The Citadel’s basketball roster is one player short of being able to fill out a major league baseball 25-man roster.
“I guess I have a soft spot for guys that have a smile on their face and love hoops and love ball, so anybody who’s on this campus and wants to make the commitment to do what we do every day is welcome,” said Citadel coach Ed Conroy, who was a three-year starter at the Charleston, S.C., military college in the late 1980s. “If you can fit in with our coaches and our team, that means you’re a hoops junkie.
“There’s no guarantee you’re going to play, but if you want to be part of a program, you can really develop as a player.”
Conroy’s open invitation to cadets and preferred walk-ons has resulted in a 24-man roster with 16 going to road games. During practices, they get equal attention to that of star guard Cameron Wells or 7-foot center Joe Wolfinger. Some days, the drills in practice are spread across the three full courts in McAlister Field House.
They just have different jobs. They play as The Citadel opponents and usually study opposing teams more than learning the Bulldogs’ slower offensive system.
“Sometimes it’s fun to get out and get more variety, because some teams are up-tempo and you can just go out there and not worry about taking bad shots or turning it over,” said walk-on junior Phillip Pandak. “I was Ty Patterson when we prepared for Chattanooga. We worked on their transition game and shooting off the break and off their pick and roll. It was pretty fun.”
Patterson scored 19 points against The Citadel, but the Bulldogs won 68-60.
“It’s fun to get out of the norm and pretend to be somebody else,” Tom Fitzpatrick said. “It’s good knowing that you have nothing to lose and are preparing the first team by running the other guys’ stuff. Sometimes, I think we’re better than the other team at their own stuff.”
Playing various styles throughout the season will help some of the practice players after they graduate. It will help them not as pro players but as future coaches.
“I think we have several on our roster who will be coaches, and I think coaching needs some of these guys,” Conroy said. “Like Zach Beach, when he first tried out, he said, ‘I want to be a coach someday, so I want to be around the program and help out any way I can.'”
A bigger team also means a bigger family.
“It seemed weird at first, but this has been a fun ride this season,” Fitzpatrick said. “It would be one thing if we had individuals on the team, but everybody is here for the team.”