May 15, 2003
By Brett Harper
Let me start by saying it's good to be a Buckeye fan again.
Now that we beat them in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, I can root for them again being a native of Columbus, Ohio, of course (except when they play Maryland).
Coming off of that win, our team is feeling very good. The defense has been amazing. We shut them down for nearly the entire game as they only scored one goal until late in the fourth quarter. It gave us the confidence that we could shutdown teams like that. But, when looking at UMass, they are a very transition-oriented team. That was the one thing we had a little trouble with against Ohio State. In the fourth quarter they beat us on a few transition plays. But I think that helped us overall in our preparation.
This has been a good week of practice. We have been going hard understanding this is the most important game of the season. This is the third time I have been in this position, in the quarterfinals in my four years at Maryland. I know how serious it is. We have never been to the final four in my time at Maryland. We are looking forward to the challenge. We are confident, but relaxed.
We understand the magnitude of this game and how important it is. The NCAA is chartering a jet plane to take us up to the game in Syracuse. Because of all the great treatment we have received, we need to know that we can't be intimidated by all of it. We have to make sure we do not get tied up in the hoopla of everything. We have to focus on our roles and functions as it pertains to the team to help us win. We need to have faith and be confident. This is a business trip for us.
When it comes to actually playing Syracuse, it will be our second time in the Carrier Dome this season, as Coach Cottle scheduled a preseason scrimmage against the Orangemen in the Dome back in February just for this reason. The fact that we have been in Syracuse this season - we know what the locker rooms look like, we know how the turf feels, we know what the stands of like and what you have to look at when you are throwing cross-field passes. We are acclimated to the Dome. If we had not done that, I think we would be in a very different situation. We might have been a little into the star-gazing and be in a awe of the Dome, but now we can block that out.
We recognize the importance of this NCAA Quarterfinal and need to play with urgency.
Our motto has to be "Survive and Advance."
