Roman will serve as Redhawks' acting coach

Zac Roman, named Southeast Missouri State's acting men's basketball coach on Thursday, promises to put a solid product on the court that fans will not be disappointed in.

"I want the community to rally around these kids," Roman said. "It's been a tough situation for them, not knowing who was going to be the coach.

"We're going to give them [fans] a good product. Our kids will play hard, they're going to play smart and they're going to play together."

Roman was selected to lead the Redhawks one week after coach Scott Edgar was placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of an NCAA hearing on alleged rules violations in the men's basketball program.

That hearing will take place in late February at the earliest, meaning Edgar is virtually assured of missing the entire season. And Edgar's overall future at Southeast is in serious jeopardy despite his being in just the third-year of a five-year contract.

"Zac has been a very effective assistant coach and I am confident that he will do a great job for the Redhawks," Southeast interim director of athletics Cindy Gannon said in a release from the university.

Roman, in his second season at Southeast, touched on a variety of topics in an interview shortly after the university tabbed him to run the program this year.

"It's a tough situation for the entire program, but I'm excited," said Roman, whose squad begins practice today. "Now we can move on."

Roman, 39, was selected acting coach over Southeast's other two assistants who also interviewed for the position this week.

Rodney Hamilton, 32, also is in his second season at Southeast while 60-year-old Tommy Suitts -- a former Division I head coach at Rice and Chicago State -- was hired last month.

Roman pointed out that he will not be the sole voice of Southeast basketball, emphasizing that he will rely heavily on the knowledge and skills of Hamilton and Suitts.

"Our staff is incredible. We're all on the same page," Roman said. "It's going to be a team effort [among the coaches]. I want our coaches to coach.

"We're all going to have a say. When the final word comes down, I'll make that decision. But coach Suitts has been around for a long time and Rodney is also a very good coach. I'm going to take input from wherever I can get it."

Taking over a program unexpectedly is nothing new to Roman, a native of Wichita, Kan., who came to Southeast after five years as an assistant at Johnson County (Kan.) Community College.

Roman served as Johnson County's interim coach over the final three months of the 2006-07 season after the Cavaliers' coach took a medical leave of absence.

Roman assumed controls of a struggling squad and guided it to an 11-9 record, Region VI and District 10 titles and the school's second appearance in the Division II national junior college tournament. He was named District 10 coach of the year.

"Even though it happened in January, I was in a similar situation at Johnson County," said Roman, a graduate of Wichita State University. "I'm confident. I think I'm good at getting the best out of everybody. I'm going to be firm but fair."

Roman said a major emphasis for this season will be on defense, particularly sound half-court defense. Offensively, he prefers to push the tempo whenever possible.

"We're going to defend. We're not going to be a big-time gambling team. We're going to protect the basket. We're going to be a very good on-the-ball defensive team," Roman said. "With our numbers [Southeast has just 10 available scholarship players] we're not going to be able to press a bunch, but we're going to pick our spots when we need to.

"As much as we can push the basketball and get down the floor, make the defense pay, that's my philosophy. We're going to push the ball when we have numbers, but when we don't have numbers, we're going to pull it out and execute in the half-court."

Added Roman: "We're going to try and get the ball to our scorers. Scoring will take care of itself. I think our guys will understand who we need to shoot the basketball."

Edgar's second Southeast team last season lost 14 of its final 15 games to finish 12-19 overall and 7-13 in the Ohio Valley Conference. The Redhawks placed ninth among 11 OVC squads and failed to make the eight-team conference tournament.

Considering that several key players transferred following last season, Southeast's top two recruits did not qualify academically and projected starting point guard Hank Harris suffered a season-ending Achilles tendon injury during a pickup game, little is expected from the Redhawks by those outside the program.

Southeast was picked to finish eighth in what is now a 10-team OVC. Roman said he understands where those prognosticators are coming from, but he doesn't expect them to be accurate.

"We're not getting any respect from anybody," said Roman, who played two seasons of baseball at Pratt (Kan.) Community College before a shoulder injury ended his career. "I'm going to have to coach with a chip on my shoulder. They're going to have to play with a chip on their shoulder.

"Picked eighth in the OVC, just thinking about it gets to me. It's a slap in the face. But it's just a number. We don't expect to finish there."

Roman said he plans on the Redhawks earning the respect of the OVC for their style of play.

"When other teams talk about us, I want them to say Southeast Missouri State is the scrappiest team in the OVC. They're going to harass you the whole game," he said.

With practice starting today and the first exhibition game barely two weeks away -- Nov. 1 against Missouri Baptist -- Roman said the Redhawks are anxious to get started.

"They're ready to get going, we're [the coaches] ready to get going," he said.

Roman declined to predict wins and losses, but he promises a strong season.

"We're going to have a good team. We're going to be successful," he said. "I'm not going to put a number on anything, but hopefully we'll develop throughout the season, keep getting better and peak at the right time.

"We have to get in the OVC tournament to give us a shot. If we get in the OVC tournament, anything can happen."

Asked if he hopes to be considered for the Redhawks' permanent coaching position following this season, Roman said that's not his primary concern at this stage.

"We just have to concentrate on our team right now, and all that other stuff will take care of itself," he said.

Noteworthy

• Roman said that junior college point guard Jeremy Lay, who recently gave Southeast a verbal commitment for the 2009-10 season, will not sign during next month's early signing period as he had originally planned.

Lay, a 6-foot sophomore at Northern Oklahoma College, could still wind up with the Redhawks, but that remains to be seen.

• The Redhawks have added three freshman walk-ons to the roster as they begin practice, including 6-foot-2 Marty Dames from Bell City High School.
• The Redhawks' opening practice today will begin at 5 p.m. in the Student Recreation Center, while Southeast's women will hold their first practice at 4 p.m. in the Show Me Center.