Volleyball's Morrison eager to open regular season at Omaha Invite

Texas A&M volleyball opens its regular season slate on Friday night against Omaha in the Omaha Invite. Head coach Jamie Morrison stopped by TexAgs Radio to chat about excitement for his first season at A&M as well as a recap of Saturday's exhibition with No. 15 Baylor.

Key notes from Jamie Morrison interview

• We were competing in Team USA’s U19 women’s national team in the FIVB World Championships, but we had an average age of 17.1. We had girls playing above their age group. They bought into what we needed to do as a team, and they got better every day. We only had seven days to prepare before the tournament. They learned at a fast rate, and when you get a bunch of the best players in the country, they have to be ready to go when it matters most. It was really cool, and I'm getting chills just talking about it. Winning a gold medal without having expectations of winning is one of the most rewarding things I've ever experienced.
   
• I loved the U19 experience because you compressed an entire volleyball experience into three weeks. You have to line out the expectations, and it's about small conversations making sure people know they're valued. Our job there and at Texas A&M is to raise the tide of the team. It can't just be about the people who play. It's about everyone involved in the program.
   
• I will use our Texas A&M team as a teachable movement when I do things with USA Volleyball because they'll have the identity I want. Using examples of how things are taught and practice plans are very similar. It works both ways.
   
• Everyone has been talking about the 12th Man, and I got to experience it at Saturday's exhibition. There were so many people there, and they were loud. They got after the opponent. We've talked about where to put the student section, and I liked where they were at.
   
• From the volleyball standpoint, we had the mindset of it being an exhibition and allowing us the opportunity to play around. We mixed up lineups and learned a lot about our team. I left the match feeling disappointed that we didn't take it to a fifth set. I wanted to do that just to hear the crowd. We also didn't play spectacularly, but we were right there with the No. 15 team in the country. That's a good place to be in. There were good things to work off of.
   
• We had 17 blocks, which was impressive. That's not going to be expected moving forward. It was from the summer of work they put in without us watching them.
   
• One of our players gave a shout-out to Lauren Hogan for holding players accountable in the summer workouts. They came back a much better blocking team, and I think that can be part of our identity. We could become one of the best blocking teams in the country.
   
• Blocking can be one of our superpowers. We also talk about having balance and winning through balance. We have different ways to beat different opponents, that's how I try to form teams. It's not about one person having their best night, it's about different people having their best nights.
   
• Hogan is growing into her leadership role. I think she had a great first year here and still has room to grow. From the volleyball standpoint, she is getting to where she left off, and we're excited about her future.
   
• We leave Thursday and play Friday. I'm extremely excited to play a real match. We put in the work so we can compete. We’ll get to see what we're made of, that's why I love this sport. This is a test. We'll see if we are good enough, and if we're not, we'll come back and work.
   
• Omaha is good. They run a super fast offense that's similar to Baylor. They have some younger players, and it'll be a test. We play Pepperdine the next night, we'll have two different ways to win matches offensively. I'm excited to see what we're made of.
   
• There is consistency in hard work. I thought we were a lot better vs. Baylor than we were in the Maroon & White Scrimmage. The whole team chased down balls vs. Baylor. It's cool when other people see the things you've been working on. There is consistency in behavior and remaining true to who you are. There's also a volleyball standpoint of putting the ball where you want every single time. Consistency rings true on all of those things.