Getting to Know... Coach Callihan
6/24/2008 4:18:00 AM | Volleyball
1.) Why did you decide to coach at Georgia Southern?
I thought it was a good opportunity to build something. This program has had success in the past and I thought this was a great opportunity to come back and take the program back to where it used to be and maybe even take it a step further this time.
2.) Since you've been in Statesboro, what types of activities do enjoy doing with your family around town?
Well my family is not here yet. I'm still commuting back and forth to Athens. They'll be down here in the middle of July. They've only been down once but they like it. We like the college town atmosphere. We like the idea of being an hour from the beach, you know 45 minutes from Savannah. I got two young boys that are excited about the [Splash in the Boro] water park and we really enjoy some of the local restaurants in town and the performing arts center down town. So we feel like there's a lot for our family here.
3.)What other sports do you like playing or watching?
I love basketball. We had a staff intramural softball team that finished second out here. We played basketball with Coach Cram a couple times and he's got a group of guys who come in and play on the weekends. I'm a sports enthusiast. I like to play pretty much anything. We get out here and play tennis some.
4.) When and why did you start taking an interest in volleyball?
I played in high school and was involved with the team there and then I went into the Air Force and was stationed over in Japan for four years and actually started coaching over there. I had a women's club team that I coached over there for three years. So I started there and everywhere I went it seemed like an opportunity with volleyball presented itself and it kind of continued to grow until it became a career.
5.) What experiences have contributed to the coach you are today?
I guess every opportunity I've had on the coaching level, on the high school level to being an assistant. You know, I think you take a little something away from each stop. Even after being an assistant at Georgia after being a head coach, it was an opportunity to kind of step back and reevaluate things- maybe things I did well in the past as a coach and maybe things I could change. You know, so I think you take a little bit away from each team you have and the dynamic of that group.
6.) You are known for coaching athletes who also succeed in academics. What advice do you give your players on how to excel on and off the court?
I don't know if it's so much advice as it is the type of student-athlete we recruit. We really try to be pro-active on the front end of our recruiting. We probably passed on players who could of helped us on the floor but just weren't the type of student-athlete we were looking for. So we try to look for a good, well-rounded, individual who takes their athletics as well as their academics seriously. And I think that by getting that type of player in the recruitment process just makes the transition to college and the type of academic-minded person we have just a smoother type of transition as opposed to bringing in someone strictly because they're a good volleyball player but not worrying what they do outside of volleyball.
7.) And you said you were in the Air Force and you traveled to places such as Japan. What is the favorite place you've traveled to, during your time in the Air Force or in your spare time?
Hawaii was probably our favorite. My wife and I had a chance to go there and actually went over there to play three different times. We got to visit different islands while we were there and it was just a good experience and something we really enjoyed. We like the beaches and haven't been to a beach much since but that's one of the reasons we're kind of excited about being here. We're closer to Tybee Island and Hilton Head and we get to experience that again.
8.) What are you excited about most this season?
Getting started! We've spent so much time recruiting and out on the road and we've got to know a number of different players but we're really excited about getting them on campus and actually getting them to work and seeing what we'll have. We got a lot of new faces coming in and we know that they'll be a little bit of a transition period, people getting acclimated to the system and our coaching style, but we're really ready to seeing what we've got.
9.) What is a unique fact most people may not know about you?
That's a good question...I think people see me and are normally intimidated by the way I look but I am actually a pretty laid-back kind of guy. That's all I can really give you. I think first impression you think “mean guy” or “no-nonsense” but I am really a pretty laid back person.
I thought it was a good opportunity to build something. This program has had success in the past and I thought this was a great opportunity to come back and take the program back to where it used to be and maybe even take it a step further this time.
2.) Since you've been in Statesboro, what types of activities do enjoy doing with your family around town?
Well my family is not here yet. I'm still commuting back and forth to Athens. They'll be down here in the middle of July. They've only been down once but they like it. We like the college town atmosphere. We like the idea of being an hour from the beach, you know 45 minutes from Savannah. I got two young boys that are excited about the [Splash in the Boro] water park and we really enjoy some of the local restaurants in town and the performing arts center down town. So we feel like there's a lot for our family here.
3.)What other sports do you like playing or watching?
I love basketball. We had a staff intramural softball team that finished second out here. We played basketball with Coach Cram a couple times and he's got a group of guys who come in and play on the weekends. I'm a sports enthusiast. I like to play pretty much anything. We get out here and play tennis some.
4.) When and why did you start taking an interest in volleyball?
I played in high school and was involved with the team there and then I went into the Air Force and was stationed over in Japan for four years and actually started coaching over there. I had a women's club team that I coached over there for three years. So I started there and everywhere I went it seemed like an opportunity with volleyball presented itself and it kind of continued to grow until it became a career.
5.) What experiences have contributed to the coach you are today?
I guess every opportunity I've had on the coaching level, on the high school level to being an assistant. You know, I think you take a little something away from each stop. Even after being an assistant at Georgia after being a head coach, it was an opportunity to kind of step back and reevaluate things- maybe things I did well in the past as a coach and maybe things I could change. You know, so I think you take a little bit away from each team you have and the dynamic of that group.
6.) You are known for coaching athletes who also succeed in academics. What advice do you give your players on how to excel on and off the court?
I don't know if it's so much advice as it is the type of student-athlete we recruit. We really try to be pro-active on the front end of our recruiting. We probably passed on players who could of helped us on the floor but just weren't the type of student-athlete we were looking for. So we try to look for a good, well-rounded, individual who takes their athletics as well as their academics seriously. And I think that by getting that type of player in the recruitment process just makes the transition to college and the type of academic-minded person we have just a smoother type of transition as opposed to bringing in someone strictly because they're a good volleyball player but not worrying what they do outside of volleyball.
7.) And you said you were in the Air Force and you traveled to places such as Japan. What is the favorite place you've traveled to, during your time in the Air Force or in your spare time?
Hawaii was probably our favorite. My wife and I had a chance to go there and actually went over there to play three different times. We got to visit different islands while we were there and it was just a good experience and something we really enjoyed. We like the beaches and haven't been to a beach much since but that's one of the reasons we're kind of excited about being here. We're closer to Tybee Island and Hilton Head and we get to experience that again.
8.) What are you excited about most this season?
Getting started! We've spent so much time recruiting and out on the road and we've got to know a number of different players but we're really excited about getting them on campus and actually getting them to work and seeing what we'll have. We got a lot of new faces coming in and we know that they'll be a little bit of a transition period, people getting acclimated to the system and our coaching style, but we're really ready to seeing what we've got.
9.) What is a unique fact most people may not know about you?
That's a good question...I think people see me and are normally intimidated by the way I look but I am actually a pretty laid-back kind of guy. That's all I can really give you. I think first impression you think “mean guy” or “no-nonsense” but I am really a pretty laid back person.
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