Last week, Dave Rubio learned he was inching toward 500 career wins at the UA.
Typical of him, the Wildcats’ 27th-year volleyball coach downplayed his pending accomplishment.
“If you’re in any place long enough,” he said, “you’re going to get to a pretty large number.”
Yet there is so much more to it.
Only five coaches in UA history have won 500 or more games at the school: softball coach Mike Candrea, former baseball coaches Jerry Kindall and Frank Sancet and former basketball coaches Lute Olson and Fred Enke.
Only one coach in Pac-12 volleyball history has won 500 or more games at a school: UCLA’s Andy Banachowski won 619 from 1986 to 2009.
Rubio can reach the 500 mark with wins over Tennessee-Martin and New Mexico State in the Wildcat Classic at McKale Center on Friday.
Rubio’s career numbers are even higher. He has won 620 career matches when you factor in a stop at Cal State Bakersfield, which was not a Division I program at the time. The NCAA ranks Rubio 20th all-time in wins among active coaches.
Rubio has managed to pile up victories, but winning isn’t his main focus. At least not now.
“I think for most coaches, you really don’t think about the wins and losses. You’re really in the moment, trying to prepare for the next,” he said. “After your career is finished and as you retire, you look at those things. Right now, I really don’t even think about it.
“I am a much different coach than I was back then. I am much more prepared to be a comprehensive coach. Even though I really cared about the kids and I wanted them to do well, it was so much about winning. Obviously, it has to be or else I don’t have a job — but my ability to communicate, have insight, have subtlety and add nuance is much greater than it’s ever been.”
The game has changed as much as Rubio has.
There are new rules, a new position — libero — and rally scoring. These changes have resulted in increased parity, which Rubio says is good for the game. But sometimes parity can cause pain.
Last week, New Mexico State handed the Wildcats (8-1) their first loss of the season. It was the Aggies’ first win over a Power 5 school since defeating North Carolina on Aug. 30, 2008.
The teams will play again Friday night .
These days, Rubio seeks out new ways to motivate and teach his players. On Tuesday, he brought a portable speaker to play music during practice. He also looks to other coaches, reads books and listens to videos and Ted Talks — anything to get his young athletes’ attention.
Rubio recently talked to Candrea, a member of the exclusive 500-wins-at-Arizona club. Candrea shared a video of a conversation between basketball legend Kobe Bryant and football coach Nick Saban, from when Bryant met with the Alabama football team in August. Rubio returned the favor, showing off a worn copy of “Mindset: The New Psychology of Success,” a book by Carol Dweck.
Rubio also relies on a small group of fellow coaches for tips and tricks. He texts several times a day with Wichita State coach Chris Lamb, former Bakersfield coach John Price, Sonoma State’s Bear Grassl and UA assistants Rita Stubbs and Gregg Whitis. The topics vary, from to which drills to run to which statistics to use.
Lamb, a former UA assistant, “is the architect of a lot of things I do now from a drill standpoint and a statistical standpoint …” Rubio said. “Everyone tends to be pretty aloof, especially in upper levels. They don’t want to share information and give away their intellectual property. Our group has been extremely influential for me and I’ve been very fortunate to have the ability to call any one of those people and say, ‘What do you think about this drill? How are you training your outside hitters now?’ And all that helps us. It’s helped me become a better coach and continue to grow.”
Those are the wins that truly matter to Rubio. The on-court victories are just a bonus.
“I wish all my players could play for me now … the Dave Rubio now versus the Dave Rubio back in his 30s or even in his 40s,” he said. “It’s a different perspective that I come from now.”
