Craig Skinner
Head Coach

University of Kentucky Women's Volleyball

Q & A with UK Women's Volleyball Coach Craig Skinner

What is one of your favorite aspects of coaching?         

My favorite aspect by far is seeing players develop and seeing them do things they’ve never done before.  That’s why I started coaching and why I continue to do it. I love seeing them be able to do something new and different.

what is your favorite road trip story?

I don’t know if it’s a favorite since it was a disaster, but it was definitely memorable!  In 2007, we were flying to Cedar Rapids, Iowa to play UNI. We got diverted to Ft. Wayne due to storms in Chicago.  The storms were so bad that there were no other flights going through Chicago, so we were stuck. We ended up getting on a bus and drove the entire way from Ft. Wayne to Cedar Rapids.  We got to the Cedar Rapids Airport around 3:30 am, and the car rental company had left our keys out for us on the counter. We moved all of our stuff from the bus into vans and made the trek to our hotel in Cedar Falls, and ended up getting there around 5:00 am.  We rested as much as we could–we had a match to play that night, plus 2 the next day. We ended up winning our match that evening, and the next day during our 2nd match won against UNI on their home court 16-14 after being down 12-14. That trip was definitely one for the memory books!

What are 5 things you can’t live without during a match?

Rotation sheets

Blue ink pens

Towel – to yell into if I need to!

Asking the staff what rotation to start with

Halls cough drops — our trainer has always given us cough drops before each match and it’s a tradition that we have just stuck with!

What are you most looking forward to in the upcoming season?  

Well, I love the chance to compete, so I’m excited for that every season! But, the other great part is seeing the process of how the team develops from the beginning of the season to the end. It’s an evolution of where we start to where we finish, and the journey of how the season evolves is something I am always excited to be a part of.

Do you have a favorite hobby or cause you are passionate about?

My favorite hobby is golf–I love to play whenever I can.   I’m passionate about always finding ways to better myself and learn something new.  It’s important to me to be able to show my three kids and my team that you can always grow and learn new things.

Please tell us something about yourself that most people would not know.   

I lived in Wales for two years and played rugby and cricket while I was there.

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