Sean Cartell at SECDigitalNetwork.com talked to Kentucky volleyball head coach Craig Skinner today about his team and a bevy of other topics. Cartell asks about UK’s tough pre-conference schedule as well as the new additions to the SEC among other subjects. Here’s an excerpt from the Q & A:
SEC Digital Network: How do you compensate for the loss of last year’s senior class, which goes down in history as one of the best classes in Kentucky history?Craig Skinner: “That group won over 100 matches during their careers. It’s hard to fill that. For our seniors, that role is new, they’re looking at their last season and don’t want to leave anything on the court. My hope is that those juniors who are now seniors have seen what it takes to be leaders. They’ve been through ups and downs, big wins and tough losses. I hope the program is engrained enough in them that they understand how hard they have to work to be successful at the highest level.”SEC Digital Network: What are your thoughts on the addition of Missouri and Texas A&M to the SEC and how do you think that will impact SEC volleyball?Craig Skinner: “I’m really excited. They are two great programs that I got to know well when I was in the Big 12 at Nebraska. They work really hard at what they do and, ultimately, they are two very respected programs. This will just make all of us work harder to try to continue to be successful and take the conference another step further on the national scene.”
