Kansas State hosts introductory press conference for Casey Alexander
- Hank Corsair
- 6 days ago
- 2 min read
Kansas State hosted a press conference to welcome and introduce Casey Alexander as the new men’s basketball coach on Monday morning at the Shamrock Zone inside Bramlage Coliseum.
Once Alexander took the stage, he made his goals for the program known right away, most notably that everything he does stems from the program's style for the team and players. “We want to be a style that is fun to play, fun to watch, fun to cheer for, and leads to wins,” he said.
Another important question that Alexander was asked about was recruiting at the high school level, which he called “a missing piece for a lot of programs.”
Overall, he wants fans to see a program that they will know what the identity is, whether it’s the team, the players' faces, or the style of play.
After talking about his goals, Alexander noted that it might take time for the Wildcats to win consistently. “I’ve got plenty to learn,” he said when asked how much he thinks he will have to change while making the move from the mid-major level. Another thing that he notes is that there will likely be a large turnover this season, but that he wants to build a program and not let that happen on an annual basis. But he also said that things can change quickly in the modern day of college athletics.
Throughout his speech, Alexander talked about how excited he is to be at Kansas State. “A lot of people are gonna ask: why K-State?” he said. “This crowd, people that are passionate about their team and their school is the reason why.” He also said that many in the Manhattan community have already welcomed him, and that the community is one of his favorite parts of being a coach. “It’s one of my favorite parts of the business, and the job is connecting and sharing a like-minded approach toward what we’re all trying to accomplish,” he added.
Alexander also called Bramlage Coliseum an “awesome facility” and highlighted that he was in Bramlage when he was an assistant coach at Belmont in 2005, the first and only matchup between the Wildcats and the Bruins.
Gene Taylor was the first person to speak at the press conference. He started by thanking the selection committee that led to the hiring of Casey Alexander, which included Kenny Lannou, Casey Scott, Rob Heil, and Jordan Henriquez.
Taylor said that Alexander checked the boxes the program was looking for: an experienced coach with a proven track record of success. “He’s won at every place that he’s been, and those are things that are important to us,” he said. Taylor also added that “most importantly,” Alexander wants to be at Kansas State.
Casey Alexander and his family returned to Nashville earlier today. As noted in a previous article, he will take over the basketball program right away due to the conclusion of Belmont’s season, and Kansas State buying him out from Belmont for $600,000.
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