Track & Field Report: Getting to know assistant coach Mario Sategna

During Tuesday's edition of TexAgs Radio, Texas A&M assistant coach Mario Sategna joined for another weekly installment of our Track & Field Report. This week, Sategna looked back on the Aggies' showing at the Florida Relays and much, much more.

Key notes from Mario Sategna interview

• The travel has been a lot on our team, but when we get that outdoor facility up and going, it will be great. Yes, we have taken on some really great competition, but you have to be conscious of the wear and tear of the travel and be aware of that.
   
• I'm from New Mexico, and so is coach Pat Henry. My family has known the Henry family for a number of years. It goes back to when coach Henry was a high school coach in New Mexico. When I came to Texas and was coached by coach Henry, I had no idea what humidity was like coming from dry New Mexico, so it was a change for me.
   
• I knew I wanted to coach when I was in the 1996 trials. I was an NCAA champion, but I was eager. I wanted to be one of the best. I was ending a chapter of my life as an athlete, but I knew that I wanted to coach well. At the end of the day, I wanted to make sure I was helping every student-athlete that I could at whatever institution I was at.
   
• I was in contact a lot with coach Henry. At my past institution, I was at, I would come across coach Henry a lot, and I am very blessed to have had the opportunity to be at Texas for 15 years. More times than not, I was coming up on the short end of the stick, recruiting-wise, but after joining forces here at A&M back in July, it has been an eye-opening experience. I’m not just talking about the trackside, but the academic side as well. How they are preparing these young men and women here is really great.
   
• Any time I run into former athletes, the one thing that is trademarked for coach Henry is the sweater vest. A lot of people gave me a hard time for that.
   
• With this new facility we are building, no one out there is building something like we are with everything all under the same roof. It's all going to be well worth it. We are very excited.
   
• Coaching-wise, the biggest thing I've learned is finding a balance. Before, I was always about results, and I've evolved a lot. It's about balance. You can't neglect and forget about the most important part and what the students are here for, which is to get a degree. When you can keep those things in balance, I think both things really start to take off. If everyone is just focusing on track and field, then the classroom performance is going to fall and vice versa. You have to have the support and the resources, and that is where A&M is unique and different.
   
• We are getting ready to do our first decathlon and heptathlon. They are competing in a lot of individual events right now. They are trying to be balanced across the board. They will have an opportunity coming up in two weeks to see what they really got.
   
• A lot of internationals are recruited for the decathlon and heptathlon. In the decathlon and heptathlon, I look for people who have a high jump or hurdle high jump background. I look at if they were athletes in high school and if they played multiple sports. It's an event that takes time. Very seldom do you see a freshman come in and crank it out right away.
   
• For the Florida relays, in the 400m, we had Jermaisha Arnold and Tierra Robinson-Jones. You could see the look in Jones that she wanted it. Going down that stretch, she was going into a headwind, but they are committed. That's what you want to see. These are the top times in the 400m, and that is what we are striving for.
   
• In regards to fighting through the pain, that's something we talk about a lot as a team as well as with our individuals. Everyone at this point this time of the year, they have done the work. How are you preparing yourself? They need to be asking themselves if they are slipping in the classroom and if it is affecting their performance. Absolutely it is. It’s about balance.