Staff writer Jenna Waldman interviewed volleyball player Evan Chang (’12) about his recruitment into Brigham Young University (BYU).
When did you start playing volleyball?
Freshman year.
What was the recruiting process like?
It was actually pretty challenging. A lot of the recruiting process is stuff that you have to do yourself. You have to email coaches, go to tryouts, and play well during tournaments. For volleyball you kind of have to advertise yourself. It took a lot of emailing and it taught me how to be responsible for the things I wanted. I got little to no help from my parents during the recruiting process because they had no idea how to navigate it. Thankfully, my club coach was the head coach at Stanford and his son plays for my team. It was my friend on the club team that helped me the most during the recruiting process.
Why did you decide to go to Brigham Young University?
After I went on an official visit, I fell in love with the program and the campus. It is in a really pretty setting and it academically suits me as well.
What do you think are the greatest differences between BYU and Urban?
Well the most obvious one is that BYU is 98% Mormon. I am not Mormon so this will be a transition for me. Also, BYU is located in a suburb in Utah. Coming from San Francisco, it will be interesting to see how different Provo is. Also, BYU is a very big rah-rah athletic school and is pretty conservative. San Francisco is infamous for being a very liberal and progressive city so it will be challenging to leave that kind of culture.
What do you expect? What do you know nothing about?
I expect a great experience at BYU. I am going to be part of their volleyball program so I can’t complain all that much. I expect a national championship when I’m there. I expect to learn a lot about Mormon culture my freshman year. I don’t know much about the Church of Latter Day Saints and I would like to know more about the religion. Like many people I had a lot of stereotypes about Mormons before learning anything about them. I’m excited to have Mormon friends too. I really don’t know much about Utah in general either.
What do you know about the Mormon religion and how do you think it will shape you in college?
I know the basics of the Mormon religion. I have spent a good amount of time talking to the players there and researching. I don’t think it will shape me that much. I align with a lot of the things the Honor Code requires so in that sense, it really isn’t a transition. I think I will be even more academically driven because of it. It’s hard to say how it will shape me though because I don’t know enough yet about the religion and BYU to make that call.