The Press and Standard’s Brantley Strickland recently spoke with USC Salkehatchie head basketball coach Travis Garrett. Garrett, who is heading into the fourth season at the helm of the program after leading its relaunch in 2007, discussed recruiting, expectations and the future.
Question 1: When you arrived here four years ago, you said the ultimate goal was to win an NCJAA National championship at Salkehatchie. How far along is the process?
A lot of things have to be in place to win a national championship, and I have some of those things in place at this point. The other things, you’ve got no control of, but despite all of the obstacles, I still think with all of the right pieces it can be done. We can get there, but we need to get the community more involved and by that I mean with support and with money. We have to do a little more with our fundraising and getting the community more involved would certainly help with that. We do what we do with no full scholarships, so we definitely have to fundraise a little more to offset schools that can do that sort of thing, but I still think that we can get it done here. We have a lot of things that a lot of other schools can’t offer as well.
A lot of things have to be in place to win a national championship, and I have some of those things in place at this point. The other things, you’ve got no control of, but despite all of the obstacles, I still think with all of the right pieces it can be done. We can get there, but we need to get the community more involved and by that I mean with support and with money. We have to do a little more with our fundraising and getting the community more involved would certainly help with that. We do what we do with no full scholarships, so we definitely have to fundraise a little more to offset schools that can do that sort of thing, but I still think that we can get it done here. We have a lot of things that a lot of other schools can’t offer as well.
Question 2: Your 2008-09 team captured a share of the Region X title in your second season here? Was there anything special about that team or did their success surprise you?
“It was a combination of both. When I got here I thought Year 3 was going to be the one, but I guess it just came a year early. It was very surprising on the one hand but I knew we had the talent. I think our leading scorer that year averaged 13 points per game, so we had great balance. I think we surprised some people and snuck up on some people too. I just wished we could have finished it out, because I thought that team had the size and the balance to get to Kansas at the national tournament and make a run.”
“It was a combination of both. When I got here I thought Year 3 was going to be the one, but I guess it just came a year early. It was very surprising on the one hand but I knew we had the talent. I think our leading scorer that year averaged 13 points per game, so we had great balance. I think we surprised some people and snuck up on some people too. I just wished we could have finished it out, because I thought that team had the size and the balance to get to Kansas at the national tournament and make a run.”
Question 3: A trend in you tenure at Salkehatchie has been an ability to get your teams playing their best basketball down the stretch. Last season, that wasn’t the case, when you finished up at 12-17. As you look back, what went wrong?
I put it on nature as funny as that sounds. We were in first place at the end of January, and we had a 12-day layoff. Then we come back and the snow comes down. We had a great week of practice and a big game on Friday night, but the closer we got the more excited everyone got about the snow. We didn’t play well that night or for the rest of the season. We had the opportunity to turn it around, but we never did. It was the worst season I’ve had as head coach or as an assistant. It’s still very disappointing. It was a bitter pill to swallow; because there was a point here we really had it going. But I guess you play 30 games for a reason.
I put it on nature as funny as that sounds. We were in first place at the end of January, and we had a 12-day layoff. Then we come back and the snow comes down. We had a great week of practice and a big game on Friday night, but the closer we got the more excited everyone got about the snow. We didn’t play well that night or for the rest of the season. We had the opportunity to turn it around, but we never did. It was the worst season I’ve had as head coach or as an assistant. It’s still very disappointing. It was a bitter pill to swallow; because there was a point here we really had it going. But I guess you play 30 games for a reason.
Question 4: We’ve talked about your philosophy on recruiting in the past. It seems you don’t put any limitations on the kind of player you’d like to bring in. Why?
I’ve been doing this for a while, and everywhere I have been its’ mandatory to get the best guys. Granted, I have to sell it a little different here. Some schools give scholarships, but we have great academics here. You can come here and graduate and go anywhere you want, so I sell the academic side more than anything else. If you come to Salk, you’ve got the opportunity to take good classes with good teachers following the curriculum of the University of South Carolina. It’s still the luck of the draw at the end of the day, but the only thing we can do is have guys who graduate and show the track record for it. You also just try to not burn bridges. A guy might go to a bigger school, but it might not work out. You might get a second shot at him.”
I’ve been doing this for a while, and everywhere I have been its’ mandatory to get the best guys. Granted, I have to sell it a little different here. Some schools give scholarships, but we have great academics here. You can come here and graduate and go anywhere you want, so I sell the academic side more than anything else. If you come to Salk, you’ve got the opportunity to take good classes with good teachers following the curriculum of the University of South Carolina. It’s still the luck of the draw at the end of the day, but the only thing we can do is have guys who graduate and show the track record for it. You also just try to not burn bridges. A guy might go to a bigger school, but it might not work out. You might get a second shot at him.”
Question 5: You’re getting ready for your fourth season here. What’s the future hold for the Indians?
Obviously, we want to get back to our winning way, and have a successful season from the beginning. Last year was not a great year, and it certainly didn’t meet my expectations. We just have to work harder and be more focused. We want to play well at the end of the year, but we have to get a little more consistency in November, December and January too.
Obviously, we want to get back to our winning way, and have a successful season from the beginning. Last year was not a great year, and it certainly didn’t meet my expectations. We just have to work harder and be more focused. We want to play well at the end of the year, but we have to get a little more consistency in November, December and January too.
Brantley StricklandSports EditorThe Press and StandardWalterboro, SC(843)-549-2586sportsdesk@lowcountry.com
