Last August, Carleton Ravens men’s basketball head coach Dave Smart announced he was taking a year-long sabbatical, leaving his duties to his nephew, Rob Smart.
The news came after Dave had won five straight national titles and coincided with the departures of the Scrubb brothers, leading many to doubt the Ravens’ strength this year.
“A lot of people called it a rebuilding year,” Rob said. “We kind of figured out halfway that our identity was a little different.”
Despite the changes and uncertainty, Rob Smart successfully coached his team to their sixth straight year as the best team in Canada.
“Every Carleton team is different. Every year it’s fun seeing the new personalities and different attitudes that come in,” Rob said. “But it’s always the same thing: work hard, don’t take yourself too seriously, and compete.”
Rob Smart was a player for the Ravens from 2001-2003, winning a championship in his last year, along with being named as a first team All-Canadian. He joined the Ravens’ coaching staff in 2005 as an assistant coach, and has been with the team ever since.
When asked how he defined Carleton’s basketball culture, Rob Smart replied, “It’s just to compete. Get over yourself fast, whether you win or lose, and put the team first. If you do that, it’s going to be fun.”
The Ravens’ year was a rollercoaster ride, with four new starters on the team. Regardless of the coaching change, the players adapted easily.
“The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree,” said graduating guard Gavin Resch. “They have some different things that they stress. It has been slightly different, but the message at the end of the day is the same.”
“It’s tough to compare the two since they do so many things similarly,” said Ravens guard Connor Wood. “Rob will joke around a bit more. I’ve actually seen him smile—just small stuff like that. Rob did a great job this year, and really got us focused when it came down to it.”
Despite the championship result, however, the year was not an easy one for Smart.
“I have to be honest, it’s my first year, and around halfway through, I realized I don’t know how to win games,” he said. “I really needed to sit down with Dave, and as much as he drives me crazy, he knows how to win. Dave’s played through some tough losses—losses that I didn’t want to go through—so it was a nice shortcut.”
“One of the first things you have to learn—I didn’t know this—but you can’t want to win more than your players,” Rob said. “You have to relax, and my guys did a great job of calming me down.”
It was a learning experience for Rob Smart, but in the end, he said he figured it out.
“We had a good road trip to Brock and McMaster,” Rob said. “We beat two very good teams, and that was a huge step in the right direction for us. It gave us confidence and an idea of the way we were going to have to play, and we just committed to it.”
Dave Smart will return as head coach for the Ravens next year, after a year spent with his family and on developing his skills as a basketball coach.
Rob Smart said he will take a step back as the assistant coach, but he has no qualms about the return. “I like my role . . . I’ll be back at it,” he said.
Carleton will look to tie the University of Victoria’s record of seven straight national championships next year with both Smarts at the helm.
