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We continue our season preview coverage with new Tennessee Tech coach John Pelphrey. There are a few new coaches in the OVC this year but none of the others can match the references of Coach Pelphrey. He played for Rick Pitino (2013 Hall of Fame inductee) at Kentucky, worked for Eddie Sutton (2011 College Basketball Hall of Fame inductee) at Oklahoma State, worked for Billy Donovan (2-time NCAA champ) at Marshall/Florida, and worked for Avery Johnson (1999 NBA champ) at Alabama. He reached the NCAA tourney during his previous 2 head coaching stops at South Alabama/Arkansas and the Golden Eagles are hoping he can make it 3-for-3 in Cookeville. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Coach Pelphrey about playing in 1 of the greatest games in college basketball history and starting a new job.
You played for Eddie Sutton/Rick Pitino at Kentucky and were an assistant to several other successful coaches including Sutton (Oklahoma State), Billy Donovan (Marshall/Florida), and Avery Johnson (Alabama): what was the most important thing that you learned from any of these head coaches? The 2 best coaches I have ever had are my parents but all of the coaches above helped shape me. Even from my playing days with Tubby Smith I have taken stuff from everyone I know. Billy is probably the most important person in my life outside of my father: my daughter is named for him!
You were a 2-time team captain for the Wildcats: what is the key to being a good leader? What I thought a leader was back then is different than what I think a leader is now. You need to create value in yourself so you can have the trust/respect of others. Leadership is all about influence: when you have to communicate a new system so that your guys can understand the game plan it is a daily challenge.
In the 1992 Elite 8 vs. Duke you scored 16 PTS but were guarding Christian Laettner as he made a turnaround jumper at the buzzer in OT: what are your memories of 1 of the greatest games in college basketball history? I do not know if it is 1 of the greatest games in my own history(!) but it moved people to emotion and there were some unbelievable performances. It was the last time that we had a chance to put on that jersey: it was not simply a uniform but a special piece of cloth.
You were 1 of 4 seniors (along with Richie Farmer/Deron Feldhaus/Sean Woods) known as “The Unforgettables” who stayed in Lexington throughout its probation and eventually had your jerseys retired: are we going to see Southern University (coached by Woods) on your schedule in the years ahead?! I do not know. Scheduling is obviously very challenging/important but maybe we can get together. We had a chance to play them a few times in the past when I worked in the SEC.
In the 2000 NCAA tourney as an assistant to Donovan at Florida, you began the tourney with a 1-PT win over Butler and ended it with a loss to Michigan State in the title game: where does Mike Miller’s runner at the buzzer rank among the most clutch shots that you have ever seen, and how close did you come to winning it all? There were a lot of things that happened before that shot. Butler was amazing and had not lost in about 3 months and it took us a long time to finally beat them. That shot might have been a charge but thank goodness it was not called! Earlier in the year Teddy Dupay might have jacked up a 3 in that situation but he learned his lesson and made the correct pass. It galvanized us and helped us reach the title game because we became selfless and did whatever it took to play another 40 minutes. The shot validated Mike’s greatness and propelled him on to the NBA where he had a great career. That shot also helped put Billy on a certain track and we are all very fortunate that those kids decided to come to Florida. Coach Tom Izzo’s team made a lot of threes and had an outstanding team that outplayed us the night of the title game.
Last April you were named head coach at Tennessee Tech: why did you take the job, and how is it going so far? We have been working and trying to get better. I certainly enjoyed being a coach and working for ESPN in the past but we were looking for a home where we could go somewhere and build something. We want to take on the challenge of putting something together that benefits everyone involved.
Your previous 2 head coaching jobs involved trips to the NCAA tourney that were accomplished in vastly different ways (you had 3 straight losing records in conference play at South Alabama before winning the Sun Belt tourney in 2006, then made the NCAA tourney in your very 1st year at Arkansas in 2008 before having 3 straight losing records in conference play): what is your approach for a team that went 4-14 in the OVC last season? I have to come in and earn the players’ trust/respect, which will take some time. Hopefully I can understand their dreams/goals/fears and help them overcome their challenges. We want to be tough/resilient/helpful/kind both in the hiring/recruiting process. Talent/experience are nice but the thing that separates good teams from bad teams is your mindset. If we can find those things then I think we will really have something special. I am not too consumed with the path: it is about what we do with the opportunity.
Your non-conference schedule includes a road game at Mississippi in late-December: do you prepare the same way when you are facing an SEC team vs. a mid-major team? Yes: I want to be in the moment and have a standard that we set for ourselves. Our competition is not our opponent: our real challenge is our own selves to see why it is important to do the things that we need to do. Can we keep a great attitude, give a great effort, and learn from the results and then move on? We do not want to worry about the future: our only focus is right now. Whether it is a scrimmage/game/practice I want to see who I can count on every single day rather than have a player who can only get motivated for big games. All 30 of them count the same.
You have 9 players on the roster from the state of Tennessee as well as players from 4 other states and 2 other countries: what sort of recruiting philosophy will you have? We look for the best student-athletes we can find but are consumed with leadership 1st. We want to help these young men become great leaders: they happen to be basketball players but will also become fathers and people who serve the community. If we can help them in that area then things will take care of themselves.
What are your goals for the upcoming season, and what are your expectations for the upcoming season? I want us to overachieve. As a group you need to show up every day and keep the train on the tracks as we try to reach our potential, which is the goal for the individual/group. That does not mean we will win every single game but if we do a good job recruiting then I think that we will compete for championships. Reaching your potential is a choice: you can choose to come to work every day/give great effort/take extreme ownership, or not. It does not take talent to do those things…but you also need a few breaks when facing teams from big schools that spend money.