Colorado University Athletics
Liz Kritza Press Conference Quotes
Colorado Athletic Director Mike Bohn
General
“Good morning. We would like to go ahead and get started. It’s an exciting day and it’s fun to come into the room and have so many people so excited about Colorado Volleyball, our new coach and about the new investment we are making in volleyball. Before I have the pleasure of introducing Liz, I would like to talk a little bit about our search process. I would like to salute our committee that was chaired by Tom McGrath, Ceal Berry, Julie Manning, Dr. Clough, Yolanda Hinton, and Clayton Hamilton. That represents the senior staff in essence, and their leadership and their commitment to finding a great coach, which was something that they took very seriously and did a great job with.”
“I think that when you start talking about volleyball across the country and in the state, it’s important for people to understand, in high school in the state of Colorado, volleyball is the #2 sport for participation among young people?obviously young women and that is exciting. I think that people need to understand the University of Colorado Athletic Department recognizes that, and that’s why we are making a commitment to volleyball. I asked the committee to go out and find a coach and to aim high. To find a coach with a proven track record and find a coach that recognizes that we are excited about the investments we are making in volleyball. I feel like that is exactly it is?an investment. So we were looking for someone with proven experience; the committee talked to coaches and to volleyball minds all across the country at the highest level from all the BCS conferences to all the other conferences and the interest was extremely high in this position. They recognized the commitment we are making to CU Volleyball and you may say, ?well what is that?’ Part of it is the benefit that also helps our men’s and women’s basketball program, the new floor that is installed in the Coors event center on top of ground up Nike tennis shoes that helps us provide a great, safe environment for our kids to play in, and our new court facility that we are actually on the street for bids right now that will feature the ability for volleyball and men’s and women’s basketball to all practice at the exact same time. We will also be building a volleyball operations center, in that building, that we are very excited about. So those are huge investments that we are making.”
“We are also investing one of the institution’s six multi-year contracts for our new coach and we are very excited about that, so I don’t think there is any question, and I know coach will talk about it, that we want people to know that the University of Colorado is committed to women’s volleyball and we are excited about our very, very bright future. As the search was underway and the committee was working on it, I think what really stood out for us in the end with coach is not only the fact she is a Colorado native, which I think is awesome, we are really excited about that and obviously that should help us with our presence in Colorado; obviously our commitment to volleyball that I’ve talked about, but also just her high energy, her passion, and the fact that she dealt with adversity at the highest level as an intercollegiate coach. That her first year after one match, the hurricane hits New Orleans and she rallies her young team and since has gone on to be the American Volleyball Coaches Association two-time Midwest Region Coach of the Year among other high accolades. At this time I am very proud to turn it over to the new coach of your University of Colorado Buffaloes Liz Kritza.”
Colorado Head Coach Liz Kritza
General
“You know [Mike Bohn] didn’t leave me a lot to talk about, but first and foremost, I have to thank the University of Colorado, the Board of Regents, Chancellor Petersen, the Athletic Director Mike Bohn and as he mentioned the search committee, but Ceal Berry and Tom McGrath for heading this up. I grew up playing volleyball in Colorado?I’m a Colorado kid. I grew up learning the game from some of the game’ s best, I spent a lot of time in the U.S. Olympic Training Center and it is an honor and professionally an absolute great move for me. It’s an honor to come back and lead this program to the heights I know the university is committed to and to the heights I know we will achieve. I think this is a wonderful opportunity and it obviously wasn’t too difficult to entice me to come back to this and now I am going to take that same road when I am going out recruiting to build this program. Mike mentioned the strength of the level of volleyball in this state, and I really am committed to making an immediate stance to making it a priority that all of the best volleyball players in the state of Colorado are coming to the flagship university of the state. It’s only appropriate, it’s only proper, and I think that with a lot of work with a strong commitment from the department and from my staff, it will happen. It is something that is very sustainable to this program and looking forward I have a feeling you will be seeing a lot of Colorado kids making you very proud wearing CU jerseys. That is definitely something that I’ve decided was one of the main reasons why I chose to come back here."
"Beyond that, the culture of the institution, of the athletic department and everybody that I have met so far, I have to tell you, you are one of the most welcoming groups ever. I’m from Colorado and I lived here 18 years, moved to New Orleans and spent 14 years there; that’s a hospitality city, they know about entertaining. They know about making people feel welcome, and you blow them out of the water. Every single person here that I have encountered in the University of Colorado family has been welcoming. They understand what we want to do here. There is this enthusiasm, this excitement that I really feel the commitment on so many levels. There are all the pieces that mike addressed earlier, but more importantly they believe the volleyball program here is important, and the most important group that believes that, I’ll let you know, is the current group of players. I’ve had the opportunity to meet this very special group of young women who are very focused, and very ready to work. We started off bright and early this morning and that’s what it’s going to take here. This current group of players that I am inheriting are a wonderful group of student-athletes, they are highly principled young women; I will continue to add into that and you need to know that the players I bring into my program anywhere I am, particularly here, I will take great pride in holding them to a really high standard conduct wise as far as their academics and being able to compete with anybody on the volleyball floor. That’s something that as a person and as a coach I believe in so strongly that it has been the basis of the program for success I found so far, so I am taking some of those things with me as we are moving ahead into the future."
"I made brief reference to my time growing up here in Colorado and seeing how volleyball was appreciated and how the game should be played. I remember the days as a young player here in the state, when the University of Colorado was at the top of their conference and they were playing deep into the tournament. That’s my idea, I know nothing else about Colorado Volleyball, so I’m keeping that, that’s my idea and that’s the picture I am going to have laid out for these young women and they will follow me. We will do this together; I have no doubt it will be a very, very positive journey, it will be a difficult one, but one that we are looking forward to. As we progress through this, the details of the program will unfold, but I can’t express enough today how important the commitment is on the University’s part, the department’s part, and our administration’s part, because it is a huge, huge step that the University and the department are taking. They made it very clear to me from the very beginning about how far they were willing to go to make sure the volleyball program and their volleyball athletes were successful. With that in mind we are on the same page already and we are very excited to get going."
On the Big 12
“I have spent the last four years of my coaching career trying to knock off the top of the Big 12, the top of the Big 10, the top of the Pac 10. I had that as a goal of mine when I was coaching at Tulane and we have been successful in some arenas. Volleyball played at the highest level in the Big 12 has the biggest difference that you are dealing with a higher caliber athlete. I think the Big 12 is fast becoming the most difficult league to compete in as far as college volleyball goes. They are making great strides in catching up to the Pac 10, which has generally been considered to be the toughest league. The Big 12 had two teams in the final four this year, that’s a sign of what is to come. I know the challenges are great but they are ones I embrace whole-heartedly and I know it’s going to be tough but we are going to do it.”
On Brother Ted’s Reaction
“Ted is my brother and he represents me, but more importantly he started his collegiate playing career here as a CU Buff and I came up here to Coors Event Center watching him play basketball here for a number of years. I don’t know who’s happier, me or Ted. He actually flew in today and joined me here. This is a very, very important day and special time for me, my family and as I go forward, I have no doubt that he will be in full support of Colorado volleyball and of me as he was the entire time I was at Tulane.”
On Plans for Volleyball Facility Renovations
“I think they are fantastic. I think that anytime you are changing a culture, changing a level of success or competition, you want to think that that’s the perfect time to add something in like the new facility. Change is difficult for everybody but it is the perfect time to use this as a spring board to take us to where we need to be. I am excited, it’s one of the major components when I talk about the commitment from Mike and the commitment from the University, that’s one of the key components because we have to have the quality ingredients to provide for these kids to be successful and then hopefully hold them to the standard to make sure they are using those properly. So it’s a huge positive on my list. “
On Type of Coaching
“First and foremost, winning volleyball. I like that. The game of volleyball is becoming more physical. I believe you have to have a certain level of physicality. You have to have good size, you need to have good athletes that are tall, that can move, that are mobile, and you have to train your system based on what your personnel is. You have to understand the nuances of the game and find ways to have advantages because it is very strategic. It’s continually evolving. You can make more adjustments in the game of volleyball than I think you can in others and you have to have the good mastery of knowing what type of team you have, what you’re good at, what you’re not so good at and really play to your strength and make sure you are choosing the right systems to run against particular opponents and be able make those adjustments even in match. “
On Location Post Katrina
“A few places actually. Mike made references to [Katrina] which professionally and personally has been one of the most challenging but most positive experiences of my life. It’s really shaped my philosophy and my idea about how to carry myself and go through my life and seek out my ambitions, but more so how to deal with young people. My first match ever as a head coach was followed by what ended up being the country’s worst natural disaster and something so unprecedented in college athletics; it’s really hard for me to put everything into one description and explain it but we had to leave New Orleans. I evacuated the team separately. It’s their safety first and foremost that was my concern and I evacuated personally with my staff to Florida and as things evolved, we ended up relocating to Houston and then we found a temporary home for six months at Texas A&M in College Station, Texas.”
“Through the generosity and kindness of another higher education institution, we competed last season. We competed in what will remain; I’m sure, the most adverse conditions for a person, a coach, an athlete. It’s been really interesting for me, because going forward with my career after that, nothing phases me. I have had a team that has had nowhere to live, I have had no idea how they are going to eat or whether they are going to be in school. We had no uniforms, we had none of our basic needs that you need in order to compete or train a team. Yet we found a reason and a way to incorporate what we did as people, volleyball players, volleyball coaches into being kind of our sense of normalcy and that’s what returned us and helped us carry us through. It was an amazing experience. I am forever grateful for my institution, for my players for moving forward. One of the most difficult things I had to do was tell that former team (that I had been through so much with) that I was moving on, but the best thing I learned from it was that they learned exactly what I wanted them to learn out of being an athlete. Every coach coaches for a certain reason and going through those experiences and seeing how my players stuck together, how they competed and honored their commitments to the University, and how we found such great success, that’s why I coach and that’s why I think athletics, particularly college athletics is one of the best arenas for promoting success especially for young people and that’s why I chose very specifically to come here because I see a lot of the same things in place here and I know that I can affect some positive change in this program and in these girls lives.”