Photo by: All Pro Photography/Dale Sparks
Hammond Looks Ahead to the 2021 Season
January 13, 2021 11:20 AM | Rifle
As the West Virginia University rifle team prepares for its first meet in the 2021 season on Jan. 16, it's time to hear what head coach Jon Hammond expects to see from his team this season.
Entering his 15th season with the squad, Hammond has led the Mountaineers to six NCAA Championships, including five straight from 2013-17, and has led WVU to seven GARC regular-season titles and 10 GARC Championship titles.
Hammond sat down recently to preview the upcoming 2021 season.
Six student-athletes return to the team this season – what did they learn last year, and how will the way last season ended impact their outlook in 2021?
The ending to last season was definitely a disappointment, but I hope that also built some resiliency and determination for this year. Last season was challenging throughout. We had ups and downs, but I think the returners learned a lot. Half of them were freshmen so that's always a huge adjustment. Learning how to manage their time, how to train at a higher level and just competing in college, I think all six gained more experience, became better rifle athletes and made a lot of progression.
Can you talk a little bit about the freshmen and how they are adjusting to the team?
We have a really exciting freshman class, four very good rifle shooters with a lot of experience and potential. They have instantly given us one of the deepest teams we have ever had. I've seen them make a lot of progress during the fall. The adjustment to college is definitely a big challenge and some experience it differently, and this year especially makes it even more challenging. Not only are you dealing with being away from home for the first time, but classes are different and more challenging. You have to manage your time so much more. On top of that, there have been all the COVID-19 restrictions added to their day-to-day life. This included not seeing their family as much as they may have, having a very restricted social life, and just having to be so caution 24/7 with what they are doing, where and who with.
How have you and your team been preparing for this season?
This fall was more like an extended pre-season training. We typically would have shot half of our season matches by now. Now we have to condense everything into a much shorter time frame. We have been able to experiment more with training, and have tried to build the foundations really well. We have tried to compete in some form, whether that has been with ourselves or with other teams in a virtual manner, just to get match reps which give them the feedback of what to work on and improve.
How have you managed the team with such a different kind of season?
It's been a challenge, but it's mostly been stressing the COVID-19 angle. Being safe, wearing a mask, social distancing, etc. It's not natural for 18-to-21-year-old's to be held up in their dorm room or apartment, or to take nearly all their classes online. We've tried to maintain the positive in everything as much as possible, as there are still plenty of things to be positive and grateful for. We are focusing on how we can get better and improve. We are looking at what things we can use to our benefit with the situation everyone is in. That's harder for some, but it's too easy to turn everything into a negative, so in managing them, it's been as much on the mental state and trying to keep things upbeat.
Has having a shortened season affected your athletes?
I think we'll know the answer to that after the season. We are currently halfway through the year, but our match season hasn't started, so we can only measure the effect at the end. I think it will help with burn out and maintaining a good intensity through to March. Hopefully, everyone will have a good mental boost by getting back to competitions and doing what they love to do.
What are your goals for this season?
I think the goal has to be for us to get through the season as safely as possible. We have a strong enough team to compete with anyone. Performance-wise, we hope to grow and improve from the beginning to the end of the season and give our best effort in every match. The way college athletics is and with the pandemic, I think we all just want to have a season, and that will ultimately be a success.
What are you most looking forward to this season?
Seeing the team compete. It's been fun and exciting to see them learn and grow during the fall, but also sad to see the disappointment in them at not getting to compete. All college athletes want to compete, and we haven't been able to do that yet. Seeing us get back in the range and competing will be great. At the same time, I'm also looking forward to the continued growth of the team. They made many improvements in the fall, and as they continue to form good bonds, work hard and learn. I'm excited to see what their potential is for this year.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVURifle on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Entering his 15th season with the squad, Hammond has led the Mountaineers to six NCAA Championships, including five straight from 2013-17, and has led WVU to seven GARC regular-season titles and 10 GARC Championship titles.
Hammond sat down recently to preview the upcoming 2021 season.
Six student-athletes return to the team this season – what did they learn last year, and how will the way last season ended impact their outlook in 2021?
The ending to last season was definitely a disappointment, but I hope that also built some resiliency and determination for this year. Last season was challenging throughout. We had ups and downs, but I think the returners learned a lot. Half of them were freshmen so that's always a huge adjustment. Learning how to manage their time, how to train at a higher level and just competing in college, I think all six gained more experience, became better rifle athletes and made a lot of progression.
Can you talk a little bit about the freshmen and how they are adjusting to the team?
We have a really exciting freshman class, four very good rifle shooters with a lot of experience and potential. They have instantly given us one of the deepest teams we have ever had. I've seen them make a lot of progress during the fall. The adjustment to college is definitely a big challenge and some experience it differently, and this year especially makes it even more challenging. Not only are you dealing with being away from home for the first time, but classes are different and more challenging. You have to manage your time so much more. On top of that, there have been all the COVID-19 restrictions added to their day-to-day life. This included not seeing their family as much as they may have, having a very restricted social life, and just having to be so caution 24/7 with what they are doing, where and who with.
How have you and your team been preparing for this season?
This fall was more like an extended pre-season training. We typically would have shot half of our season matches by now. Now we have to condense everything into a much shorter time frame. We have been able to experiment more with training, and have tried to build the foundations really well. We have tried to compete in some form, whether that has been with ourselves or with other teams in a virtual manner, just to get match reps which give them the feedback of what to work on and improve.
How have you managed the team with such a different kind of season?
It's been a challenge, but it's mostly been stressing the COVID-19 angle. Being safe, wearing a mask, social distancing, etc. It's not natural for 18-to-21-year-old's to be held up in their dorm room or apartment, or to take nearly all their classes online. We've tried to maintain the positive in everything as much as possible, as there are still plenty of things to be positive and grateful for. We are focusing on how we can get better and improve. We are looking at what things we can use to our benefit with the situation everyone is in. That's harder for some, but it's too easy to turn everything into a negative, so in managing them, it's been as much on the mental state and trying to keep things upbeat.
Has having a shortened season affected your athletes?
I think we'll know the answer to that after the season. We are currently halfway through the year, but our match season hasn't started, so we can only measure the effect at the end. I think it will help with burn out and maintaining a good intensity through to March. Hopefully, everyone will have a good mental boost by getting back to competitions and doing what they love to do.
What are your goals for this season?
I think the goal has to be for us to get through the season as safely as possible. We have a strong enough team to compete with anyone. Performance-wise, we hope to grow and improve from the beginning to the end of the season and give our best effort in every match. The way college athletics is and with the pandemic, I think we all just want to have a season, and that will ultimately be a success.
What are you most looking forward to this season?
Seeing the team compete. It's been fun and exciting to see them learn and grow during the fall, but also sad to see the disappointment in them at not getting to compete. All college athletes want to compete, and we haven't been able to do that yet. Seeing us get back in the range and competing will be great. At the same time, I'm also looking forward to the continued growth of the team. They made many improvements in the fall, and as they continue to form good bonds, work hard and learn. I'm excited to see what their potential is for this year.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVURifle on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
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