Q&A with volleyball coach Ray Gooden

NS: How long have you been coaching?
RG: I’ve been coaching college volleyball since 1994.

NS: What sparked your interest in volleyball?
RG: It has always been a sport that I love. I started playing volleyball when I was in high school. When I was younger, I saw people playing [volleyball] and I thought I’d give it a try.

NS: What do you want to do differently compared to the previous coach?
RG: I would love to take the volleyball team one step further. I want to bring home a MAC championship for Northern.

NS: Have you coached any other sports?
RG: Actually, I have coached other sports, like soccer. But, volleyball is the only sport that I have coached at the college level.

NS: What brings you to Northern Illinois University?
RG: I was coaching women’s volleyball at Loyola University Chicago and I received a job offer at NIU. The legacy of the program here is what made me decide to come.

NS: What are some of the strengths that the women’s volleyball team posses?
RG: Well, we have a lot of young players, but the team plays very well. The girls play well and are very competitive. The teams tries their best every single time they are out there.

NS: Where could the volleyball team improve?
RG: We need more experience. That would really help. Our team need also needs to remember the history and the legacy of NIU’s volleyball team along with better teamwork.

NS: Is there any other sport you would like to coach?
RG: Maybe Men’s volleyball or football. I like football because it is very similar to volleyball and the sport really intrigues me. You can break down the plays into offence and defense, just like football.

NS: What is your favorite aspect of volleyball?
RG: I love the team component. In volleyball, players have to make slit second decisions all the time.

NS: What are you expectations for the next season?
RG: We were really disappointed how this season ended. We made it to the quarter finals and lost. But, we do have a good core group coming back and a lot of really good new players coming in for next season.

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