Dave Franklin Press Conference 

The following is a written transcript from the welcoming press conference for Carson-Newman Volleyball's new head coach Dave Franklin.

Director of Athletics Allen Morgan opening remarks

Morgan: What an exciting day it is to be here. This has been pretty quick for most of you, particularly our student athletes. Ladies, I want to thank you for being here today to show support for our new volleyball coach Dave Franklin. When I think of Carson-Newman athletics, I think of excellence and that's been evident for many, many years here. I don't think that anyone would argue that our program and our athletic department takes a back seat to anyone. Is it a challenge for us to keep it there? No at all. Not as long as we have you ladies and coaches like I am getting ready to introduce in just a moment. This happened pretty quickly. Congratulations to coach Ahiers. We wish him nothing but the best at Middle Tennessee. As a matter of fact, I'd like to open with him next year and let you ladies have an opportunity to play him, but I doubt he would want to do that. When we are looking for new coaches, there are several things we look for. Number one is that we look for men and women of character who can come to this university and continue the great legacy of Carson-Newman, and that is producing outstanding young men and women who too can leave Carson-Newman with a great degree in a Christian educational program. They too can come back and be of service to others. That's number one—and I think we have found that. Number two, we are looking for people of excellence who know what it means to be excellent in everything we do. Our personal lives, our athletic lives and our classroom lives. We are looking for someone of excellence. We are looking for someone that is passionate about their job or their position. I think you will hear that. We are looking for people who are committed when the times are tough and when the times are good. I think you will see that. A lot of folks would like to be sitting in the position of Dave Franklin today. It's an outstanding job to be able to mentor young women. A number of applicants, but it came down to coach Dave Franklin. I'm not going to steal all of his thunder, but I want you to join me as we welcome the man that's going to take us to the national championship, our newest head coach, Dave Franklin.

Carson-Newman Volleyball coach Dave Franklin opening remarks

Franklin: This is my first head coaching job, so there are some thank yous that I would like to throw out there. First off, I'm going to start with the good Lord above. He has blessed us all with talents, mine seems to be in education and coaching and it has led to me right here to Carson-Newman University. As Mr. Morgan has said, I believe we are the premier Christian university in the south and if that's true, we are the premier Christian university in the nation. That's a great idea of developing young ladies and that's where we are going to start. That's where everyone should start. The second person I would like to thank would be my wife who is standing there in the back. I started as a high school Biology teacher and about four or five years into that, I realized my passion lied in coaching. We decided together that we were going to pursue college coaching. She was there for me and understood that relocation might be a part of it and that it was going to take a lot of time and effort to get there. I have to thank her because without her, I wouldn't be sitting here today. I would not have had the opportunities to go and learn under the coaches that I did and to get the experiences. I love you and thank you very much. My parents aren't here but I have to thank them. They are very supportive. I got a college degree and decided to be a coach and they were a little nervous. They weren't sure how that was going to work out, so I have to thank them. I definitely want to thank Mr. Morgan. This is a place that I wanted to be. First of all, because of these young ladies that are sitting over here. The accomplishments that they obtained under coach Ahiers—and I have to give him his due. He has started something here and I get to come in here and keep it going. It's all because of your [players] hard work. Even coach Ahiers, he knows that. You are the ones that make this ship go. We simply guide it, but you put in the work. You guys have obviously showed the work ethic and dedication it takes to win a national championship. That is what the goal here and it will be until we win it. When we win it, it will still be the goal next year. It will be something we focus on and we understand each day that is what we are working for. Those goals are not going to change. With that, I will leave it open and answer some questions.

Questions and answers with coach Dave Franklin

Q1: What is your message to the team when you first got here?

Franklin: My first message was to reassure them that their goals of winning a national championship will not change. The second thing I reassured them of was, thankfully, coach Ahiers and I come from a very similar philosophy of volleyball. To let them feel at ease and for them to understand that I wasn't going to change their philosophy. They weren't going to have to learn a whole new style of volleyball—that the work that was put in before to get where they are now would stay intact. We are going to simply push it to the next level. I let them get to know me by asking some questions and to start building that report with one another.      

Q2: You have two senior heading into next year who will now have three coaches in four years. You have one transfer who will have her third coach in four years. What do you say to them as they become your leaders next year?

Franklin: I asked them to be the leader for the underclassman with a coaching change, the commitment it is going to take to just get where we want to go and to understand that it is about them and that their team is still intact. It's a new coach but the relationships that they have developed with one another and together, they are going to do this together. The coach up here is simply the leader who is going to push them to become better athletes, better people, but it is them. Their relationships and their memories together that is what is going to be what lasts a lifetime for them.

Q3: What about this job was most attractive to you?

Franklin: The first thing is, I love the idea of it being a Christina school. That is the first thing and is a huge advantage in recruiting. That being the goal from the beginning and how that is going to be how we develop them is huge. The second thing is, when I looked at it, all of the resources are amazing. When I came here, all of the people are amazing. Mr. Morgan was the first person I talked to on the phone. I think it was meant to be a ten minute phone conversation and it turned into over an hour. I knew right then and there that it was the people that made this place run and that makes a big difference in recruiting. When you combine all that, this is definitely the place you want to be. As a coach, you want to win at the highest level. That is also the expectation. That is the challenge that we are going to meet and hopefully exceed.      

Q4: When there is a coaching change, a lot of the times there are questions about whether players are going to stay or go and things like that. When you see the turn out here, how does that make you feel?

Franklin: It makes me feel amazing but I think it speaks more volume about the university. They are enjoying their time here and are learning here, and it speaks volume how close they have grown as a team here that they want to stay together. It makes me feel amazing and it also makes me feel secure that I am walking into a university to where everyone wants to be. That just makes my job that much easier.

Q5: With regards to recruiting and situations like that, what kind of strategies are you putting forth towards local kids and stuff like that?

Franklin: Right now, the first priority is for the kids that are signed and for the kids who are also committed. I want to let them know that the family is still intact. The family has probably preached to them about this university as far as the education and develop standpoint. I think that this is a program to where we are going to look for the best players. We are going to start here at home. We are going to look right here around us, but this is a program that will also show the ability to recruit on a national level and pull athletes from all areas of the country. I think it is going to be about identifying those great kids, not just athletically, but great kids who have their other priorities straight that can play volleyball at this level and lead us to the next level to win a national championship.

Q6: You are going to take over the sand program too. Do you have a lot of experience with that?

Franklin: I do not have a lot of experience as being the head coach of a sand program. I played sand volleyball. I played college volleyball as well. I have an idea and am learning a little bit more of the structure of the matches. I think it's an awesome opportunity, especially at a smaller university as beach becomes more popular for us not to just grow a program, but to also help bring more exposure to the school. I'm looking forward to the challenge of it and growing it and watching what it becomes.

Q7: There is probably a lit pressure on you taking over for Dan [Ahiers]. They have had two-straight trips to the NCAA tournament. Talk a little bit about that.

Franklin: I was an athlete and I love the challenge of it. I am excited that Dan has built this type of tradition and I am the lucky participant that gets to come in and see his hard work and their hard work and to just push it to another level. I believe that I have the abilities to do that. I don't look at it as pressure, I just look at it as the next challenge in a coaching career. It's going to be fun chasing it and when we get there with that vision that we have, it's going to be fun to live it.

-CN-