More Than Just a Game

It’s an exciting time in the world of Panther athletics as Eastern Illinois University’s basketball programs prepare to get their 2015-16 seasons underway, particularly for the student-athletes making up the teams’ rosters. For those players, the games they’re about to begin playing are the culmination of a great deal of hard work and sacrifice.

“We’re not like normal students,” said senior guard Luke Norman, one of the holdovers from last year’s 18-15 men’s basketball squad. “We’ve got to be disciplined, get ready for practice every day, and be in the best shape possible. That means sacrificing weekends and whatever else we have to do.

“You really have to have time management. You have to set aside the time to get your study hours and do your homework, along with practice. That’s part of the sacrifice you’ve got to make: When you’re done practicing, you’ve got to get into the books and make sure you get good grades because you’re a student-athlete.”

Norman is one of the holdovers from the first EIU squad to post a winning record since 2009-10. Third-year head coach Jay Spoonhour’s roster features nine players who played elsewhere last season, meaning incumbents like Norman, senior wing Trae Anderson, and sophomore point guard Cornell Johnston bear the additional responsibility of providing mentorship for a host of new faces.

“The most challenging part to me is probably becoming more of a leader, vocally and just by example,” said Anderson. “We’ve got a lot of new guys – a lot of freshmen and a lot of juco transfers – and we’ve got a lot to learn, so it’s just getting the team together and being a leader.

“You just have to want to do it. You just have to set aside the partying, set aside the TV-watching, video game-playing … just focus on homework. Without the school, there’s no basketball.”

Added Johnston, who started every game last year as a freshman: “I play a role that’s trying to lead this team and be a leader with this team, so I just try and give it everything I’ve got. If we’re not in the gym, we’re somewhere in study hall. I try and get as much schoolwork as I can throughout the day done. All the free time I have goes toward academics.

One thing all three agree upon is the pride they take in being able to represent Eastern on the court.

“It’s a great honor,” said Norman, who along with Anderson was a junior college transfer himself. “Being part of this program with Coach Spoon, learning life’s lessons along with having fun playing the game I love.”

“It means a lot to me to be a part of EIU basketball,” said Johnston. “Coming in to EIU, I expected to get a fair shot at being able to play as a freshman, which I did. Ever since then, I was thankful for everything that has come along with it. Everything is good here at EIU for me.”

“Coming here, I didn’t really think I was going to become the player I am,” admits Anderson. “It’s really special to me and I take pride in it.”

Spoonhour says his is a group well-equipped for facing the unique challenges of student-athlete life.

“Their work ethic is terrific,” said Spoonhour. “You’ve got to have three things: You’ve got to have good players, you’ve got to get guys who’ll listen and try to do what you say, and you’ve got to get guys who just try hard.

“Some (coaches) maybe can deal with one of those things not being there, but for me I’ve got to have guys that’ll do those three things.”

That work ethic applies to their studies, as well.

“You look at the GPAs of all the students in our university and in our sports teams, and it’s phenomenal how many 4.0 and 3.5 students we have,” said Spoonhour. It’s obvious he has high expectations for his players in every aspect of their college life, and those expectations don’t appear to be lost on the players making up the Panthers’ core.

“You’ve got to trust the process,” said Norman. “You’re not going to get better right away. It’s a process. Every day, every week we’re striving to get better, and I think that’s the most challenging part -- to be patient. Trust the coaches and trust your teammates to make sure that in the end the process will pay off and we’ll be successful.”

Adds Anderson: “The mentality I bring to practice is probably just a die-hard effort; trying to focus on the little things, trying to focus on the things a lot of people don’t focus on, and trying to focus on the flaws I need to get better on.”

After all, nothing comes easy.

“Kids see games on TV and they just think guys were ordained to be good players,” continued Spoonhour. “No, for some of those guys it’s taken years to get to that point. Mixing kids’ expectations with the reality of what they need to do to help us win – and to get them to set aside some of their own personal goals for what our team is – that’s always the trick … you’ve got to get them to understand that none of us go anywhere unless EIU does well.”

And no matter how the wins and losses go this season for the men’s team, which has shown steady improvement in that area under Spoonhour’s watch, certain bonds are being built each and every day within his program.

“Being on a basketball team, we see each other every day,” said Anderson. “We become closer friends than anybody else. It’s taught me to be more loyal to people, especially people who look after you.”

“It’s one of the closest teams I’ve ever been on,” added Norman. “We have a lot of fun together. It’s a tight-knit group. We all do things together, and I think it shows in practice. We’re comfortable with getting on each other, but at the same time we know we have to motivate people and bring each other up. We’re all good friends.”