By Matt Nevarez | Reporter
A new chapter in Baylor men’s golf has officially begun, as new interim head coach Ryan Murphy has stepped into a new role for the Bears after longtime head coach Mike McGraw announced his retirement in January.
McGraw’s retirement marked an end to one of the most successful eras in program history. In 12 seasons in Waco, McGraw’s Bears won 20 team titles, 13 individual titles and 11 All-American Selections. The Bears reached the NCAA Championships six times in McGraw’s tenure.
Here are some key moments from Murphy’s introductory press conference Wednesday at the Billy W. Williams Golf Practice Facility. Questions and answers have been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Q: How are you preparing for your first tournament? How are you preparing the boys?
Murphy: Well, you do what you can per the weather. We had a little cold snap with the ice coming in, but we try and get outdoors as much as possible. And when we do have the ice, we do what we can here with the Billy Golf Complex indoors. And so we try to take advantage of every day that we have, and we’ll start to look at the golf course in the ways that we’re able. We’ll look at it online from an aerial. We’ll start looking at the yardage book. And that’s kind of the general process, if you will, in our preparation leading up to the golf tournament.
Q: How have your people, outside of your family and friends, helped you stay grounded as you transition into this new role?
Murphy: There’s a lot going on right now. I mean, I’ve got a tight circle, my wife and some close friends, and they’re obviously excited for this, for me, for this opportunity. And Coach McGraw is a great source for that. He’s a very grounded person, and he’s never really made things bigger than they are. And he’s true to that. He’s not made this any bigger than it is. And so he’s someone that I’ve leaned on significantly. Even though he’s moved away from the program in a coaching capacity, I have him on speed dial. And so we talk regularly, and he’s been wonderful in this transition.
Q: Do you feel pressure at all to follow a legend like McGraw, at least in an interim role?
Murphy: I wouldn’t use the word pressure. I feel responsible, for sure. That’s probably the overriding feeling. I’m responsible to carry on the things that he did while he was here to make this program great, and then beyond that, build on it. He’s a man that lived his life trying to make it better than he found it, right? Now that’s on me. I have to try and build on what he’s created here and make it even better.
Q: McGraw had a voice multiple times last semester, and kind of the overall performance was not exactly what y’all wanted. So what are you trying to do this semester with still a possible chance of making the NCAA tournament at the end of the year?
Murphy: We’re trying to improve … The maturation of a golfer takes time. It takes a long time, and it happens in small, little increments. And so you try to improve each guy in those small, little increments on a regular basis. And hopefully, when you go compete, you add that all up, and it’s hopefully better than it was last time or last semester. And so that’s really it. That’s all you can do.
Q: What excites you about this group? Is there any standout, or what are you most excited for, anything you want to see from this group this spring?
Murphy: Competition is what gets me out of bed in the morning, just seeing if we can win. You know, I love winning. I hate losing. So that’s what gets my blood pumping. And, as a coach, you think of a million different ways that you might be able to have an impact on helping your team perform the best that they can, and I’m excited about that. I’ve always been that way as a coach, and that hasn’t changed. So that’s probably maybe at the core of my satisfaction is getting my team to perform to a level that can maybe win.
Q: Well, new coach, how’s the team and you guys responding to him and how do you feel about this first tournament?
Jonas Appel: Yeah, he’s been great. Like he’s mentioned, he’s had a lot of past experience, and so we have full confidence in him. And as far as this first tournament goes, we’re just really excited to get going again, and I think there’s a lot of great opportunities that we have this spring and a lot of goals to accomplish. So we’ve done the prep, and we’re really excited to get on the road and get going.
Q: What was the transition like on the team? Was it hard? What were the conversations like?
Jonas Appel: Yeah, whenever there is transition or change it takes some time to adapt, but it’s been really smooth. I mean, we’ve had Coach Murphy for, I think, a little over a year now, and so he’s been great. … Coach McGall may not be traveling with us on the road, but he’ll still be here. He’ll still be in touch with the guys, and he wants to do nothing more than go shoot some good, low rounds for him. So it’s been great.
