Introductory Press Conference: Buzz Williams

Buzz Williams met the media for the first time as Texas A&M's new head basketball coach on Thursday following his welcome event inside Reed Arena.

A transcript and audio are available below. Full video is available through the link above.


 

---

Buzz Williams Press Conference Transcript 

ALAN CANNON: All right, ladies and gentlemen, welcome. And, Coach, welcome back.
 
Just a reminder to the media here that with Coach Williams the last 11 seasons -- nine 20-plus win seasons, eight NCAA tournament appearances, four Sweet 16s, one Elite Eight, and awfully close to another Elite Eight just a few days ago.  But also from Van Alstyne and I believe the Panthers up there.
 
COACH WILLIAMS:  Yes, sir.
 
ALAN CANNON:   So welcome back, Coach.
 
COACH WILLIAMS:  Thank you.
 
Just incredibly honored, grateful, overwhelmed with good emotion. Hard to articulate it, not smart enough to articulate it in the right way. But incredibly thankful for the opportunity, for my family and I to be a part of Aggieland and all that comes with it.  And excited. Very excited.
 
Q. It's clear this place meant a lot to you in just the short period of time that you were here and you had a lot of success here. What really drew you back and why do you feel that Texas A&M is a destination kind of job?
 
COACH WILLIAMS: I think the things that Mr. [Scott] Woodward visited with me about, I think we were -- had great symmetry from the very beginning. I think you could feel the synergy on the phone. I think the things that have transpired here since I have been gone -- this is -- last night was the first time I had been back in College Station since the day that I left to become the head coach at New Orleans.
 
And even when we landed last night and they're driving us here, like, I didn't recognize any of this, none of the softball field, the track that's opening this weekend. I didn't know -- you know, I hadn't seen any of it. And all of this has happened so fast, it wasn't like I was on the Internet looking up pictures.
 
But I think the vision that Scott has for the department, I think the decisions that he and his staff have made. I think Stephanie is a star. I have been with Justin nonstop since they came and picked us up. So any time there's alignment from the top down, I think that's always a great starting point and possibly the only chance you have, when you have that alignment.
 
And so I don't think I did much when I was here as an assistant. I think that was completely Coach (Billy Gillespie) and the players. But I think, looking back, the one thing that I see now is all of the lessons that I was able to learn because I had a front-row seat. We were O-16 when they hired Coach. 8-8 in year one. That was the largest Power 5 conference-only turnaround. Coach (Billy Gillespie) was Coach of the Year. Went to the N.I.T. for the first time in a long time.
 
The next year, 10-6 in the league. Went to the NCAA tournament. I mean, the only reason that I had an opportunity to be a head coach at such a young age was what had transpired in those two years. And it was -- you could feel the momentum nationally with what was happening. That was completely Coach.
 
I was too young to understand what was going on, but I was really thankful. So I think, looking back 13 years ago, as an assistant, and seeing what had transpired, those lessons have helped me ever since.
 
Q. As a new coach coming in, how important is it to win over the fan base right away?
 
COACH WILLIAMS:   I think everybody is important. I think that's one thing that's hard to quantify, is the energy required in building something, particularly when you have the foundation that's here.  I think the fans are really important, but I think the students are really important that are also fans. I think seeing all of those students -- that's why I was late. I don't ever want to say no to a student that loves the Aggies. But I think the long-time season ticket holders, I think everybody has a role. And I think in order for us to get it back going where we want, I think -- I don't think that it's necessarily been bad. I think maybe one of the things that it's in need of is energy. One of the things that it's in need of is passion.  And so, obviously, that can come from the fans, but I think it has to come from everybody.  And I hope that I'm at the front of that line.
 
Q. Have you gotten a chance to look at the roster coming back for the Aggies next year? If so, what do you think about the talent in College Station?
 
COACH WILLIAMS: Yeah. This may not be the right answer, but this is the truth. I don't want to ever have preconceived ideas on the roster. I don't want to have preconceived ideas on the talent on the roster. So met with them last night. I think it was probably not the meeting that they were anticipating, but I thought that it went fine.
 
We -- they trained this morning. I watched them. And then haven't seen them again until, obviously, right now. And then we're going to train again in the morning.
 
What I want to do is build a relationship with them built on trust, built on love, and built on work. So I like parts of what I see. I know that there's a lot of work in front of where we're at, not only with our current roster, but what our future rosters need to be.
 
But I don't want to have any preconceived ideas. I've watched a little bit of clips on synergy. My staff -- or my future staff has watched way more than I have. But that's just kind of my way of not allowing something in my brain or heart that may or may not be true. I don't want to base it on something that happened when I wasn't here.
 
 
Q. Buzz, what can you tell us about where you are in filling out your staff? And with that, how important is it to find guys that have ties to this state but also the ability to go get players around the country and even Canada?
 
COACH WILLIAMS: My trajectory in my career is atypical in every sense of the word. There's no way that you could have ever predicted that I would have had the opportunities that I've had, including this one.
 
I was hoping to be maybe a really good JV coach, maybe someday be a varsity coach, have a chance to be an assistant junior college coach or assistant Division III coach. I have never been caught up in what the business card said. I haven't given out a business card since I've been a head coach. I give out quote cards instead of business cards.
 
What I've learned while being a head coach is, the guys that have been the most helpful in building a program are the ones that have an atypical career, the ones that maybe are a little smarter than they act, maybe that have an invisible chip on their shoulder to prove that they're good enough, that have a unique approach to how to teach and that have a loyalty that you don't have to say, you can see.
 
And what's happened over the course of my career since I left here is my staff has grown from within. It's been guys that were the managers. It's been guys that were the GAs. It's been kids that were players. And like I just asked Logan a while ago when I saw him, he's married to -- Katie? Yeah, and I was like, yeah, I know.  I remember you, too. And they're like, we have a two-year-old and a one-year-old. And I was like, Logan, how old are you? He's like, I'm 35. I'm like, wow!
 
But my staff is comprised of a lot of Logans that are now 35. And that's crazy to me, right, because when I worked for Coach, I was 31 and I was like, wow! In the Big 12, Texas A&M, look at this!
 
So I have some ideas. We've made some progress in the last 36 hours in regards to that. It is not full. It won't be full for a long time. I'm very slow, Gabe, on any personnel-related decisions. I'm slow in who we sign. I'm slow in who we hire. Because I think the only way you can transform anything is by the character of the people. And so I think good players never get knocked off their line. A good football player can hold his line. A good basketball player can hold his line.
 
I feel the same way as a coach. Good coaches can hold their line. But it's not a physical hold their line, it's a hold their line relative to their decision-making, not letting Texas Ags decide, not letting season ticket holders decide. And it's not being a jerk. It's being convicted by what you believe your culture is about and then hiring and recruiting to that culture.
 
If you look at, Gabe, the things that A.C. was mentioning -- and who is the guy that was introducing -- Will? -- out there?

 
ALAN CANNON: Out there?  That's your new radio play-by-play, Andrew Monaco.
 
COACH WILLIAMS: Is that the guy that interviewed me earlier today?
 
ALAN CANNON: No, sir. That was Will Johnson that interviewed you.
 
COACH WILLIAMS: And what is Will?
 
ALAN CANNON: Will works with 12th Man Productions.
 
COACH WILLIAMS: So Andrew and Will, then, those guys that have been developed from within are always the best ones. And that's because they understand the culture. That's because the message that they speak, it's the only language that they know.
 
And so I think we'll hit the ground running. I think we have probably some momentum that's already started that we want to capitalize on. Recruiting the state of Texas, being that I'm from here, is really important to me. The high school kids, the junior college kids, all of the summer programs, all the summer teams, all of that stuff is really important, but it's never more important than the best fit for our culture, regardless of where they're from.
 
Q. Have you talked to Coach [Billy] Gillispie since you were named the head coach at Texas A&M? And for fans that saw the program during that time, will there be any similarities to what they see from then to what they will see under you?
 
COACH WILLIAMS: Thanks for asking.
 
Yeah, Coach was the last call that I made before I got on the plane to come here. So Coach means the world to me. And if you look back at my career, it's easy to say if Coach would not have hired me, I wouldn't have had the chances that I've had, so my loyalty will always be to Coach.
 
And we flew out of a small FBO in Virginia. It was maybe 40 minutes from where we live. And I was trying to call as many parents of our current players at Virginia Tech. I was trying to call the signees of Virginia Tech, their parents, coaches. I have thousands of texts that I haven't been able to have a chance to respond to, because you want to treat every family the right way.
 
But Coach was the last one. And I said, hey, Coach, I just wanted to say thanks and I'm flying home. Coach is a way better Coach than I am, was back then, is now, got beat in the JUCO national championship game last week. So I think there's maybe some similarities that we want to play hard. I think there's some similarities in that we want to care about one another, and you can sense that through the TV, watching them play, watching us play.
 
But as a coach, I don't know that I'm even in the same realm as he is, but still trying real hard.
 
Q. As you have developed as a head coach coming into Texas A&M, once again, what do you think that will be the biggest things that these athletes have to -- the change for them when you start implementing your program? What's going to stand out to them the most? And what's a little bit different in Buzz Williams?
 
COACH WILLIAMS: Yeah, thanks for asking.
 
I think change is hard. Yesterday was an incredibly difficult day while also being an incredibly exciting day. To say goodbye to the staff, to say goodbye to the Virginia Tech administration, to say goodbye to those kids and their families and then, literally, eight hours later say hello to all here within our program, it's hard for me, honestly, to say what will be the biggest change, because I don't want to come across arrogant or egotistical and I have great respect for Coach Kennedy and his staff.
 
Obviously, I know in a very intimate way some of his staff because they were with us at certain periods of time prior to coming here. But I do think it will be a distinct change, and I think it will be -- you know, when you -- you can read a lot of books at Barnes & Noble, and they say the best way to change something from good to great is incrementally. And I understand that logically, and maybe it should happen in a linear fashion. But I think the only way you can change things that will have sustainability is whatever it is and just literally turn it upside down. And I think that's probably what those kids, our kids, will struggle with the most, is the change of what our culture is going to be about. And that doesn't mean that our culture is better than what they've had. I'm not comparing it in that way.
 
But I do think that there will be a process and the change in and of itself will be difficult.
 
Q. Buzz, you're coming from one of what many people consider to be the most premier basketball conference in the country. Where does the SEC stack up? And how do you see it -- how have you seen it move forward?
 
COACH WILLIAMS: You know, it's a typical coach, right? Every coach says they coach in the best league, and so guys like you are like, So which one is the best? The five years that we were a part of the ACC, the margin was so thin and we had such a long way to go.  I mean, they had finished in last place in consecutive years prior to our arrival, and we finished in last place in year number one.
 
From the outside looking in, Scott [Woodward] may have better wisdom on this than I do, but I think maybe some of the mandates that Greg Sankey has had, that Mike Tranghese has had, that Dan has had from SEC administratively, some of the changes that they have had made in scheduling.
 
I also think some of the decisions that the administrations at each of the institutions have made, the league has changed a lot over the last three to five years. You look at the coaches in this league, you look at the talent in this league. I mean, there's still a team playing from this league, and you look at where that program was in 2014 when Coach [Bruce] Pearl was hired.
 
I think it's the commitment from the SEC to basketball. Obviously, it's been the best league in football for maybe my whole life. And I think that they've made decisions from a commitment standpoint that it's heading that direction for sure from a basketball lens.
 
Q. Buzz, Texas A&M is a special place.
 
COACH WILLIAMS: Absolutely.
 
Q. And I just had someone walk up to me after just your brief conversation out there, and they looked at me and they said, "He gets it."
 
COACH WILLIAMS: Yeah, thanks.
 
Q. So what do you get about Texas A&M?
 
COACH WILLIAMS: Maybe this comes across the wrong way, but as you were talking, the one thing that I would say is, I'm one of them. I wasn't smart enough to be admitted into Texas A&M. But I think Aggies, Aggieland, the traditions, I think all of that is super, super cool, and I think that's part of the fabric of what this institution is and has always been about. I think there's an instant connection.
 
Like, yesterday, obviously, was the first time I met Justin. And as soon as I shook his hand, I saw his ring. And then as we're flying from Virginia -- this is the first time I had met Stephanie -- and she's explaining to me the hand posture for (indicating) and that it has something to do with --
 
ALAN CANNON: Your classification.
 
COACH WILLIAMS: I was like, oh, I didn't know. What am I supposed to do tomorrow since I didn't go to school here?  (Laughter.)
 
So I think that I understand how important work is to them. I think I understand how important telling the truth is.  I think I understand how being humble is a part of who you should be and what you should represent. So I don't mean any of that in an arrogant way. It just so happens that I happen to be the head coach. But I could easily be somebody in the stands. And so maybe that's -- maybe they see themselves in me and vice versa. 
 
That's how I would answer that. Thanks for asking.
 
Q. Out there, Andrew [Monaco] said that you believe that this is a program that can win a national championship.
 
COACH WILLIAMS: That's easy for Andrew to say.
 
Q. Why you do think --
 
COACH WILLIAMS: I didn't hear that. He said that before I was out there.
 
Q. Coach, why do you think this is a program that can eventually win a national championship?
 
COACH WILLIAMS: Well, honestly, I think all of the foundation is in place. The facilities -- I haven't been to every place in the country, but I would say that these facilities are as good as anywhere in the country. And I know just from the relationship that I have built with Scott that he's incredibly competitive and he realizes the things that are important relative to the experience of the athletes and for the staff that represents those student-athletes.
 
I think that this league speaks for itself not just from the basketball category that we were speaking of earlier, but all of athletics.
 
I think this state is heavily populated with really, really good players that have been coached at a very high level at a young age. So I think all of the ingredients maybe to a recipe to advance in the NCAA tournament and have a chance to play the first weekend in April, I think that's there. I think we have a million miles to go, and we need to get started as soon as all of these questions are over. And we've made some progress today before this. But I think all of that is in place.
 
And I think just if you want to play, then let's keep score. And if we're going to keep score, let's play against the best. And if we're going to play against the best, can we figure out an approach and a plan to be prepared to beat the best.
 
ALAN CANNON: Thank you for your time.
 

---

Men's Basketball Student-Athlete Welcome Event Quotes

 
Rising Junior Guard TJ Starks
 
On meeting Head Coach Buzz Williams last night…
"It was intense. He has a lot of energy. He's coming in and trying to make a change. He showed his love. It was good for us to meet him last night and get that experience under our belt. He told us he builds his foundation on love, loyalty and trust. Those are three of the things he talked about last night. If we have those three things, we'll have a very successful year next year. He was trying to get to know us more than anything. We discussed what's important to us and what's important to him. First, we need to build a good relationship with him very quickly."
 
On proving himself to Buzz…
It's all about proving it to Buzz. If we can't prove that we are ready to play at this level, then he's definitely going to make an adjustment and do what he has to do. If we're not ready to play then we need to find another school because Buzz wants players who are ready to play."
 
On what he can learn from Buzz…
"Buzz has a lot of good history in basketball. Whatever he has to say, I'm going to listen to. I know he can help me. He's dealt with plenty of good point guards in the past so it'll be very selfish of me not to take in everything he's saying throughout the season."
 
On Buzz's energy…
"I definitely like that. In high school I had a coach who had a lot of energy, just like Buzz, maybe even more. I definitely do accept the challenge. He's a high motor guy. I'm here and I'm ready to put the work in so whatever Buzz has planned, that's what I'm going to do. "
 
 
Rising Junior Guard/Forward Savion Flagg
 
On first impression of Head Coach Buzz Williams…
"Love, work and trust is what he laid down yesterday in his first meeting. He's really big on those three things. He's also really big on family. It seems like he's a really good guy. He's coming off of a really good Sweet 16 run. He set a tone. He started off with saying we had a workout this morning at 6 a.m. He wanted to know a lot about us and we wanted to know a lot about him. We're just ready to see what he has in store for us."
 
On how imperative it is for everyone to buy in…
"Everybody needs to be open to change. Change can be challenging at times. I don't think it's hard, I think it's just a challenge. I think everyone needs to have an open mind going into it."