PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – There were several pauses. A voice crack or two and some watery eyes. You could see it from the moment he stepped to the podium and struggled to get his speech out of his suit coat. This was more than just a new job for Dru Joyce.
“The resounding question has been since Thursday,” Joyce said as his first words after being introduced as the new Duquesne basketball coach. “How do you feel? How do you feel? How do you feel?”
“It’s incredible.”
Joyce said he had so much to be thankful for starting with his wife and thanking her for all, especially traveling with him. He thanked his kids for sharing their dad with work. He thanked his parents for the values they instilled in him and all those responsible for hiring him.
“Overcome with joy, to have this opportunity to have a dream come to fruition,” Joyce said Monday at the Duquesne Student Union. “For people to believe in me and lead the program. I’m excited and passionate about what I do.”
Then he had a message specifically to the seven or so players who came to lend support for their new coach.
“When it comes to our program and our guys, I will always have your back,” Joyce promised with tears in his eyes. “I will always be there for your guys. This relationship that we build is not transactional, but transformational.”
“It’s my duty and my purpose to make an influence, to make an impact in every one of your lives. To not just coach you, but to help you. To motivate you, to push you and to listen to you as well. To be someone you can come talk to and someone you’ll always be able to call on and I will be there for you.”
“I’ve never seen him cry,” said Duquesne forward David Dixon. “I think maybe the one day I saw him cry was the day that Coach Dambrot said he was going to retire. I didn’t know he was this emotional and I’m happy to see that. I thought he was a big ball of anger. Now I know he has a soft side, I’m happy to see that.”
“He loves what he does. He knows the game. He loves it and he’s made it a big part of his life. That isn’t something you would do if you weren’t committed.”
“That just speaks to his character and how passionate he really is,” said Duquesne guard Jake DiMichele. “In a world like college basketball, they say it all the time it’s a business, it’s hard to find someone who is really genuine. Knowing Coach Dru not even a year, I could tell he’s really a genuine guy. You can see it in moments like that when his emotions come out.”
“It’s important for each and every one of you to really understand what our culture is,” Joyce said. “Not our style of play, but what you are going to see from our young men, whether it’s on the court or off the court. Our standard is a championship mindset whether we are on the court, off the court, in the classroom or in the community. There are certain values that I expect our young men to embody that will help them in life.”
He then went on to list them:
· Discipline-being able to show up consistently and the practice of positive habits that can create a way of life and a lifestyle beyond basketball
· Integrity-not just what we do, but how we do it with honesty and transparency.
“I will be there to tell you if your breath stinks, but also be there to hug you and let you know I love you.”
· Enthusiasm-we are fortunate to do what we do, no matter our circumstances, no matter what brought us here. We are together. We must do it with passion, joy and love
· Toughness-the ability to endure what we can’t see in front of us. We will be mentally, emotionally and spiritually tough
“I’ve been surrounded by a village of supporters whether it has been my family, whether it has been coaches since I was a young kid,” Joyce said. “There were times when I probably wasn’t doing the right thing. Somehow, someway, people got a hold of me and made sure I stayed on track.”
“It means the world to be able to stand here because I’ve heard so many people tell me ‘you are going to be a head coach one day’.”
“I’m here.”