The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

WHILE the College of the Bahamas will be transformed into the University of the Bahamas next week, everybody is waiting for the unveiling of its new Athletic Department.

Kimberly Rolle, the current athletic director of the Caribs, was tight-lipped as to exactly how it will all pan out, but she indicated that there is something exciting being planned.

“This year, the president (Rodney Smith) has formally written to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) to become a member,” Rolle said. “The conversation has begun. So far it has been really productive and headed in the right direction, so we are really excited about that.

“We see NAIA membership in our short term future and so we are just waiting for the university to happen so that we can mobilise a lot of our plans. With the university coming on stream, it will assist us in fast tracking our agenda.”

Rolle said Prime Minister Perry Christie has already pronounced that the 450 acres of sporting complex will be annex to the UB.

“That means that we will have direct access to what is known as the national facilities,” Rolle said. “That now becomes a part of the athletic platform for the university. That is huge for us because as you can imagine, with a move to the NAIA, facilities become important.”

With the incorporation of the national facilities into their programme, Rolle said they can now have their men’s basketball, women’s volleyball, women’s softball, men’s baseball and golf, if they choose to go that route.

“We now have the facilities for collegiate teams to now come in and participate in,” she said. “So to have that platform at the 450 acres is huge for our sports development and so we are excited about the talks we are engaged in with the NAIA and the sporting facilities that will be available to us.”

Additionally, Rolle said that would open the door for the university to look seriously at its recruiting programme for their athletic teams to seek out the international teams to help their athletic programme to blossom.

“In the short term, two to four years, we see tremendous growth within the athletic platform,” Rolle said. “We have two Jamaicans here on our athletic team, but 99 per cent is Bahamians.

“I think one of the other things we will have to look at in the very near future is obtaining full-time coaches. That has to happen for our programme to grow. These coaches will then be accountable for our programmes to grow.”

At present, all of the coaches are on a part-time basis. They include:

Softball - Oria ‘Big O’ Wood, assisted by Spurgeon Johnson.

Men’s basketball – Bacchus Rolle, assisted by Lavar Johnson.

Track and field – Rupert Gardiner, assisted by Ednal Rolle and Bradley Cooper.

Women’s volleyball – Cora Hepburn, assisted by Renaldo Knowles.

“We do not have a single coach full time on our staff,” Rolle said. “We may have to start in the first instances where we may have to hire one or two and then build the complement of the coaching staff.

“That is something that has to happen if we want to really see the growth and progress in our teams and take them to another level. For example, our track team and men’s basketball team is competing against full-time coaches. But the mere fact that we have been competitive is encouraging.”

The men’s basketball is coming off a trip to Florida over the weekend where they lost their two games played.

In the first game, the Caribs lost 95-85 to Ave Marie University. In that game, Kemsy Sylvestre scored 35 points with eight rebounds; Justin Smith had 20 points and four assists and Jason Stubbs chipped in with 10 points.

After a day of, the team played Florida Memorial University, losing 77-54. Smith led the attack with 16 points; Sylvestre had 15 points and 10 rebounds before fouling out and Justin Munroe added 10 points and eight rebounds.

This weekend, the Caribs will host its homecoming against Trinity College with a pair of games on tap on Friday and Saturday at 8 pm at the Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium.

“I think the guys are hungry, having come of their performances this weekend,” Rolle said. “They will be ready to show the COB community as well as the general community that they have taken their game to another level.

“I think anybody who came to the games last year would have seen that as we took Florida Memorial to triple overtime and ended up losing a heartbreaker by just two points. It shows that we are competitive, but it’s now how do we get over the hump.”

By participating in the New Providence Basketball Association, Rolle said the games have helped to catapult the Caribs to what the fans can expect this season.

“The campus has a buzz about it,” Rolle said. “We expect the gym to be filled both nights. The students can get in free once they produce their ID. So we are expecting a strong fan base for the games.”

The games will serve as a prelude to the transformation of the college to the university status, but it’s not a part of the official programme.

However, it will be the last time that COB will be known as the Caribs.

When asked what will they be known once they begin the University of the Bahamas, Rolle would only say “we will make an announcement in the coming weeks what the university mascot will be, what it will look like and what the new brand for the university will entail.

“We want all of our fans and our alumni to stay toned. We will be known as the University of the Bahamas . . . . . Stay toned.”