The Weekly Ten With Will Vergollo (Student Manager)
12/14/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 14, 2009
Every week, MGoBlue.com's Brad Rudner and Scott Brimacombe will sit down with a different member associated with the Michigan men's basketball program for 10 questions, called "The Weekly Ten". Scott will come up with the questions and Brad will get the answers.
This week, we sit down with senior student manager Will Vergollo to talk about his responsibilities as a manager, his dream to be a coach and his one-on-one encounter with NBA veteran Greg Anthony.
Check back every week all season-long for more installments!
10. As team managers, what are your primary responsibilities?
"Anything that has to do with the daily functioning of the team. I supplement what everyone else is trying to do. If a guy needs to shoot, I'm there, or if I can't be there, I get one of our 17 managers to do it. It's like a four-year internship. Help the coaches in the office, help with camps during the summer. A college basketball team has a lot of moving parts to it and my job is to help supplement that. There are a lot of great learning experiences there."
9. What is the coolest part about traveling with the team?
"I travelled every game since my junior year. As a person who is aspiring to be a basketball coach, it's great to travel and see what a team can do to get focused before they play a road game. I've been to a lot of different places -- Alaska, Georgetown, UConn, everywhere in the Big Ten -- and we go to Kansas this week, which should be a great experience."
8. Who has the best (or worst) crowd?
"Well, when you go on the road, there really aren't too many crowds who are friendly to you. Worst crowd was UConn. They were a little over-the-top and they had some outrageous things to say to us. And while I hate to give props to Michigan State, they get after us, especially when they see that Block 'M' roll through the door."
 | "Coach Beilein has had a few of our managers run in practice for not paying attention or not running the clock correctly. Fortunately, that has not happened to me." |
7. Who is the funniest and/or most entertaining player to be around? Why?
"Anthony Wright. Hands down. He's a heck of a guy and a very hard worker. He's by far the funniest guy to be around."
6. Why did you want to be a team manager?
"I've wanted to be a coach since the 10th grade. One of the first things I did after I got into Michigan was to call Coach Amaker, who was here at the time. They told me I had a spot open after I enrolled and four years later, here I am. It's been a heck of a ride."
5. Which player impresses you in practice that doesn't get as much recognition?
"Eric Puls is a guy who has been here for three years now and he comes in and works hard every day. He's on the scout team. Those guys don't get a lot of credit and he may not be as recognized as some of the others on the team, but he works just as hard."
4. What is the most difficult aspect of your job?
"Gamedays are tough. You want those guys you work with every day to do well, but you realize some days are better than others. The hardest thing is sitting there pulling for those guys when you can't really do anything about it. You hope the best comes to them because they deserve it."
3. How did you get this gig?
"Just calling and being persistent. It got my foot in the door. I played basketball in high school and really my whole life. I was about 5-foot-5 in high school, and I'm definitely in the category of those people that say, 'those that can't do teach.' I love basketball and I'm decently skilled at it, but it wasn't something I was going to do past high school. I want to get into coaching and this seemed like the logical first step."
2. Have you ever messed up on forgotten jerseys, water bottles, etc.? What's the punishment for that?
"There are little things, sure. Nobody is perfect. I try to do the best job I can. I've never gotten punishment for not doing something correctly. Coach Beilein has had a few of our managers run in practice for not paying attention or not running the clock correctly. Fortunately, that has not happened to me. I think it's more of a team chemistry thing than a punishment anyway. It's a funny ordeal."
1. What is the best moment of the year for you guys?
"As I'm sure a lot of people will say, Selection Sunday was a pretty awesome day. Being able to sit on the floor with all the guys and then celebrating with everyone. As far as the best moment, I mean, pick a day. I love being here, I love Michigan. I've been a Michigan Man my whole life. Every day I get an opportunity is a good day for me."
DOUBLE BONUS
Tell me about this one-on-one you had with Greg Anthony (NBA veteran)?
"Spending four years here, you get an opportunity to meet people that are influential around basketball. A few years ago, I got to walk Isiah Thomas around the Big House and Crisler on a visit. Greg Anthony was calling our Utah game (last week) for CBS Sports and he was playing some two-on-two with some of the Utah guys after our shootaround. He asked me to stay and I got to play a little bit before we left. I got to show him a few moves, but he kept shooting right over me (Anthony is 6-foot-3; Vergollo is 5-foot-8). It will probably be the only time I'll ever get a chance to play an NBA player, and while I didn't score, I had a few opportunities. It was a great experience."
