Although fans in the community only see the hard work the Fresno State men’s basketball team puts in during their season, the team trains year-round to prepare for the next season’s schedule.
Director of basketball operations Nick Matson said the team’s schedule is very rigorous year-round.
“We are always trying to get our players better and stronger throughout the whole year,” he said.
Its season runs from November to March. Once the season ends, the guys get up to three weeks off to rest up and re-focus before they’re back at it again.
In April, they start with what they call “post season workouts.”
“Each of these workouts is really intense,” Matson said. “The post season is the best time for players to get stronger and faster.”
Matson said they then give the players a few weeks to go home and visit their families before they head back for their “summer workouts.”
After eight weeks of summer training, they move into “pre-season workouts,” which consists of mostly conditioning.
“It’s very important that guys are in their best shape heading into the season,” Matson said.
One of the forwards, Jerry Brown, a six-feet seven-inch junior, said the offseason isn’t much different than the regular season.
“As a player you want to keep getting better year round,” Brown said. “I would say balancing the demands of basketball with academics is the most difficult part.”
With the first game of the season being less than a month away, Matson said the teams has been working mostly on communication and defense.
“It creates togetherness and an intimidation that is hard to play against,” he said. “We want to be one of the hardest playing teams in the country, and it will take communication and defense to do that.”
This year, the Bulldogs have five returning players and eight new players entering the program. Six of the newbies are freshmen that Matson said are still adjusting to the college-level atmosphere. “The biggest challenge for us will be getting all our freshmen acclimated to the speed and toughness of college basketball as soon as they can,” Matson said. “So far they have been very good.”
Head coach Rodney Terry will be heading back to his old stomping grounds as the Bulldogs hit the road for their first game this season against the Longhorns in Texas.
Terry was part of the Longhorn basketball program for nine seasons before becoming a part of the Bulldog family.
“It will be a great test for us,” Terry said. “Of course I know how tough a place it is to play, but I’m very excited for our guys and the opportunity it presents.”
The team is prepared to take on a new and competitive conference this year.
“The Mountain West Conference is one of the best basketball conferences in the country,” Terry said. “We welcome this competition. As a player or coach you always want to compete at the highest level.”
Brown said the competition in the Mountain West is going to be competitive.
“It’s a step up from the WAC,” he said. “We are really excited to compete at that level.”
Terry said the team’s mentality every season is to go to work each day trying to better themselves in every way.
“We have a saying posted on the wall in our locker room that reads, ‘Punch The Clock.’ This is what we want to have — A worker-like mentality each day.”
Mentally, Brown said they want to be as prepared as possible for each opponent.
“Reading back over the scouting reports and what the coaches tell us and knowing our game plan on offense and defense helps us stay focused and prepared,” he said.
On game days, Brown said he gets to the gym early to practice shooting and to get loose. He said he goes over all the plays for that night’s game in his head.
Brown said he is ready to get out there and play this season.
“We work so hard as a team that we can’t wait to get out on the court and compete and have a great season.”
Apart from all the workouts and the games, Terry expects more than just talent from his boys. Terry said that “character” is the number-one quality he looks for in his athletes.
“When we say character, we mean a number of important traits that go hand-in-hand which are a precursor to success on the basketball court and in life,” Terry said. “Character traits that make winning programs include integrity, preparedness, determination, perseverance, and toughness. We demand this on a daily basis from our student-athletes.”
Terry said his favorite part about coaching is to see the impact that the game and a college basketball program can have on a young man’s life.
“There is no greater feeling than seeing someone you coach go on to become a successful employee, husband, father or mentor to others.”
Seven of the 2012-2013 season games will be televised this year as they take on new competition in the Mountain West conference.
You can see the Bulldogs in action on Nov . 2 as they host Fresno Pacific in an exhibition game at the Save Mart Center.
