Indiana University Athletics
Yeagley: “This Is Where We Go Roll”
11/8/2015 9:55:00 AM | Men's Soccer
By: Sam Beishuizen | Twitter
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – There's just something about postseason soccer that changes Indiana head coach Todd Yeagley.
The weather cools down. Practice gets shorter. Training gets magnified. Everything Yeagley does leading into Sunday's opening round game of the Big Ten Tournament against Wisconsin gets tighter and more purposeful as excitement builds.
It's a comforting feeling for a program like Indiana used to playing late November soccer.
"It feels right," Yeagley said. "There's excitement. There's not an anxiety like, 'We've got to do this.' It's more like, 'This is where we go roll.' This is it.
"We want them to leave practice wanting to have more. That's when you know you've got them where you want."
After a brief mid-September rough streak of soccer where Indiana went 0-2-1 as the Big Ten season began, the Hoosiers have gone 8-1-1 in their last 10 matches.
IU's lone draw in that stretch was a scoreless tie on the road against Maryland. The loss came to Ohio State where the Buckeyes earned and won the match on a penalty kick in overtime thanks to a call Indiana didn't necessarily agree with.
The point being, Indiana's players say they have reason to be confident considering their recent play. And although the Hoosiers have insisted they've remained confident all season, it's one thing to express confidence and another to have the results to back it up.
"We've definitely found out stride," senior midfielder Matt Foldesy said. "I think everyone's playing with a lot of confidence which is helping us. I think we've started to play some of our best soccer when the tournament starts, which is exactly what you want. I think it's shaping up."
No. 2-seed Indiana (11-4-2, 4-3-1) shouldn't expect to see too many surprises from the No 6-seed Wisconsin (5-10-3, 2-3-3) at Bill Armstrong Stadium come Sunday afternoon. The Hoosiers beat the Badgers 1-0 on Jerry Yeagley on senior night just eight days ago.
Yeagley said Wisconsin's record, much like Indiana's, doesn't tell the whole story.
The Badgers' three conference ties could have just as easily turned into wins had they found a finish, Yeagley said. He also pointed out that Wisconsin ended the year with a 2-1 win over Northwestern, who at the time was fighting Indiana for the No. 2-seed in the Big Ten.
One potentially crucial difference in the rematch will be Conner Drew's availability. The Wisconsin senior midfielder was assessed a red card prior to the last time the two teams met, forcing him to sit out. Drew was ranked the No. 17 player in the Big Ten by TopDrawerSoccer.com before the start of the season.
"We already played them once, so they kind of know our game," senior midfielder Femi Hollinger-Janzen said. "We know their game. We've just got to play our game better than they play theirs and take it to them."
Sunday's Big Ten Tournament matchup should be just the beginning of Indiana's postseason run as the larger goal of winning a ninth NCAA Championship appears to be on schedule. The latest RPI rankings have the Hoosiers at No. 26 in the nation, well positioned to qualify for the NCAA Tournament.
Yeagley said it's comforting not needing to focus too much about NCAA projections at this point in the season. It's simplified to the point where he doesn't need to worry about them because he and his players know every win could potentially give Indiana a more favorable path to the College Cup.
Winning takes care of everything in that sense. And while a ninth NCAA Tournament championship is the ultimate goal, adding a 13th Big Ten Tournament title wouldn't be all that bad either.
"We're in a good position," Yeagley said. "We haven't really focused on that at all. It's just about this title. If we do well in this Big Ten Tournament, we're going to be in great shape. We just don't know exactly where that leads."
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – There's just something about postseason soccer that changes Indiana head coach Todd Yeagley.
The weather cools down. Practice gets shorter. Training gets magnified. Everything Yeagley does leading into Sunday's opening round game of the Big Ten Tournament against Wisconsin gets tighter and more purposeful as excitement builds.
It's a comforting feeling for a program like Indiana used to playing late November soccer.
"It feels right," Yeagley said. "There's excitement. There's not an anxiety like, 'We've got to do this.' It's more like, 'This is where we go roll.' This is it.
"We want them to leave practice wanting to have more. That's when you know you've got them where you want."
After a brief mid-September rough streak of soccer where Indiana went 0-2-1 as the Big Ten season began, the Hoosiers have gone 8-1-1 in their last 10 matches.
IU's lone draw in that stretch was a scoreless tie on the road against Maryland. The loss came to Ohio State where the Buckeyes earned and won the match on a penalty kick in overtime thanks to a call Indiana didn't necessarily agree with.
The point being, Indiana's players say they have reason to be confident considering their recent play. And although the Hoosiers have insisted they've remained confident all season, it's one thing to express confidence and another to have the results to back it up.
"We've definitely found out stride," senior midfielder Matt Foldesy said. "I think everyone's playing with a lot of confidence which is helping us. I think we've started to play some of our best soccer when the tournament starts, which is exactly what you want. I think it's shaping up."
No. 2-seed Indiana (11-4-2, 4-3-1) shouldn't expect to see too many surprises from the No 6-seed Wisconsin (5-10-3, 2-3-3) at Bill Armstrong Stadium come Sunday afternoon. The Hoosiers beat the Badgers 1-0 on Jerry Yeagley on senior night just eight days ago.
Yeagley said Wisconsin's record, much like Indiana's, doesn't tell the whole story.
The Badgers' three conference ties could have just as easily turned into wins had they found a finish, Yeagley said. He also pointed out that Wisconsin ended the year with a 2-1 win over Northwestern, who at the time was fighting Indiana for the No. 2-seed in the Big Ten.
One potentially crucial difference in the rematch will be Conner Drew's availability. The Wisconsin senior midfielder was assessed a red card prior to the last time the two teams met, forcing him to sit out. Drew was ranked the No. 17 player in the Big Ten by TopDrawerSoccer.com before the start of the season.
"We already played them once, so they kind of know our game," senior midfielder Femi Hollinger-Janzen said. "We know their game. We've just got to play our game better than they play theirs and take it to them."
Sunday's Big Ten Tournament matchup should be just the beginning of Indiana's postseason run as the larger goal of winning a ninth NCAA Championship appears to be on schedule. The latest RPI rankings have the Hoosiers at No. 26 in the nation, well positioned to qualify for the NCAA Tournament.
Yeagley said it's comforting not needing to focus too much about NCAA projections at this point in the season. It's simplified to the point where he doesn't need to worry about them because he and his players know every win could potentially give Indiana a more favorable path to the College Cup.
Winning takes care of everything in that sense. And while a ninth NCAA Tournament championship is the ultimate goal, adding a 13th Big Ten Tournament title wouldn't be all that bad either.
"We're in a good position," Yeagley said. "We haven't really focused on that at all. It's just about this title. If we do well in this Big Ten Tournament, we're going to be in great shape. We just don't know exactly where that leads."
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