Everything Josh Eilert Said at Big 12 Media Day

WVU head coach Josh Eilert fielded questions from the media in Kansas City today.

Opening statement

"To carry the torch at West Virginia and follow a Hall of Fame coach is not lost on me. I'm excited for the opportunity. I'm excited to help represent West Virginia and lead the charge. We've had a couple good weeks of practice. Things are going well and we're excited about where the program is going."

Settling in after chaotic summer

"This summer was a whirlwind. We had a lot of distractions and trying to keep everybody with their head down and focused on what the goal was. Mid-summer we didn't have five or six guys on our roster and we had to keep those guys and that foundation together and we had to figure out how we build and move on each and every day. But waters have calmed down and practices are heating up. We're halfway through the preseason and we're a couple weeks away from our first competition, so we're excited and eager."

Impact of Assistant Coach DerMarr Johnson

"He's been awesome from day one. He hasn't quite been there a year yet but we've hit it off from the beginning. He's an ultra-competitor. Every day he wants to compete whether it be pickleball, golf, or whatever it may be and it rubs off on our guys. High character guy that you can build a program around as an assistant as well."

Recruiting under an interim tag

"Yeah there's an interim tag and I'm mindful of that but the way I see it is I'm the head coach for a ten-month period. It's come down to about six more months on my contract but I plan on being here. Our assistants, we've got a great group of young assistants that are eager every day. We're building a culture and we plan on being here. So when we go out and recruit, that's the message that we portray to them. We're going to keep recruiting and put ourselves in a position to have this job in a year. I'm mindful enough to know we got to win games and we will win games. But we're going to recruit for the future."

Advice to any of the four Big 12 newcomers

"You got to manage your rest. That would be the biggest advice I have, especially in January and February. There's so many times we got home at five or six in the morning and you turn around and you're playing two days later. It's a game within a game. Managing your rest, managing your travel, making sure you're doing right by your guys because as a coaching staff, you feel it and your warn down. Just think about your guys and how they feel because they're the ones competing night in and night out."

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