Stephen F. Austin head coach Danny Kaspar isn't really a
known commodity on the national coaching scene. But he should
be. After taking over a floundering SFA program six years
ago, he has built the Lumberjacks into a consistent winner and
is on the verge of making the Big Dance for the first time.
Shawn Siegel (CHN): What
should we expect to be the strengths and weaknesses of next
year’s team?
Danny
Kaspar (DK):The strenghts of
our team include seven returning lettermen, including 3 starters and two
other part time starters. We return our top two scorers and rebounders off a
17-12 team, Our #5,6, and 7 scorers are also coming back.Experience and
offensive firepower is a plus for us. We aiso return some players with
leadership skills. I don't think we can fully replace Marcus Clark, our
all-conference point guard, but we do return his back-up Gerald Fonzie and
we signed two other point guards to ensure we have the position covered.
Point guard play is an unknown as we begin the year.
CHN: Discuss the
incoming newcomers. Who do you think will make the biggest
impact?
DK: We signed 4 J.C.
transfers. All will be asked to help. Corwin Ragland is a 6'1"
combo guard from Yavapai Jr. College. He will be asked to help
us at either guard position with emphasis at the point. Shelby
Lewis is a sophomore transfer from Jacksonville JC. He is a pure
point guard who will battle for the starting position. Trevor
Guy is a 6'6" power forward who averaged 17 points a game at
Grayson County JC. Kyle Jacobs is an athletic forward who can
rebound and defend. He can play either forward spot. All 4 of
these recruits are expected to provide quality playing time.
CHN: Talk about
a player or two that stand out as being an unsung leader and
contributor?
DK:
As far as an unsung leader or
player is concerned, Keith Hardaway provided some great
leadership and solid play for us at the off-guard spot! Matt
Kingsley, our 6'8" back-up center last year had some good games
but was inconsistent overall. However, he was only a red-shirt
freshman! Scott weaver, a 6'8" power forward started the first 5
games of the season but broke a bone in his foot and missed 5
weeks and came off the bench upon returning. Chaz Dykes started
the first 5 games of the year before losing the shooting guard
spot to Hardaway. He played well the last 7-8 games of the year
averaging about 18 minutes of action. I think any one of these
four players mentioned could jump up and surprise all of us!
CHN: How will you deal with the graduation of the two
seniors?
DK:
We lost a 4 year starter,
Marcus Clark, and a 2 year starter, Anthony Paez to graduation.
Marcus was a two time all-conference performer for us and holds
the all-time assists record at SFA. Anthony was our 2nd leading
rebounder and our 4th leading scorer. Marcus cannot be replaced
100%. Anthony was not as consistent as Marcus or Josh Alexander,
but he played well most of the time. We will miss them both.
CHN: How does
this year's schedule compare to recent seasons in terms of its
difficulty?
DK:Our 2006-07 schedule is
the most difficult of my time here at SFA. We play TCU,
Missouri, and Arkansas on the road early. We play
Louisiana-Lafayette, North Texas, and Northern Illinois at home.
We also play Southern and U.T. Pan American on the road. This is
one of my more experienced and talented teams, but we will face
a tougher non-conference schedule.
CHN: Is your starting lineup
settled right now? Expect a lot of competition for the 5 spots?
DK: My starting line-up
is by no means settled. Josh Alexander will probably start if he
maintains his current attitude. There will be tough battles for
the other 4 positions!
CHN:
Realistically, what are your goals for this season?
DK: Our realistic goal is to win
18-20 games, win the West Division of the Southland Conference,
and win the Southland Conference Post-Season tournament. If we
are to do this, we must stay injury-free, Antuane miller must
work hard and maintain a good attitude, and our recruits must
help immediately, particularly at the point guard position.
