UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Men's volleyball has developed into a sport that requires great quickness and crisp decision making in order to be successful. Both of those characteristics are critical in a position like the setter, whose role is similar to a football's quarterback in that they handle the ball and dictate where it goes on essentially every play.
Penn State setter Cole Bogner has the athletic attributes to play the game at as high a level as any setter in the NCAA, and now, his work ethic and dedication to his craft have made him one of the best setters in the country according to his coach, Mark Pavlik.
When Bogner was going through the recruiting process, one of the first aspects of his game Pavlik noticed was his athleticism and explosiveness.
"I liked the way the ball came out of his hands," Pavlik said. "We loved his athletic ability and loved the 'go track down the ball no matter where it was' mindset. We thought his explosiveness was a little bit underrated. We really loved how he played the game as a setter, and we just thought that this was a kid that was going to get better and better."
Prior to his journey at Penn State, the Chesapeake, Virginia native was not thinking about his talents as a setter - let alone volleyball. Bogner said his path to getting started in volleyball was an idea from his mother and sisters' experience.
"It was my freshman year [of high school], and I had actually just finished playing baseball," Bogner said. "I quit a couple years before and my mom actually made me play volleyball because my older sisters had played. Then my mom made me try out for the high school team and after that, my sophomore year, I started playing club."
During those club tryouts was when Bogner met fellow teammate Brett Wildman. Although Wildman says the two believe they met when they were younger playing baseball, their first official meeting was at their club tryouts.
"I think without even knowing it we played baseball against each other when we were very little but I don't think we even noticed it," Wildman said. "The first time actually meeting him was the club tryouts 16's year."
Discussing that time in tryouts, Wildman was impressed with Bogner's ability to chase down balls that seemed impossible to get hands on, and then make a very hittable ball. Now both having ended up playing together at Penn State, being able to see each other's growth since sophomores in high school to playing collegiately as juniors Wildman says has been super cool to see.
"It's just from the start of club where we didn't know much about volleyball until we started having a dream of playing in college, and then we ended up at the same school and we end up playing together for three years now in college," Wildman said. "So overall, it has been a cool thing to see both of our games develop in a way that's having an impact."
As Bogner was trying to find his position on the court, his coach tried to convince him to play the setting position. Originally, Bogner was not in favor of this role but, "the little awkward kid playing volleyball," gave it a try and went above and beyond.
"I remember it was when I was trying out for my club team when I was 16," Bogner said. "My coach was trying to persuade me to be a setter and said that I got to touch the ball every play, and that's how he tried to persuade it to me. Eventually I became a setter, and I didn't really want to do it, to be honest. I kind of wanted to play outside, but that's okay."
As Bogner's game developed, one of his biggest strengths both Pavlik and Wildman say is his quickness to get to the ball. Bogner said one of his biggest strengths was developed from playing outfield in baseball as a kid and the training he endured to get ready for that role.
"I think that one I can definitely relate towards baseball as a young kid," Bogner said about his quickness. "I was on a team that, it seemed very rigorous at the time, just because I was probably seven or eight when we started actually training outside of practice to work out or condition. The offseason and conditioning was just running, and doing all that and staying conditioned."
"In general being able to get to balls some setters can't get to, and then those balls that he is getting to, he's putting up a great set too," Wildman added regarding Bogner's biggest strength. "So the fact that he's getting there in the first place is impressive and then to add on to that he is just putting up an extremely hittable ball."
Bogner's athleticism showed through early in his freshman season, January 18, 2019 against No. 3 BYU. Penn State's starting setter Luke Braswell was injured in the match and Bogner was thrown into the fire at setter in the third set of a 1-1 match against one of the strongest teams in the country.
The Nittany Lions ended up taking the Cougars to five sets, with Bogner's natural ability translating to big points for Penn State. BYU ended up winning the match 3-2, but Bogner learned something which became a staple in how he plays the game.
"I just started playing volleyball and tried not to let the nerves get to me," said Bogner recounting the match. "But at that time, it definitely was pretty difficult because it was the first game I was setting in. To touch on the biggest learning curve, it would be getting comfortable on the court because that was a big thing of trusting yourself and knowing that you're good enough to do what you're supposed to do. Going on throughout the year - not starting every game just coming off, coming on every now and then - it's getting comfortable where you're at and your position on the team."
"Look at that first video where we threw [Bogner] in against BYU, and it's like 'Welcome to big-boy volleyball, Cole!'" Pavlik added. "What I've been really impressed with is his attention to detail and the technique of set. A lot of is not apparent to the casual fan, but the changes that he's made in his approach to prepare to set a ball, the changes that he's made in getting to a ball in a certain manner and how he is releasing the ball has really added to the effectiveness of our offense.
"I think those are the things that are tough to measure when you're outside looking in, but are very much appreciated by the passers and hitters in his time together. He's just developed nicely into someone that understands what his body needs to do to enable him to set at any point along the net no matter where he's at."
Trust is a key pillar in the dynamic Bogner has with the team being the quarterback of the offense. When talking with Pavlik in timeouts, the same word of trust is reiterated time and time again in how he runs the game.
"I feel like trust is brought up a lot when we're talking about pretty much anything in volleyball," Bogner said. "Trust what you know, trust your hitters, trust yourself and trust what you see because we know we've already scouted everything and know what's going to happen so just goes back to trusting."
A key aspect of that trust is building it on the fly with his teammates, which Bogner and Penn State's current junior class have done so well for the past three seasons. Bogner has gone through the fire with Wildman, Canyon Tuman, Sam Marsh and Cal Fisher. Having a group of gifted athletes like this group has allowed them to learn at a quick and consistent pace, which translates to how fast and steady Penn State's offense has been so far in the 2021 season.
Since starting volleyball as that "little awkward kid" to now making a name as one of the best setters in the nation, Bogner's drive comes from knowing that nothing is given in this sport, but it can be taken away very quickly. To be the best, Bogner said it is knowing what it takes to get there and consistently working towards it.
"Not taking anything for granted and just knowing that you have to work for what you want," Bogner said. "So if you want to be the best, you have to work to be the best and have to understand that first of all, though."
"I think it's just being consistent on what you do," Bogner added. "Training wise, being consistent with what you eat, how you sleep, and how you're treating your body outside of volleyball and outside of training."
With much volleyball left to be played in 2021, Pavlik reflected on Bogner's growth since first seeing him to now, and how his mentality has strengthened into an integral part of Penn State's success. Having seen and coached decades of Penn State volleyball, Pavlik offered a special nod to Bogner's abilities in the grand scale of the program's prestigious history.
"The biggest compliment I could give to Cole: he would have fit in well with any of our eras in Penn State as a setter."
With the amount of success the Penn State men's volleyball program has produced from its inception and the great teams and student-athletes along the way, a compliment like that from a legendary coach such as Pavlik speaks volumes of what Bogner can accomplish at Penn State.
