Louisville Cardinals coach and Hall of Famer Rick Pitino says that he still has the passion and enthusiasm to coach a college basketball team, essentially dismissing talks of retirement.
Pitino, 61,credits the recent Cardinals recruiting class for giving him the passion and enthusiasm to coach after many years in college basketball. Pitino has been the head coach of the Cardinals since 2001.
"I think it's the players the last four years that have enhanced that passion. ... They stir my drink because they are so enthusiastic, so willing to learn and have such a great attitude," he said as quoted by the Associated Press.
Pitino has a contract that would keep him in Louisville until the 2022 season. He would be 69 when his deal expires yet he says he's looking forward to coaching.
The outspoken coach is confident that his Cardinals will remain competitive next season when it joins the tough Atlantic Coast Conference where it will be pitted against perennial heavyweights like North Carolina and Duke.
The 2013 national champions will have six newcomers into its roster, and the challenge for Pitino is to find the right combination with a tough non-conference schedule coming up. Still, Pitino believes his guys can pull it through.
He said: "The positives are we've got a lot of talent and size. The negative is we've got to get guys ready much quicker than ever before in my tenure as a basketball coach. ... The schedule's a bear, so we've got to get our guys ready physically and emotionally."
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