COACH SPEAK: Cleveland State Men's Soccer Preview

Aug. 26, 2008

Q: How have your preseason workouts been so far? Which areas have you've been pleased with?
A: Our preseason has been going very well, much improved from our previous seasons. I am very happy with the level of fitness of our team, which allows us more time to work on soccer-related topics.

Q: It appears you have another young team. How important will contributions be from the sophomore and junior classes?
A: It would be everything ... they are our leaders, both on and off the field, in all that we do.

Q: Talk about your newcomers. Who has stood out to this point?
A: Justin Mancine and John Wargo look very good so far, as well as transfer Slavisa Ubiparipovic. They should help our team from the beginning.

Q: What kinds of goals have you set for this year's team (both on and off the field)?
A: We are still trying to change the culture here, instilling more pride in our players with the program. We hope to get above the .500 mark this season, and advance past the first round of the Horizon League Tournament.

Q: Preview your non-conference schedule. Have you added any new matches or tournaments?
A: It is my view to challenge our players with every match of the season, as we have traveled to Rutgers, Duke and UNLV our first two years, and this year is much the same. We have added tournaments at UC-Irvine, where we play Seattle and UC-Irvine, and Missouri State, where we play Drake and Missouri State. We have also added matches against Akron and Ohio State. We want to boost not only our team but our conference by playing the best teams we can possibly schedule.

Q: What comes to mind when you reflect on your outstanding playing career at Cleveland State?
A: The fact that it was an honor to wear our jersey is something that I cherish, that we expected to win every game that we played, no matter who it was against. That is something that I want my players to feel every time they step on the pitch.