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University of Houston Athletics
Q&A With Head Volleyball Coach Molly Alvey
9/14/2010 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Sept. 14, 2010
HOUSTON -- Molly Alvey is three weeks into her first season as head coach of the University of Houston volleyball program and has guided the Cougars to a 3-6 overall record against tough non-conference competition. Alvey recently sat down with a member of the Athletics Communications staff to talk about her time at Houston.
Now that you have been here for nine months, what has your time at Houston been like so far?
"My time at Houston has been exciting, overwhelming, fun, challenging, refreshing, draining, energizing, and one hundred-percent worth it! The excitement comes from the enthusiasm within the athletic department as a whole and the direction I feel our leadership is taking the entire athletics program; however, not many things in life are much more overwhelming than uprooting your entire life, moving to completely foreign city, finding a new home, developing new relationships and friendships, and reorganizing a volleyball program all at the same time. All that being said, there are also not many things in life that are as fun as having the opportunity to define your career by building a program exactly as you envision it and watching grow to its potential. The challenging piece to this is realizing that it is a process and that processes take time. Instant gratification does not exist and patience is essential. Being in the city of Houston has been refreshing; there are so many things to be involved with and so many incredibly nice people that want to be involved with what it is that I am trying to accomplish. Making this type of move, however, requires long hours in the office seven days a week and leaves little time for sleep. There have been times where I have felt completely drained and have lost sight of what it means to have a healthy work/life balance. I find for myself, not having a grasp on this balance proves to be counter productive at times but also necessary for where I am in the process. To see the process develop, though slowly, is so energizing. When little pieces come together it is an instant rush and reassurance that what I believe needs to be done is indeed correct."
What was the biggest challenged you faced coming into the program?
"From a logistical standpoint, the biggest challenge was training a team without a setter. It would be exactly like running a spring season without a quarterback. As a team, we had to find ways to get better without thinking about the disadvantage presented to us. Otherwise, one of the most difficult realities in taking over a program is realizing all the initial stages require patience - not one of my strengths. As I have personally grown in my career, I feel that patience is one quality in myself that I have had to work to develop. Being a perfectionist in all that I do is not always the best way to lead and leadership is the single most important duty I have in front of me at this time."
What has been the biggest surprise so far?
"The biggest surprise has been the response I have received from my team. I could not have stepped into a better group of athletes who have been willing to embrace change, accepted the difference in the new leadership, and adjusted to what we have asked for as a staff. Every player that has committed to stay on this team has done her part in what we have demanded - change of attitude, restructuring of culture, getting to know each player on a much more personal level, higher priority on all academic requirements, embracing the importance of weight room and training room demands, and getting to know all program staff members."
What is one of the most important things that you want to accomplish with your team this season?
"As we discuss on a daily basis, we first want to get to know each other much better. We have already done a tremendous job at this. If we are to achieve the level of play we want, it requires consistent hard work in all areas that affect us. For example, not just volleyball, but strength and conditioning, academics, rehab, injury maintenance and community service. It is too difficult to push through all of these demands and to give fully to each other without the help of your teammates. It also makes it more meaningful and worthwhile to know you are doing these things not just for yourself but every single person on your team. Second, we need to learn to compete at every single point of every single set. There is no time for breaks. Once we learn what this feels like, we will be a very good program."
What can people expect to see from you on the sidelines this season?
"People can expect to most likely see what they see from me on a daily basis; my personality will show through. I love great competition. I despise not competing well and that will be evident in my courtside demeanor. I get fired up and cheer, high five, and fist pump with the team. I constantly strategize so beware, the blank stare is just me conjuring up how we will get the next point or next set; I'm not checking out at any time."
You have put a young, energetic staff in place at UH. Tell us about your two assistants and what talents they bring to the court.
"Nicole Miller came with me from Ole Miss where she contributed as our graduate assistant for two years and she also played volleyball at South Carolina. She brings a knowledge of the level of play in which I want this program to attain in the short term. Nicole does a phenomenal job at relating to each player and consistently presents opposing viewpoints for me to consider in areas dealing with the players and program needs. Recruiting is her strength in that she gets the job done. She is a wonderful ambassador to our athletics department and program and represents us well in her travels across the country."
"Karlis Dunens is a Houston native and Klein High School alumni. Karlis brings an excitement for the game of volleyball. He is versed in DataVolley, which is a scouting software that is essential to teaching our student-athletes. We find that the more visual tools we put in front of our team, the more quickly they learn and pick up on our feedback. Karlis' role in breaking down our film and getting organized with our presentations to the players will prove to be a tremendous tool for us."
You have said many times that here is a lot of volleyball talent here in Houston. Why do you think that is and how does benefit the area?
"There are just a lot of athletes in the Houston area in general. Also, I think the club volleyball scene continues to grow in the city presenting opportunities for lots of kids to get involved with the sport. The benefit is that we have a stockpile of kids in our own backyard to recruit. There is nothing more exciting than to have local talent be a part of a great program. The community and fans love having local players as contributing members of their favorite teams."
What made you get into coaching?
"After completing my masters, I couldn't find a job in the business world so here I am. Southern Indiana called me for the job so it was either go Evansville, Ind., or stay in Philadelphia, Pa., losing money working for Temple at a graduate assistants pay. I do have my college volleyball coach to thank for my start at Temple, which is essentially why I am where I am today. She pushed and pushed for me to up and leave Kentucky for Philadelphia in order to take the GA position with Temple's volleyball program and continue my education. It was the best decision I have made in my life; I got my MBA and started my career with another one of the best mentors I could have in my career. Not to mention, it was pretty fun living in Philadelphia after I got over the culture shock."
Who has been your biggest influence when it comes to volleyball?
"As mentioned before, my college volleyball coach, Stephanie Dragan, is the reason I am in the coaching world. She got me my first job, which we all know that networking is the way of the world. Without her connection, I'm not sure what I would be doing with an economics degree. Not economics, I guarantee that. My boss at Temple, Bob Bertucci, is the second person in my career path. I cannot imagine my level of knowledge of the game without him. I learned so much in my three years at Temple. He is a tremendous trainer, one of the best in the country, and a great strategizer of the game."
What is a typical day like for you during a season?
"A typical day is no such thing. I haven't seen typical in ten years. Practice is about the only constant in my day. When you rely on 18-22 year olds to define the success of your job, there's nothing typical that happens day-to-day."
How does that change in the off-season or does it?
"Off-season does change but doesn't get any more typical. Recruiting picks up tremendously and our time with the athletes is limited, unfortunately."
What do you like to do in the off-season?
"In the off-season, I like to take advantage of taking time to go home to Louisville, Ky., to see my family. The off-season is the time I have to most take advantage of working on that work/life balance. I try to travel to see loved ones that I don't have an opportunity to see while in season. Also, I like recruiting so the spring season is fun for me to hit the road."
What is one talent you have or something interesting about you that people might not know about you?
"I love to travel! I have been to some exciting places all over the world. One of my all-time favorite places to travel is Cuba. I went in 2000 for about two weeks and had the most fabulous time. It is such a beautiful country with beautiful people and lots of great music. I actually haven't been overseas in a couple of years; I'm getting the travel bug again."
