Before taking the reins of the Navy women's rowing team last summer, Joe Schlosberg knew he was going to have some big shoes to fill.
His predecessor, Mike Hughes, put the Midshipmen on the map during an unprecedented 18-year tenure as head coach. Hughes racked up four Patriot League Coach of the Year awards, three conference championships and two NCAA championship berths on the way to becoming the most decorated figure in program history.
So when Schlosberg, 38, arrived to Annapolis, Md., after 14 years as an assistant at Notre Dame, he sought the retiring coach's advice for how to take Navy to even greater heights. Schlosberg wanted a better understanding of how he could implement his vision for the program with the foundation Hughes had already established to make the transition as smooth as possible.
"He held the Midshipmen in such high regard, and I knew coming in that I would have a hardworking group," Schlosberg said. "I knew I was going to have to get [the rowers] to buy into the program and my thoughts on how we were going to train and how we would reach the end goal we all wanted. I kind of shifted some things around, and [Hughes] kind of helped me with the process of becoming a head coach and what to expect from the Midshipmen."
