A great barometer in examining the effectiveness of college coaches comes in their fifth year at the helm.
It?s in the fifth year when practically all of the players now on the roster are recruited by that coach, and critics no longer can say a coach?s success is based solely on a predecessor?s players or recruiting.
Maryland men?s lacrosse coach Dave Cottle is in that position, and all indications show that he has done an exceptional job guiding the Terps, as they prepare for their third Final Four appearance in four years.
Cottle has compiled a 57-21 record since taking over the program in 2002.
However, he said his success at Maryland dates back to his first recruiting class.
Today those players are the seniors who provide the backbone for this year?s run at a national title.
Just as impressive is that Cottle, who spent 14 season as Loyola?s coach, lured these players to College Park very late in the recruiting schedule after replacing the legendary Dick Edell in September 2001.
“That first class of kids helped us get where we wanted to be,” Cottle said. “We came in late in the game that year, and if we would have missed out on those kids, I?m not sure we?d be here today.”
Nine seniors are set to take the field for Maryland when it faces Massachusetts on Saturday at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
Included in that group are face-off specialist David Tamberrino, midfielders Bill McGlone (22 goals, 11 assists) and Brendan Healy (21, 11) and attack and Joe Walters (36, 24).
Walters is a finalist for the Tewaaraton Award, given to the nation?s top player each year, and he has 153 career goals and 227 career points. Both are school records.
Walters is the most well known among those players and was originally recruited by Cottle when he was still at Loyola.
But Walters decided to follow Cottle to College Park, allowing him to play for the team he followed throughout his childhood. Walters was also thrilled with the opportunity to play at the same school of his lacrosse idol, Andrew Whipple, who starred at Maryland in the mid-1990s. Whipple and Walters both attended Irondequoit High School in Rochester, N.Y.
Walters wants nothing more than to end his career with a national championship, especially after being on two teams that have failed to advance beyond the semifinals.
“The last two Final Fours we?ve played, we?ve pretty much gotten destroyed,” said Walters, referring to Maryland?s 18-9 loss to Duke last year and 14-4 loss to Virginia in 2003.
“But we?ve also learned how to play in that environment, and I think this year it will come down to our maturity from those experiences.”
Cottle said that maturity shown by players like Walters, McGlone and Healy are the reason he?s entering this Final Four with a different mindset than in previous years.
This opinion only became stronger after he watched Maryland dominate defending national champion Johns Hopkins in an 11-4 road win back on April 15 in front of 9,778 fans at Homewood Field.
“I?m more confident in this group of players because of their experience and the way they trust each other on the field,” he said.
“They work very hard, but just as important, they?ve shown that when something bad happens, they rebound well and don?t dwell on it.”
Ron Snyder is a staff writer for the Baltimore Examiner.
