Cremins 'physically and mentally exhausted'

College of Charleston Head Basketball Coach Bobby Cremins held a press conference Monday afternoon addressing the reasons he has taken a leave of absence from the team.

Cremins began his news conference by telling those in attendance that his doctor advised him to take and immediate leave of absence.  Cremins says he was physically and mentally exhausted and needed a break.

Cremins continued by saying that since his energy level was not where it needed to be his doctor has put him on a regiment of rest, exercise and nothing else. 

Cremins said the focus needs to be on the College of Charleston coaches and players.  He plans to meet with the players before practice Monday.

Cremins did not want to discuss his future but rather wanted to focus on rest.

C OF C BOBBY CREMINS PRESS CONFERENCE TRANSCRIPT

"It's great to be here today. I want to start by thanking our President, Dr. George Benson, Board Chairman, Greg Padgett, and our Athletics Director, Joe Hull, for their understanding of a very difficult situation caused by my personal health issues.

I got physically exhausted, fatigued and lacked the necessary energy to coach our team. My doctor advised me to take an immediate medical leave of absence, which I did.

I'm so proud of (Interim Head Coach) Mark Byington, our staff and our players for responding the way they have. I asked Mark to keep the team together and asked the players to give Mark all they have, and to my utter delight, that is exactly what has happened.

I have not been able to watch or listen to our games, except for the two overtimes versus Elon. I really think my heart stopped when Andrew Lawrence had the ball for the last shot. They played their hearts out versus Wofford. They later went on the road and beat Samford by 16 points, after Samford had just beaten undefeated Davidson, and recently Wofford. Down by 23 at Elon, they came back and lost in double overtime, and after that emotional loss, defeated Appalachian State in Boone, N.C.

This more than anything else, has lifted my spirit. My energy level is still not where it needs to be, but I'm definitely feeling a lot better. My doctor has advised me to focus only on getting rest and exercise and nothing else.

Last week was all about me and getting better. The support from everyone, from my family, my wife, Carolyn, personal friends, coaching peers and all of our fans has been overwhelming. I am a very fortunate person.

Now, the focus needs to be on our team and program. Mark is doing an incredible job. We have two big Southern Conference home games this week and I am asking everyone to respond like our team has and continue to support our team. I'm looking forward to seeing the team shortly before practice to tell them how proud I am of them. Thank you very much."