Hed: From one coach to another

By Travis J. Cordes

Daily Staff Writer

As a first-year head coach just stepping into a new job in a premier conference, it’s always nice to know that one of the best coaches in the history of the sport is just a phone call away.

Christy Johnson came to Iowa State in 2005 with eight years of assistant coaching experience at Wisconsin, and had a big task ahead of her with a historically bad Cyclone volleyball program.

Since she arrived in Ames, Johnson has kept close to Terry Pettit, her former coach at the University of Nebraska. The two still talk frequently, and having a coaching guru of sorts on the other line gives Johnson an extra voice to help her with coaching decisions.

“Once you move into the head coaching role, most decisions are yours and you have much more influence and decision-making power,” Johnson said. “I felt it was more important that I talk to other people about some of those decisions. It’s nice to have some outside perspective, and he’s just a great resource to have.”

At Nebraska, Johnson was an All-American setter and helped lead the Cornhuskers to a 32-1 record and a National Championship game in 1995. Pettit, Nebraska’s coach from 1975-1999, is widely known as one of the most successful coaches in collegiate volleyball history, as he won 21 conference titles, was named National Coach of the Year three times, and established one of the country’s most lavish volleyball traditions in his 23 years at the helm in Lincoln.

“I felt very lucky to play with him there,” Johnson said. “He is just really, really smart. He thinks a little differently than a lot of people, and not just about the technical things of volleyball, but he knows a lot about the mental side of things as well.”

Pettit now works as a “coaching enhancer” and is paid by several coaches and universities to assist in their coaching endeavors. In the coming months, Pettit will be releasing a book called “Talent and the Secret Lives of Teams,” which will feature Johnson and her fellow seniors from the ‘95 championship team in the final chapter as well as on the front cover.

Despite the fact he resides in Fort Collins, Colo., and has few chances to see the Cyclones play, because Pettit has been around the game for so long and has coached thousands of players, he is still able to give Johnson his thoughts.

“If a certain player is struggling but I can’t figure out why, I can call him up and see if he has any ideas,” Johnson said. “Conversations are usually about the emotional and mental side of players, and he has a really strange knack for knowing how to address stuff even if he doesn’t know who I’m talking about and he’s never seen them play.”

While the two frequently talk, Pettit knows that Johnson has the program in good hands, and his advice has never had to be anything too drastic.

“She usually has a pretty good handle on things before she calls,” Pettit said. “I don’t really tell her what to do, I just listen and maybe identify a few options for her, but she still has to make the decision.”

Pettit actually assisted Iowa State in the hiring process, as he was asked to be a hiring consultant to the athletics department. He immediately recognized several reasons for why Johnson would be a good fit for Iowa State, and the decision has paid off thus far. Now in her fourth season in Ames, Johnson has assembled a .597 winning percentage and has a 3-2 record in the NCAA Tournament at a school that won 13 conference matches in 180 tries in the nine years prior to her arrival.

“Christy is a special person, and I think she was going to be successful wherever she went,” Pettit said. “Things were aligned there for her to be successful more quickly [at Iowa State] than somewhere else, but I also think she has assembled a staff that really compliments her talents. Usually it takes awhile for someone to be able to do that, but she was able to right away.”

Johnson may have the program going in the right direction, but it still doesn’t hurt to have the knowledge of a coaching legend at her fingertips.