PAUL BISCHOFF INTENDED to be a doctor. But, barely into his freshman year, that notion felt too constricting.
Stanford had much more to offer and, from the shadow of Hoover Tower, inside the sandstone buildings and under the Spanish-tile roofs, possibilities expanded beyond his imagination. Bischoff was fascinated by a new major, aeronautics and astronautics, and sought the expertise of professor Juan Jose Alonso.
"He really inspired me," Bischoff said. "I read a lot about him, I've been in his classes. We talked about how he got there and how passionate he is about what he does."
Bischoff now anticipates a career in weapons defense systems, with interests in disparate realms such as flying cars and privatized space travel.
"Aero and astro is surprisingly broad, from advanced commercial aircraft that transport you and me 10 times faster than a car with smaller fuel consumption than a Toyota Prius," Alonso wrote in an e-mail. "To autonomous systems for robotics, space exploration, drone systems, to developing new satellite systems. There is a renaissance of aerospace going on, particularly in Silicon Valley.
"I often emphasized the many things he could end up doing if he pursued a career in this field, and how he could help change the world and have a significant impact."
Bischoff is "curious, disciplined, hard-working and polite," Alonso said. "Above all, he has a true passion for the field … I had no idea he played volleyball."
Photo by Erin Chang/Stanford Athletics.
NEXT IN A LINEAGE of setters that includes Kevin Hansen, Kawika Shoji, Evan Barry, and James Shaw, Bischoff has led the Cardinal to a bounce-back 9-5 season, after it went 6-20 last year largely without an injured Bischoff.
"Paul is always steady with his emotions," said assistant coach Daniel Rasay, who works closely with the setters. "He's a rock, and it's important as a setter to be that type of person. When guys are struggling, Paul allows them to get re-centered. They feed off his calmness."
On Thursday against its biggest rival, USC, Stanford faced a fifth set to decide the match. Bischoff looked to right-side hitter Jaylen Jasper, in the midst of his best match, while keeping the defense honest, and sensing the right time to pass to someone else. When a block of Jasper cut the Stanford lead to 13-11, "I knew the door would be open for Jordan Ewert to get a kill," Bischoff said.
He bypassed a backset to Jasper, as a blocker cheated over, to find Ewert on the left side. The unabated attack essentially clinched the match.
"We needed to understand what it meant to fight and stay consistent in a long and tiring match," Bischoff said. "It added to our identity as a team, and pointed to our mental toughness."
Photo by Mike Rasay/ISIphotos.com.
BISCHOFF PLAYED TRADITIONAL Midwestern sports growing up in Wheaton, Illinois, and seemed destined to follow his father Paul onto the gridiron at Glenbard West High. But when he picked up volleyball in middle school from Christine Giunta-Mayer, who would coach him to three state high school championships, Bischoff was told, "You're going to be a setter."
Sports Performance club coach Troy Gilb trained Bischoff to run an offense, take advantage of his athleticism, and be creative. Bischoff found his calling.
"We always go after who we think is the best setter in the country when we need it," Rasay said. "We like to have somebody who's going to be a four-year starter. We always believed in his ability, but his leadership was a question mark for us."
Playing in older age groups stifled Bischoff's leadership development somewhat. But when he began to "control the pieces on the court," Rasay said, Stanford was convinced.
"There was something different about Paul," Rasay said. "Stanford kids are different, and Paul was easy to identify as a Stanford guy. He would be a good fit for us."
Indeed he is, and Bischoff is taking advantage of what it means to be a 'Stanford guy.'
"He's interested in advanced aircraft, so he may end up designing such airplanes," Alonso said. "But he's also interested in space, so he may become an engineer at a company developing the next generation reusable launch system. Who knows? The sky is the limit."
Photo by Bob Drebin/ISIphotos.com.