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Last October Chris Holtmann was making the rapid adjustment from assistant coach to interim head coach after Butler head coach Brandon Miller was granted a medical leave of absence. After winning 23 games, making it to the NCAA tourney, and taking Notre Dame to OT, we can only wonder how he is feeling this October now that he has a little better idea of what to expect. He was 2013 Big South COY at Gardner-Webb, an assistant to his former teammate John Groce at Ohio, and an NAIA All-American guard at Taylor University. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach Holtmann about the importance of transfers and what exactly is “the Butler Way”.
You were an NAIA All-American at Taylor University: how good a player were you back in the day, and how did you get into coaching? We had a really good team and my recognition was probably the result of our team’s success. I got into coaching after doing other things for a couple of years. I picked up a copy of John Wooden’s book “They Call Me Coach”, read it cover-to-cover in about 2 days, and that is when I knew that coaching could become my vocation.
1 of your teammates was John Groce, who you later became an assistant to at Ohio: what was Groce like as a teammate, and what makes him such a good coach? John has the highest level of attention to detail. He is a hard worker and 1 of those guys who you knew was going to become a coach even back during his playing days. He is successful because he is smart, thorough, and highly-detailed.
In 2010 you were named head coach at Gardner-Webb: why did you take the job? I had previously been at Gardner-Webb as an assistant. That year we were coming off of a really good season at Ohio. I was 38 years old and anxious to become a head coach. The job was appealing because of the challenge: you had the opportunity to show progress but I knew that it would take time. The fans and the administration there were so appreciative of our efforts as a staff: it was a really rewarding time in my career.
In 2013 you were named Big South COY: what did it mean to you to receive such an outstanding honor? It was very rewarding for me personally but I also hope it was rewarding for our entire staff. Those guys were recruiting the right players and working so hard for us to make strides so hopefully they took pride in that recognition too.
Last October you were named interim coach after Brandon Miller was granted a medical leave of absence: how difficult was it to make such a transition right before the season, and how were you able to make it work? It was difficult because of the situation but especially because of the timing. However, it was not as difficult as others on the outside might have thought because we had a quality group of guys. We had a veteran staff and a veteran team, which made it easier than anticipated.
What is “the Butler Way”, and what makes it so effective? The Butler Way demands commitment, denies selfishness, accepts reality, yet seeks improvement every day while putting the team above yourself. It is so effective because of the guys who embrace it. There has to be that belief in the locker room and everyone needs to truly value what it stands for.
In the 2015 NCAA tourney you had a 3-PT OT loss to Notre Dame: how close did you come to pulling off the upset, and what did your team learn from that game that you think can help you this year? I am not sure if we learned anything from a basketball standpoint that we had not learned before. I think we all realized how close we were to doing something special alongside guys who had invested so much in one another.
In April of 2014 PG Tyler Lewis transferred in from NC State, and in April of 2015 PG Kethan Savage transferred in from GW: do you think this is the start of a trend or just a happy coincidence?! This has been a trend/pattern at Butler for the last 15-20 years. We have had success with transfers as long as they fit who we are, so we will continue to recruit transfers who fit our program.
Your non-conference schedule includes games against Cincinnati/Tennessee/Purdue: which of these games do you feel will present your biggest test? It is tough to sit here in October and choose which games will be tougher than others. It is not just those 3 games: our entire non-conference schedule will give us a tough road before we even get to the Big East, which has really good teams from top to bottom. The 3 teams you mentioned are all quality programs. Maybe the only thing that is different about those games is that we have 1 at home, 1 on a neutral court, and 1 on the road!
What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? We are still trying to figure out this team’s potential and then come as close as we can to meeting that potential. For us it is all about staying committed to daily improvement.