Q&A with Tai Wesley
Ahead of Jaycee Carroll’s jersey retirement, honoring Utah State Men’s Basketball’s all-time leading scorer who played from 2004 to 2008, the Utah Statesman called Tai Wesley — an Aggie who played from 2004 to 2011 with a mission in between — to ask him about Carroll.
Statesman: What was your first impression of Jaycee?
UTAH STATE FORWARD TAI WESLEY muscles toward the basket for two of his 20 points during Wednesday’s blowout win over Montana-Western. Wesley also added eight rebounds, three assists and a shattered backboard to his stat line. TODD JONES photo
Wesley: My first impression of Jaycee was, ‘Who is this goofy, visor-wearing cowboy from Wyoming? And is he really on the basketball team like he says he is?’
Q: Did you think he would be as good as he was?
A: Absolutely not. When I first met Jaycee, he came up to me, and it was in Mountain View Towers. And he walked up to me. He was wearing a visor — upside down, backwards, sticking up in the front — cargo shorts, and I said, ‘Are you for reals? You’re on the basketball team?’ And then we went and played pickup at a church, and he was unreal. And I thought, ‘OK, this kid is the real deal.’
Q: Jaycee told me that when you guys were freshmen on game days, when you were driving to the Spectrum, you guys would have the windows down and yell, ‘It’s game day.’ Can you confirm and tell what that was about?
A: Oh, man, we did a lot of dumb things when we were freshmen. But yeah, I can confirm that. It was funny because it was him, myself and Matt Formisano. We were the three freshmen on the team that would always have to carry extra bags. Matt and I would get so hyped for Jaycee because he was our fellow freshman, and he was playing, and he was playing really well as a freshman. So I definitely can confirm that we would stick our heads out — freezing cold — and just scream.
Q: What was your favorite on-court memory with Jaycee?
A: Probably the night he broke the scoring record. I remember that one probably the most. I think he only needed like three or two points or something. But we were just waiting, waiting, holding our breath. And then he shot — I think it was a three — and it wasn’t a swish. It kind of went up, front rim, back rim and then went in. And then they kind of stopped the game, and I remember Gary and I lifting him up on our shoulders, carrying him around the gym.
Q: What was your favorite off-court memory with Jaycee?
A: There’s a lot, but the one that comes to mind initially is he’s on a first date with a girl who ended up being his wife, Bailey, and it’s New Year’s. They’re doing some celebration and we have a snowball fight, and it was him and her against Matt and I. He kind of got real mad because we were throwing snowballs at her, and we went super hard. But that’s one of the fun ones that I remember — being on their first date on New Year’s.
Q: How do you feel about USU retiring Jaycee’s number?
A: I feel great about it. I think it’s amazing. I think it’s well deserved. You know Jaycee Carroll is a legend in the history of Aggie Basketball. He’s the leading point-getter. And so I feel so proud of him, even though, you know, who am I to be proud of him? But I’m excited for him, and I think it’s so well deserved.