Wake Forest Athletics
Ron Wellman Press Conference Quotes
3/20/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 20, 2014
Wake Forest Athletics Director Ron Wellman
Deacon Tower - March 20, 2014
Opening statement...
"Jeff and I started the annual review of our basketball program this afternoon and spent a length of time discussing what has transpired in the last four years as well as the progress that has been made in the program both on and off the court. At the end of the conversation, Jeff informed me that he planned to resign. I accepted his offer to resign and thanked him for everything that he has done over the last four years. While we did not have the number of wins that we would have liked to have had, Jeff Bzdelik has conducted himself with class and dignity every step of the way for the last four years. He has been someone who has represented our university exceptionally well, and he has never deviated from the values that he had when he first came to Wake Forest. He leaves holding his head high because he did not succumb to the pressure that can be evident sometimes in college basketball. He brought in a group of players who are a credit to this university. They are a group of young men who are not only good basketball players, but they also exemplify the type of student-athlete that we expect to have at Wake Forest University. This team has the highest grade point average that we have ever had since we began keeping records in 1989. That is the type of impact that Jeff has had on our program. After Jeff and I met for close to an hour, we then met with the team. Jeff talked with the team first and told them that he loved them and how much he appreciated each and every one of them. He thanked them for everything that they did in building this program in the right direction in the way that they conducted themselves both on and off the floor. He also recognized that there were shortcomings. He wished that they had been able to perform better in certain areas. When Jeff told me that he was resigning, he simply told me that there needed to be new energy and leadership to allow these players to achieve their full potential. He said that there needs to be a positive environment for these guys and that they are worn down right now. He conducted himself in the meeting with myself and with the team just as you would expect Jeff to do. I personally thank him for everything that he has done for our basketball program, for our athletic department and for our university."
On the type of coach that will be sought to take over the program...
"We will be looking for a winner, and we are open to everything right now. Obviously we have a list and whether anyone on that short list emerges as our next basketball coach remains to be seen. I'm not looking for someone who runs a particular style of offense or defense, that's not important. I'm not looking for any one style of play as much as I am the person, his track record and whether we can project that individual to be a winner. That's not to suggest that there won't be assistant coaches who are strongly considered for this position. That is a possibility as well. We look at their pedigree. We look at the program from which they come, and we look at how our program will project under their leadership. Right now we feel that the world is available to us and we feel that we have a very attractive opportunity for someone to come here and continue the process that Jeff has started. With the returning players and the recruits that will be coming in as well as the two players who were not available to us this season, we feel that next year's team can be a very successful team. Whoever comes in will have a pretty good opportunity at making an immediate impact."
On the current state of Wake Forest athletics...
"I think we have a great future. We have an absolutely fabulous future. When you look at Dave Clawson, he is doing a really great job in all aspects of our program, and I believe we will be able to say the same thing about our future basketball coach. When you look at the facilities and the improvements that we are looking at in terms of the sports performance center and a number of other facilities, I think this is going to be as attractive of a position as you can possibly imagine. I am as excited about our future as I have ever been, and I think this is a good time for Wake Forest athletics. Making changes in football and basketball is probably going to add a lot of new energy to our program from a public standpoint as well."
On the state of Bzdelik's staff...
"The new coach will have the opportunity to hire his assistants. I do not get involved with hiring assistants or mandating that someone keep assistants. That will be the decision of the new coach. I have not met with the assistants yet as a group. They were in the team meeting this afternoon, and I will have individual meetings with them tonight. We will be able to work through all of those types of issues this evening."
On the type of program that will be run under the new coach...
"We are going to win the right way. We are not going to take shortcuts. We are not going to put the university in jeopardy from a compliance standpoint. All of our coaches recognize that a priority in our program is abiding by rules and regulations, and our new coach will be no exception. They will win the right way and represent the university in a manner that this university deserves."
