of Nebraska's hitters, but they're

00:59:42.780 --> 00:59:46.289
very good. Like the chance of their hitters making

00:59:46.289 --> 00:59:49.730
two errors in a row statistically is very small.

00:59:49.889 --> 00:59:52.349
It just, it doesn't happen. So getting them back

00:59:52.349 --> 00:59:55.030
into the game and getting them set again, I think

00:59:55.030 --> 00:59:58.650
is in general a good strategy. Two, statistically,

00:59:58.809 --> 01:00:02.409
this is very hard to track in terms of seeing

01:00:02.409 --> 01:00:04.829
how many times it happens. And it's also one

01:00:04.829 --> 01:00:06.989
of those things that once you see it sticks in

01:00:06.989 --> 01:00:09.530
your brain. So I don't have the numbers. I haven't

01:00:09.530 --> 01:00:13.559
run them. I would actually be surprised. what

01:00:13.559 --> 01:00:16.239
the numbers are like if it's statistically relevant

01:00:16.239 --> 01:00:18.840
or not or if she's looking at it now you'll see

01:00:18.840 --> 01:00:20.860
it and you'll think oh there it is there it is

01:00:20.860 --> 01:00:22.760
there it is but you won't pay attention to the

01:00:22.760 --> 01:00:25.559
times when it doesn't happen so I'm not saying

01:00:25.559 --> 01:00:29.019
it's not statistically happening because she

01:00:29.019 --> 01:00:32.139
I've noticed that as well but it may not be quite

01:00:32.139 --> 01:00:35.380
as significant as the eye test passes for that

01:00:35.380 --> 01:00:37.619
one what are your thoughts well I think it just

01:00:37.619 --> 01:00:39.480
speaks to how much confidence she has in her

01:00:39.480 --> 01:00:42.119
hitters abilities And they are, I agree with

01:00:42.119 --> 01:00:46.039
you, they're good enough that will they be stopped

01:00:46.039 --> 01:00:49.739
twice in a row? I'd be surprised. Do I think

01:00:49.739 --> 01:00:53.460
it will hurt them later? I think she has a good

01:00:53.460 --> 01:00:57.260
enough feel for the game that I don't think it'll

01:00:57.260 --> 01:00:59.719
be an issue. But you'll also notice when she

01:00:59.719 --> 01:01:02.599
does it, it's earlier in matches. I don't think

01:01:02.599 --> 01:01:04.860
she does it after 20. I think after 20, she's

01:01:04.860 --> 01:01:07.679
running her offense. You can also take that and

01:01:07.679 --> 01:01:09.800
toy with the opponent. If they commit on one

01:01:09.800 --> 01:01:11.619
ball, then you're like, okay, they know this

01:01:11.619 --> 01:01:13.679
is a tendency. You keep that in your back pocket

01:01:13.679 --> 01:01:15.820
and you use it again after. It's in her favor

01:01:15.820 --> 01:01:19.159
regardless. For UCLA, I've seen them play some

01:01:19.159 --> 01:01:22.679
weaker teams and they just completely tank. And

01:01:22.679 --> 01:01:24.860
then I see them play Nebraska and they're a different

01:01:24.860 --> 01:01:28.820
team. Like for me, you need to take care of the

01:01:28.820 --> 01:01:31.909
games you're supposed to take care of. Nobody

01:01:31.909 --> 01:01:34.349
out there expects you to beat Nebraska, but then

01:01:34.349 --> 01:01:37.090
you show up and then you go 18 -16 in the fifth

01:01:37.090 --> 01:01:39.710
with Northwestern. That is the problem for me

01:01:39.710 --> 01:01:42.449
with those mid -range teams. Take care of the

01:01:42.449 --> 01:01:45.170
games you quote unquote should take care of and

01:01:45.170 --> 01:01:47.070
then take care of the other matches too. Like

01:01:47.070 --> 01:01:49.070
prepare for every game the same. Go into every

01:01:49.070 --> 01:01:51.510
match with the same attitude. That's the frustrating

01:01:51.510 --> 01:01:54.489
part for me watching this UCLA performance and

01:01:54.489 --> 01:01:56.250
then watching some of their other ones. What

01:01:56.250 --> 01:01:59.559
did you think of... The World Series winning

01:01:59.559 --> 01:02:03.179
celebration after the third set. It was embarrassing.

01:02:03.519 --> 01:02:08.059
I agree. Okay, you win the third set. You beat

01:02:08.059 --> 01:02:11.059
Nebraska in a set for the first time in Big Ten

01:02:11.059 --> 01:02:15.239
play. The way you're celebrating, I was cringing

01:02:15.239 --> 01:02:17.739
watching it because it's like so clear to me

01:02:17.739 --> 01:02:23.139
that you had no expectation of winning. Which,

01:02:23.320 --> 01:02:27.409
yeah. The thing for me, it's... realistic that

01:02:27.409 --> 01:02:29.869
you don't have an expectation of beating nebraska

01:02:29.869 --> 01:02:32.789
i understand that they've won 40 respect yourselves

01:02:32.789 --> 01:02:35.989
enough to play it cool that's the like you're

01:02:35.989 --> 01:02:39.150
showing nebraska that they're out of your league

01:02:39.150 --> 01:02:42.750
a hundred percent you can be happy you won but

01:02:42.750 --> 01:02:45.829
you go over the games not over you didn't accomplish

01:02:45.829 --> 01:02:49.869
anything that's a mentality piece and we've talked

01:02:49.869 --> 01:02:52.809
about ucla's mentality that's a mentality piece

01:02:52.809 --> 01:02:56.559
that is totally unacceptable To the point where

01:02:56.559 --> 01:02:59.300
as a coach, I may have benched all of those players

01:02:59.300 --> 01:03:01.280
and put my bench on and been like, that's unacceptable.

01:03:01.559 --> 01:03:03.139
You can't do that. That's not how we roll. You

01:03:03.139 --> 01:03:05.400
wouldn't have done that. I know. I'm being facetious,

01:03:05.420 --> 01:03:08.059
but that's a fundamental issue to me. I was,

01:03:08.199 --> 01:03:11.280
I almost wanted to turn the TV off when I saw

01:03:11.280 --> 01:03:13.639
that. I was like, this is not cool. We were sitting

01:03:13.639 --> 01:03:15.139
there watching the game. I was like, they are

01:03:15.139 --> 01:03:17.820
going to get absolutely thumped in the next set

01:03:17.820 --> 01:03:20.079
because Nebraska is going to be pissed and you're

01:03:20.079 --> 01:03:22.380
just happy you took a set. Yeah, you guys are

01:03:22.380 --> 01:03:24.980
just happy to be there. Like, P .S., you need

01:03:24.980 --> 01:03:27.139
to win three sets to be happy about anything.

01:03:27.239 --> 01:03:30.380
And they got kicked. Yeah, it was not good. Here's

01:03:30.380 --> 01:03:32.639
another thing I want to address. Go ahead. This

01:03:32.639 --> 01:03:36.960
has been bothering me. So Nebraska is leading

01:03:36.960 --> 01:03:40.619
the country in attendance at home. And the second

01:03:40.619 --> 01:03:42.900
highest attendance in the country is Nebraska

01:03:42.900 --> 01:03:45.920
on the road. I think that's great. They have

01:03:45.920 --> 01:03:51.400
built themselves a following, a reputation. You

01:03:51.400 --> 01:03:55.880
know, they are. growing the sport as a team,

01:03:55.880 --> 01:03:58.000
the way Caitlin Clark kind of did on the basketball

01:03:58.000 --> 01:04:00.880
side. That's great. The thing that bothers me

01:04:00.880 --> 01:04:04.659
is that we've got these programs being like,

01:04:04.880 --> 01:04:09.519
hey, help us sell out or like set our attendance

01:04:09.519 --> 01:04:13.539
record when Nebraska comes to town. Stop riding

01:04:13.539 --> 01:04:16.480
the coattails of a team that has figured it out.

01:04:17.070 --> 01:04:19.750
And how about you work on building your own fan

01:04:19.750 --> 01:04:23.190
base and your own program instead of relying

01:04:23.190 --> 01:04:27.090
on Nebraska? How about, hey, let's sell out and

01:04:27.090 --> 01:04:31.630
set a record when we play USC. Our hometown rivals.

01:04:31.989 --> 01:04:35.269
Every team is doing this. Nebraska's coming on

01:04:35.269 --> 01:04:39.369
X date. Let's set a record then. Stop it. And

01:04:39.369 --> 01:04:42.590
our record includes more than half Nebraska fans.

01:04:42.809 --> 01:04:45.530
It's not even a home game for UCLA. I heard more.

01:04:45.869 --> 01:04:48.349
go big red cheers than anything else. Yeah. It's

01:04:48.349 --> 01:04:52.369
honestly, it's kind of embarrassing. You're setting

01:04:52.369 --> 01:04:54.630
an attendance record, but the whole crowd is

01:04:54.630 --> 01:04:56.769
wearing red. Like you should be ashamed of that.

01:04:57.090 --> 01:04:59.789
I'm sorry. Like let's put an asterisk next to

01:04:59.789 --> 01:05:03.809
that attendance. So how about every program starts

01:05:03.809 --> 01:05:06.989
to do what needs to be done to grow the sport

01:05:06.989 --> 01:05:09.409
of volleyball, to garner interest in their own

01:05:09.409 --> 01:05:12.010
backyard, instead of relying on Nebraska, who

01:05:12.010 --> 01:05:13.929
has it figured out to come to your program and

01:05:13.929 --> 01:05:17.030
do it for you. I'll get off my soapbox now. Fair

01:05:17.030 --> 01:05:19.429
point. I do think that Nebraska losing a set

01:05:19.429 --> 01:05:21.329
is good. I think it takes the pressure off them

01:05:21.329 --> 01:05:23.809
to have an immaculate season. Oh, this will serve

01:05:23.809 --> 01:05:25.710
them all for sure. They needed to get that monkey

01:05:25.710 --> 01:05:28.289
off their back. The media is always like, oh,

01:05:28.489 --> 01:05:30.889
blah, blah, blah, having lost a set. And then

01:05:30.889 --> 01:05:34.070
it's constantly being put in your face. And especially

01:05:34.070 --> 01:05:36.809
at that age, like they're young women. It just

01:05:36.809 --> 01:05:38.929
like weighs on you. So I think it's good that

01:05:38.929 --> 01:05:40.889
that's done with and they can just go back to

01:05:40.889 --> 01:05:42.769
playing. And that was a prediction we were both.

01:05:43.199 --> 01:05:45.199
Right on. I'm really happy about that. I posted

01:05:45.199 --> 01:05:46.760
on Instagram. I was like, we might have to take

01:05:46.760 --> 01:05:50.480
this back, but now we don't. I actually think

01:05:50.480 --> 01:05:52.079
it would be good for them to lose a match before

01:05:52.079 --> 01:05:53.400
they go into the tournament, but I don't think

01:05:53.400 --> 01:05:54.219
that's going to happen. I don't think that's

01:05:54.219 --> 01:05:58.380
going to happen. Anyway, they have USC tomorrow,

01:05:58.559 --> 01:06:02.559
so we'll see what Nebraska shows up and if they're

01:06:02.559 --> 01:06:05.940
a little more focused. Okay. Let's dive into

01:06:05.940 --> 01:06:08.599
some listener questions. Well, first of all.

01:06:09.039 --> 01:06:12.699
We put out the notice for questions for teams

01:06:12.699 --> 01:06:15.480
other than Nebraska and people showed up. So

01:06:15.480 --> 01:06:17.480
thank you for that. We appreciate it. And we're

01:06:17.480 --> 01:06:18.780
looking forward to getting some of those answers.

01:06:19.159 --> 01:06:24.800
Yeah, you guys heeded the call. And in my selections

01:06:24.800 --> 01:06:27.840
for questions this week, I tried to hit several

01:06:27.840 --> 01:06:31.940
different teams because you guys, as Adam said,

01:06:32.039 --> 01:06:34.480
stepped up. And then we've got some general ones.

01:06:34.599 --> 01:06:37.440
So if you did submit a question about your team.

01:06:37.980 --> 01:06:40.380
It will be addressed in the coming weeks. Don't

01:06:40.380 --> 01:06:42.860
worry. Question one. My question has been nagging

01:06:42.860 --> 01:06:45.219
me since watching so many games where NCAA Division

01:06:45.219 --> 01:06:48.699
I volleyball teams rely on maybe one or two players

01:06:48.699 --> 01:06:51.139
to get the majority of the points. Does this

01:06:51.139 --> 01:06:53.460
not increase the chance of long -term damage

01:06:53.460 --> 01:06:56.380
to those athletes that are swinging 50 to 70

01:06:56.380 --> 01:06:59.420
times a match? I would think the wear and tear

01:06:59.420 --> 01:07:02.300
on that limited number of players would increase

01:07:02.300 --> 01:07:05.739
the chance for injury now and affect their future.

01:07:07.800 --> 01:07:11.860
always an issue, but I'm not sure if you're a

01:07:11.860 --> 01:07:13.920
go -to player, you're taking a ton of swings,

01:07:14.099 --> 01:07:17.960
whether you take 38 swings or whether you take

01:07:17.960 --> 01:07:21.480
50 swings, there's not a huge difference. I think

01:07:21.480 --> 01:07:25.659
it's more about your preparation for how you

01:07:25.659 --> 01:07:28.400
take care of yourself, how you warm up your day

01:07:28.400 --> 01:07:29.760
-to -day routine. Cause you have to remember,

01:07:29.840 --> 01:07:31.920
fine, you're taking 50 swings in a match, but

01:07:31.920 --> 01:07:33.619
what are you doing during the week? A lot of

01:07:33.619 --> 01:07:36.010
those players don't take as many swings. you

01:07:36.010 --> 01:07:37.989
know, Monday and Tuesday and then ramp up again.

01:07:38.090 --> 01:07:40.690
So there's ways to manage that. I don't think

01:07:40.690 --> 01:07:44.650
that sheer number in match is the biggest contributing

01:07:44.650 --> 01:07:47.369
factor to long -term injury. I think it determines

01:07:47.369 --> 01:07:50.469
how they're being used in practice. And if they

01:07:50.469 --> 01:07:54.170
are, if their coaching staff is being mindful

01:07:54.170 --> 01:07:56.289
of the swings that they're taking during the

01:07:56.289 --> 01:08:00.130
week, taking that many swings twice a week for

01:08:00.130 --> 01:08:04.519
match day. Yeah, it's all a balance. And I mean,

01:08:04.539 --> 01:08:05.920
again, there's other things to think about, right?

01:08:05.980 --> 01:08:08.260
Is your technique good? If you're swinging on

01:08:08.260 --> 01:08:10.280
50 balls and you don't have great technique,

01:08:10.440 --> 01:08:12.460
you're going to apply more pressure to your shoulder.

01:08:12.659 --> 01:08:14.940
I mean, I look at Sarah. She was a go -to hitter

01:08:14.940 --> 01:08:18.920
for two decades indoor. When you played in the

01:08:18.920 --> 01:08:21.640
Asian leagues, you were swinging on 60, 70 balls

01:08:21.640 --> 01:08:24.279
a night, and you were shoulder -wise injury -free

01:08:24.279 --> 01:08:26.020
or injury -free for most of your career. So there

01:08:26.020 --> 01:08:28.840
are ways to do it. Genetics plays a part. Recovery

01:08:28.840 --> 01:08:31.420
plays a part, all of those things. So that in

01:08:31.420 --> 01:08:33.579
and of itself, I don't think is the biggest indicator

01:08:33.579 --> 01:08:38.880
of future injury. Question two, several of the

01:08:38.880 --> 01:08:41.579
elite players like Mimi Collier, Olivia Babcock,

01:08:41.680 --> 01:08:43.659
Kennedy Martin, keep getting honored for the

01:08:43.659 --> 01:08:46.140
number of kills they get each match. Considering

01:08:46.140 --> 01:08:49.260
that they're being set 85 % plus of the time

01:08:49.260 --> 01:08:51.880
and are sometimes playing four and five sets

01:08:51.880 --> 01:08:55.100
per match. Is that fair to athletes? In this

01:08:55.100 --> 01:08:57.739
case, they mentioned Harper Murray. who's only

01:08:57.739 --> 01:09:00.340
being set about 50 % of the time and playing

01:09:00.340 --> 01:09:04.859
three sets per match. Who cares who wins athlete

01:09:04.859 --> 01:09:09.579
of the week? No, I honestly think it's also a

01:09:09.579 --> 01:09:14.420
question of kills per set, which I think is definitely

01:09:14.420 --> 01:09:17.779
more of an indicator than just straight kills

01:09:17.779 --> 01:09:22.539
and hitting percentage. So hitting percentage

01:09:22.539 --> 01:09:25.100
doesn't really have anything to do with the number

01:09:25.100 --> 01:09:28.039
of sets you're getting. And Harper Murray's hitting

01:09:28.039 --> 01:09:31.600
percentage is not as high as some of those athletes.

01:09:31.920 --> 01:09:33.880
I'm sure somebody is going to go digging and

01:09:33.880 --> 01:09:36.479
try to tell me I'm wrong. Maybe I am. I don't

01:09:36.479 --> 01:09:42.560
know. It is so impressive when you are one of

01:09:42.560 --> 01:09:45.800
the players on a team that is getting the majority

01:09:45.800 --> 01:09:49.319
of sets and you're still able to score at that

01:09:49.319 --> 01:09:52.039
kind of clip. I think that what Kennedy Martin's

01:09:52.039 --> 01:09:54.880
doing and Mimi Collier at their programs where

01:09:54.880 --> 01:09:57.199
they're more limited in the hitters surrounding

01:09:57.199 --> 01:09:59.739
them is much more impressive than what Harper

01:09:59.739 --> 01:10:02.020
Murray is doing. Yeah, at the end of the day,

01:10:02.140 --> 01:10:06.060
whoever wins player of the week, it's not a big

01:10:06.060 --> 01:10:08.840
deal in my opinion. This is a byproduct of playing

01:10:08.840 --> 01:10:11.060
for Nebraska. You play on a team that has a chance

01:10:11.060 --> 01:10:13.920
to win a national championship every year. You're

01:10:13.920 --> 01:10:16.140
always in the conversation. You know you're going

01:10:16.140 --> 01:10:18.680
to be surrounded by other great athletes. You're

01:10:18.680 --> 01:10:21.699
not going to get... the individual accolades

01:10:21.699 --> 01:10:23.460
that some of these other athletes are going to

01:10:23.460 --> 01:10:25.680
get at the program. That's part of playing for

01:10:25.680 --> 01:10:28.039
Nebraska, and you need to be okay with it. And

01:10:28.039 --> 01:10:31.340
again, do you want to have five athlete of the

01:10:31.340 --> 01:10:33.659
weeks, or do you want to have a national championship?

01:10:33.960 --> 01:10:36.439
Take your pick. You can't always have both, and

01:10:36.439 --> 01:10:39.859
it doesn't matter. Nobody remembers who was athlete

01:10:39.859 --> 01:10:43.000
of the week October 10th. Adam's clearly passionate

01:10:43.000 --> 01:10:45.020
about it. Look, this is the sassiest we've ever

01:10:45.020 --> 01:10:47.939
heard Adam get, and it's about player of the

01:10:47.939 --> 01:10:50.979
week. It's about winning championships, period.

01:10:51.100 --> 01:10:53.319
I think there's too many random awards that are

01:10:53.319 --> 01:10:55.539
handed out in everything, not only NCAA volleyball.

01:10:55.539 --> 01:10:57.420
I think I need to make a segment about this because

01:10:57.420 --> 01:10:59.920
like the number of awards that they now give

01:10:59.920 --> 01:11:02.880
out on a weekly baseless, like, I'm sorry, you're

01:11:02.880 --> 01:11:05.039
giving out a freshman of the week. You're giving

01:11:05.039 --> 01:11:06.779
out a setter of the week. You know what? Back

01:11:06.779 --> 01:11:09.439
in my day, and yes, I'm using back in my day,

01:11:09.500 --> 01:11:12.180
there was like player of the week, period. No,

01:11:12.220 --> 01:11:13.579
they're Instagram awards. Now it's just like,

01:11:13.640 --> 01:11:16.840
let's give an award to literally everybody for

01:11:16.840 --> 01:11:19.619
everything. And then like the all regional awards.

01:11:19.680 --> 01:11:22.000
Like where did that come from? Instagram. Okay.

01:11:22.039 --> 01:11:25.119
You know what? Player of the year. When did defensive

01:11:25.119 --> 01:11:27.420
player of the year become a thing? I'm okay with

01:11:27.420 --> 01:11:30.300
that one. I'm not. Well, defensive players will

01:11:30.300 --> 01:11:32.720
rarely win conference player of the year. So

01:11:32.720 --> 01:11:35.439
fine. Whatever. Setter of the year. You guys.

01:11:36.000 --> 01:11:38.579
Player of the year, period. I think this is a

01:11:38.579 --> 01:11:40.539
generational thing where everybody needs a trophy

01:11:40.539 --> 01:11:44.079
for participating. But anyway, we digress. This

01:11:44.079 --> 01:11:45.420
is a household where participation medals will

01:11:45.420 --> 01:11:48.180
end up in the garbage. He's not wrong. Okay,

01:11:48.239 --> 01:11:51.119
question three. I hear the same thing about players

01:11:51.119 --> 01:11:53.420
transferring to new programs again and again.

01:11:53.579 --> 01:11:56.300
They lost the love for the game. This person

01:11:56.300 --> 01:11:58.539
uses Merritt Beeson and Taylor Landfair as an

01:11:58.539 --> 01:12:02.260
example. Do you think going from Minnesota or

01:12:02.260 --> 01:12:04.479
Florida, which were mid -ranked teams at the

01:12:04.479 --> 01:12:07.819
time, to a top three team changed their love

01:12:07.819 --> 01:12:10.039
for the game? Or do you think it's the fact that

01:12:10.039 --> 01:12:13.140
they just couldn't be an X factor to push their

01:12:13.140 --> 01:12:16.800
first school to the top? This is a really tough

01:12:16.800 --> 01:12:19.979
question because everybody has different motivations.

01:12:20.300 --> 01:12:22.899
Don't get me wrong. There are situations where

01:12:22.899 --> 01:12:25.399
you don't like your teammates and you don't get

01:12:25.399 --> 01:12:28.600
along and you're leaving because... Looking at

01:12:28.600 --> 01:12:31.140
player X's face every day drives you crazy. I

01:12:31.140 --> 01:12:33.460
get that. That's definitely a thing. If you're

01:12:33.460 --> 01:12:35.939
losing and you're not winning a national championship,

01:12:36.060 --> 01:12:37.840
would that make you lose the love for the game?

01:12:38.119 --> 01:12:40.119
Well, no, I think that's an excuse for I want

01:12:40.119 --> 01:12:42.119
to win. I'm going to go somewhere else. You can't

01:12:42.119 --> 01:12:44.619
come out and say that. It's not good for your

01:12:44.619 --> 01:12:46.779
image. But I think the question, like when you're

01:12:46.779 --> 01:12:48.899
recruited to a program like that, you're well

01:12:48.899 --> 01:12:51.579
aware of what their status is. So I think the

01:12:51.579 --> 01:12:54.399
underlying thing here is like, do you think players

01:12:54.399 --> 01:12:56.960
like this? We're not talking about these two

01:12:56.960 --> 01:12:59.239
players in particular. That was just an example

01:12:59.239 --> 01:13:01.760
for the question. Do you think there are certain

01:13:01.760 --> 01:13:04.520
players out there that get recruited to programs

01:13:04.520 --> 01:13:07.239
like that, that are really good, but not like

01:13:07.239 --> 01:13:10.659
cream of the crop? Think that they're good enough

01:13:10.659 --> 01:13:12.819
to be the difference maker when they get there,

01:13:12.859 --> 01:13:16.079
realize they're not able to like push them to

01:13:16.079 --> 01:13:18.220
that level. And it's just, I lost the love for

01:13:18.220 --> 01:13:19.560
the game. I need to leave. Yeah, I definitely

01:13:19.560 --> 01:13:21.779
think so. What does love for the game mean? Do

01:13:21.779 --> 01:13:24.699
you like training? Do you like winning? Why are

01:13:24.699 --> 01:13:27.260
you there in the first place? And maybe you weren't

01:13:27.260 --> 01:13:29.560
good enough to go to that top tier program and

01:13:29.560 --> 01:13:31.260
you needed to play a year or two where maybe

01:13:31.260 --> 01:13:33.279
you thought you'd make a difference. There's

01:13:33.279 --> 01:13:36.119
just so many reasons and I've lost my love for

01:13:36.119 --> 01:13:39.539
the game is the default excuse because nobody

01:13:39.539 --> 01:13:41.720
can argue with you. Nobody's going to say anything.

01:13:42.000 --> 01:13:43.880
You're like, oh, I didn't love it here. I'm going

01:13:43.880 --> 01:13:46.239
to go somewhere else. That's way easier for people

01:13:46.239 --> 01:13:48.970
to swallow than to say. well, I don't think we're

01:13:48.970 --> 01:13:50.149
going to win. I'm going to go somewhere where

01:13:50.149 --> 01:13:52.409
I can win. But I think this also ties into the

01:13:52.409 --> 01:13:54.609
question we just answered too. It's like you

01:13:54.609 --> 01:13:57.630
can go to a program and be the show and be the

01:13:57.630 --> 01:14:00.729
franchise player, but your team might not win.

01:14:00.909 --> 01:14:04.029
Or you can go to a team that has a chance to

01:14:04.029 --> 01:14:08.229
win legit year after year, maybe not shine as

01:14:08.229 --> 01:14:12.350
brightly, maybe even be on the bench, but have

01:14:12.350 --> 01:14:15.409
a chance to win a championship. It all depends

01:14:15.409 --> 01:14:19.659
on your priorities. What you want out of the

01:14:19.659 --> 01:14:22.899
game. And I think that those moods also, people's

01:14:22.899 --> 01:14:25.939
ability to deal with uncomfortable situations

01:14:25.939 --> 01:14:28.880
has shortened. Like I don't want to sit on the

01:14:28.880 --> 01:14:30.779
bench or I don't want to do this. I have an easy

01:14:30.779 --> 01:14:32.819
out. I'm going to go try somewhere else. Like

01:14:32.819 --> 01:14:36.060
that wasn't the case 10 years ago when you were

01:14:36.060 --> 01:14:37.960
playing collegiate sport. Like you stuck out

01:14:37.960 --> 01:14:40.439
a year. Oh, he's being generous. 10 years. Thank

01:14:40.439 --> 01:14:42.579
you. So I think there's all kinds of reasons

01:14:42.579 --> 01:14:44.909
and I definitely think that this is one. People

01:14:44.909 --> 01:14:47.369
are very good these days at saying things that

01:14:47.369 --> 01:14:50.029
nobody can argue with. I'll leave it there. Question

01:14:50.029 --> 01:14:52.890
four. What do you think about Northwestern's

01:14:52.890 --> 01:14:56.369
use of one libero for a middle and outsides and

01:14:56.369 --> 01:15:00.130
a DS for the other middle? What is the advantage

01:15:00.130 --> 01:15:02.409
of this? Okay, you see this with a bunch of teams.

01:15:03.029 --> 01:15:06.189
Often you'll see the DS go for an outside, but

01:15:06.189 --> 01:15:09.310
I would say, and then you see the libero go for

01:15:09.310 --> 01:15:13.449
both middles. An advantage to doing this is because

01:15:13.449 --> 01:15:17.449
the libero can only serve for one person on the

01:15:17.449 --> 01:15:20.810
court. So if you have the libero going for both

01:15:20.810 --> 01:15:23.970
middles, one of those middles has to serve. If

01:15:23.970 --> 01:15:28.289
both of your middles are not good servers, that's

01:15:28.289 --> 01:15:31.029
why you'll use your DS for the other middle so

01:15:31.029 --> 01:15:35.109
that the DS can serve for the middle. Does that

01:15:35.109 --> 01:15:38.510
make sense? Well answered. Honestly, you see

01:15:38.510 --> 01:15:42.189
both middles and typically one outside be subbed

01:15:42.189 --> 01:15:44.390
out of the back row. So the reason that they've

01:15:44.390 --> 01:15:48.189
kind of mixed it up is, I would assume, to be

01:15:48.189 --> 01:15:50.569
a serving strategy. You're trying to keep your

01:15:50.569 --> 01:15:52.409
two worst servers from touching the ball at the

01:15:52.409 --> 01:15:54.390
baseline. I called that game, by the way. And

01:15:54.390 --> 01:15:56.430
the person who wrote this question knew that.

01:15:56.510 --> 01:15:59.829
So thanks. for watching question five back in

01:15:59.829 --> 01:16:02.130
your junior days like playing club volleyball

01:16:02.130 --> 01:16:05.449
what was the turning point for you when you became

01:16:05.449 --> 01:16:08.670
the ice princess when did you stop overthinking

01:16:08.670 --> 01:16:10.569
and just started curve stopping your opponents

01:16:10.569 --> 01:16:14.250
with no remorse what did your coaches do or provide

01:16:14.250 --> 01:16:16.789
you with to allow you to become your most confident

01:16:16.789 --> 01:16:19.850
version as a teen okay first of all i will say

01:16:19.850 --> 01:16:23.010
i don't i must have mentioned it If the ice princess

01:16:23.010 --> 01:16:24.869
is being referenced, I must have mentioned it

01:16:24.869 --> 01:16:28.710
because I was called that in Korea when I played

01:16:28.710 --> 01:16:30.689
in Korea. And I didn't know because obviously

01:16:30.689 --> 01:16:32.630
I can't understand Korean, but my translator

01:16:32.630 --> 01:16:34.250
was like, are you aware that they call you that?

01:16:34.289 --> 01:16:36.710
I was like, no, but I love it. Thank you. Just

01:16:36.710 --> 01:16:38.649
for everybody to know, when Sarah was playing

01:16:38.649 --> 01:16:40.649
club volleyball, her nickname was the franchise.

01:16:40.810 --> 01:16:43.949
That's what everybody called her. This is a good

01:16:43.949 --> 01:16:47.869
question. I will say I've received a lot of criticism

01:16:47.869 --> 01:16:50.829
over my career for that ice princess persona.

01:16:51.579 --> 01:16:55.880
And having no remorse and no mercy. I will say

01:16:55.880 --> 01:17:01.520
I was incredibly competitive from toddlerhood.

01:17:01.880 --> 01:17:05.020
Like I would cry losing board games. I had to

01:17:05.020 --> 01:17:08.619
win literally everything. Which got dicey because

01:17:08.619 --> 01:17:10.380
her dad's the same way. So when they would play

01:17:10.380 --> 01:17:12.260
games when she was a child, there's sometimes

01:17:12.260 --> 01:17:14.479
some fireworks. That's a nice way to put it.

01:17:14.880 --> 01:17:17.319
So I would say that a large majority of that

01:17:17.319 --> 01:17:19.899
persona you saw in a competitive environment

01:17:19.899 --> 01:17:24.520
is innate. But I grew up in an environment where

01:17:24.520 --> 01:17:31.100
my examples of athletes and competitors were

01:17:31.100 --> 01:17:37.239
men. So my dad was still playing basketball and

01:17:37.239 --> 01:17:39.720
volleyball and stuff when I was born. So I would

01:17:39.720 --> 01:17:42.460
go with him to a lot of his games. And my dad

01:17:42.460 --> 01:17:47.140
was coaching boys. and men at the university

01:17:47.140 --> 01:17:50.220
and high school level. So I would go and I was

01:17:50.220 --> 01:17:53.100
in the gym every day and I would travel to tournaments

01:17:53.100 --> 01:17:56.020
with them, like as a five, six year old, stuff

01:17:56.020 --> 01:18:01.039
like that. And so my example of what it meant

01:18:01.039 --> 01:18:05.500
to compete and fight on the court for wins was

01:18:05.500 --> 01:18:09.659
watching boys. So I thought that that was normal.

01:18:10.220 --> 01:18:14.319
And then to my, my dad was my club coach. To

01:18:14.319 --> 01:18:18.220
my dad's credit, he never tried to make me a

01:18:18.220 --> 01:18:21.779
nice girl and never tried to be like, well, this

01:18:21.779 --> 01:18:25.000
is how girls act. Like you're not acting appropriately.

01:18:25.100 --> 01:18:28.960
It was very much you be yourself and you don't

01:18:28.960 --> 01:18:32.399
have to make other people comfortable. You just

01:18:32.399 --> 01:18:35.539
be you. It's a combination of nature and nurture

01:18:35.539 --> 01:18:38.640
there in the sense that it is very innate to

01:18:38.640 --> 01:18:43.449
be a true competitor when it all costs. And I

01:18:43.449 --> 01:18:46.869
was never forced to be a quote unquote nice girl.

01:18:46.989 --> 01:18:50.130
My parents and I received a lot of criticism

01:18:50.130 --> 01:18:53.909
as a young athlete for being just so cutthroat

01:18:53.909 --> 01:18:58.489
and fierce on the court. But the people that

01:18:58.489 --> 01:19:01.670
mattered to me and who knew me didn't want me

01:19:01.670 --> 01:19:05.789
to change. And they accepted me for who I am.

01:19:05.810 --> 01:19:08.569
And that included my teammates. Question six.

01:19:09.399 --> 01:19:12.340
As a Vanderbilt grad, I'm so excited that we

01:19:12.340 --> 01:19:14.159
now have a women's volleyball team. Congrats.

01:19:14.399 --> 01:19:16.479
I've been impressed by the strategic decisions

01:19:16.479 --> 01:19:18.680
they've made to start and develop a program,

01:19:18.939 --> 01:19:21.520
such as hiring a young coach from an established

01:19:21.520 --> 01:19:25.420
program, get an older setter to establish the

01:19:25.420 --> 01:19:28.439
offense, etc. If you're an athletic director

01:19:28.439 --> 01:19:31.539
or coach, how would you develop a new program?

01:19:31.659 --> 01:19:34.279
How would you rank your priorities? First and

01:19:34.279 --> 01:19:37.079
foremost, you have to build a culture and you

01:19:37.079 --> 01:19:41.529
have to create. Create expectations for where

01:19:41.529 --> 01:19:43.989
you are currently with the athletes that you

01:19:43.989 --> 01:19:46.569
have and where you want to go. And I think the

01:19:46.569 --> 01:19:48.289
question is one of their priorities was they

01:19:48.289 --> 01:19:51.029
hired a young coach from an established program

01:19:51.029 --> 01:19:53.590
who was he was coaching at Kentucky for a long

01:19:53.590 --> 01:19:55.670
time. Yeah. And then. And to me, that's about

01:19:55.670 --> 01:19:58.149
understanding how to create a winning culture

01:19:58.149 --> 01:20:00.510
and expectations. OK, because I was like I was

01:20:00.510 --> 01:20:03.869
thinking like a culture is determined once you

01:20:03.869 --> 01:20:06.970
have certain pieces in place. But continue, continue.

01:20:07.130 --> 01:20:09.760
That's. Definitely true. But bringing in somebody

01:20:09.760 --> 01:20:12.500
who knows how to win and say, again, you don't

01:20:12.500 --> 01:20:13.840
know what athletes you're going to get. It's

01:20:13.840 --> 01:20:15.819
a first time program. You're not going to have

01:20:15.819 --> 01:20:17.880
a ton of, you're not going to win a lot. But

01:20:17.880 --> 01:20:20.300
like what type of athlete would you go for first?

01:20:20.680 --> 01:20:23.460
I would probably bring in, because you're not

01:20:23.460 --> 01:20:26.199
going to be able to recruit really good athletes.

01:20:26.680 --> 01:20:28.439
Nobody's going to go there and take a flyer.

01:20:28.479 --> 01:20:31.600
So for me, I would go out and look at really

01:20:31.600 --> 01:20:36.039
physical, maybe a little rough around the edges

01:20:36.039 --> 01:20:40.199
technically. but attitudes that are going to

01:20:40.199 --> 01:20:42.800
work hard. And then it's from there, you're going

01:20:42.800 --> 01:20:45.439
to hone them because you have to create a place

01:20:45.439 --> 01:20:48.260
where people want to come and play. And if you

01:20:48.260 --> 01:20:50.579
can take a couple really physical athletes and

01:20:50.579 --> 01:20:54.800
teach them the game or help them become better

01:20:54.800 --> 01:20:57.100
and noticeable, people will take note of that

01:20:57.100 --> 01:20:59.260
and then will want to come. So maybe it's an

01:20:59.260 --> 01:21:01.239
athlete that started playing volleyball in high

01:21:01.239 --> 01:21:04.619
school or started a little bit later. or multi

01:21:04.619 --> 01:21:07.159
-sport athlete who decided late they wanted to

01:21:07.159 --> 01:21:08.920
play volleyball. I would look for those types

01:21:08.920 --> 01:21:11.279
of athletes, and I would look for people who

01:21:11.279 --> 01:21:14.520
were competitive by nature. Losing is tough,

01:21:14.659 --> 01:21:17.979
and if you lose a lot, that becomes who you are.

01:21:18.060 --> 01:21:21.079
So you need... some of those personalities to

01:21:21.079 --> 01:21:23.920
be able to build into winning and still work

01:21:23.920 --> 01:21:25.800
hard while maybe you're not getting the results

01:21:25.800 --> 01:21:27.680
that you have. So that's what I would, that's

01:21:27.680 --> 01:21:29.699
how I would approach it. I think starting with

01:21:29.699 --> 01:21:32.920
a more experienced setter, if possible, is a

01:21:32.920 --> 01:21:35.199
good idea because they're going to touch the

01:21:35.199 --> 01:21:37.560
ball more than anybody. Yeah. Starting with that,

01:21:37.680 --> 01:21:39.619
you know, if you've got a good outside who can

01:21:39.619 --> 01:21:41.880
pass the ball, like if you can. This is a perfect.

01:21:42.600 --> 01:21:46.840
six rotation skilled player but not like the

01:21:46.840 --> 01:21:50.060
monster attacker this that's the perfect situation

01:21:50.060 --> 01:21:53.119
for those six rotation skilled players that might

01:21:53.119 --> 01:21:55.539
be overlooked by the biggest programs but are

01:21:55.539 --> 01:21:58.300
good totally then you're at least competitive

01:21:58.300 --> 01:22:00.600
you may not be winning but you're you could pass

01:22:00.600 --> 01:22:03.739
and you set it looks put together you have you

01:22:03.739 --> 01:22:05.279
know a little bit of skill even if you don't

01:22:05.279 --> 01:22:07.159
have the size so maybe mixing that with a couple

01:22:07.159 --> 01:22:10.319
projects is your best kind of mix for starting

01:22:10.319 --> 01:22:12.810
that program Question seven. Do you think if

01:22:12.810 --> 01:22:15.550
Mary Wise hadn't retired that the Gators would

01:22:15.550 --> 01:22:18.010
have been a top contender this season? Her departure

01:22:18.010 --> 01:22:20.390
likely led to the Kennedy Martin transfer to

01:22:20.390 --> 01:22:23.329
Penn State, as well as Heredia Colon rescinding

01:22:23.329 --> 01:22:26.270
her transfer from Miami. These are the exact

01:22:26.270 --> 01:22:28.569
two pieces missing from this team, in my opinion.

01:22:28.590 --> 01:22:31.069
Two six rotation players in a dominant right

01:22:31.069 --> 01:22:33.810
side and solid ball control scoring outside to

01:22:33.810 --> 01:22:36.810
go along with Jordan Bird and Madkin. What are

01:22:36.810 --> 01:22:38.930
your thoughts? If those two players are there,

01:22:38.989 --> 01:22:42.079
that program is totally different. I think Mary

01:22:42.079 --> 01:22:45.579
Wise leaving is the reason. I think Mary Wise

01:22:45.579 --> 01:22:49.779
leaving and Dave Booz not being given the head

01:22:49.779 --> 01:22:52.619
coaching job led to the Kennedy -Martin departure.

01:22:53.000 --> 01:22:55.720
And I think the Kennedy -Martin departure led

01:22:55.720 --> 01:22:57.720
to the Heredia -Cologne departure. I think it

01:22:57.720 --> 01:23:00.359
was a domino effect. I agree. Again, I think

01:23:00.359 --> 01:23:03.380
if you have those two players there and a healthy

01:23:03.380 --> 01:23:06.100
Stucky, that program is fighting for top of the

01:23:06.100 --> 01:23:08.079
conference and they're much better than they

01:23:08.079 --> 01:23:10.989
are currently. Can you imagine those two on the

01:23:10.989 --> 01:23:13.670
same team? They're both scoring like 40 points

01:23:13.670 --> 01:23:16.409
a night by themselves. If they were together,

01:23:16.670 --> 01:23:20.390
you literally don't need anybody else to score.

01:23:20.770 --> 01:23:25.010
Get the middle going, blocking, set them a few

01:23:25.010 --> 01:23:27.569
times. These two can score with a double block

01:23:27.569 --> 01:23:30.689
anyways. Our typical discourse of get the middle

01:23:30.689 --> 01:23:32.369
going to open things up. Certain hitters are

01:23:32.369 --> 01:23:34.409
fine hitting against a double block. These two

01:23:34.409 --> 01:23:36.909
are some of them. So just have somebody who can

01:23:36.909 --> 01:23:39.810
pass the ball. Basically. Yeah. It would have

01:23:39.810 --> 01:23:42.670
been a totally different season in Florida if

01:23:42.670 --> 01:23:45.210
those two players were there and agreed, I think,

01:23:45.210 --> 01:23:48.270
if Mary Wise had stayed, Florida would be in

01:23:48.270 --> 01:23:50.609
the conversation this year, quite frankly. Or

01:23:50.609 --> 01:23:53.149
even if Florida had hired Dave Booz, who was

01:23:53.149 --> 01:23:56.590
the associate head coach under Mary Wise, if

01:23:56.590 --> 01:23:58.050
they had hired him, I think it would have been

01:23:58.050 --> 01:23:59.810
a different story. And let me tell you, Dave

01:23:59.810 --> 01:24:02.989
Booz recruited me when he was at Minnesota under

01:24:02.989 --> 01:24:05.829
Mike Hebert when I was getting recruited. Loved

01:24:05.829 --> 01:24:09.979
him. He was the best. I can understand why Kennedy

01:24:09.979 --> 01:24:11.979
Martin wanted him to be the head coach because

01:24:11.979 --> 01:24:14.039
like when he recruited me, I thought he was amazing.

01:24:14.399 --> 01:24:18.779
Question eight. What are three areas of opportunities

01:24:18.779 --> 01:24:22.699
for improvement for Pitt that you see before

01:24:22.699 --> 01:24:27.119
the postseason? We just destroyed Pitt a little

01:24:27.119 --> 01:24:32.560
bit in the Stanford segment. So here we go. Adam.

01:24:32.680 --> 01:24:36.630
Passing. You have to be able to pass the ball.

01:24:36.829 --> 01:24:39.270
Here's the thing that I love about as seasons

01:24:39.270 --> 01:24:42.350
go on. Your weaknesses get exposed. At the beginning

01:24:42.350 --> 01:24:44.329
of the season, it's rainbows and butterflies

01:24:44.329 --> 01:24:47.770
for everybody. And as more film comes up and

01:24:47.770 --> 01:24:50.409
weaknesses are exposed and the season drags on

01:24:50.409 --> 01:24:52.930
and the book is out on you, it gets harder and

01:24:52.930 --> 01:24:56.289
harder. Pitt has to be able to pass the ball,

01:24:56.409 --> 01:24:58.829
number one. They've had games where they do pass,

01:24:58.989 --> 01:25:01.829
but the games that they don't. Everybody watch

01:25:01.829 --> 01:25:04.510
out. We need some consistency here. But even

01:25:04.510 --> 01:25:07.670
in that Stanford game alone, they passed well

01:25:07.670 --> 01:25:11.210
in sets three and four, and they were untouchable.

01:25:11.229 --> 01:25:16.449
When Bayless can score and Kelly can score, and

01:25:16.449 --> 01:25:19.130
then you have Babcock as a release for whenever,

01:25:19.329 --> 01:25:22.810
those are three really good pieces, and you don't

01:25:22.810 --> 01:25:25.029
need much more than that, but you need the ball

01:25:25.029 --> 01:25:28.170
in front of the attack line. So that would be

01:25:28.170 --> 01:25:32.270
the first thing. The second thing is they need

01:25:32.270 --> 01:25:34.750
a little more serving pressure. You're getting

01:25:34.750 --> 01:25:37.550
it from Mosher and Babcock. Yes, but the other

01:25:37.550 --> 01:25:41.689
ones tend to be really safe. If they could dial

01:25:41.689 --> 01:25:44.770
it up 10 more percent, maybe be a little more

01:25:44.770 --> 01:25:48.029
strategic with their serving or take away a couple

01:25:48.029 --> 01:25:50.909
options, it will allow their block defense to

01:25:50.909 --> 01:25:54.149
play. into the strategy a little bit more because

01:25:54.149 --> 01:25:56.029
teams won't just be running at them with all

01:25:56.029 --> 01:25:58.989
of their options so that's the next one defensively

01:25:58.989 --> 01:26:01.470
I don't love them I don't think that's their

01:26:01.470 --> 01:26:04.510
strength but for me the serving and the defense

01:26:04.510 --> 01:26:07.029
go hand in hand like they score points when Mosher's

01:26:07.029 --> 01:26:09.270
serving right the block comes into play they

01:26:09.270 --> 01:26:12.390
have some good blockers but passing yeah passing

01:26:12.390 --> 01:26:15.609
like passing one two and three and then like

01:26:15.609 --> 01:26:18.170
some serving which will help the defense all

01:26:18.170 --> 01:26:22.199
right question nine What are your thoughts on

01:26:22.199 --> 01:26:24.460
current college players having absolutely zero

01:26:24.460 --> 01:26:27.060
clue about players or programs that come before

01:26:27.060 --> 01:26:29.939
them? I've seen so many videos of players being

01:26:29.939 --> 01:26:32.180
asked who has won the most championships in volleyball

01:26:32.180 --> 01:26:37.800
and there will be answers like Illinois. Why

01:26:37.800 --> 01:26:39.920
aren't more players students of the game and

01:26:39.920 --> 01:26:41.880
knowledgeable about the players coaches programs

01:26:41.880 --> 01:26:46.020
that paved the way for them now? This is a byproduct

01:26:46.020 --> 01:26:49.399
of youth. I have to admit I was a hundred percent.

01:26:50.029 --> 01:26:52.810
this way myself as an athlete, you have so much

01:26:52.810 --> 01:26:56.109
going on in your own life. It's just people.

01:26:56.189 --> 01:26:58.430
Yeah. And you're just, you're focused on what

01:26:58.430 --> 01:27:01.449
you're doing. And I don't think it's until you

01:27:01.449 --> 01:27:03.770
get into those programs and you understand the

01:27:03.770 --> 01:27:06.430
history, your world's just not big enough to

01:27:06.430 --> 01:27:09.489
care about what somebody did before you. I think

01:27:09.489 --> 01:27:13.050
this is totally normal. Well, I mean, just a

01:27:13.050 --> 01:27:16.130
case in point, like I, Adam and I went to watch

01:27:16.130 --> 01:27:19.479
like Ontario provincials. My dad and his mom

01:27:19.479 --> 01:27:22.020
run two of the bigger clubs in Ontario. So we

01:27:22.020 --> 01:27:24.920
go to support our parents and what they do. So

01:27:24.920 --> 01:27:27.560
we went to Ontario Provincials this year. Adam

01:27:27.560 --> 01:27:29.560
told me this after the fact. But I walked into

01:27:29.560 --> 01:27:33.720
the gym. I was trying to find a friend. And a

01:27:33.720 --> 01:27:38.220
person that we both know, I walked past them

01:27:38.220 --> 01:27:41.840
or whatever. And a few parents were there. And

01:27:41.840 --> 01:27:44.199
the man turned to those parents and he was like,

01:27:44.319 --> 01:27:48.590
oh, do you realize one of... Canada's best volleyball

01:27:48.590 --> 01:27:52.149
players just walked past here and the parents

01:27:52.149 --> 01:27:54.449
looked at him he's like well of course everybody

01:27:54.449 --> 01:27:59.840
wants to come watch this I think That perfectly

01:27:59.840 --> 01:28:03.000
sums up like just people's attitudes in general.

01:28:03.079 --> 01:28:06.479
Does everybody want to go watch like 15U Girls

01:28:06.479 --> 01:28:09.920
Club Volleyball? I'm sorry to tell you, no. No,

01:28:10.020 --> 01:28:14.060
it is not a hot ticket item for many people.

01:28:14.640 --> 01:28:17.340
But I think that that just like is case in point.

01:28:17.420 --> 01:28:19.819
You're so wrapped up in your own little world

01:28:19.819 --> 01:28:23.359
and what you're doing that you just... have blinders

01:28:23.359 --> 01:28:26.079
on and I just think it's an unfortunate part

01:28:26.079 --> 01:28:28.359
of human nature well and you and you don't know

01:28:28.359 --> 01:28:31.060
what you don't know right it's the college is

01:28:31.060 --> 01:28:33.420
the next step of life and when you get there

01:28:33.420 --> 01:28:36.340
then you start to understand you know people

01:28:36.340 --> 01:28:38.220
who have gone before you and all of those things

01:28:38.220 --> 01:28:40.819
but I think it is each program's responsibility

01:28:40.819 --> 01:28:45.000
to educate their own athletes of what has been

01:28:45.000 --> 01:28:47.539
done so that they can have what they currently

01:28:47.539 --> 01:28:50.760
have yeah and that happens after you get there

01:28:50.760 --> 01:28:53.680
though yeah Sarah, I know you have strong opinions

01:28:53.680 --> 01:28:56.539
about Minnesota in general. However, with this

01:28:56.539 --> 01:28:59.460
team down four starters to injuries, what is

01:28:59.460 --> 01:29:01.380
your take on the freshmen that have stepped up

01:29:01.380 --> 01:29:03.260
to keep us sort of competitive in the middle

01:29:03.260 --> 01:29:05.920
of the Big Ten and still somehow ranked in the

01:29:05.920 --> 01:29:10.340
top 25? Okay, we were pretty critical early when

01:29:10.340 --> 01:29:12.560
all these injuries happened. We watched Minnesota.

01:29:12.560 --> 01:29:15.420
We were like, ooh, this is rough. Sorry, baby

01:29:15.420 --> 01:29:17.439
girls got a lot to say for this question. It's

01:29:17.439 --> 01:29:20.260
our last one. They have gotten so much better.

01:29:20.829 --> 01:29:24.970
And I think they are going to be good in the

01:29:24.970 --> 01:29:28.050
next few years. And they're turning an unfortunate

01:29:28.050 --> 01:29:32.770
situation into something that can probably springboard

01:29:32.770 --> 01:29:35.770
them forward for the next few years. So it is

01:29:35.770 --> 01:29:37.829
definitely a silver lining. I really like the

01:29:37.829 --> 01:29:39.770
one left side. I'm not going to lie. I don't

01:29:39.770 --> 01:29:41.649
know all their names. The one left side is doing

01:29:41.649 --> 01:29:44.850
a great job. Their right side, the setter, they're

01:29:44.850 --> 01:29:49.069
doing good things. I just hope they stay. This

01:29:49.069 --> 01:29:51.890
is always the issue. There's a good young core

01:29:51.890 --> 01:29:54.329
there. I hope that they were able to create an

01:29:54.329 --> 01:29:56.289
environment where those kids want to come back

01:29:56.289 --> 01:29:58.210
because I think they've done a really good job.

01:29:58.329 --> 01:30:01.310
Like we said, created an atmosphere where they're

01:30:01.310 --> 01:30:04.390
being successful given the situation that they

01:30:04.390 --> 01:30:05.869
were in and these young kids are stepping up.

01:30:05.949 --> 01:30:08.229
So if they all stay, I think the future is bright

01:30:08.229 --> 01:30:10.189
for Minnesota. I like the pieces they have and

01:30:10.189 --> 01:30:11.989
I think that the coaching staff has done a really

01:30:11.989 --> 01:30:14.710
good job with them. I just hope they have like

01:30:14.710 --> 01:30:17.770
longer term vision. Like they're able to see,

01:30:17.890 --> 01:30:21.010
hey, we're all really young. We can do this together.

01:30:21.250 --> 01:30:23.029
Yeah. Because I think that they could make some

01:30:23.029 --> 01:30:27.430
serious moves in the future for sure. Yeah. So

01:30:27.430 --> 01:30:29.689
I think the future is bright in Minnesota. All

01:30:29.689 --> 01:30:31.789
right. As always, we're going to give you the

01:30:31.789 --> 01:30:34.310
matches of the week to look forward to. Things

01:30:34.310 --> 01:30:36.890
that we have on our calendars that we'll be watching.

01:30:37.529 --> 01:30:42.109
So this week, Thursday at 8 p .m. Eastern, Purdue

01:30:42.109 --> 01:30:46.289
versus Wisconsin. This is a big one. Purdue just

01:30:46.289 --> 01:30:49.090
lost to Oregon. They're battling for second place

01:30:49.090 --> 01:30:53.949
in the Big Ten. It will be a really good game.

01:30:54.470 --> 01:30:57.350
Hopefully. Yeah, hopefully. Kind of a test of

01:30:57.350 --> 01:31:01.390
styles, in my opinion. They play differently.

01:31:01.449 --> 01:31:03.189
I think this is going to be a really interesting

01:31:03.189 --> 01:31:04.930
game. And quite frankly, I have no idea what

01:31:04.930 --> 01:31:07.390
the outcome is. I wouldn't be surprised. Either

01:31:07.390 --> 01:31:11.390
way. And or like a kicking one way 3 -0 or a

01:31:11.390 --> 01:31:14.109
five setter. So for the intrigue alone, I think

01:31:14.109 --> 01:31:17.149
this match will be worth it. Friday at 8 p .m.,

01:31:17.149 --> 01:31:21.010
we have Kansas versus BYU. Again, we're in the

01:31:21.010 --> 01:31:25.529
Big 12 slop of who's going to finish where. So

01:31:25.529 --> 01:31:27.189
those are always interesting. Big 12 keeps messing

01:31:27.189 --> 01:31:30.329
us up week after week. Oh, it's wild what's happening

01:31:30.329 --> 01:31:34.210
in the Big 12. And then Saturday, 6 p .m. Eastern,

01:31:34.289 --> 01:31:38.930
Nebraska versus Indiana. And Sunday at 1 p .m.,

01:31:38.930 --> 01:31:41.949
we have North Carolina versus Miami. And North

01:31:41.949 --> 01:31:46.010
Carolina has been coming on. And Miami. One trick

01:31:46.010 --> 01:31:49.449
pony, but. It's a good pony. Good pony. Those

01:31:49.449 --> 01:31:51.310
are the matches that we think will be worth watching

01:31:51.310 --> 01:31:53.850
this week. So we hope you tune in. That concludes

01:31:53.850 --> 01:31:56.229
this week's episode of Volley Talk. There's always

01:31:56.229 --> 01:31:57.949
something shaking in the volleyball world and

01:31:57.949 --> 01:32:00.470
we hope you enjoyed this little fix. Be sure

01:32:00.470 --> 01:32:03.029
to follow the show so you don't miss any updates

01:32:03.029 --> 01:32:05.449
and we'd be so grateful if you'd leave us a five

01:32:05.449 --> 01:32:07.710
-star review. You can also find us on Instagram

01:32:07.710 --> 01:32:11.270
at volleytalk underscore podcast. If you have

01:32:11.270 --> 01:32:13.229
a topic you'd like us to discuss, you can reach

01:32:13.229 --> 01:32:16.329
out to us on Instagram or at info at sarahpavin

01:32:16.329 --> 01:32:18.930
.com. Thanks so much for joining us and we'll

01:32:18.930 --> 01:32:20.090
be back next week.