Ivy, Uprooted: Players Sound Off on 2010
by Matt DaSilva |
Lacrosse Magazine Online Staff
Related:
* Q&A
with Harvard's John Tillman
With Bill Tierney's blockbuster departure from Princeton, three new head coaches, a first-ever postseason conference tournament and top-to-bottom parity, the Ivy League has stolen back some of its thunder from the new Big East and resurfaced as a must-watch entity in 2010.
Lacrosse Magazine's Matt DaSilva examines the impact of this tumultuous offseason in the publication's September issue. Check back this week for the full interviews with Ivy League coaches and top players, including these with Harvard's Jeff Cohen, Penn's Corey Winkoff, Dartmouth's Ari Sussman and Yale's Brendan Gibson -- all top returning scorers for their respective teams.
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Jeff Cohen, Harvard
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As Ivy League stars (from left) Brendan Gibson, Corey Winkoff and Jeff Cohen attest, the conference competition could get cutthroat in 2010. © John Mecioni |
What do you make of all the changes that transpired in
the Ivy League over the summer?
Bill Tierney leaving Princeton is obviously a shock. My two
brothers went to Harvard, but before that, Princeton was always my
favorite team to be honest. I grew up watching Princeton. Him
leaving makes this a big year for Princeton. They’re crossing
a bridge. They’re either going to make it otherwise or drop
off. This is an opportunity for an up-and-coming program like
Harvard to step up and take the lead in the Ivy League.
Harvard beat Duke and went 8-5 for its first winning
season in five years in 2009. How do build on a season like
that?
It was definitely a roller coaster at times. We had the big Duke
win at the beginning. It was unbelievable, a milestone win for our
program. That’s something people are still talking about in
Cambridge, how big that win was. Then we play Brown, Prinecton and
Cornell in 10 days and we lose all three of those games. This year,
the schedule is a little more spread out. We won’t have to
face three teams of that caliber within two weeks.
What do you think of the new Ivy League postseason
tournament format?
We’re thrilled about that. It’s obviously a great
opportunity to get more teams into the postseason. It also gives us
a chance to play a team like Princeton, Cornell or Brown that we
lost to by one or two goals and get back at them. If we had another
shot at Cornell last year in the Ivy League tournament, we could
have had them.
It’s a great opportunity for the league. It will give us
more exposure. It’s going to be a great thing for the sport,
even. The highest seed hosts the tournament. If it’s at
Harvard, I think we can get a ton of fans up in the stadium, or
even at Princeton near New York City.
What impact will three new head coaches have on the
league?
There’s going to be some new flavor. A lot of times when you
get coaches like Bill Tierney that have been around so long, they
kind of know. They don’t have to look too far to find
scouting reports. The new guys coming in are going to bring
different philosophies.
After a phenomenal freshman season, you opted to remain at
Harvard over the summer. Why?
Me and seven other guys stayed. We had an apartment in Cambridge.
We took classes and worked out four days a week with our strength
coach Tim Mullen. You get a credit and also have the full resources
of the weight room, which we feel is one of the best in the
country. You get to be tighter with teammates working towards a
common goal. It’s something we feel sets our program apart
from others.
Is 2010 Harvard’s year?
We all know we’re definitely not the favorites, but
we’re one of the dogs in the race.
How do you like working in tandem with Dean Gibbons on
Harvard’s attack?
I love playing with Dean. He’s such a great player. A lot of
people see him as a finisher. What they don’t realize is Dean
is a really good passer. He’d be playing at “X,”
and I’d be inside. It’s such a pleasure playing with
him. If you’re open even a split second, he can find you.
Dean also does a great job turning the corner when he comes around
the net. I try to copy what he does, and his work ethic is second
to none. That’s something I try to embody.
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Corey Winkoff, Penn
With all the offseason maneuvering, is the Ivy League up
for grabs, in your opinion?
Absolutely. I talked to Coach Murphy over the phone and he’s
really excited to come into our program. I’ve only heard
great things about him from outside sources and other people in the
lacrosse community. He seems to be meshing real well with Coach
Wojik, which makes me happy. There’s not an ego thing going
on.
What was your reaction to the news that Bill Tierney had
left Princeton?
I thought it was pretty wild. A few of my buddies play for
Princeton. They were pretty shocked at the whole situation. But
similar to us, they’re excited for change. Sometimes people
look at change as a bad thing, but I know a lot of guys that have
experienced coaching changes that are excited. I think change is
for the better in the Ivy League.
Penn has fallen on hard times of late, but has had
late-season surges that could bode well in a conference playoff
setting. What’s your outlook for your senior season and the
new Ivy League tournament?
I’m very excited, considering this is my last year and I
haven’t played in a playoff game. It kind of bums me out,
because I love playoff time. I kind of see this as a mini-playoff
series. Sort of like “Any Given Sunday.” Any team can
win. It’s definitely a competitive league. They’re
coming out with the Big East – that’s going to be a
competitive league too. The ACC is always there, and the Ivy League
is right there with them. I’m excited for it.
Ari Sussman, Dartmouth
The Ivy League has always been tight. How will a
postseason tournament augment that?
Everyone’s competitive with one another. These are kids who
grew up together playing against each other. It’s the same
type of kid. We all know each other. Now it’s only magnified
with all these changes and the Ivy League tournament. You can drop
your first two or three Ivy League games, win your next three and
by a No. 2 or 3 seed in the tournament and be in it to the very
end.
Can Dartmouth take advantage?
We’ve unfortunately been in the bottom of the league the
last couple of years. But if you can sneak a 2-4 record out of
those six games, you could be in the tournament. Every game
matters… Us and Penn, we’re the teams that have been
sitting on the third-, fourth-, fifth-seed level. These changes
make it really, really exciting.
Of the teams with new head coaches, Dartmouth appears to
have the easiest transition with the promotion of Andy Towers. What
do you think of that move?
From a very selfish standpoint, I’m a senior, and I was
hoping Coach Towers would get the job. It’s going to be
seamless. You don’t have to establish a whole new
relationship with someone. He’s the best leader. We have a
phenomenal relationship. He oozes confidence in everyone.
My freshman year, our first game was against Duke, and that was
their first game back from their incident. We started five or six
freshmen that game, and we all thought we were going to win that
game. That confidence comes from Coach Towers and goes through
everyone on our team.
How do you explain the reemergence of great attackmen in
the Ivy League?
It’s kind of been duos that have done unbelievably well.
Last year, it was Brian Koch and me, Rob Pannell and Ryan Hurley at
Cornell, Thomas Muldoon and Jack Walsh at Brown and the McBrides at
Princeton. It’s fun
What kind of offensive style will Dartmouth employ in
2010?
Dartmouth has been more run-and-gun, and that’s only been
hyped up by the Towers mindset. We love to push the ball. We are
not the settled offensive team. Coach Towers is really going to
push this whole “go when you want to” mindset.
Brendan Gibson, Yale
How did you try to elevate your game this
summer?
I was in British Columbia playing box for the first half of the
summer. It was a rude awakening. I played for the Langley Thunder.
Brock Rhodes, the GM, called me. One of our players played up there
last year. It was Junior A. Some seniors on our team are guys like
Garrett Billings, Canadian guys that you hear about in Division
I.
How did it help?
It’s a completely different game that focuses on stick
skills and in-tight stuff.
Canadian box players like to drop their gloves. Did you
get in a fight?
I did one time. Somebody tried to fight me and they didn’t
get my helmet off. The next time, he was successful, and we fought.
There are a couple of people up there that you’re like,
“I’m definitely not going to fight you.”
That’s their only purpose.
What do you think of Yale’s potential in a revamped
Ivy League now that your coach, Andy Shay, is the second-longest
tenured in the league?
I like how it’s looking, but we’ve been trying to
capitalize on that potential the last couple of years. It’s
nice to hear other teams are starting from scratch with new
coaches, and the tournament is a nice bonus. It’ll help our
strength of schedule. Besides that, we just have in-house stuff to
deal with?
What kind of in-house stuff?
We have our whole defense to fill. Most of our team was seniors
last year, and we have 11 freshmen coming in who are all pretty
good. There’s going to be some changes made. People who were
playing might not be.
