Talking Beach Volleyball with USC Head Coach Dain Blanton
Getting the inside scoop on USC beach volleyball, and the wider world of the sport, with USC head coach Dain Blanton.
Welcome back to Sports Untold! I’m Benjamin Mock and today we’re talking collegiate beach volleyball. I had the opportunity to sit down with USC beach volleyball head coach Dain Blanton to discuss the Trojans’ season, and the wider world of beach volleyball.
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On March 11th 2020, USC’s beach volleyball team left the sand at Merle Norman Stadium at the end of a day of mixed successes. The #6 ranked Trojans had beaten #10 Pepperdine 4-1, but had fallen to #2 UCLA 3-2 in the day’s second dual. The USC recap of the day’s events ends with a preview of the squad’s next fixtures - a tournament in DeLand, Florida that weekend, and a dual against Florida Atlantic the following Tuesday.
Neither of the those events would come to pass.
On March 12th, the NCAA cancelled all remaining winter and spring championships in the face of the quickly worsening Covid-19 pandemic. While most news outlets focused on the cancellation of March Madness, beach volleyball quietly saw the rest of its season disappear.
But thirteen months later, USC are back on the court and ready to challenge for their fourth National Championship.
A brief history of NCAA (and USC) beach volleyball
Beach volleyball, currently a women’s-only sport at the collegiate level, is the NCAA’s youngest championship sport. It gained championship status ahead of the 2015-16 academic year. Prior to that, the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) had administered an invitational combine beginning in 2006, and later a National Championship between 2012 and 2015.
USC’s beach volleyball programme began in the 2011-12 academic year under coach Anna Collier. During the AVCA championship era, Collier lead the Trojans to an National Title in 2015. The team proceeded to take the 2016 and 2017 NCAA titles, and finished runner-up in 2019.
Collier, now a two-time Coach of the Year, retired after the 2019 season. Taking the helm in her place was Dain Blanton, an Olympic gold medallist who served as an volunteer assistant coach for the Trojans between 2015 and 2018. When he was hired for the job at USC, he was working as a broadcaster and had in fact covered the 2019 National Championship.
A dominant start to 2021
When the 2020 season was cancelled, USC sat at 6-5. They began the 2021 season 13-0. But that doesn’t quite emphasize just how strong USC’s start was. Of the 65 pairs matches played, USC won 61. They swept 9 of their 13 wins 5-0. But Coach Blanton gave a nuanced perspective on USC’s season-opening dominance:
"It's kind of a double-edged thing. It can give you a false read on where you're at. What I told the team is “put your head down, work hard" and we started doing that and ran through some teams. But we knew that hey, we haven't played some teams that are going to be a lot more competitive and a lot stronger. And so we were expecting that and we planned that with the schedule.”
And for Blanton, it was less about the winning streak, which he did acknowledge as an undeniably good thing, and more about developing a strong team culture:
"Everyone out there is on board. The culture that I'm trying to institute is about having a great time and reaching your potential, and playing the best that you can play…We believe the score will take care of itself and the other rewards take care of themselves. We want to focus on the process and getting better. Because if you were playing and you were in trouble, and I just say "hey, you just need to watch the ball hit your arms, lock out your arms, pass the ball" that's something tangible you can work with. Because if I'm just "WE GOTTA WIN" then you're going to be like "well what does that do to help me?"
They would split their fourteenth and fifteenth duals of the season with Florida State and LSU respectively, putting the team at 14-2. However, Blanton and the team were prepared for this:
"We hit teams like Florida State and LSU and finally got a look at what's out there. And they were great; really strong teams. Played well, pushed us, showed us some things we need to work on…It was encouraging. I think Tina, at the 1s, lost 17-15 and if they'd have won that, we'd have won the dual. And we lost another 15-13. And we're talking about only a couple of points but in the end, that's what it comes down to."
At the time of writing, USC sits at 18-2 with five left to play in the regular season.
The ideal team
Obviously, the results on the sand come from the players Dain puts out there:
"We had Hailey Harward come over before the pandemic, from Long Beach State. She was the libero for Long Beach. And we pursued Julia Scoles, who was at Hawaii. Both really physical, really strong. What I saw in them is their raw talent. I don't know if they had been coached in beach volleyball quite as much. But what I always say is that you can teach someone beach volleyball and how to play but it's hard to teach someone how to be an athlete. And they both had that component…
And then we had the return of Tina Graudina, from taking a year off which she had done in 2020 because Tokyo, which didn't happen…And so getting all those players back, in addition to the class we have, with players like Joy Dennis, Sammy Slater, Haley Hallgren, we just created a really strong unit.”
USC has used thirteen starters this season - 2 freshmen, 3 sophomores, 2 juniors, 3 seniors, and 3 grad students. They were able to retain the core of their line-up from 2020, after the NCAA granted players an extra year of eligibility. And this balance has had such an important impact on the season, and for future successes.
"It's awesome. You want that balance and the hardest thing when you're recruiting, is to create that balance. But you're going to have ebbs and flows, and you're gonna have stronger years. But if you can gauge it so it’s constantly [Dain trailed off but mimed a steady upward trend with his hand]...you can fill in those gaps with solid players so you don't have these drop offs…But the freshmen get to see the upperclassmen and the older girls and see how they function, how you do it, and learn from people who are already there. Because being 18, being 22, there's a big difference. So they [the freshmen] are learning to compete, and they know that the team will soon be theirs”
And while Dain had nothing but praise for his team, he singled out one player in particular:
"The way Megan Kraft's playing...I think Megan Kraft will be the best player in the nation, quickly…She kinda reminds me of a Kerri Walsh-type player but way further ahead at this point than Kerri was. Kerri was an indoor player who moved to the beach later. But Megan's been playing the beach for so long." [Kerri Walsh Jennings is a three-time Olympic gold medallist and three-time FIVB World Champion considered one of the best beach volleyball players of all time]
Kraft has had an outstanding freshman campaign. She is 18-2 and was named AVCA pair of the week on April 13th alongside Tina Graudina after they went 4-0 together in the Pac-12 North Invitational last weekend.
Kraft was the #1 beach volleyball prospect of the last recruiting class and has previously seen some action on the AVP and FIVB tours.
From top to bottom (or clockwise from top-left): Joy Dennis, Megan Kraft, Tina Graudina, and Aubrey Norse.
The rivals
Anyone familiar with USC knows that UCLA are considered their biggest athletic rivals. And beach volleyball is no different. UCLA are the only other school to have won an NCAA Championship, winning the 2018 and 2019 titles. At the time of writing, they are currently the #1 ranked school in the country (USC is currently ranked #2) with a record of, at the time of writing, 21-1.
And USC just so happens to close out their season against the Bruins in back to back meetings. They will meet on Saturday (April 17th) at the Center of Effort Challenge hosted by Cal Poly. They will then face off in a regular season-ending dual at Mapes Beach, UCLA’s home sand.
"Doesn't matter if there's a season or no season, it's a big rivalry and it's a lot of fun…Me and Stein Metzger [UCLA head coach], we like to schedule one match in the beginning and one match in the end, and then we know we're probably gonna meet up in one of these Pac-12 events, and we're going to meet in the Pac-12 Championships probably. So we gotta be careful because we don't want to play...10 matches, otherwise they’re not a special”
However, Dain stressed that he doesn’t let the rivalry eclipse the rest of the season:
“We train our kids with "hey, every game is important. I want us to go at everyone the same way."
That one UCLA loss came against USC in early March. On March 4th, USC hosted UCLA at Merle Norman. The 5-0 sweep saw USC take down UCLA’s four best starting pairs.
However, taking on UCLA at Mapes Beach is a whole other challenge. The Bruins are 12-0 at home and will be eager to take a perfect home record into the Pac-12 Championships that they are also scheduled to host. Despite this daunting statistic, the Trojans will take to the sand at Mapes with the knowledge that UCLA can be beaten.
Beyond the collegiate game
Due to Covid, 2021 has suddenly become an Olympic year. The Tokyo Olympics begin on July 23rd. Beach volleyball, hosted at a custom-built stadium in Shiokaze Park, begins on July 24th. Given I had the good fortune to be speaking to an Olympic gold medallist, I asked him what the Olympics meant for beach volleyball:
"It's massive. For some other sports, it's not as big because they have these other big events. Tennis has the majors, and golf...well we've just had the Masters. In our sport, there's nothing bigger or better.”
As Blanton said, there is nothing higher on the prestige ladder than the Olympic tournament. FIVB does host both a pro tour and world championship, but they sit 3rd and 2nd respectively behind the Olympics. And while there are many issues with the Olympics, it is a vital way for sports like beach volleyball to gain visibility with a wider audience.
"The Olympics is a great opportunity for beach volleyball to be showcased. And it's always one of the most popular sports. I think that started in Sydney, where they built the 10,000 seat arena, and they had the dancers and they had the party environment."
The 2000 Sydney Olympics also happened to have a men’s beach volleyball gold medallist by the name of Dain Blanton.
We will see at least one USC representative at the games in Tokyo. As previously mentioned, Tina Graudina took 2020 off in order to focus on the Olympic Games. Graudina, who represents Latvia internationally, qualified for the Games at the Intercontinental Qualification Tournament in late 2019 alongside long-time partner Anastasija Kravčenoka.
Outside the Olympics
The sport is growing, especially at the collegiate level. 22 Division I schools are considering adding beach volleyball by 2024. In 2018, Amazon signed a partnership with the US-based AVP Tour to stream its matches for the next three years.
However, for a sport like beach volleyball, sustained viewership will always be its Achilles heel. People will watch it obsessively at the Olympics, then completely forget it exists for four years. That is what people in the sport are hoping to change.
For what it’s worth - the FIVB World Tour is holding an event in Cancún from today until Tuesday, which you can watch on YouTube.
TLDR
Dain Blanton loves beach volleyball. And I don’t just say that because he’s the head coach of a collegiate beach volleyball programme. You can hear it in his voice, you can see it on his face.
The Trojans programme he oversees is good. Damn good. They opened the 2021 season 13-0, held their nerve against fellow top programmes, and look like a bona fide title contender.
They have a balanced team of seasoned veterans and young stars. Whether it’s superstar in the making Megan Kraft, roster anchoring twins Aubrey and Nicole Nourse, or upperclass leaders like Tina Graudina and Hailey Harward, every starter is valuable.
The regular season may be coming to an end for beach volleyball, but USC still faces an arduous journey to May 9th’s National Championship Game in Gulf Shores, Alabama. Storied rivals, and #1 ranked, UCLA await them in the regular-season finale. The Bruins are also likely to be the dragon that must be slain if the Trojans hope to defend their 2019 Pac-12 title, and secure their first National Title since 2017.
The Trojans have been hailed as title contenders all season. Now they need to do the hardest part and win.
A big thank you to Dain Blanton for taking the time to speak with me for this article. You can catch the Cal Poly tournament here. You can watch the Pac-12 tournament (starting April 29th) here.
Okay, that’s all from me this week. Thank you again for reading, I’ll be back next Friday. Stay safe and hap- wait, why has a rose just appeared on my computer? What is happening?
Postscript: Can I Steal You Away?
Dain Blanton is a collegiate head coach. He’s been a pro player and a sports broadcaster. And once upon a time, in the distant land of 2003, he nearly appeared on ABC’s The Bachelor.
If you’re not familiar with The Bachelor, it’s a reality dating show where one man is presented with ~30 women and week by week, eliminates them from the show until only 2 remain. He then proposes to the one he wants to be with. There’s dates, there’s drama, and in 2003, there was nearly Dain.
Blanton explained that in 2002, (which would coincide with the production of the show’s second and third seasons) producers contacted the AVP Tour to scout some potential talent. With the show in its infancy and The Bachelorette (same thing but with a woman and ~30 men) also filming its maiden season in 2002, the precedent that the eponymous Bachelors typically came out of previous seasons’ casts had not yet been established. In fact, that precedent was begun by the first season of The Bachelorette, which was helmed by Bachelor Season One runner-up, Trista Rehn.
Dain would be passed over for season 3 in favour of businessman Andrew Firestone and his only appearance was in a brief video package at the start of Andrew’s season.
If Dain had been chosen as the Bachelor, he would have the show’s the first Black lead. That milestone would eventually be passed by The Bachelorette with the casting of Rachel Lindsay for Season 13 (2017), and by The Bachelor with the casting of Matt James for Season 25 (2021).
On the topic of whether he would have made a good Bachelor, Dain had this to say:
“Yeah, I think would have been fun but you gotta remember that this was nearly 20 years ago and things were very different. Reality TV was this brand-new thing and I don’t think I wanted the stigma that came with that. But at the same time, it was never at the point of “do you want to be the Bachelor - yes or no?”, I was just one of the people they were considering. They did come back to me a few years later and that was a lot deeper and I came a lot closer to being the Bachelor. But this was 14, 15 years ago and they’ve just had their first African-American lead this year, right? Yeah, that could have been me but at that point, I didn’t really want to be the one to change the formula.”
As for an endorsement of Dain’s hypothetical Bachelor casting, after I asked whether he felt he would have been a good Bachelor, he repeated the question to Laurel Weaver, his assistant coach, who was sitting off-screen for the final minutes of the interview. Without hesitation, Weaver replied:
“Oh yeah you would!”
And while Blanton seemed content with not having been the Bachelor, he didn’t rule out appearing on the show, which is now entering its 26th (Bachelor) and 17th (Bachelorette) seasons:
[In response to a question about the common occurrence of sport-centric dates on the show and whether he would be down to appear in a teaching capacity] “Oh definitely. I love to teach beach volleyball and I would definitely do that. Years ago, I actually helped train Shaq for a beach volleyball episode of Shaq Vs., where he played a match against Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh. That was a lot of fun so yeah, I would definitely consider it if they asked me to appear and do something like that”
Take that as you will, ABC.
Okay folks, thank you again. Stay safe and happy sporting.