When Jeff Capel took over the head coaching position at VCU in 2002, it wasn’t hard to find motivation.
“I was named the head coach at 27,” Capel said in his introductory press conference at Pitt. “It wasn’t a very popular thing. People thought that the people at VCU were crazy. So, I always coached with a little chip on my shoulder to show them that, hey, these people weren’t crazy, they did see something.”
Now, Capel is heading into year seven as the “caretaker” of the Pitt basketball program, as he would put it, and he is finding motivation in different ways.
“I’ve grown so much since then, and I think I’m such a better coach, because I just think I’m better as a person,” Capel said on The Pittsburgh Basketball Show on Monday. “I’ve been knocked down, I’ve gone through things, I’ve learned a lot about myself. The motivation now, it’s always been, but it’s at an even greater level now, is just to help these guys become the best that they can be. The relationships have always been huge to me, always, it’s why I do it.”
Capel took the job before the 2018-19 season after the Panthers had just finished 8-24 overall and 0-18 in ACC play. It was no easy task to take the program over.
After his first four seasons all finished with losing records, Capel has since led the Panthers to an NCAA Tournament in 2023 and last year, another 20+ win season. He has the Panthers’ culture where he wants it to be, and a loaded roster heading into year seven that includes international prospects, proven high-major transfers, and several key returning pieces led by Jaland Lowe and Ishmael Leggett.
“I want to do this, he continued. “I love the game, I love being a part of a team, for my whole life I’ve been a part of a team. I’ve tried to be a great teammate. So, just, my motivation now is to help these guys become the best version of themselves that they can be and use all of my experiences as a player, as a coach, as a man, as a son of a coach, someone that’s been around this game and has been touched by some of the best, all of my experiences to help them become the best versions of themselves.”
