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Rutgers women’s basketball assistant coach Tim Eatman spoke at Big Ten Media Day last week ahead of what will be a year of transition for the Scarlet Knights. Eatman is optimistic about a team that he sees is coming together and looking to build on last year’s NCAA Tournament appearance.
Legendary head coach C. Vivian Stringer has not been with the team as she navigates the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic (as reported by NJ Advance Media’s Keith Sargeant). Eatman and the rest of the staff have needed to step in and contribute to Stringer’s usual duties.
“The one thing that coach always believes in is that you can only have one voice because you don’t want to have confusion with the players,” Eatman told reporters at Big Ten Media Day.
“Her favorite statement is, when you ask her, ‘Coach, when do you want me to do this,’ she always looks at you and says, ‘Yesterday.’ We want coach back yesterday, but we understand that she’s trying to find a way through this pandemic. Our best bet is to continue to move forward, but continue to do the things that coach will always do. Our staff is really excellent in the fact that we never dilute what coach wants done and we never pollute what coach wants done.
“Whether it’s tomorrow, whether it’s next month, or whether it’s for the first game, coach has an opportunity to do what she needs to do because she knows she has a staff at home that’s going to take care of business.”
Last season, Rutgers went 14-5 and 10-3 in a tough Big Ten. They lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament as a sixth seed.
Because of COVID-19, summer workouts last year were canceled for winter sports. Eatman believes that the benefits of offseason workouts and court time will greatly benefit this team.
“We’re so excited about this year’s team. Glenn Cain, our strength and conditioning coach, has done an amazing job with our players this summer and in fall workouts,” Eatman said.
“Thirteen of our kids have never had an opportunity to do a summer workout and a fall workout at Rutgers. Last year coach Stringer decided not to bring our team back until mid-September because she wanted to be sure that all of our players were safe.”