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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Q&A With Head Coach Mike Bianco
2/3/2002 | Baseball
Feb. 3, 2002
Q. The expectations for this season are high. You're ranked in the top 20 in all three major polls and are picked to contend for the SEC West championship. Does it change the team's approach?
A. I don't think it changes our approach. Sure, the expectations are much higher when you're ranked in the top 20 in all three polls, but it's quite a honor. Yes, it puts more pressure on you and the expectations are higher, but you have to go about your business the same way and play the game we're capable of playing it. Last year, we didn't have the talent that this club has, but we played very hard and played with a lot of enthusiasm. This year's team needs to find that also. It needs to learn during the first couple weeks of the season to play this game correctly. Last year, we won a lot of close games, especially early in the season, just because of our belief system and how we play the game, and this team needs to learn how to do that as well.
Q. You like having high expectations, but did you expect to start having this sort of national attention in just your second year at Ole Miss?
A. I would think so. It excites me that we are being looked at so highly. It was our goal to turn the program around quickly and raise the expectations. We talked about that a lot last year. All the pre-season polls, that has to do with what the team did last year, and of course, having the sixth-ranked recruiting class helps as well. It has nothing to do with how good you are on the field because we haven't played a game yet, and we understand that. Getting back to the question, yes. Not to sound egotistical, but we didn't have a four-year plan. We wanted to win immediately and continue to improve. We're far from being where we want to be as a program, but we're on our way.
Q. Talk about your newcomers and the recruiting class receiving such a high ranking.
A. We're very excited about this year's incoming class. (Assistant coaches) Dan McDonnell and Clint Carver did such a great job. To sign a class like this in our first full year here, really tells you what kind of recruiter Coach McDonnell is. It's very impressive. The class is really strong pitching-wise, and that was our goal to really improve our pitching staff. We felt last year that if we were to compete nationally and get to the College World Series, than we needed to pitch better. Although, we felt we needed to improve in all areas, there was no doubt that pitching needed a boost. The depth of this recruiting class is in pitching and I'm excited about it. We also have several outstanding position players in this class as well.
Q. It says a lot about the program and Coach McDonnell, to not only have the sixth-ranked recruiting class, but also to sign a first-round draft pick and have another player ranked as one of the nation's top 100 prospects.
A. Without a doubt. To sign a first-rounder anytime is big, but to have one in our first recruiting class, says a lot about how hard we've worked recruiting, and how people feel about our program. It's not just what we do here, but what the perception is about Ole Miss baseball in other people's eyes. Again, it's exciting for us, and not just getting (2001 first-round draft pick) Alan Horne, but Josh Grant, J.R. Pickens, Drew Rogers, Bryce Morrison and others that made this class so strong.
Q. Looking at pitching being the strength of this team, how big is it to have Pete Montrenes returning as your No. 1 starter?
A. I don't know if you can even measure that or put it in words. When you go and recruit in baseball, you have to realize that when a kid of Pete's stature has a year as a junior that he did, he's likely not to return. You recruit to replace him, and then when you sign a first-rounder like Alan Horne, you also recruit because the odds are that he won't show up since not many first rounders make it to college. To have Pete return and Alan enroll in school makes your pitching staff that much stronger.
Q. Talk about the rest of the pitching staff and how your rotation may shape up.
A. Again the staff is real strong, and as we prepare for the season-opener we still have a lot of questions to answer. Certainly, we feel Pete will be in the No. 1 starting role. After that is still up for grabs. J.R. Pickens looks like he will be our No. 2 starter. Alan Horne struggled a little bit with some discomfort in his back and may not have had the fall that he would have liked, but he still had a tremendous fall for a freshman and is one that we feel will be pitching in our SEC rotation as a starter. Others that had a great fall were Al Simontis, T.J. Beam, Nick Bradshaw, and Adam Yates, who was a Freshman All-American last spring. The staff has so much more depth and more options than we did last year. Glen Morris is also back and should be full recovered from the arm surgery he had a year-and-a-half ago, so we're looking pretty strong on the mound.
Q. Last year's starting catcher, Carl Lafferty did a lot of things well behind the plate. He was great defensively, had a good bat and did a good job handling the pitching staff. Those are some big shoes to fill. Talk about the catching situation.
A. Carl not only was, in my opinion, the best defensive catcher in the Southeastern Conference last year, but he was the best leader any first-year coaching staff could ask for. It's a huge goal to replace him on this team. We ranked near the top of the conference last year in the least amount of passed balls and wild pitches, meaning the catcher was doing a job back there. Fortunately, Charlie Waite got to play a lot last year towards the end of the year when Carl was hurt. He got to play in a lot of big games, the last weekend against Mississippi State, the SEC Tournament and NCAA Regional, so he's ready. Charlie is very, very talented and a player that is a possible pro draft choice this year. He'll probably do the bulk of the catching this year. Barry Gunther had a very good fall and will play as a freshman and back Charlie up. Others that did well and provide depth to that position, Rusty McDaniels, a transfer from Southern Miss, and Thomas Carter.
Q. How will the infield shape-up?
A. When you look at the infield, the thing that jumps out at you is that we return our shortstop and second baseman. Chad Sterbens had a terrific year last year, especially offensively and played solid defensively. Matt Tolbert, at second, had an unbelievable year as a freshman. To return those two up the middle may make the best double play combination in the conference. Josh Christian, who returns at first base, seemed to continue to improve as the season went on. I thought he was having a good season and then with a couple weeks left, just turned it into a tremendous season, especially offensively. To have those three back in your infield makes you feel that much better as a coach. At third base, we lose, as we said many times last year, probably the best defensive third baseman that I've ever coached in Lance Jones. He's going to be tough to replace, but with moving Clint Farrar in from left field, and moving Banks Robinson back-and-forth from third and first base, and Jonathan Swearingen, a junior college transfer that will play both third and short, we'll be solid at third.
Q: The outfield starts with Burney Hutchinson. Talk about Burney a little bit.
A. Burney is another guy that had a great year for us last season. The expectations are very high for him, as well as for the team this season. Burney is the type of player, we feel, that has the talent to be a candidate for SEC Player of the Year. He can do it all. Very good defensively, runs well, hits and hits for power. He can hit .400, hit 15-to-20 home runs, and steal 30-plus bases. He's just a great, great, college baseball player. We're not sure where he'll play in the outfield. He played some center field during the fall, and of course, last year his normal position was in right, but he can play any three of the positions. To start the year, we'll probably play him a little in center and a little in right.
Q: The rest of the outfield?
A: Along with Burney, you have Matt Mossberg returning from last year. Matt by far was our best defensive outfielder, terrific in center field, and adds a lot to our team speed. We're anxious to get him in there and get some more starts out of him. Last year, it was disappointing we didn't get him in more games. Also, in the outfield, in left field we have junior college transfer Drew Rogers, who missed most of the fall with a torn hamstring, but you could see offensively just by watching his swing, he's going to add a lot to our line-up. In right field, who will also DH, we have Bryce Morrison. He's a big professional prospect. A 6-feet-5, left-handed hitter, who has tremendous power, and is another addition to our offense that will help. Also returning that will play some outfield and DH, will be Glen Morris.
Q: Talk about your feelings on how the SEC West looks this season, and the whole conference in general.
A: I think in general, especially the West, the conference is much improved from last year. Last year, I felt it was a down year. This year, I think it is much stronger, especially our side. I thought the West was a little down last year, although LSU had a great year I don't think it was typical LSU team. Alabama, after some injuries and some transfers, really struggled, although they were very close. They were probably a player or two short from being a great team. They had a great recruiting year, so I expect them to have a terrific year. Mississippi State returns a lot of that great pitching staff they had last year. Auburn returns a good crew, and Arkansas as well. I believe the West is going to be as strong as it ever has been.
Q: What was the biggest difference in fall drills this year, compared to your first year here.
A: In your first year, you're just trying to implement your system. Everything is so new to everybody, and although you have returners from the school, you don't have any returners of the system. There was a lot of teaching going on. This past fall, though, there was still a lot of teaching going on, it's more of a review for half your players. They've been through it before. The great thing is, they saw it through different eyes. This year, they saw it through a team that has higher expectations, a team that has higher goals, a team that sees themselves in Omaha. Last year, although, we didn't want this to happen, I think we saw ourselves as a team trying to turn the program around. We don't look it as a start this year, but more as a continuation.
Q: Last year, Carl Lafferty and Lance Jones provided so much leadership, where do you look for that to come from this year?
A: Burney Hutchinson was selected by his teammates as the captain, and it is well-deserved. He's a great leader, and one that people not only respect as a player, but as a person. He's a great, great role model on and off the field. He'll add a lot of leadership. We also have a lot of older players on this team. I think on the pitching staff, a lot of them will turn to Pete Montrenes. We also have Josh Christian, and Charlie Waite behind the plate, so on this team, I don't think leadership is going to be a problem.
Q: Comment on your coaching staff a little bit.
A: Dan McDonnell returns working with our infielders and base runners, and as I mentioned earlier, I don't think there is a better recruiter in the country. We're excited he's back for a second year. Clint Carver has been with me for three years, and will work with our hitters. He does a great job with the hitters and outfielders, and is a great third base coach for us. The new addition is Kyle Bunn, who actually played for Coach McDonnell at The Citadel and last year coached at Jefferson Davis Community College. He's a great young coach. He was a pitcher in college and will work with our pitchers, and he did a great job this past fall.
