Prior to the beginning of the college hoops season, the odds of the TAMU-CC Islanders having beaten the likes of Florida State, Old Dominion, and TCU in the first five games of the season, were about the same as those of Dick Cheney appearing on Queer Eye For The Straight Guy. Yet, somehow thatís exactly what happened. And I donít mean VP Heart Attack being made over by Carson and the gang.
Considering that the TAMU-CC hoops program didnít exist seven years ago, the Islanders 4-1 start to this season while playing the 4th toughest schedule in the nation has to rate as this seasonís biggest and most pleasant surprise.
Islanders head coach Ronnie Arrow was gracious enough to spend some time chatting with me about his squadís success this season, the challenges of being a D-I indy, and the future direction of the program.
Notes From A Basketball Junkie: Your squad, a relatively unknown D-I independent prior to this season, is making some noise on the national scene. How exciting is that?
Coach Arrow: Itís been great. Seven years ago when we first started this program, we didnít have any players or facilities. We didnít even have uniforms so weíre real pleased with our success.
NFABJ: What are some of the challenges that you faced in building the program due to it not being in a conference?
Coach Arrow: Being in a conference definitely helps but we were able to do some things like schedule games against big name opponents and sell kids on the opportunity of building a program. Also, weíre kind of in a unique situation because weíre on an island and itís a really beautiful place to go to school. Weíre actually one of only two D-I schools that are actually on an island.
NFABJ: ESPN ought to have you guys play Hawaii in a Bracket Buster game to determine which team is the NCAAís island champs.
Coach Arrow: We’d love to play on national TV.
NFABJ: The core of your team and the key to your success has been the play of your seniors. Especially the Bailey boys —starting point guard Travis and starting wing Thomas — and Corey Lampkin. How were you able to convince them to take a chance on a new program?
Coach Arrow: We knew that recruiting the right kind of player was the only way to build the program. The Bailey boys were both non-qualifiers and are now in grad school. Theyíre from San Antonio and wanted to stay close to home. Corey Lampkin was a partial-qualifier and Corey Stokes, another senior thatís been playing really well, was a JUCO transfer.
Our success is the culmination of seven years of hard work on our (coaching and administrators) part and of having players that hung together when things were tough because they knew that we had the chance to be a special team and go onto the NCAA or NIT.
NFABJ: How rewarding has it been to you as a coach to see kids like the Baileys go from not qualifying academically to being in grad school?
Coach Arrow: I take a lot of pride in what our kids have accomplished in the classroom. Weíve had 10-of-15 players (that stayed on for four years) graduate since Iíve been here and we just brought in a specialized academic advisor to work with the players. Previously, an assistant coach had been doing that so we want to keep improving on and off the court.
NFABJ: Letís talk about your schedule this season because it seems pretty ambitious. According to the Sagarin rankings, it’s the fourth toughest schedule in the country. Did you want to play teams like Alabama, Florida State, and Oklahoma State because you knew that you had this great group of seniors that could compete at that level?
Coach Arrow: Itís definitely a heckuva schedule but weíve played and beat teams like Texas Tech and TAMU-CS the past few seasons so we knew that we could play with teams like that (’Bama, FSU, Okla State, etc.). We also have games against Northwestern, Drake, and either Northern Illinois or St. Bonaventure, which are all good teams. If we continue play with the same intensity and show the same leadership and experience then we can win some of these games.
NFABJ: What about playing in a place like Tuscaloosa or having a Final Four squad like Oklahoma State visit Corpus Christi? How do you knock off teams like that?
Coach Arrow: Those are really good teams. ëBama coach Mark Gottfriedís dad Joe was the Athletic Director at South Alabama when I coached there so I know that he has real good character and runs a good program.
NFABJ: Thatís right, you coached the South Alabama team that beat the Crimson Tide in the Big Dance behind the play of that great backcourt — Jeff ìPeanut Butterî Hodge and Junie ìJellyî Lewis.
Coach Arrow: Those two were special players and I have the same type of kids now. To beat teams like ëBama and Oklahoma State, we need to play hard and keep the game close. Weíre not good enough to stand around and win games, which is what happened in the Kent State game (a 78-56 loss).
NFABJ: What are the long-range plans for the program? Do you want to be in a conference?
Coach Arrow: We want to keep building the basketball program. Weíd like to be legitimate contenders for the NCAA or NIT on yearly basis. Getting into a mid-major conference is tough because they donít want schools without D-I football programs. That could change with the Conference USA teams leaving to join the Big East and the MAC teams joining Conference USA. Our program would probably a nice fit in that conference. Itíd be nice if it happens but we do know that not having football makes it harder.
NFABJ: I know that you have a big game against Baylor tomorrow (this interview took place on Wednesday) so Iíll let you get back to it. I wish you continued success this season and I hope that the NCAA takes a long look at your team if you keep playing this well.
Coach Arrow: I hope so too. We think that weíve proven that we can win games no matter where theyíre played so weíre just going to stay focused, keep playing hard, and try to will all the close ones.
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