Listen Up!

Listen Up!


Head Coach Pete Mangurian has filed the first of what I hope will be many blog posts and it was a doozy.

It's a message clearly aimed more at the players than the fans, and it certainly lives up to the "intense" characterization of our new head coach that I've reported on several times since he came on board.

Here are some of the key lines:

"Over the last three months we have measured, recorded, timed and quantified who we are as a team. While the numbers are not what I would have expected, or will accept in the future, we are good enough to win." 


Good. I like the no excuses approach. I knew the wheels were coming off the 2011 season when Norries Wilson was telling everyone who would listen about all our injury problems even BEFORE the season started.


"I have been asked over the years, what is the biggest difference between Ivy League and other college kids? My answer is, capacity to multi-task at a high level. One of the other differences, and not always a positive one, is a sense of entitlement. These guys have been told how smart and special they are their whole lives." 

A little harsh maybe, but I see where he's coming from. This is something I haven't heard from any Ivy coach at least in public.

"On August 18th, 34 young men who don’t care about the past will report for training camp. They are all our type of guys – tough, smart and love football. We will bring the current players that we can trust and those 34 together, then we will see how good we can really be."


It sure sounds like that confirms all the reports I've been filing about Mangurian's intent to pare this roster considerable. Also, since we know of only 31 incoming freshmen, we clearly have three more frosh and/or a transfer or two yet to be revealed. 


Again, it looks like spring practice and summer training camp could very well be an Ivy version of the Junction Boys with the goal of separating the men from the boys. This is obviously the time when being a Columbia fan is a lot easier than actually playing the game.