Indiana University Athletics
Indiana Men, Women Setting Goals High
9/1/2015 5:19:00 PM | Cross Country
By: Sam Beishuizen | Twitter
IUHoosiers.com
Indiana head coach Ron Helmer can only do so much.
He can share stories from his four decades of coaching experience. He can give speeches to rally his runners. He can schedule runs that can test them or workouts that will challenge them.
But at the end of the day, a cross country team's success comes down to the athletes, Helmer said. The teams that are truly great rely on internal leadership more than anything else. It's the runners who know how to best motivate their teammates.
Helmer challenged his No. 11 men's and women's teams to develop those internal leadership roles during the offseason. He said Indiana suffered from not always having that type of leadership last season, but he doesn't expect a repeat of that this year.
"We as coaches can be demanding, but sometimes you really just need the kids to be the ones pushing each other," Helmer said. "I feel like this season, we've got that in place. We've got potential for that to really get going. If that happens, it could be a really, really good year."
Helmer's teams are set to begin the 2015 season on two different ends of the spectrum.
While the men are ranked No. 11 in the country and looking to ride the momentum of a 15th place team finish at nationals last season, the women are still looking to establish themselves as a consistent power like the men's team.
"We don't want to be just known as a men's program or a women's program," Helmer said. "We're Indiana cross country. It's possible to have both of these teams performing at a high level."
The women certainly think it's possible. Redshirt junior Amanda Behnke called this year's team the strongest she's been a part of, including a team that went to the NCAA's just two years ago.
Behnke said the women's team is hungry to qualify for the NCAA's in 2015 after just barely missing out on the national competition last season. With Helmer pushing them, Behnke said confidence isn't going to be an issue this season.
"We know we have the talent to do it," Behnke said. "We're not going to let what happened last year happen this year because that really stunk, you know? We want to reach our goals and reach that national level because we know we're good enough to get there."
While the women are looking to qualify for the NCAA's, the men are more worried about returning to the national competition.
Last year's team set the bar at 15th, redshirt junior Jason Crist said, and now Indiana is looking for more.
"We have a lot of confidence moving forward," Crist said. "We know that we can do better than last year."
Confidence may prove to be key with this year's Hoosier teams, Helmer said. Both may be starting the season with differing outside expectations, but each shares the ultimate goal of competing at the NCAA's.
The Hoosiers will get their first chance to prove just how much they've gained this offseason Saturday morning at the Indiana Open. The home meet is a chance for Indiana to compete on its home course for the first of two races all season and kick off any race rust from the offseason.
Indiana's times are likely not going to be anywhere near their peaks this early in the year, but Helmer will still expect the runners to compete with the proper attitudes if they have goals of making it deep into the postseason.
Helmer compared the mindset to that of a cowboy in an old country western television show.
He doesn't want anyone to hesitate out of fear. He'd rather see them take charge and push their limits early and build from there.
"You really have to have that gunslinger mentality," Helmer said. "You have to be willing to go out every day and take your best shot, and whatever happens, happens.
"You can't be worrying about things. I think this group is a group that's mature enough and trusts what we're doing that they can work their way through those types of experiences and grow and grow and grow."
IUHoosiers.com
Indiana head coach Ron Helmer can only do so much.
He can share stories from his four decades of coaching experience. He can give speeches to rally his runners. He can schedule runs that can test them or workouts that will challenge them.
But at the end of the day, a cross country team's success comes down to the athletes, Helmer said. The teams that are truly great rely on internal leadership more than anything else. It's the runners who know how to best motivate their teammates.
Helmer challenged his No. 11 men's and women's teams to develop those internal leadership roles during the offseason. He said Indiana suffered from not always having that type of leadership last season, but he doesn't expect a repeat of that this year.
"We as coaches can be demanding, but sometimes you really just need the kids to be the ones pushing each other," Helmer said. "I feel like this season, we've got that in place. We've got potential for that to really get going. If that happens, it could be a really, really good year."
Helmer's teams are set to begin the 2015 season on two different ends of the spectrum.
While the men are ranked No. 11 in the country and looking to ride the momentum of a 15th place team finish at nationals last season, the women are still looking to establish themselves as a consistent power like the men's team.
"We don't want to be just known as a men's program or a women's program," Helmer said. "We're Indiana cross country. It's possible to have both of these teams performing at a high level."
The women certainly think it's possible. Redshirt junior Amanda Behnke called this year's team the strongest she's been a part of, including a team that went to the NCAA's just two years ago.
Behnke said the women's team is hungry to qualify for the NCAA's in 2015 after just barely missing out on the national competition last season. With Helmer pushing them, Behnke said confidence isn't going to be an issue this season.
"We know we have the talent to do it," Behnke said. "We're not going to let what happened last year happen this year because that really stunk, you know? We want to reach our goals and reach that national level because we know we're good enough to get there."
While the women are looking to qualify for the NCAA's, the men are more worried about returning to the national competition.
Last year's team set the bar at 15th, redshirt junior Jason Crist said, and now Indiana is looking for more.
"We have a lot of confidence moving forward," Crist said. "We know that we can do better than last year."
Confidence may prove to be key with this year's Hoosier teams, Helmer said. Both may be starting the season with differing outside expectations, but each shares the ultimate goal of competing at the NCAA's.
The Hoosiers will get their first chance to prove just how much they've gained this offseason Saturday morning at the Indiana Open. The home meet is a chance for Indiana to compete on its home course for the first of two races all season and kick off any race rust from the offseason.
Indiana's times are likely not going to be anywhere near their peaks this early in the year, but Helmer will still expect the runners to compete with the proper attitudes if they have goals of making it deep into the postseason.
Helmer compared the mindset to that of a cowboy in an old country western television show.
He doesn't want anyone to hesitate out of fear. He'd rather see them take charge and push their limits early and build from there.
"You really have to have that gunslinger mentality," Helmer said. "You have to be willing to go out every day and take your best shot, and whatever happens, happens.
"You can't be worrying about things. I think this group is a group that's mature enough and trusts what we're doing that they can work their way through those types of experiences and grow and grow and grow."
Players Mentioned
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
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