The University of Akron Athletics
Men's Soccer Q&A With Head Coach Caleb Porter
July 31 | Men's Soccer
Your 2007 club captured both the MAC regular season and tournament championships, an amazing accomplishment in many respects, yet at the end of the season you said you were disappointed. What does that say about the level of success and the expectations that are now inherent of the Akron soccer program?
At the University of Akron, we will never be completely
satisfied unless we achieve our ultimate goal of winning a national
championship. My vision has been to take the Akron program and its
a strong tradition and elevate it to new heights. With this in
mind, we have set out to build the program for consistent long-term
success as one of the nation's top college soccer programs. And in
order to do that we have to raise the bar even higher so that our
standards and expectations are in line with our goals.
At the same time, this type of evolution doesn't happen overnight
and we felt last year was a very productive season and a positive
step in the right direction. I have been very pleased with our
progress over the last two years and although I felt we were
capable of going further in the NCAA Tournament, our program has
transformed into a realistic contender for a national championship.
Of course we will always have other program goals and winning the
conference and getting a top 16 seed in the NCAA Tournament was
quite an accomplishment and a positive indication of what the
future holds.
As you head into your third season as the head coach at UA,
you now have the benefit of familiarity in a sense that the players
know you and know what to expect. On the flip side, you and your
staff have also had time to truly get to know your players and
their strengths and limitations. How big of an advantage is that
now relative to your first two years?
When a new coaching staff takes over a program it takes time for
them to put their stamp on things. However, we have worked very
hard to make the transition as seamless as possible. Fortunately,
the cupboard wasn't bare and I was blessed with kids of great
character who were willing to buy into our mission. As we carefully
evaluated the players and developed a relationship with them we
also gradually implemented a new system of play and overall
identity for Akron soccer.
We felt it was necessary to play a brand of soccer that allows us
to go head-to-head with the best teams in the country while not
hoping to win, but expecting to win. It has been very rewarding to
see the transformation take shape and for the players to witness
first hand how effective our style can be. Having a thorough
understanding of the players and knowing that everyone is on the
same page makes a huge difference.
I feel very good about our team culture and, now that we have
developed a strong sense of trust and belief in each other, it will
allow us to get the most out of our players and team as a whole as
we continue to move forward.
Last season, you had the luxury of mixing in a host of
impact freshmen with a solid core of veteran performers and still
win. This year, the team has lost six seniors – including the
league's player of the year – but is also bringing in another
outstanding group of newcomers. Do you envision the same type of
mix of youth and experience on the field in '07? Also, how unique
is the advantage of breaking in such talented first-year players
while still continuing to win championships?
One of the keys to our success last year was having six seniors
with experience and the leadership qualities to help integrate a
very talented freshmen class. However, I think we have a very
similar situation this year with four very experienced seniors
still in the mix. We expect the new crop to make an immediate
impact but with the leadership of our upperclassmen and sophomore
class having a year under their belts, we are confident that our
team chemistry will again be a cornerstone of the '08 group.
It also helps to bring in freshmen that are mature beyond their
years. Players like Blair Gavin, Anthony
Ampaipitakwong, Steve Zakuani from last year's class and
Kofi Sarkodie, Darlington
Nagbe and Teal Bunbury in this next class bring a wealth of
experience at the highest levels domestically and internationally.
This experience and overall confidence helps them transition to
college play and make an immediate impact quicker than typical high
school freshmen.
Since 2005, Akron has produced the best winning percentage
in the nation with a record of 45-10-7 (.782) despite playing elite
competition (RPI of 10 in '07 and 46 in '06). Talk about that
amazing accomplishment.
Our winning percentage is something that we are very proud of. At
Akron we preach to our players about possessing the heart of a
champion and that it's important to find a way to win. We approach
each and every game with that mindset. Our players take the field
wearing the Akron uniform with pride – not hoping to win, but
expecting to win. At the same time, a win against weak competition
accomplishes nothing.
To be the best you have to play the best and we are not afraid to
play anyone. In order to realistically measure ourselves we need to
find out how we stack up against the elite programs. Last year, we
faltered in a few games against top programs but getting exposed
forced us to get better and we grew stronger and more confident by
playing those games. In the long run, that means more than the
wins. But the goal is always to play games against the top programs
in the country and settle for nothing less than victory.
Last season, the strength of the team was its defense
– posting 12 shutouts, including six straight games and
holding the league scoreless in the regular season. But you've lost
three key players from the unit. How do you deal with this
challenge?
Sound individual and collective defending will always be a staple
of an Akron team. We take pride in being organized, disciplined and
honest on the defensive side of the ball. I believe in an
aggressive, high-pressing defensive philosophy and our players must
be very fit and have a high level of work rate and transition in
order for that to work. It's something we ingrain in our players
everyday.
With the loss of three starters in the back, one of our challenges
will be to maintain the right balance and we will certainly be
focused on this in the pre-season. However, we do return two senior
central defenders and a senior goalkeeper, which helps us keep some
continuity and stability in the backbone of our team. With the
addition of several talented newcomers, I remain confident that
this will continue to be one of our edges on the competition.
Talk some more about the importance of having not only a
veteran, but an elite goalkeeper in Evan Bush
between the pipes when shuffling new players into the
backfield.
Evan Bush is without question one of the best
goalkeepers in the country. Because we defend well as a program,
Evan doesn't always garner the credit he deserves because he often
times is not put in the position to make many saves. However, I
have all the confidence in the world with him in goal and it is
comforting to know he is there to bail us out if need be.
You never want to rely on your goalkeeper to win you games but he
might be called upon to make some key plays in the early going as
we find our cohesiveness defensively. His leadership will also be a
crucial component as one of our three team co-captains.
Steve Zakuani and Anthony
Ampaipitakwong proved to be two of the top freshmen in the
country last season – earning all-freshmen team honors by
College Soccer News. Talk about that one-two punch, their
progression and what they mean to the team.
Steve Zakuani and Anthony
Ampaipitakwong are special players and it was no surprise when
they made their presence felt immediately as freshmen. To come into
a senior team and make such an impact is a testament to just how
talented these young men are. Because of their flair, creativity
and attacking instincts they will continue to spearhead our attack
as two of our key playmakers.
At the same time I expect them to play an even larger role as
sophomores and they have worked very hard in the offseason to be
more dangerous in the final third. They have made great strides and
their maturation should correlate to increased goal production next
fall.
You added another challenging non-conference schedule for
the fall, highlighted by elite match-ups against Indiana, Notre
Dame, New Mexico and others. Talk about your schedule.
The '08 schedule is a very challenging but exciting one. We will
certainly see how good we are right out of the gates, facing some
of the top programs early on. Our scheduling philosophy is based on
an aggressive approach of playing the best programs we can find so
that we can put ourselves in the strongest position for postseason
success. We do not schedule for wins but to be battle-tested so
that our chances of garnering a seed and ultimately making a run in
the tournament is greater.
It is my belief that in order to reach our potential as a team, we
need to face the toughest competition possible. This will bring the
best out of our individual players and our group collectively and
should give us a realistic measurement of where we stack up. With
this type of schedule, it's very important that we keep our
perspective on the big picture during the potential peaks and
valleys of the season.
Our players have to be mentally tough and understand the experience
they gain by subjecting themselves to very challenging situations.
If that means losing a few games and making adjustments then so be
it. However, once we get past the first three weekends, we should
be gaining confidence and momentum as we head into the rest of our
non-conference games. By the time we start conference play we
should be hitting our stride and the goal is to be at our best at
the most important time as we head into postseason. I have
confidence that this team can stack up with anyone in the country
and this schedule should provide an incredible opportunity to
accomplish our season goals.
The 2008 UA men's soccer season kicks off on Fri., Aug. 29 at the
Indiana Classic in Bloomington, Ind. when the Zips take on Notre
Dame at 5 p.m.
