PirateCrew: Seton Hall Pirates Football & Basketball Recruiting
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By JP Pelzman
Grant Billmeier appreciates the praise he has received for helping Romaro Gill win the Big East Defensive Player of the Year award last season. But seeing Gill hoist that trophy is not his lasting memory of it.
“I always tell people,” Billmeier said, “the best thing about seeing Ro progress wasn’t seeing him become Big East Defensive Player of the Year and one of the best big men in the Big East. All the time we spent together was what made the journey special. Not getting to the finish line, but all the hours we spent in the gym."
“Because Ro was such a joy to be around. He never questioned anything,” Billmeier said. “He was one of the few players that could beat me to the gym every single day. If we had a workout at 8 a.m., he’d be in the gym by 7:40. He had such a commitment level and a passion to want to get better every single year.”
Billmeier certainly could relate. He was a gym rat during his playing days as a Pirate, and his philosophy has not changed as head coach Kevin Willard’s lead assistant.
Billmeier has good chemistry with fellow assistants Tony Skinn and Duane Woodward.
“We all have different personalities,” Billmeier told PirateCrew.com, “but we all have one common goal, to keep this program as one of the top programs in all of college basketball, and that is everyone’s objective. It’s something we take a lot of pride in, and we want to try to continue to get this program better and better every single year.”
Toward that end, Billmeier discussed The Hall’s recruiting strategy, one that has kept the Pirates in the upper echelon of the Big East in recent seasons, and has produced four consecutive NCAA Tournaments. Five, had it not been for the coronavirus.
“The biggest thing you’re looking for are guys who play hard every single game,” Billmeier said. “It’s easy to play hard when you’re 7-for-8 from 3. But what if you’re labeled as someone who’s supposed to be a great shooter and you’re having one of those nights where you don’t make shots?
“Are you still doing other stuff on the court to help your team win? Are you still playing as hard, if not harder, than anyone in the gym? That’s what we look for, just trying to find guys that love the game, want to continue to get better and want to be coached hard.”
Billmeier sees the same commitment from Skinn and Woodward.
“They're very hands-on,” he said. “They take this job very seriously. When they go out recruiting with their Seton Hall pullovers, they wear them with great pride. They look for great representatives to bring to this university, to continue to have one of the top teams and one of the hardest-playing teams in the Big East, as well as bringing in student-athletes that are going to take pride in trying to remain among the top teams in the Big East GPA-wise every year.”
And, of course, it starts at the top with Willard, now in his 11th year in South Orange.
“We have a tremendous relationship,” “I think I have a great understanding of what he wants at all times, what he wants from his (players), what he wants from his staff, so that’s always important--having your assistants be a reflection on you."
“And I've helped him and I want to continue to help him,” he added, “to get the guys to understand what he wants out of them on the court and in the classroom, and on campus. I've obviously learned a ton from him and I continue to learn from him every single day.”
Billmeier also is impressed with Willard’s relationships with his players off the court.
“He has a great bond with every kid. He’s very up-front and honest. They know he’s always got each kid’s best interest in mind 365 days a year and that doesn’t end when they get their diploma from Seton Hall. That relationship is still just building."
“I think they see all the former players that in a typical summer come back,” he added, “and the love they still have for Coach Willard. I think they see the relationships Coach Willard has cultivated over his time here at Seton Hall with all the former players and how much they respect him and how much he has done and how much he still continues to do for these guys.”
The mission statement of player development begins with Kevin Willard.
“It’s everything to us,” Billmeier said. “It doesn’t matter what the number next to your name is when you come in. It’s our job to try to get you to be the absolute best version you can be.”
As a player and as a person.
Billmeier’s fine work has been noticed. He was ranked second in a poll of top Big East assistant coaches by his peers in a survey by the website Stadium. He also was invited to the prestigious 2020 TopConnect virtual seminar for some of the best assistant coaches in the country.
Still, he isn’t thinking about the next step.
“The biggest thing is I try for our program to be the best it can be. Whatever door opens from there, I'll evaluate that decision when I get to that. The biggest thing is being caught up in the moment. Don’t worry so much about being a head coach. Just worry about being the best possible assistant that I can be."
Part 2 to follow
