PU faces adjustments to fix 2007 outcome

Good chemistry has football team optimistic

By Bob Nuse, Sports Editor
   Roger Hughes knows the margin between winning and losing can be a slim one.
   He also knows that with a couple adjustments here and there, the Princeton University football team could have finished with a much better record than its 4-6 mark of a year ago.
   ”When you look at last year, three statistics would have changed our season from 4-6 to 8-2 or 9-1,” said Hughes, who is beginning his ninth season as the Tigers’ head coach. “One area is turnovers. I think we were 100th in the country in turnovers out of 124 teams. Number two, our red-zone efficiency on both sides of the ball. We didn’t score enough touchdowns when we got it down inside the red zone. And we’ve got to stop people and hold people to field goals down in the red zone. And the third one is our third down productivity, both offensively and defensively we have to be better in those areas.”
   The Tigers, who played a game scrimmage against Yale on Friday, open the season at The Citadel on Sept. 20. They’ll have some time to continue to work out the kinks in hopes of returning to the championship form of 2006, when the team went 9-1 and shared the Ivy League title.
   ”This team is a very close-knit team,” said Hughes, who has a 39-40 record in his first eight years at Princeton. “Their work ethic has been good. Our goal now is to make sure they focus on the right things to help us win games. This group is very close. It reminds me a lot of the groups of 2005 and 2006. I don’t want to put extra pressure on them, but that kind of chemistry exists. They’re fun to coach because of that kind of chemistry.”
   As the players prepare for the start of the season, they have also noticed the improved chemistry on the team. The hope is that, along with improving in areas like turnovers, can be a difference maker in the season.
   ”I’m very optimistic,” said senior linebacker Collin McCarthy, who will start as an outside linebacker. “One thing you can’t really tell about this team on paper is the chemistry we have. Everyone gets along really well. We love each other a lot. It’s a great team. Our senior class gets along well with the junior class and we hang out together all the time. That goes a long way when you’re on the field playing football.”
   Chemistry alone won’t win games for the Tigers, but the feeling is there is enough talent on hand to get the job done.
   ”We have a lot of returning players on defense,” McCarthy said. “We have a lot of confidence in our quarterback on offense. We’ve got an energetic team. We have an unbelievable defensive line, which makes our job so much easier as linebackers. Most of our linebackers that are coming back have seen a lot of time on the field in game scenarios.”
   The Tigers will start a senior at quarterback in Brian Anderson. And while it is nice to have a senior at a key position leading the offense, Anderson has just one career start under his belt. There are young players sprinkled throughout the lineup, joining some players with experience.
   ”We return a defensive line that is very experienced,” Hughes said. “At linebacker, our speed level is very good but we’re not experienced inside. The major question on the defensive side is our secondary. We like our talent level, but there is no substitute for experience. They may be a work in progress as we get ready for the Ivy League schedule.
   ”If our defense is as good as I think it can be, that gives us a little more margin for error to be patient on offense. If our defense struggles and a lot of points are being put on the board, then obviously we have to match those points.”
   More than anything else, Hughes looks at the turnovers. It’s an area where the team hurt itself last year and must improve on this year.
   ”That’s been the motto this year,” Hughes said. “Even the cover of our playbook says, zero turnovers, we win. We’ve made a big emphasis on both sides. Defensively we’re emphasizing stripping the ball and getting turnovers. That’s been a major mantra of both the spring and this fall camp.”
   And improvement in that area can certainly be the difference between winning and losing for the Tigers, who hope to do more winning by taking better care of the football.