Brandon Veltri will be tested by die-hard Carroll College fans and the Helena community over the next few years, facing the reality that all new coaches must when taking over a program.

But in the locker room and around the P.E. Center, his appointment as the new men's basketball coach has already been widely accepted.

"It's always hard to follow somebody whose been at a place a long time," said former head coach Gary Turcott, who was present at Veltri's induction on Thursday. "But, Brandon is going to continue a lot of the same recruiting philosophy, offensive and defensive philosophy, and I think people are going to continue to enjoy the style of play that he puts out on the court."

Carroll's athletic director, Bruce Parker, said he didn't open up the position when Turcott announced his retirement on April 2 after 19 years at the helm, though Parker did have more than 50 messages -- e-mails and phone calls -- from coaches across the country jockeying for the position.

Still, the Saints decided on a 30-year-old with little head coaching experience except for two games when Turcott went on a respite to see his son play.

Veltri knows the pressure that he will be under in his first year at the helm. The Saints have won 20 games or more the last five years, they are constantly battling for a position in the NAIA national tournament, and last season proved to be the best the Frontier Conference has ever been. By the end, the second-ranked team in the conference, Rocky Mountain College, ended up winning a national title.

"I think the expectations are high at Carroll for all the sports," Veltri said. "I don't think that's going to change because Turcott's gone.

"I think that's one of the reasons why this hire makes sense. Who better to continue what Turcott has built here than one of his assistants."

Veltri doesn't like the word "rebuild," especially with so many young recruits still waiting to take over a squad that loses five seniors, three of them starters.

Those young players are already buying into the transition and are looking for the best.

"I think Brandon will do a great job. He's been a great individual coach," said Chase Godecke.

Working personally with Veltri, who concentrated on his old position at the post, the sophomore from Dillon got to know Turcott's successor on a daily basis.

"He would work with you individually and if you were doing something wrong, he'd go over it with you until you had it right," Godecke said.

And his personality always made it easy for the student-athletes communicate with the coaches.

"If you need anything, you can go to him," Godecke said.

Josh Saunders knows he's leaving a program that will only get better with time.

The senior guard from Great Falls said that the coach's own comments during the press conference -- when asked what kind of coach he is, Veltri took a deep breath and said "calm" -- were true.

"At the same time, I know he has a passion for the game and for the kids, which, from a players' perspective, you can read that right away," Saunders said.

As for Veltri's duties breaking down the other team's offense during a game and making second-half adjustments:"He's very cerebral that way and Xs and Os-wise, there's no doubt that he's going to be a good coach."

Most importantly, "he understands the type of kids he needs to bring in here. Kids that can make adjustments at half time, kids that are able to make changes on the run."

Turcott couldn't agree more. He said that Carroll has concentrated on bringing kids in from the high school level, especially those from Montana.

"So many colleges throughout the country have really become schools that live and die by transfers. They're transfer universities," Turcott said. "We have never done that. Our philosophy all these years has basically been based on high school athletes, preferably from Montana, and supplemented with a transfer here or there."

"There isn't anybody else that we know that's doing it that way. I think it fits our institution and fits our community."

And those recruits are looking forward to the new era under Veltri. Often when an old college coach leaves, so do the players.

Freshman post Andy Garland, an honorable mention All-American from Missoula, said he hasn't heard of any players who are planning to cut and run.

Instead, they're getting ready for a new season under a coach that has worked closely with them in their stay and now has to be ready for a tough season and nearly a brand new squad.

"It's going to be real difficult to start, especially when we lose the seniors that we have," Garland said. But, "I think Coach Turcott has done a good job prepping him."

"Nobody expects him the first year that he coaches to be mistake free," Turcott said. "Everybody goes through a learning curve, and every coach learns every year."

Still, as Parker pointed out during the press conference, in Veltri's two games at the helm, he's a perfect 2-0.

"It's always hard losing a coach, especially one with as much power as Coach Turcott had," said redshirt freshman Casey Rogers of Billings. "But Veltri's going to come in and do a good job.

"I think he's ready."

NOTES: Sol Jones will remain as a part-time assistant coach while Kurt Paulson will be moving to a new college to complete graduate work ... Parker has said he will open up Veltri's former position as full-time assistant coach and sports information director nationwide for applicants.

Jeff Windmueller: 447-4065 or jeff.windmueller

@hotmail.com