The microphone, which Brian Pensky lowered during his inaugural press conference, fell to the ground just seconds after Florida State’s new women’s soccer coach began speaking from a podium at the Moore Athletics Center on Tuesday.
“That’s what happens when you’re little,” joked Pensky, a graduate of the University of Tennessee and last season’s SEC Coach of the Year.
Aside from fiddling with the mic, Pensky handled his first moment in the spotlight well. He seemed to be an effective communicator, mixing humor with humility. Pensky also embraced the pressures that come with replacing head coach Mark Krikorian following his abrupt retirement.
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Fighting for national championships will not suffice for this program. Pensky understands that he is expected to win even at the highest level. It’s the price of admission for the addition of a coach who won his third national title with the Seminoles last season.
Pensky’s number one priority in his freshman month will be keeping this national championship team intact. He actively recruits his players hoping they don’t go elsewhere. He’s also trying to keep Krikorian’s assistant coaches Mike Bristol and Morinao Imaizumi.
The Democrat confirmed that a majority of last season’s starters have recently entered the transfer portal, including Beata Olsson, Clara Robbins, Cristina Roque, Emily Madril, Jenna Nighswonger, Lauren Flynn and Kristina Lynch.
“Almost everyone went into the transfer portal with the red triangle, which basically means they are closed. Schools can’t contact them,” Pensky said. “Basically, they wanted the comfort of owning their own lives in a way. And I understand that. I owned my own life when I decided to come here last week, right?
“This program is amazing. This university is amazing. Our football program will continue to be great. And I’d like to think that eventually they’re going to be in that place, and they’re going to want to come back and take their names off the portal.
“But you have to live in peace with that. You heard me say that. I was very clear, open, honest, transparent. I want them to want to be here. They know they love this place. They know they love each other. …
“We all have to make our choices and own our stuff when we’re ready. And I totally respect that for all these kids.”
Lynch announced last week that she was moving to Notre Dame. The others in the portal could still choose to retire their name if FSU agrees to retire them. As Pensky alluded to, the non-contact players probably entered the portal to keep their options open while they see if they like the Krikorian successor.
The NCAA’s one-time transfer rule has a May 1 deadline for players in fall sports. In particular, players who are transferring must enter their name into the portal by May 1st in order to be eligible to play in the upcoming season.
The Seminoles officially hired Pensky last Monday, six days after that critical deadline. He has been meeting with the team collectively and individually for the past week. Then, after the spring semester ended, they returned home for the summer vacation.
“Some of them know me a little bit because I recruited them when I was in Tennessee,” Pensky said. “But you don’t really know me. Relationships don’t happen overnight. Unfortunately they are gone. So that makes it a bit challenging. But it’s OK. You will give me that time and we will get to know each other as well as we can as soon as possible.”
The coming weeks could be the first indication of whether Pensky can achieve his championship-level expectations. If he can convince all or most of the FSU players in the portal to return, Pensky will have one of the best rosters in football.
Pensky can’t afford to mishandle his portal player recruitment like he did with this mic.
“I told them, ‘I’m not a chest hitter,'” Pensky said. “I’m not the type to stand in front of them and tell them how great I am. However, I tried and did my best to make them aware of how hard we will work and how good we will be.
“To sit here and say that I will be fully following in Mark Krikorian’s footsteps would be a bit naïve and a bit ignorant. But we will do our utmost to try. We will win. I think we will win at a high level.
“I look forward to continuing to get to know these kids and getting to a place where they are all ready to move forward in their lives. Unfortunately, that doesn’t always happen overnight.”
Brian Pensky’s other notable quotes
Below are some of the other key quotes from Pensky’s press conference.
When replacing Krikorian
“I take Mark’s place with a lot of humility. He has clearly been – in my opinion and in the opinion of many people – the best in the business over the last 10 to 15 years. He’s a phenomenal coach. He won at a very high level. I certainly have a big task in following in his footsteps. I’m aware of this, but I look forward to trying it out.”
Whether he had any doubts about FSU’s commitment to football
“Not an ounce. Unfortunately, I radiate what I feel. So you would be able to tell if I thought that. Not at all. Not at all. When (Senior Associate Athletics Director) Jim (Curry) said to me, “Hey, we’re going to keep supporting (football),” I cut him off. I thought, ‘I don’t have to listen to this. This isn’t a conversation. I trust you will. All good there.’”
About FSU’s “phenomenal” facilities and resources
“The SEC is a phenomenal league. The resources and facilities, I come from a pretty blessed position with all of that at the University of Tennessee. A big step up from what I was used to at the University of Maryland. So everything is pretty parallel here. Of course, the biggest difference is the success this program has had and the return to the ACC.”
About his conversations with the recruits who verbally professed their allegiance to the Seminoles
“Yes all. good conversations No zoom. All phone calls. I’ll try to visit them, whether it’s in the next few weeks or sometime in June depending on where they are in the country.”
About reversing ailing programs like Maryland and Tennessee
“That was one of the things that drew me here. There’s probably a lot of people out there who moved her away from here after that. It’s just another opportunity for me in my life. I’ve been a head coach for almost 20 years now. I’ve been in collegiate sports for almost 25 years. I have never experienced such a challenge. I believe in myself and I believe in my abilities.
“I believe in my ability to assemble a staff. And to trust the players. They are good players. Part of coaching is empowering children. And learn from children. And listening to children. And handing it over to them in a way.
“So as we continue this transition in terms of our team and what our team is actually going to look like in the fall, I’m going to have a better idea of, ‘Okay, how many of my fingerprints are going to be all over this team?’ Because you could argue that if we bring back almost everyone from a national championship and ACC championship team and two-thirds of the staff, my leadership becomes almost a following in that early period.
“So we’re going through all this right now. I will learn a lot. I will watch a lot of feature films in the summer. I’ve already started. I’ve seen a lot of Florida State. I followed Markus for a long time. I’ve been following this program for a long time.
“Sitting in this room last Monday and meeting the team for the first time, I was able to address many of them individually and share my own experiences. Whether it was in their club days or in their experience here in the state of Florida.”
Reach Carter Karels at ckarels@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter @CarterKarels.
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