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Updated 6:28 AM on Wednesday, October 17, 2007

New UT women's coach doing things her way

By BRIAN DAVIS
The Dallas Morning News

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Gail Goestenkors sure knows how to prepare for her job as the Texas women's basketball coach. She went on a South African safari in May and saw tons of wild animals.

Compared to Orangebloods, the animals seemed pretty tame.

"I saw elephants, a zebra, a giraffe," Goestenkors said. "Didn't see a lion, but I saw a leopard. We had elephants charge at us. It was pretty incredible."

Come November, South Africa will feel like paradise compared to living in Austin and surviving in the Big 12 jungle. A hungry UT fan base, along with Aggies, Sooners and Bears? Oh, my.

"I think she will find out how strong this conference is," Texas A&M coach Gary Blair said. "She brought Duke from nothing to something. But she's replacing a Hall of Famer who basically built basketball in the state of Texas.

"Still, I think it's the perfect hire for them."

All those fans who clamored for a change from Jody Conradt will get their wish. The highly respected UT legend did things her way, but times are changin'.

Conradt held open practices. Any fan could walk in off the street and watch the Longhorns prepare inside the Erwin Center. Not any more. Goestenkors said she has closed practices to all outsiders.

"To me, that's our home," Goestenkors said.

"That's where we do 99 percent of our learning, during practice. To me, it's a very intimate environment that I don't want a lot of people involved in."

Goestenkors also will not visit with season ticket holders in the Burnt Orange Room inside the Erwin Center after home games. For years, Conradt and her players would meet with the media after games, then rush upstairs to field questions from the masses.

Junior Earnesia Williams said she enjoyed the interaction with fans, but she wouldn't get home until after 11 p.m. on most game nights. Other players got home even later, because they still had to get medical treatment.

"I'm sure we'll hear about that," Goestenkors said. "We'll do a couple [games] that were preselected, usually on weekends."

UT fans shouldn't be offended. Goestenkors has embraced everything about Austin, and fans will embrace her once they see her passion and intensity on the sidelines. Just ask Duke fans how they felt about losing her to UT.

But something had to change in Austin, and it wasn't just the coaching office decor.

The Longhorns did not make the NCAA Tournament the last two seasons. At the news conference in which Conradt announced her resignation from Texas, she said, "It's unacceptable."

Goestenkors isn't promising the Final Four overnight. She understands the high expectations, though. For right now, Goestenkors is getting to know her new players and vice versa.

Goestenkors gave every player a book, a la Phil Jackson. Some are motivational, others inspirational. The coach made each player write a book report, and the players must stand in the locker room and deliver it.

Williams said she believes it's designed to help players communicate with each other better.

Goestenkors has hosted barbecue cookouts at her home and even took the team to a ropes course, which emphasizes team building. Goestenkors said she'll often send her players text messages just to see how their day is going or how they're doing in class.

The X's and O's will be emphasized in November and December. Changing the culture around the UT women's program is Goestenkors' biggest challenge at the moment. Doing that simply takes time.

"Her attitude is walk, talk, act like a champion every day, every way," UT senior Erneisha Bailey said. "She makes sure she tells us that every day. It's kind of catchy. I like saying it."