University of Tennessee Athletics
Serve and Volley: John Collins
March 13, 2013 | Men's Tennis
March 13, 2013
In his first season with the University of Tennessee tennis team, senior John Collins has already earned ample playing time in multiple positions.
This week's Serve and Volley has Collins talking about his transition to Tennessee, his strengths and weaknesses, along with some fun facts about doubles partner Ed Jones.
Q: As a senior, what is the No. 1 thing you want to accomplish this year?
A: I want to have a great last hoorah.
Q: If the team could describe you in one word, what would it be and why?
A: These are tough questions. In one word, oh my gosh. I don't know. They joke about me for procrastinating, so I'll throw that one out there.
Q: Why does John Collins procrastinate?
A: I have so much work to do and I have to wait until the last minute to do it, because I have so much other stuff to do. Everyone else (has work to do), but I just seem to drag it out a little bit longer than everyone else does.
Q: You haven't been in Knoxville for that long. So far what has been your favorite aspect of this team?
A: The commaraderie. Everyone here is so close. We get along great, on and off the court. We're pretty open with each other. We like to have fun when we can, always joking around, always something funny going on.
Q: What is the biggest difference in playing for Tennessee versus Maryland?
A: Here we do a lot more winning which is nice. There's a lot more competition on this team. Practices get a lot more competitive and it's good, because you see that exact same competitiveness run into a match. If you're doing alright in practice, you're going to do pretty well in the match.
Q: What part of your play personally do you think has improved the most since transferring?
A: My fitness for sure. I've always been a competitive guy, but I would say that's maybe gone up just a little bit.
Q: Which teammate would you say has helped you adjust the most and how?
A: I don't think it's one person. I think they've all helped, but probably the Knoxville natives. You've got Taylor Patrick and Brandon Fickey. They've been very helpful and very insightful coming in.
Q: Talk about your doubles play with Ed Jones, whether its strengths, weaknesses, etc.
A: I think our personalities, we click pretty well. We also have two pretty big serves, so when we're serving well, it's hard to beat us. We're also pretty easy going so we don't let things bother us too much. We're always looking forward and I don't know. It's just fun out there. It's a fun environment when we're competing.
Q: Speaking of Ed Jones, tell us something about him that we don't know.
A: I have no idea. For Ed, on Halloween, he was a baby.
