Football: Expectations raised high one more time
by Katie McVoy
Associate Sports Editor
It's spring and the usual signs that spring is here have hit campus — Pig Tostal, frisbee on the quad, snow and the Blue-Gold game.
This year, like every year, expectations are high as spring practice ends and fans look ahead to the fall. They're thinking that maybe, just maybe, this will be the year the Irish come home with a national championship
Fans, coaches and players this year sound a lot like the they did last year.
Bob Davie had high expectations of his team last year.
"Things look pretty good and I think we have a good chance to be successful," he said at the start of spring.
He wanted to take his program to the next level.
Wide receiver David Givens also had high expectations last year.
"I think it's possible that we could win a national championship this coming year," he said. "... It's an attainable goal."
Unfortunately for last year's Irish, those expectations fell a little flat. So it's something of a surprise that the fans are back on the bandwagon this year, talking about how many games the Irish will win and mulling over opinions about the new Irish head coach. Despite the 5-6 record last season, that little black rain cloud that followed the football team last year seems to be disappearing.
"There has been this cloud, I think I labeled it the Eeyore cloud, there is this sense that something is wrong, that something is not right, that we lost something," said Irish head coach Tyrone Willingham as his team began practice this year. "... That's the first thing we've got to create is a positive feel, a positive nature about this program."
That seems to have happened, at least for the fans. And they have a lot to expect this year.
There are expectations of the new head coach who is so different than head coach Bob Davie, the silent coach who is going to return Notre Dame to national prominence.
There are expectations about the new West Coast-style offense that promises to be more explosive and more exciting than the usual play up the middle. Expectations that have kept fans on the edge of their seat waiting to see who will line up behind center come fall.
There are expectations that Notre Dame will stun the nation in the Kickoff Classic on Aug. 31 and that maybe, just maybe, the Hail Mary pass will really work this year.
The coaches have high expectations as well. Willingham will accept nothing less than the pursuit of perfection. Wide receivers coach Trent Miles expects his players, who are adjusting to a totally new offensive scheme, to give up the excuse that they're learning and be successful today.
"I personally expect us to be good now," he said. "... I don't expect them to settle for [a bad practice], to just put if off as if `I'm only learning.' That's bullcrap. Let's go out there and expect to be good right now."
So that's where things stand. Coaches, fans, players expect to go out there and be good right now. Saturday they'll see how realistic those expectations are.
As the Irish take the field on Saturday in front of somewhere around 20,000 fans, avid Irish watchers from all over the country will get their first taste of 2002 Irish football. They expect to see a preview of next season, from offensive plays to defensive schemes and special teams line-ups.
They expect to be able to spend the next four months talking about what the Blue-Gold game says about the fall season. Maybe if Carlyle Holiday or Matt LoVecchio takes more snaps, they can talk about who they expect to be the quarterback. Maybe they can talk about who they expect to be the go-to receiver for those third-and-15 plays.
But there's something we all must keep in mind.
Our expectations may not be met. The 2002 season could end and they could be unfulfilled or they could exceeded.
Expectations are high. Now it's just a matter of time to see if those expectations are placed on a team that can meet them.
Contact Katie McVoy at mcvo5695@saintmarys.edu. The opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
All Sports Stories for Friday, April 26, 2002
