After days of reports and rumors, Bryce Drew was officially introduced as Vanderbilt’s next head basketball coach at a press conference Wednesday at Memorial Gym.

The conference was open to the public and had many prominent guests in attendance, including women’s basketball head coach Melanie Balcomb, former Commodore Matt Freije and the entire 2015-16 Basketball team.

Drew was optimistic in his remarks, and spoke highly of Vanderbilt as a basketball program and as an academic institution.

“Vanderbilt has the full package,” he said. “You can compete at the highest level athletically, but also learn at the highest level academically. Just from being here a couple hours, I can feel the energy and obviously this is a special place. My family and I are happy to be here.”

Vice Chancellor David Williams began the press conference by going through the hiring process and thanking those involved. In doing so, he refuted rumors that Vanderbilt was pursuing Wichita State head coach Gregg Marshall.

“I know a lot of people suggested we look at Wichita, and strangely enough we never made it to Wichita,” Williams said. “But we were everywhere else in America.”

In addition, Williams said that there was a large amount of interest in the head coaching job, and gave his criteria for why he, and his team, selected Drew for the gob.

“We picked the person who wanted to be here,” he said. “We picked the person that is a winner, that has a pedigree with a coaching family tree that is enormous. We picked the person that understands this place. And we picked the person that in the interview, as we sat there, said, `We will play in the National Championship game.'”

Drew did not shy away from his goals as coach of the Commodores in his remarks either, stating that he wanted to be the coach that brought Vanderbilt to its first ever Final Four. He was also asked about how he would compare himself to his predecessor, Kevin Stallings.

“I was always too focused on my own team, and didn’t follow [Stallings’] teams,” he said. “I can tell you how I coach. We are going to work very hard and focused. Yet, the players are going to have some freedom. So we are going to have a lot of hard days at work and winning games and we are all going to enjoy it together.”

One of the big questions facing the 2016-17 Commodores is the potential loss of Damian Jones to the NBA Draft. Wade Baldwin IV has already declared for the NBA Draft, and after the press conference, Jones said he hadn’t made a decision yet. Drew made it clear that he would like to keep all the players he inherited going into his first season at the helm.

“Obviously I would love for everyone to stay that’s here,” he said. “It’s a sensational school, it would be a sensational degree. I think if this team stays in place incredible things could happen next year. Obviously I want to keep them all here, but they need to do what’s best for them and their family. Those are conversations we would have together, and try to work through.”

Drew is the first new coach Vanderbilt has hired since 1999 and the ninth in the modern era. Returning players from the 2015-16 roster include Matthew Fisher-Davis, Riley LaChance, Luke Kornet and Jeff Roberson.