Buzz Williams explains the message on his t-shirt following win over Kentucky in SEC Tournament
Buzz Williams is a quote shirt guy. Likewise, he’s also a quilt guy, but that’s beside the point.
What is important, however, is the fact that Texas A&M is will battle Florida on Saturday for a spot in the SEC Tournament final. Williams uses quote shirts that he gives his team as a form of motivation, and proudly showcased one from earlier this season during his postgame press conference after defeating Kentucky 97-87 on Friday night.
The shirt reads, ‘The presence of the blessing does not mean the absence of pressure, or the requirement of production.’ Williams broke down what the quote shirt, and what the tradition of giving them out means to him.
“This is our 10th year in a row doing it. 12 quote shirts a year. This was year five, quote shirt number 10,” Williams explained. “It’s awesome, isn’t it? We gave it to them on the Friday, the first Friday of the year. We played at Ohio State. The presence of the blessing. We’re very grateful. We’re very thankful.
“But that’s not the absence of the pressure, right? You have to beat Ole Miss. Then when you beat Ole Miss, you’re still not in. You have to beat Kentucky. Then the next question is, Do you think that you’re in?It’s not the absence of the pressure. The presence of the blessing is not the absence of pressure, nor the requirement of production. What’s the response? We’re grateful, we’re thankful, we have joy. What do we have to do? We have to go wake up and do more work. Each day with our work, can we get a little bit better?”
Williams’ squad has seemed to embody this mindset over its stay in Nashville throughout the week. However, defeating Ole Miss and Kentucky back to back seems to have booked the Aggies a first-class ticket to the NCAA Tournament.
As of Saturday morning, Texas A&M has found itself in ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi’s ‘Last Four In’ list. A win on Saturday against Florida would firmly insert themselves within the field of 68, while a loss against Florida likely wouldn’t move the Aggies outside of their current projection.
Tip-off between the Aggies and Gators is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET and will air live on ESPN. Florida has opened as 3.5-point betting favorites. The winner will play either Auburn or Mississippi State in the SEC Tournament final.