Robert Morris University Men’s Soccer – Coach Jason O’Keefe
On today’s episode, I speak with Coach Jason O’Keefe from the Robert Morris University Men’s Program. We talk about the mix of players on their roster and how they are evaluated. He describes the great location of their school with a smaller campus feel near a big city. Lastly, we discuss what they focus on during the off-season. Learn more about Robert Morris University Men’s Soccer.
[00:00:00] Matt: Hi, everybody. Welcome to discover college soccer today. I’m lucky enough to be joined by coach Jason O’Keefe from Robert Morris University. Welcome coach.
[00:00:10] Coach: Hey, Matt. Thanks for having me on.
[00:00:11] Matt: Yeah. Thanks for being here. Um, let’s just jump right into it. You know, we’re talking on June 16th. So yesterday may or may not have been a busy day for you, uh, reaching out to, to rising juniors, but for Robert Morris specifically, you know, when are you really starting to look at players, identify him, get him ’em in a database, that sort of thing.
[00:00:32] Uh, you know, what year in high school are they generally, when you really kind of start that recruiting process?
[00:00:38] Coach: Yeah, I think, you know, you’re trying to ID freshman and sophomores, uh, get ’em in a database track ’em uh, and then, you know, really you’re communicating with their, their coaches high school club, MLS next, ECNL whatever it may be to kind of get a.
[00:00:58] A snapshot of their character, you know, cuz everybody we’re looking at is talented. It’s just, uh, over the years, my definition of talent has maybe changed a little bit. Um, you know, and that character piece becomes, you know, a bit more important, um, for what we’re trying to do. Uh, when I got to Robert Morris, January of 21, you know, that’s really all we did was recruit.
[00:01:24] Um, so we were. I guess a little bit behind, but it was one of the few shining stars of COVID where a lot of programs were bringing back super seniors. You know, they were trying to figure out what they’re doing with their roster. And, we had a lot of flexibility to make moves that some other programs didn’t.
[00:01:47] So we capitalized on that. Uh, we brought. You know, 15 guys in August, we brought another three and in January 22, and then we’ve got, uh, nine more coming in in August. Not a ton of calls yesterday for us. Um, you know, when you’re talking to their coaches, you give me your number. You say, Hey, can the player reach out?
[00:02:10] So as long as the player’s calling you, you know, we’ve, we’ve had a bunch of conversations prior. Um, so yeah. Okay. It’s one of those. All right. Processes that never, never stops. And it’s always changing
[00:02:25] Matt: for sure. Now you mentioned ECNL MLS next. So what are some of the, like go to must attend, uh, events for you when you’re, when you’re out there looking at players?
[00:02:37] Coach: Yeah, I mean, the landscape has changed so much over the last 10 years. Um, I remember 10 years ago I was in St. Louis, which has. Pretty strong and pretty high level at the time in a high school environment. And a lot of questions we got were, you know, cuz the day at that time was making kids choose, you know, and we just said, look, you know, you’ve gotta evaluate your environment and make a decision.
[00:03:03] We’re not gonna, you. I’ve not really been at any program, even at Carolina, where we were only recruiting these levels of this event, because you have to turn over every, every stone and there’s players out there. You just have to find them. But, you know, nowadays CNL is certainly a big one. MLS next, uh, is a newer league.
[00:03:26] That’s I think gonna. You know, continue to grow and, and be a priority. Um, but you know, the local scene, wherever the university is here in Pittsburgh, really Pennsylvania, we’re trying to cover. So, you know, there’s a lot of different avenues. I think kids and parents just gotta figure out what their environment looks like.
[00:03:48] And is it providing what they need? You know, there’s so much, the grass is always greener club hopping and, um, they go here cuz they’re. Know, turned me into something. I, I, I told all the guys when I got the job here and I told recruits I don’t have a magic wand, you know, there’s no, uh, there’s no secret to success.
[00:04:07] It’s hard work, dedication, resiliency, you know, determination and, and kids these days. Uh, it’s interesting to see who hasn’t and who doesn’t. Sure, sure.
[00:04:18] Matt: Well, what about camps? How do they fit into your recruiting? Whether they’re your own, your own camps that you’re offering or you or your staff work in other camps?
[00:04:27] Coach: Yeah. I mean, you know, that’s another unique thing that’s been changing. You know, when I got my first head coaching job at Appalachian state, 2016, you know, I’d been part of some big programs and we ran hundreds of kids through and you know, there’s two different, I’d break it into two different categories.
[00:04:45] One’s an exposure camp. You know, so those bigger schools, you know, have hundreds of kids and they may have 20 different colleges on staff, you know, so you’re getting exposed to a lot of different schools. Um, and hopefully, you know, if you’re, if you’re a good enough player, you’re, you’re being looked at by that staff as well.
[00:05:03] And then there’s, you know, the programs. Currently Robert Morris and, like Apple, was where it’s really a recruiting tool for us. We want to get the kids on campus. You know, our staff is gonna work and run all the sessions and coach the games because, you know, we want to get to know these kids. We want to see if they’re picking up what we’re putting down and, and we can only do that when we’re training them ourselves.
[00:05:27] You know, you can see, go to events and see a game and you can pick out the most talented or some guys that have potential. You know, we’re looking at different things. Also when we go recruiting, you know, how they’re interacting with their teammates, the coach, the ref, um, you know, do they warm up properly, cool down properly?
[00:05:46] Um, you know, and you can see those things real close up in a camp environment. So our camps are not. Massive. And we will try and bring in some local schools from different levels. Cause I think again, we want to have some exposure to the camp, but we don’t want to take away from us getting hands on with the players, giving them an experience, cuz they may leave the camp and say, I can’t play for that guy or those guys, you know, because you know, we’re gonna push our guys.
[00:06:14] Pretty hard and challenge ’em and, and try and prepare ’em for the rest of their life. You know, that’s our number one goal. Um, so, okay. Those are kind of how I would break down the camp scene into two, two categories. Sure. And they’re both, both viable. They’re both good.
[00:06:29] Matt: Yeah, absolutely. Well, looking at your roster, you get a handful of guys from, uh, from outside of, of the us.
[00:06:36] So how does, how does kind of international recruiting fit into your, you know, grand scheme each
[00:06:41] Coach: year? Yeah, look, it’s a global sport. Um, so I like that diversity within our locker room, different languages, different foods, different cultures, different religions, uh, different experiences. You know, a kid from Pittsburgh.
[00:06:58] You know, getting to know a boy from Ghana or France and England and Germany like that. That’s pretty, pretty cool. When I was playing, we had some internationals, when I was coaching at Greensboro college, we certainly had some, some New Zealand kids. And so you really just get to learn, you know, the game as a global sport, that it is.
[00:07:19] Um, it’s always gonna be a piece of our recipe. I think we’re trying to get within the PA boundaries. Ohio as a border state, Maryland has been good to us. Um, you know, we’ll look in the region and then if we can’t find them, we go to Texas or Florida or Michigan, wherever we can. And then obviously international peace.
[00:07:40] So I think, you know, try to have roughly 30% local PA, Ohio, Maryland, uh, 30% outside of that area. And then 30% you. Maybe some internationals or 33.3 as a history major for a number of reasons. Aren’t always my
[00:07:59] Matt: thing. That’s right. Maybe that extra 10%, we just don’t even know where they’re coming from yet. I get it well.
[00:08:05] Right, right. You know, one question that everybody always has is around the, the. Dollars and cents, the financial and scholarship, uh, component. So, you know, I’m not holding you to anything or any specifics, but just kind of gimme an idea of what does the, a player come into RMU, uh, you know, look at when it comes to what, what are they looking at in terms of the cost of attendance?
[00:08:29] How does athletic and academic money fit into the grand scheme?
[00:08:33] Coach: Yeah, it’s a great question. And it’s, it’s something that people should be trying to educate themselves on because there’s those myths out there that, oh, if I play with this club for five years, or maybe even two years, I, I can get a full scholarship somewhere and just not, not reality, you know, 9.9 is a fully funded, uh, division one men’s soccer program.
[00:08:56] We kicked the game off at 11. Most of our rosters are between 26 and 32. So you do the math, you know, there’s a lot of guys that are on no money, you know? And so at Robert Morris, it’s about 45, 46, all in that’s everything. For tuition fees, everything, um, you know, and the price of education is astronomical, right?
[00:09:19] It’s, it’s outrageous to be honest. Um, I’m still paying 3 75 a month for my education. And, and, and that’s kind of what I tell players is, you know, uh, you gotta invest in yourself. And for me at the time, growing up with a single mom, that was the place I wanted to go. And so I had to invest in myself.
[00:09:39] You know, and there’s academic money, um, which Robert Morris, being a private institution, is great because we can say, okay, you have a three, two, you have a three, five, boom, you get this and it’s right off the top. And then, you know what we try to do. We’re not fully funded at Robert Morris. So we try to make every dollar go as far as it can.
[00:09:58] And we try to set up a business model, cuz that’s really what it is. It’s a business side of college athletics. Um, you know, where like any company, any business you’re gonna invest in new technology, new people, new equipment, uh, new infrastructure. And we’re no different. But we really try to focus on that incentive based, you know, earning, you know, where we have guys that come in on academic money and then they do everything that we’ve asked and then we reward them, you know, and again, it’s not full scholarship, it’s not Powerball money.
[00:10:32] It’s a little bit to chip away at that, if mom and dad can choke down the number that they’re agreeing to, you know, by the end of it, when they walk across the stage, we’ve chipped away. 15, 20, 30 grand. And it’s less of a burden, right. Um, and really just trying to incentivize young men, cuz that’s what the real world is.
[00:10:55] If you go to a great company and do a crappy job, well you’re not getting the promotion. You’re not getting the raise and you, you may not be around long, right? So similar to our environment, you know, and you don’t have to be an all American or be the leading goal scorer or the starting goalkeeper. You have to, you know, you have to get the GPA.
[00:11:14] That we have set, uh, 3.2 is our GPA minimum standard. We were back to back, uh, highest GPA in the horizon league the last two years, which is a huge accomplishment. Uh, you have to be a good citizen, right? We’re gonna be out in the community, investing our time in, uh, in our local community. So, you know, you have to be out there engaged in that.
[00:11:35] And on the flip side, never heard your name bad in the community. Uh, and then you gotta work hard. You gotta be a great teammate and you gotta be coachable. You know, if you do those things, then we’ve gotta reward you. You know? So we have guys on the roster that, you know, maybe they don’t feature as much, but you know, we have to reward them.
[00:11:51] You know, on the app I had a player who came in, he was kind of a marginal student, you know, by our standards. Um, but really just wasn’t applying itself. And, and really, to be honest, hadn’t found his niche. Well, once he got into his major and started really enjoying his classes, I mean, he went from like a two nine student to like a three, five.
[00:12:13] Um, he was in our leadership group, you know, he started some matches, he played matches, but he wasn’t like, you know, really. Prominent, you know, statistical guy, right. And his parents had money. They, you know, but we were gonna invest money into him in his junior and senior year. And they were like, God, you know, save it, you know, get some, use it somewhere else.
[00:12:33] I said, no, this is, this is the life lesson. I’m trying to teach your son that if he does, you know, what’s asked or goes above and beyond that, he’ll be rewarded. And, and I think that’s important, uh, because you know, in this day and age, Immediate gratification or, you know, you don’t do something. And all of a sudden promises that were made in your senior year are all of a sudden changed.
[00:12:57] You know, so really being clear, transparent, and upfront with parents on the finances and what the plan and the vision is for their child. Oh,
[00:13:06] Matt: I think that’s awesome. Well, let’s talk a little bit more about the school. You know, I grew up in Columbus and, and went to school in DC. So I drove through, uh, Pennsylvania many times.
[00:13:16] And I, so I know Robert Morris, but there’s probably a lot of people out there who, who maybe aren’t familiar with it, but, you know, give me, I mean, you mentioned, you know, it’s a, it’s a nice school there in Pittsburgh, but GI gimme some of the inside scoop. What, what am I gonna love about Robert Morris that maybe I’m not gonna find just by clicking around a.
[00:13:36] Coach: Yeah. It’s uh, so it’s a moon township, which is about 15 minutes from downtown Pittsburgh. Uh, so it’s a little bit of a college town with about 5,000 students. So pretty traditional campus. Um, you know, everything’s very accessible, 10 minute walk from one corner to the other classes, athletic events, storms, uh, residence halls.
[00:14:00] Sorry, dining halls, you know, it’s all very convenient. Um, you know, about 70 different majors, um, you know, division one athletics. So, you know, you kind of have a small college town feel, but yet you can get in your car, jump on the bus, or, you know, get down to. You know, major cities in the US where there’s culture, diversity, sports, music, arts, uh, fortune 500 companies.
[00:14:30] So it’s a little bit of the best of both worlds, I think. Um, and it’s, you know, again, we’re trying to find, uh, players that fit into and people that fit into our program and our philosophy, but, you know, it takes, you know, kids have to research and, and figure out what their. Vibe is, you know, some kids wanna, I needed a smaller environment.
[00:14:53] You know, I went to a school that was smaller than my high school. Um, but I needed a little more attention, uh, academically and soccer, you know, so for me it was great. But everybody’s gotta find their own niche. You know, I think it’s a, Pittsburgh is a, a really blue collar sports, enthusiastic, hardworking, uh, city, and, and the people of it are, are great.
[00:15:17] And they, they really get behind you and support you. So it’s been awesome.
[00:15:22] Matt: That’s great. Well, you know, you mentioned the team GPA and, and that kind of thing. Obviously academics is a big component. So, um, you know, how does a student athlete on your team kind of balance the requirements of both the academic side and the athletic side and what kind of support systems does the school offer to help them, uh, be able to do that?
[00:15:43] Coach: Yeah. I mean, it’s a big commitment, you know, it’s, it’s a full time job, really. Um, but as I was taught at an early age, if you find something you love, you don’t work a day in your life. You know, if you love soccer and you love competing and getting better and trying to win, um, It’s not a burden. You know, I think some athletes reach a burnout stage and then it becomes more of a job.
[00:16:08] Right. Um, I think I have a profession. I think I have something I love doing. So, you know, I don’t, you know, track the hours, but I know I put a lot in and our guys do as well. You know, we try to give a balance, but you know, it. It’s one of those things where I think some colleges are harder to get into these days, maybe pre COVID, um, than they are to stay and be successful because there is just so much support.
[00:16:37] Um, and the division one program, you know, there’s an academic resource, uh, advisor that will help everything from A to Z from getting into school, to graduation. From your major, uh, helping with internships study hall writing center, you. All kinds of the structure in place. And Robert Morris is no different, uh, to help these young student athletes navigate that time.
[00:17:06] Uh, but it is, you know, you’ve gotta prioritize and we always talk about it. You know, faith, family, uh, academic soccer, social, you know, you keep those things in line. You can do it. I mean, there’s hundreds of thousands of young men and young women that compete at a high level at university and get great grades.
[00:17:25] You know, it’s part of that discipline that you’re trying to build in them so that when they get into the real world, they can, you know, they just don’t, they’re unflappable. They’ve already, they’re going up against kids that just went to school. We’re pretty smart. And sometimes they studied, sometimes they didn’t, maybe they went to class, maybe they didn’t, but they got through it with good grades.
[00:17:49] So then when they’re in the real world and they’re encountering some challenges, people around are like, whoa, Jason, this guy’s got a Superman Cape, like nothing phases him. Cause they’ve already dealt with failure. They’ve already dealt with adverse things they’ve already dealt with, you know, the stressors of those things and it’s just normal for them.
[00:18:07] Yeah. Yeah,
[00:18:08] Matt: for sure. Well, just real quick, because it kind of gives me an idea of what, uh, what a day in the life’s gonna be for somebody during the season. Just, you know, what, when do you train, when are classes when, when it kind of, what does everything look like in a normal week?
[00:18:25] Coach: Yeah, it really varies from school to school program to program.
[00:18:29] You know, my preference is to train in the mornings, so we train nine 30 to 1130, so they can take an 8:00 AM class if they choose or they need to, to fit in their schedule. Um, and then really they have the rest of the day too, to be a regular student. You know, you go to class, you do study hall, take a nap, you play video games, you hang out, whatever.
[00:18:50] Um, And it’s, it, it really, you know, I don’t know many players that would sleep through practice, but I maybe know some players that might sleep through a class. So to get ’em up, get ’em going, get the blood flow. You know, I think it helps their academic enhancement as well. Um, you know, but like this upcoming semester based on class schedules, majors, you know, we’re gonna train at one 30 to three 30 and two 30 to four 30.
[00:19:18] So you, you gotta kind of, you. Be a little bit flexible, um, while still trying to, you know, keep the philosophical reasons in place, but it’ll vary, but in our environment, so they’ll, you know, either come to training or they’ll do a couple classes come to training, you know, do some study hall. Um, you know, we may be traveling if it’s a fall.
[00:19:41] So maybe they’re doing those things or they’re missing class. And then they’re getting a travel letter to their professors the first week of class that these are some potential dates they may miss. They try and get any work that they’re doing, then the day they’re gonna miss. And then they do it on the bus or the hotel.
[00:19:58] And then that way, when they get back to class, the. Session, they’re not playing catch up, you know, they, they’re kind of just keeping, keeping it ticking over. And it’s really that discipline, that time management that I spoke of earlier, that’s, that’s really important. Um, and then, yeah, like trying to have some time to, you know, be a regular student and, and experience some of what college has to offer.
[00:20:23] Yeah.
[00:20:24] Matt: Great. Well, let’s talk a little bit more about the soccer side of things and, and the team, uh, so to speak. So. You talked about the roster size, but, uh, what about your staff size? You know, what, how, what does your staff look like? What roles do each of those folks play? Uh, year to year?
[00:20:44] Coach: Yeah, the staff, we, we have one full time assistant.
[00:20:47] So Matt Evans, he’s actually my associate head coach. Uh, he, he was with me at Appalachian state, um, and came here when that program was cut. Um, and then. Had a bunch of people reach out for that position. So took some calls from, from some people that I knew and, you know, they say, Hey, this guy’s applied and let them know, Hey, I’m gonna bring my guy with me, but you know, I’ll speak to him that, you know, they were young, they were passionate.
[00:21:13] They wanted to get into college coaching like I did one day and, and I had a full time teaching job that, you know, uh, somebody convinced me to quit and, and jump into this. And everybody thought I was crazy and. uh, so that’s what I was looking for is somebody that really wanted to do this, cuz it’s not, it’s not for everybody.
[00:21:32] Uh, the hours, the time demands, they don’t equate the pay most often. Um, and certainly not when you’re starting out. So, you know, got in touch with a guy named Dan Yates who was in the area working for hotspurs. Uh, youth academy and doing some stuff with their N PSL team had some conversations and just said, look, I don’t know if it’ll work until we get together and start working.
[00:21:55] And, you know, we got here in January like February, he was. Up and running, putting 40 hours a week in. And he was like, yeah, this is what I’m doing. And I was like, great. This is you’re welcome to be here. As long as you keep doing this. And, and then the next year I had a guy who I played against, uh, who was at Bethany and he had a, a young man wrapping up his masters, uh, helping him coach that had played there and similar, his wife was already in Pittsburgh and was looking to get more full time back in the area.
[00:22:28] Same conversation. He came in, hit the ground, running his name’s J O’Donnell. He works for hot spurs as well. Uh, so it’s the four of us, um, you know, and it’s been great dynamic. They’ve, you know, can’t express how important those three guys are to everything that we’re doing and hopefully everything the program’s gonna achieve because you know, they’re just wireless workers.
[00:22:52] They’re passionate. Helping these young men navigate their time and, and helping us, you know, hopefully have some success.
[00:23:00] Matt: That’s great. Well, how would you describe, you know, kind of your style of coach and, and, and the team style of play, you know, I’m not, uh, I’m not forcing you into telling me that you’re a 4 42 or any of that kind of stuff.
[00:23:12] Just give, gimme the general stuff. Cause I’m guessing it changes, uh, a lot based on who you’re playing and what players you have, et cetera, et cetera.
[00:23:21] Coach: Sure. Yeah. I mean, I, I think, you know, I’m very passionate, so, uh, I’m gonna be involved right. I think we like to play a proactive, you know, uptempo, pressing, organized, disciplined, um, style, you know, we’re, we’re having just, you know, been here about 18 months, 16 months, you know, the, the style of play is evolving.
[00:23:48] You know, this spring, we really. So with all the new players kind of got into a good rhythm and this fall we’re expecting to, you know, hopefully have that, that style of play a little bit more fine tuned, um, with how we go about, you know, Our business, you know, I think we focus on the four, four areas of attacking, defending, restart, transition, you know, and have some principles of play that no matter what formation we play, no matter who’s on the field, you know, those are the important kind of foundational pieces that.
[00:24:22] Allow us to execute a game plan and hopefully go on and have success. Um, more so than playing a certain formation. The formation for me is always about the personnel you have, um, at your disposal. So, you know, try and fit in. The players into what, where they’re gonna be most successful in the field. And sometimes that’s a 3, 5, 2, sometimes it’s a 4 42.
[00:24:46] Um, you know, we don’t change every week. You know, I think we probably played a majority of 4, 3, 3 last fall, um, 3, 4, 3, a lot this spring. And then when we get these new guys in, we’ll see, you know, where do they fit in? What, what lends to their strengths and minimizes their weaknesses. Create a formation, but it’ll be more about those principles of play and, and those four categories and, and really just getting the guys up to speed on that.
[00:25:14] Matt: Okay. Um, what would you say, you know, I know it’s June, but, but let’s talk about the January to May timeframe. Right? What does that kind of off season look like for you guys in terms of what you’re focusing on, what you’re doing? Uh, what can a player expect?
[00:25:33] Coach: Yeah. I mean, it depends on how young they are.
[00:25:36] There are some pretty big changes coming or on the table that college soccer is trying to implement, which would be more of a year round, uh, two semester model, like the rest of the world. Um, the fact that we condense 20 to 25 games in a three month period is. It is what it is. It has been, it has been successful.
[00:26:00] It has worked in college soccer. I’m always gonna be a big proponent of college soccer. Uh, and I think recently it’s been kind of bashed a bit, you know, with more the expansion of the youth pro academies and players bypassing college. Right. Um, but for the most part, the falls are traditional championships.
[00:26:22] You got 20 hours a week. We don’t really ever hit because you’re worried about the bodies breaking down and mentally them getting enough break. But January to may is more of our preseason, really where we hit the weight room. We do a lot of conditioning. We do a lot of mental, uh, Mental adversity training.
[00:26:43] Uh, you get some time to really interact individually, work on guide’s individually, you know, things, they need to get small groups and then obviously collectively, but you’re only gonna play, uh, five dates, you know? So we did three double headers, four double headers this spring. So we actually got it. Nine or 10 games in, in the spring, but you had to play two on one day. We had a big roster.
[00:27:05] So we played for, you know, one team against this team, another game against this team, really trying to give everybody minutes, because that’s where you’re in the spring. The one thing you’re lacking, right? The following year, your development is coming through the matches. And if you’re not featuring in the matches, then what type of reserve training do they have for you, you know, to keep yourself ticking over.
[00:27:27] Um, and then the spring is really. Individual small group and collective development through a lot of training, right? Strength and conditioning, developing your, your core strength and your speed or whatever it may be. But, you know, it’s, uh, it’s for the team, that’s kind of, you know, a different phase for the coaches.
[00:27:48] We treat it the same as the fall. For the coaches, we’re still out recruiting from January to may. Like I said, it doesn’t ever stop recruiting. You’re always trying to find that player or evaluate, get another evaluation on a guy because you know, to see a guy once and I love to get the video of a guy that I saw play live or an email like, oh, I had a hat trick and say, yeah, that guy cut you back a ball in the two yard line.
[00:28:17] That boom bounced off your shin and went in and, you know, you can always, when you watch ’em off soccer, you can, you can see a good player having a tough day, which I like to see whether it’s an opponent, whether just them individually, you know, because you can see what, where they made of, you know, and then you, you can certainly tell a, a, not so good player having a, a blinder of a day
[00:28:41] Um, and that’s kind of where the art of recruiting comes in and, and trying to really. You know, hone in on what you’re looking for, for sure. For sure.
[00:28:50] Matt: Well, coach, we covered a lot of ground, talked about a lot of different things, so I like to end these all with the same, same questions. What didn’t we talk about?
[00:28:57] What didn’t we cover anything you wanna talk about from the team, the soccer, the school, or, or anything? Uh, from that aspect?
[00:29:07] Coach: Yeah, I think, you know, Robert Morris is a story tradition. Won a lot of championships, put a lot of guys into the next level of professional soccer or international soccer. Uh, you know, we were hired to, to kind of bring that spark back.
[00:29:21] And I think, you know, over the next couple years, you’re gonna see some exciting things from Rob Robert Morris, men’s soccer on and off the field. So be able to look out for that. I think, uh, just a bit of advice for players that are going through this process. Uh, there’s a program in a school for everyone.
[00:29:39] You. A lot of people focus on the color or the size or the conference. And you really just gotta get, get out of those weeds and just really figure out what is the best fit for you. Because if you find the best fit, then you’ll be comfortable and you’ll be able to go and perform and achieve all your goals and have a great time doing it.
[00:29:58] Um, and you just gotta do your research. You know, you gotta do your research, you gotta get out, meet people on campus, meet current players, you know, cuz you’ll get a vibe and a feeling. Okay, this is the right fit for me. Uh, I feel good here. They, they, they have a plan and a vision for me as well as the program.
[00:30:19] And then you’re gonna have success, you know, it’s when people get stressed out or, you know, comparing themselves to their buddy or parents, you know, The Smiths or the Joneses, you know, it’s their own process. Take it as it goes, embrace it all and enjoy it. Cause it should be a recognition of their hard work and dedication and, and achievement that they’re even being recruited to play in college because it is a small percentage of players that go on in any sport to any level of college, you know?
[00:30:51] So, uh, it is certainly not easy, but enjoyable.
[00:30:59] Matt: Love it. Well, coach, I appreciate the time, wish you the best of luck in the fall. And, and as you, as you turn this program around and, and get it back to championship status, we’ll keep an eye on you and, and, uh, hopefully you’ll start bringing that hardware back to Pittsburgh.[00:31:14] Coach: Great. Thanks a lot for your time and having me all on that. Appreciate it. Thanks coach.
