University of North Carolina Athletics
Roy Williams Quotes
February 8, 2005 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 8, 2005
On the rivalry:
"A couple years ago I did know this was the greatest rivalry in college basketball and college sports, I don't know which one. I think it's recognized as that around the country and yet there are other really big time rivalries around the nation. I was involved in Kansas and Missouri and things like that and on the west coast there is Arizona and Stanford, but I don't think any of them can step ahead of Duke and North Carolina. The success this program has had for many years from Frank McGuire and Coach Smith on down to Coach Guthridge and Matt [Doherty]. I mean it's been a long, long time they have been successful, I just don't know if you can find any place that has had this tradition of history for such a long period of time that these two clubs have. The fact that you are eight miles apart and use the same airports and things like that, just adds a little more to it."
On his relationship with Mike Krzyzewski:
"Well, eight minus thirteen years on the board of directors and Mike moved up to be president and I think I was president maybe two or three years after him, but I have a great deal of respect for his concerns, for the issues of college basketball, his opinions on the issues of college basketball and how hard the entire board in the industry has tried to work from the beginning of the years. Mike was one of the great leaders of that, so I have a great deal of respect for him, off the court about what he has tried to do to help our college game better. The work he has tried to do behind the scenes, very few people realize it is a lot of work to do for thirteen years and the amount of days that you give up and the college basketball issues. You have to have respect for that and I have tremendous amount of respect for what he has done on the court. The fact that I am here now, competing with him, has not done anything to diminish that respect. We have been very, very close on a huge majority of these issues and I think he is, at that level over there, very difficult to compete with because he is at such a high level. It is difficult to recruit against him, it's difficult to play him."
On the rivalry being the main focus:
"You know, if you look at it in the long term, you could probably go back and add North Carolina State to that. And I think when you look at it in those terms, it's probably right, I think that the number of times that the two teams have met and they are ranked so highly, it's just gotten more national attention. And that in it self is maybe more attractive than the players, the prospects don't want to be involved in it."
On how he would rank playing at Cameron compared to other tough places:
"It's one of the toughest, there is no question about that. There are a lot of places your team can play in, and if your team is not real good there is even more places that are way difficult. But, there is great, great places to play, there is no question that Cameron is one of the best and I think the Smith Center is one of the best."
