Jim Kubinski – Men’s Golf Head Coach:
On the excitement of joining the ACC …
“It’s great news for Notre Dame, and all programs here. In golf, there is just such a tradition of top programs. I spent some time at Duke as an assistant coach and we broke through and won an ACC Championship my last year there; and how special that was because the competition was so strong and has been so strong over the years. It’s the dawning of a new era here, and we’re excited for the challenge.”
On ACC men’s golf …
“ACC golf, they’ve had some of the top players. You look at the PGA TOUR, whether it’s David Duval from several years ago, or Matt Kuchar, some of the great players out on the tour now. There’s really a high commitment level to golf in the conference, and I think they expect to have success as a group of teams. They compete at the highest level of our sport year-in and year-out. It’s really a tremendous conference in all sports, but golf has some significant accomplishments over the years.”
On leaving the BIG EAST …
“As exciting as the new challenge will be in the ACC, it’s bittersweet in some ways. All the relationships we’ve developed over the years with the coaches, the schools, and a lot of great kids in golf. It’s a new horizon, new challenges. I think the one thing we remember, going back to my first year here we hosted the BIG EAST Championship at the Warren Golf Course. That will always stick with me over the years.”
Susan Holt – Women’s Golf Head Coach
On joining the ACC ...
“I think it’s great. I was surprised, we had a head coaches meeting this morning and that was the first thing that was announced. I think it’s great for our university, great for our whole department, great for our sport. ACC women’s golf, it doesn’t get much better than that. Last year at the NCAA Finals, four of their teams finished in the top 15. Duke is one of the storied women’s golf programs in the country. It’s certainly going to give us a chance to compete against the best, and it’s only going to make our program better.”
On any changes in recruiting …
“I don’t know if it’s going to change. I really feel like Notre Dame is such an attraction, and with the way our sport is structured, we don’t ever have a conference schedule. We don’t do conference matches during the year; we have our conference championship and try to get to the NCAA Finals. I’m sure it’s going to help, that’s going to be a big plus. Out student-athletes will now really have the opportunity to get into some tournaments throughout the year that we haven’t gotten into before. I’d like to think that we could reciprocate and build an even better schedule. We have a great schedule right now, it’s just going to increase the opportunity to have a better one.”
On the lasting memories from the BIG EAST …
“The BIG EAST has been a great conference for us. I know when I was at South Florida, and made the transition to Notre Dame, just a lot of great schools, great people, great coaches. Certainly our time there will be cherished and remembered in a positive way, and I’ll miss dealing with the coaches. It’s a really good group of people.”
Kevin Corrigan – Men’s Lacrosse Head Coach
On what joining the ACC means to his program …
“It means we’re going to be in the single-best conference in college lacrosse. It’s huge from a scheduling standpoint, from a competitive standpoint and from a recruiting standpoint. It’s a tremendously competitive league and a very exciting league to be a part of.”
On any change in a recruiting philosophy …
“Our goal in recruiting, scheduling and everything else has been towards trying to win a national championship and that’s not going to change. Is it going to be a great challenge year in and year out to play the schedule of the ACC? Of course it is. But it’s the challenge we relish and are looking forward to. I couldn’t be more excited about all the possibilities of this move.”
On his connections to the ACC …