Quotes
Dr. Shirley C. Raines Opening Statement
Welcome to everyone. Thank you for coming to the press conference today. Before I introduce our new head coach, I want to say a special thank you to the search committee. I’m going to introduce all of them, and then let you give them a round of applause at the end.
Our co-chairs were Brad Martin, former Chairman of the Board of Visitors; and Willie Gregory from Nike Corporation. Also, Mike Fredi, President of the Highland Hundred; Cato Johnson, a former President of the Alumni Association; Tom Watson, an Ambassador; Dr. Ed Stevens, the Faculty Athletic Representative; and Alan Graf, President of the Tiger Scholarship Fund. Gentleman, thank you. {applause}
The search committee and I were impressed with Justin Fuente. We were impressed with his exciting ideas, his energy and his enthusiasm. We also were impressed that he was the co-offensive coordinator and play-caller for TCU’s back-to-back BCS appearances, including winning the 2011 Rose Bowl. He is a native of Tulsa. Justin and his wife, Jenny, a former volleyball coach, are eager to make Memphis their home for themselves and their two daughters, Cecilia and the newest addition, Caroline. Cecilia is three-and-a-half, and Caroline is two months old.
Let me introduce Cecilia and Caroline’s father. Let me introduce to you, the University of Memphis head coach and newest Tiger, Justin Fuente. {applause}
Justin Fuente Opening Statement
It doesn’t get old hearing that. That’s about the third time I’ve gotten to hear that today, and it really excites me. Before I begin, I think I’d be remiss if I didn’t thank Dr. Raines for having the courage to make this decision, for the way this whole process was conducted and for her support over the last 24 hours. I look forward to a wonderful relationship. I want to thank her and the entire search committee for their thoroughness, their professionalism and, obviously, for their decision. I also know that R.C. (Johnson) is going to step down in a few months, and I look forward to working with him and going into the transition with the new Athletic Director. I know it will be a seamless one. I look forward to working with him (Johnson) in his last few months before retirement and allowing him to show me the ropes here before he goes and plays a lot of golf or whatever he likes to do in his spare time.
This is a big challenge, and I am so ready for this challenge. I’ve been dreaming of this moment for a long, long time. This is the place I want to be for as long as you’ll have me. I’m so honored today to be your football coach. I’m honored to be a member of your community. I’m honored to have my family here. I’m honored to wear blue and be a Tiger. {applause}
We are going to run our program like a family. You see my two beautiful girls that will probably get loud here in a minute and my lovely wife, Jenny. Obviously without Jenny, I wouldn’t be here. She makes me a better person. We’re going to run this like a family. Families are honest. Families work hard. Families get results together. That’s what we’re setting out to do. We’re going to reach out to the community. This is going to be Memphis’ team. This is the University of Memphis football, but it’s the city of Memphis. I don’t care what school you went to; if you live in this city, I want this to be your team. I don’t care where you’re from; if you live in this city, I want this to be your team. I want you to embrace athletics. That is one of the great things about athletics. It brings people from all walks of life together. It brings young, old, rich, poor, from the north side, from the south side, different racial barriers, all of that is broken down through athletics because nobody cares. We just want something to cheer for.
Everyone in here has a love for this University. I share that love, but I’m just entering into it. I’m just entering into the Memphis family. I just want you to know that I’m going to pour my heart and soul into this program. I’m going to do everything I can to make sure our kids act right, on and off the field. We’re going to make sure we’re involved in this community and we reach out because I believe this city is hungry, hungry, hungry for success. {applause}
This job is 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and I’m ready for it. I thank you all. I cannot wait to get started, not that I don’t enjoy doing this kind of stuff, but I’m excited to meet the team. I haven’t yet, but I’ve had that part on my calendar lined up from the very start. I can’t wait for that meeting. We’re going to reach out to the community, and we’re going to play fast, fast, fast offensive football and we’re going to recruit fast, fast, fast defensive players. {applause} We’re going to be exciting, well-coached and disciplined, and we’re going to build this thing the right way, from the ground up with everybody’s support and with everybody cheering us on the entire way. We’re going to involve everyone in this program. This is your program. I cannot wait to get started.
Justin Fuente Q&A
From what you know about the program, what are the biggest challenges that this program faces?
We have several. We’ve got to engage this community. That is the first thing that we’ve got to do. I want people to feel invested in our program. I want people to feel like they have a chip in the game. We’ve got to reach out to the community because they will support us. That’s the first thing that we need to do.
On the field, I’m a little remiss in that I don’t know exactly where we’re at there. I’m looking forward to finding out. Obviously, we’re in the middle of recruiting and I have to build our staff so those are two challenges right there. We are a little short on guys right now, so that’s one thing we’ll have to build up and you can’t just do that immediately. That will take a few years. The biggest thing that we’ll have to do from the football side is we’ve got to get a staff together and hit the ground running recruiting. From a program and community standpoint, I want to get people involved.
What will your media policies be?
I can tell you basically, we’ll have a much more liberal media policy than, from what I understand, they’ve had here in the past. I’m not going to lay out the exact guidelines right now. I can tell you that our practices will be more accessible and our coaches will be more accessible. I’m not sure what the policy prior to me was with the players, so I’m not going to say that they’ll be more accessible because I don’t know what it was. But, all in all, the media will feel like it’s a much more open book.
What will be your message to the team?
Part of that is between the team and me, and I’m going to keep it there. But the other part is I understand where they’ve been. My playing experience, without getting into it, led to several different coaches. That’s an odd feeling. You’re not going to play for the guy that recruited you. So I’m going to address a little bit of that. The only way for this to work is if we all buy in. We can’t have dissension; we have to all be together. So we’ll talk a little bit about that.
Then I’m going to just tell them a little bit about myself. A strange man walks into a room and now he’s supposed to be your coach; I imagine that’s a little bit of an uneasy feeling. You don’t know much about him. So we’ll sit down and talk a little bit. I’ll lay out some guidelines of what I expect from them. The number one thing right now will be finishing up finals. We’ll lay out some guidelines and make sure they finish the semester on the right foot, and then when they come back, we’ll really hit the ground running.
What made this job a fit for you?
I think there are a lot of great things about Memphis football. There are good athletes in this city, in this region and in this part of the country. I think you play in a league that you can be competitive in. I’m pretty familiar with Conference USA. I think it’s a league that we can be competitive in. We have facilities that are competitive with the people we are going to play against. Now, in this part of the country, you have to recruit against some other people, but I think that this has some tangible things that excite me and some intangible things that really excite me. I really, really, really believe that this community is ready to get behind this team. I think we can do it.
What makes you feel that you have the unique gifts to get this program where you say the people here want it to be?
I just have them. {applause} I can recruit, I’m organized, and I’ve been a part of a great program. I’m not going to make the whole press conference about that, but I’ve seen how it was done. At the last place, we didn’t always have the biggest stick, but we got it done. So I’ve seen how it can be done. X’s and O’s and offense and stuff like that I also have a great background in. So I’ve seen the program, I’ve seen the blueprint and I have the blueprint of how it was done in what I would consider to be a similar situation 10 to 12 years ago.
Can you talk about your timetable with TCU?
As far as my timetable with TCU, after talking to Coach Patterson last night, obviously I’m not going to coach in the bowl game. There’s just no way I can get back there and do an adequate job. It wouldn’t be fair to those kids and the staff. They have more-than-competent people to step in there and do a great job. I know they’ll play well in the bowl game. So I’m full-time at Memphis. I’m not going to split duties.
Can you take us through the last 24 hours of you being hired?
The last 24 hours have been exhilarating. I think it was yesterday, I was in Fort Worth and we were getting ready (for the bowl game with TCU). I had actually put my stuff from the interview in one of my files and said, ‘Well, that was fun. That was a great experience.’ I got into the office early and wrote all the thank you notes to everybody that are actually in the mail to you all right now. You might get one of those here shortly. I started my day and then my phone started ringing off the hook. Then we got closer to it and closer to it and closer to it, and I talked to a bunch of people, Jenny and people I’ve worked with. I actually went to practice yesterday at TCU, and I knew it had a chance to be my last one there. I obviously didn’t say anything to anybody because it wasn’t final. We had a good practice and then I got off the phone, sprinted to the car and jumped on the plane to come here. I didn’t sleep except about 10 or 15 minutes and then woke up and started the day. It’s been a lot of fun.
Do you have an idea of who you want on your staff and do you have a timetable for hiring them?
I have a great idea of what I want to do with my staff. Without getting into the specifics, which I’m not going to do right now, I do have a great direction and a great idea of what I want to do. There are a lot of coaches out there that want to come to this place, so we’re going to bring good coaches here. I want to talk to all of them. Our timetable will be to go fairly quick, but I’m not going to rush things and make a mistake. I have an idea of the general direction or at least the initial direction to move quickly, and then I think you’ll see it come in bits and pieces.
What will you do differently to make sure the community support is behind you and that this is Memphis’ team?
I’m going to get out and beat pots and pans in the street if I have to. {applause} If I have to speak at every Boy Scout meeting, Kiwanis Club, whatever we have to do. The second thing is I’m going to make sure my staff is involved in it too. I think it’s important for the community to know everybody involved, not just me. I think it’s important for those guys professionally, for dreams they have down the road, to be involved in that sort of stuff. Plus, they want to know people too. It shouldn’t always just have to be me. We’re going to get out there and do everything we can. I’ve talked about opening up our program just a little bit compared maybe to what it’s been in the past. The last thing is we’re going to display our kids, too. The type of kids that we need out there and in the community, we’re going put them out there. That’s the great thing about this deal and why coaches get into coaching, to teach. That’s the fun of it. Being around these young people is really thrilling, and it would be a shame not to share that with you guys.
Do you think it’s important to play high-profile teams to get excitement in the community and among recruits?
I think scheduling is very important. I think the timing of your scheduling is also very important. You have to understand where you’re at. We’re going to look at that very carefully. When we get down the road, I’m open to playing those types of games. I’m not scared of anyone. But we need to be smart. We need to build this thing the right way so we’ll take all those factors into consideration.
When did you first interview and did you target this job? Take us through that process a little bit, when you interviewed in New York.
Well, New York for a guy like me is pretty daunting. I would’ve rather been in Memphis. I got to Manhattan around 3 p.m. It’s three weeks before Christmas, and there were people everywhere. The way these things have come about over the past few years has changed, without getting overly into it. But obviously, when the job came open my ears perked up. I finished my schooling at Murray State in Kentucky, so I’m familiar with the region and have been to Memphis several times. When the job came open, I pursued it. I wanted to be the coach here because I think you can do it. I know you can do it. I tried to attack it as much as I could, and that’s how I tried to handle the interview. I tried to go in there and let them see me. I wasn’t trying to be fake, but I tried to portray that I want this job. I’m ready for this construction project, if you will. I’m ready for this, and I have a plan.
I gathered there’s a National Championship bonus in your contract; is it true and was it your idea?
It might be in there. {says jokingly}
How much discussion did you have with the committee and the president as far as facilities and upgrades and your idea of what needs to be done?
We talked about it. When you’re interviewing at a place (New York) that’s not where you’re going to work, it’s a little different. We had lengthy discussions about that sort of stuff. I know there’s a campaign going on right now so I’m fully confident that project is going to get completed and we’re going to move on to the next project. We have things to sell here right now. We don’t need to remake everything. Do we need to continue to improve? Absolutely. We had conversations about it.
You said that you’ve seen how it’s done and you have a blueprint. Can you give us some of the points in that blueprint?
Sure. Building a program starts with relationships. It starts with your relationships in your community, relationships with your boss and relationships with your staff. Then, it turns to your relationships with your players. I believe whole-heartedly that our assistant coaches need to be as close to our players as they can be in order for them to ask more of our players. I think that the blueprint comes down to the way you practice, the way your offseason is run, the way you’re organized in your recruiting, the way you’re organized in recruiting during the season, the way you handle official visits, the way you handle unofficial visits and the way you develop your players, both when you’re finding them and once they’re here. Those are the main factors that go in that. You have to do it the right way. It’s not always the easy way; sometimes it’s the long way. But that’s what we’re ready to take on.
Was there ever a time when you thought this job was going to somebody else?
I didn’t keep track of it, to be honest with you. You never know. Information today flies around so quickly, and half of it’s right and half of it’s wrong. I just went to work. I didn’t know one way or the other, to be honest with you. Obviously, I did a self-evaluation after the interview, like anybody would do. But as far as trying to figure out who was going to get the job or anything like that, I didn’t know.
What did Coach Patterson tell you when you told him you were leaving?
Coach Patterson told me thank you for your time and for everything you’ve done for TCU and go get the job done. He had words of advice when I talked to him about it. Coach Patterson has been very supportive of me. He gave me a lot of responsibility early and has always been kind of hands-off with us and let us do our thing on that side of the ball. He’s a defensive coach. He’s the head coach, but he’s very involved with the defense. It was a very amicable situation. I think the world of him and his family and his program. I have a lot of great friends on that staff that we’ll miss, but we’ll make new ones.
Have you been assured by the committee that the appropriate resources will be given to you to get a great staff?
They told me to go get the people that I want to get.
How will you sell your program to recruits?
Do you want to build something? Do you want to build a program? Do you want to get in on the ground floor and build this thing with us? This is what we’re going to do, and this is how we’re going to do it. Do you want to compete for and win conference championships for years to come? I think that’s what you have to sell. Other places have things to sell as well, but here, you’re going to get a chance to build this with your own hands and be a part of it. I think obviously you hit on the past successes we’ve had and how that’s going to fit in here and talk about all the great things that there are in this city.
Are you at all worried about being given the amount of time to build the program? Have you been given assurances that you’ll have more time than your predecessor?
No, I’m not worried. I have a contract, and I’m not worried. I don’t know how to answer that any other way. I think that the people in power here believe in me and believe that I’m going to do this the right way and believe that I’m the person that fits this University. I believe they’re going to give me the time to get this job done.
How quickly can you jump into recruiting?
Immediately. We’ve got to go. I haven’t seen those guys (that were previously recruited), and I’m looking forward to speaking with them. I’m going to start and get rolling.
The previous coach had made some in-roads locally with recruits here who committed. Are you willing to honor those commitments or are you starting from scratch?
It’s a little bit remiss for me to talk about people that I have no idea who they are. I haven’t been here long enough to even really address that. I’m looking forward to meeting those people. But it’s a little unfair for me to make any comment on it just because I don’t know anything about those people. I’m looking forward to finding out about them.
How much time do you feel it will take you to get this program steered in the right direction?
I don’t know. You can get steered in the right direction immediately. You can start to steer and get everything lined up and going the right way immediately. How long will it take results to show? I don’t know. I know this. We’re not going to make excuses about anything. We’re going to do this the right way. We’re going to go out there and play the guys on our schedule and go give it our best shot. I don’t want to put a timeframe on anything other than we’re going to get this thing straightened out, pointed in the right direction and run correctly and let the chips fall where they may. I think you can measure it and see it immediately if things are going in the right direction.
