June 29, 2004

Wake Forest Director of Athletics Ron Wellman:
"When looking for a head coach we look for certain things, all of which Rick Rembielak has. First of all, he's competitive. Rick has a strong competitive background as a player and a coach. As the head coach at Kent State for 11 years, he became the winningest coach of any sport. He's consistent and his records show this level of excellent success, when one wins two-thirds of your games is saying a lot. Second, he's an outstanding recruiter. He brought excellent players and quality young men to Kent State, and we feel that is extremely important to us as well. Thirdly, Rick is an outstanding developer of that talent. All of the coaches and scouts I spoke with about Rick had similar comments, that he will develop the players talent regardless of the position. Finally, Rick is committed to academic excellence. He has a high graduation rate and he cares about his players more as people than as baseball players. Rick is a great fit for Wake Forest and we're pleased to welcome him to our family and we look forward to an outstanding future with him."

New Wake Forest Baseball Coach Rick Rembielak:
"The last 48 hours have been an absolute enjoyment. I'm humbled and honored to be at this university. Ron really hit it, Wake Forest is a great fit academically and athletically. I couldn't ask for a better place... all the ingredients for success are here."

"My excitement to come here is unbounded; to be able to recruit the elite athlete and elite student to participate in this elite atmosphere is awesome."

"Everything I've heard about this school, especially the athletic department, is true. It's a great family atmosphere, there is a great support staff and I think as difficult as transitions can be for coaches and families, it will be easier because of the support staff here at Wake."

"I've had great players, and I've been honored to coach all of them. One of the best feelings is when they come back and you see how successful they are. That is the ultimate in coaching. It's not what they do now, but what takes place 5-10-15 years down the road. I will continue that here. I don't believe there is any reason for an athlete not to want to come back and participate in the program and university."

"It's not just the skill level on the field that you see, but also what you see in that person. The players and the people here all give it that same family atmosphere that I found at Kent State. With that said, all the pieces are in place for me to really do what I came to do."

Q&A:

1. Dan Collins, Winston-Salem Journal: Did you go to Kent State to work with Coach Hall?
"Yes, Coach Hall was the graduate assistant at Miami Ohio when I was playing there. He then took the job at Kent State and happened to be looking for an assistant coach when I graduated, so I came on board with him."

2. Dan Collins, Winston-Salem Journal: Did you ever have any temptations to leave Kent State?
"I was never the type of guy who needed to end up fulfilling an ego. I was satisfied and happy at Kent State, if it wasn't for the people I would have tried to get out of there long ago. I grew up in Cleveland, played in the Mid-American Conference and it was a good fit. When I was asked to take the job there, I played it cool on the phone, but the excitement I had when I hung up the phone was such that I knew just what I wanted to do at that time. I heard what had happened at Wake this year, and having played here and coached a team that played here, and lived here for a year, etc, there were just lots of other little things that make me believe that this is my destined place in my coaching career."

3. Dan Collins, Winston-Salem Journal: What would you say is your coaching style?
"Score more runs that opposition and shut down hitters... (laughter)... I have a soft spot for umpires, so I need to be more aggressive with them perhaps. Overall, it's more or less the make up of the ball club at the time, you've got to create offense, move around the defense. I've always had good pitching staffs, but always built my philosophy on defense, that is where you win championships."

4. Sam Walker, Gold Rush: Do you have an estimate time frame for assembling staff?
"Immediate... there is a list and we're in a process of firming it up, as soon as possible. If you want a certain person, you do whatever you can. We're somewhat behind in our recruiting process, but phone calls start July 1 and it is important to get in with the kid and family, so we need to identify who we want to target. I'm somewhat behind on evaluations, since I was evaluating differently just a week and a half ago. As far as a time frame, we're talking soon as in hours, not days."

5. Sam Walker, Gold Rush: Are you alone in this recruiting process?
"Yes, just Ron as my partner here, I've got to utilize him."

6. Sam Walker, Gold Rush: Do you think you have a good handle on what you have and your needs?
"Honestly, I don't. On paper I've got a good idea, but I've got to look at the people, see their best fit and where they belong. There are all types of circumstances so you really don't know until you get involved with them. We've talked about some players, but at this point I've got to go out and evaluate the players myself. If he can hit, then there's a spot for him. I'll find the guy and put him in a successful situation."

7. Dan Collins, Winston-Salem Journal: When did you call Coach Hall when you heard about the job?
"Within the first two phone calls. I've learned lots from him on overall presentation, recruiting ranks, coaching ranks, etc. I had an idea about what Wake Forest was all about, but I wanted to ask people who have observed and seen things and I know you can feel sincerity and over the phone lines he was pushing that if you have an opportunity, take advantage. He was happier than I could have imagined when I accepted."