Wake Forest Athletics News
Q & A With Ron Wellman June 29, 2000 The 1999-2000 school year has been one of the most successful from an on and off-field perspective in recent years. Many of the school's teams reached postseason play, some for the first time ever (such as field hockey in the NCAA tournament), and most squads made great improvements - from the women's golf team returning to the NCAA national championships for the first time in three years to the women's tennis team boasting three All-Americans. Ron Wellman has overseen the rise of the program since coming to Wake Forest seven and a half years ago, and may have the best perspective on where the program is headed. Gold Rush contributing writer Jay Reddick got Wellman to look at the year just past and what is to come. The following is their conversation: Gold Rush: What are the most important things you see helping our on-field performance in the next few years? Wellman: There are many factors that produce an excellent program such as the support of the university administration and faculty, a strong fan base and top-grade facilities, but the overriding influence on the success of any program is the coaching staff. We have an excellent group of coaches on our staff. It will be important for us to create a stable environment for our student-athletes by keeping those coaches at Wake Forest. Gold Rush: There have been several new faces, or old faces in new positions, around the athletics offices since our last talk a year ago. Talk a little bit about the new coaches and what they've brought to the program. Wellman: Brian Fleishman, our women's tennis coach, had a superb first year as the team was ranked No. 2 or No. 3 all year and advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament. Of course, Brian was not new to the program because he had served as our assistant coach prior to taking over the team this year. Annie Bennett just finished her first year as our women's track and field and cross country coach. She has made the transition to our university very well and will build a great track and field and cross country program. She is an excellent coach and recruiter. Noel Ruebel is also completing his first year as our men's track and field coach. Our team performed well this spring and we will have a very competitive program in the future under his leadership. Gary Seivers just started as our men's cross country coach. He had enormous success coaching at the junior college level in Utah. In fact, both his men's and women's cross country teams were ranked No. 1 in the country this year among junior colleges. Val Baker has taken over our volleyball program. She has served as an assistant in that program from its inception and has been a major reason for our success. We expect that team to continue to contend for ACC championships under her leadership. All of the new coaches bring strengths to our department that will make us stronger. I look forward to their positive influence on our program. Gold Rush: The improvements off the field are becoming more obvious around campus, as ground has been broken for the Student-Athlete Enhancement Center. How is that coming along, and what will it mean for the program? Wellman: The Student-Athlete Enhancement Center is under construction. We had the ground-breaking ceremony on May 31 (construction started about three weeks prior to that). The building will get tremendous usage by our student-athletes. Not only will our basketball teams benefit from the practice gym, but all student-athletes will benefit from the Academic Services floor. We will have over 12,000 square feet dedicated to the academic excellence of our student-athletes. It will be an excellent facility to promote academic and basketball excellence. Gold Rush: Are there any more big construction projects on the horizon? Wellman: We have not committed to any other projects at this time, but the one project that we continue to discuss and consider is The Wake Forest Golf Club. The club is an important ingredient to the future success of our golf teams and would be a tremendous asset to the university also. Gold Rush: From a legislative standpoint, I know the changes in summer recruiting for basketball have been a hot topic. Does that help or hurt Wake Forest more than other schools from a competitive standpoint, or is it just something all schools have to adjust to? Wellman: It is difficult to predict if the changes in summer basketball recruiting will help or hinder us because the new summer recruiting rules have not been proposed yet. There will be a NCAA committee to consider the various possibilities and make proposals to change the summer recruitment process starting in the summer of 2002. Changes are needed, and this is a positive step for college basketball. Gold Rush: Have there been any other changes to the college athletics landscape that need to be addressed? Wellman: There will be consideration of changing the NCAA amateurism rules. The NCAA Management Council will begin its deliberations about amateurism this fall. |