coaches poll
lhink the ESPN/USA Today coaches
poll islegitimnate? Either way, it's on
the Daily Sports Website.
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PB
michigandaly.com/sports
TUESDAY
DECEMBER 5, 2000
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CHRIS
DUPREY
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One game at.a time?
That's yesterday's news
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Sophomore Mike Cammalleri is one of 34 players invited to try out for the 22-man Canadian Junior National team.
Cammaller to try out for Juor team
By Joe Smith with the U.S. National "Team Development Program forward Mike Comrie during the selection process
Daily Sport; %Vnter and the U.S. Under-18 Junior team. But Barrv Trapp, the Director of Scouting for
.
rthe
he davs of "taking one game
at a time," "giving our best
effort," and "stepping up"
are long gone. Those are the cliches
of old.
To match the changing times,
coaches have evolved. Those annual
coaches meetings aren't just for dis-
cussing rule changes and spending a
few days in Palm Springs. There's
important business at hand --the
current-model-year cliches are
being released.
Here are a few that have cropped
up recently.
"I'll be able to assess what
happened after I watch the tape."
The best way to dodge any press-
conference question about the
specifics of the game. Translated:
"I'm not about to get into my team's
problems rgthein public. Ask
me tomorrow, when we won't even
be discussing this game anymore.
How about you ask me about my
team's effort? It was great!''
Why wait until tomorrow to
assess what happened today, Coach?
You've spent 20 years in the coach-
ing business, you've seen just about
every type of game and situation,
and all of a sudden you don't feel
comfortable consolidating your
thoughts for the media?
When properly used - someone
on the line misses their assignment
and a field goal is blocked - this
one borders on being valid. Other
times, it's ridiculous.
Reporter: Player X had 33 points.
Was he hot tonight or did he find
your weakness?
Coach: I don't know. I'll be able
to assess what happened after I
watch the tape."
"Kit saw the game."
Another product of the coaches
meetings. Now, use of this one-liner
is common in press conferences
from the Big East to the Pac-10.
I ere, coaches search for ways to
criticize the officiating withow
being fined. The tax loophole Oftlie
coaching business.
One season, coaches are speaking,
out against shoddy officiating and
are fined left and right. To adjust,
they get coy in an effort to av i
paying S 10.)00 to the eont'erencc
kitty.
Reporter: Do you think the o'fi-
ating robbed you of a chance to
win?
Coach: You saw the game.
Translated: I cost my wife a trip
to Bermuda the last time I opened
my mouth. Don't think I'm stupid
enough to make the same mistake
twice.
"Night-in and night-out,
this is a tough league to play in.t .
The hedge bet of all hedge bets.
Spoken the w eek before a game
agiainst the con ference bottom-feed-
er. No matter the outcome of the
contest, the coach looks like a
genius afterward.
Scenario 1: The Michigan State
hockey team blows out Alaska-
Fairbanks. Coach Ron Mason takes
pleasure in how his team "really
showed up tonight." His comment
didn't ring true, but his team Avon
the game, and that's all that rdly
matters to him.
Scenario 2: The Spartans win in a
close one. Mason reassures the
media that "it's always a fight in
this conference" and "we were just
fortunate to get the victory." HIs
comment appears deadly accurate
Scenario 3: Michigan State hap
pens to lose in an upset. "1 warne
you guys all week. This is a touglh
league, night-in and night-out," the.
coach says. An effective way to
sour-grape while handing out an I-
told-you-so to the media.
There they are, the current-
model-year cliches. Duck and dodge
them to avoid being sick.
Chris DupreY can be reeachedl at
c'duporep w/nlilit. edi.
Instead of spending their Christmas vacations com-
peting for the Maize and Blue in the Great Lakes
Invitational, as many as three Wolverines may be don-
ning their countries' colors in the 2001 World Junior
Hockey Championships from Dec. 26-Jan. 5, 2001.
The Canadian Hockey Association, in conjunction
with the Canadian Hockey League, invited sophomore
center Mike Cammalleri to attend the Canadian
National Junior Team's selection camp from December
13-18 in North York, Ontario. A total of 34 players
have been chosen, and the team will keep 22 players to
represent Canada in the championships.
"It's incredible, it's such an honor.'said Cammallerik
who vividly remembers his experience with the gold
medal-winning Canadian Under-18 Junior National
team a year ago. "To be on the World Junior team is
everyone's dream growing up as a kid."
Sophomore forward Andy Hilbert and freshinan
defenseman Mike Komisarek will be chosen to repre-
sent the United States in the same tournament, a team
source said yesterday.
An official announcement should come today from
USA Hockey.
Hilbert is no stranger to the tournament. hav ing par-
ticipated on the World Junior team the past two seasons
along with defenseman Jeff Jillson who is too old to
play this year because he was born in 1980.
As one of the most experienced players returning.
Hilbert could take a leadership position on this year's
team.
"He's a special player and I think he'd be a great
Jchoice to be one of the captains on that team"
Michigan assistant coach Billy Powers said. "There's
no question he'll have a leadership role."
This would be Komisarek's first appearance on the
team, but he has international experience from playing
it's a great honor to play for your country,
Komisarek said. "It's more than hockey -- to put on
that jersey is an unbelievable feeling. Once you put on
that jersey, you're all brothers, you're all from the
USA"
While the selections of Hilbert and Komisarek will
be set in stone once they are announced, Cammalleri's
quest to represent Canada isii't over yet.
He will compete with the other 33 Canadian players
in two intrasquad games, as well as a couple of contests
against the Canadian College All-Stars. Coaches will
cut 12 players along the way, including five forwards.
The past two years, the team cut former Michigan
Canadian National Team, was impressed with
Cammalleri. Trapp said he felt that Cammalleri will
have as good a chance as anyone to make the team.
"lie's everything we look for in a player, Trapp
said. "We look for players who can skate and think out
on the ice. Mike does them both well - - having excel-
lent character on and oif the ice."
Cammalleii, this week's CCI IA Ofkcnsivc Player of
the Week, said he's just excited to be a prt of the rich
Canadiai hockey tradition -the National Junior team
won seven gold medals in the 1990's.
'It's a time wvhere eve rone is watching the game
See CAMMALLERI, Page 12
Get your hands on Hobey
Former
Michigan Hobey
Baker winner:
1997
./ ,
Last year's
Hobey Baker
winner:
Mike Mottau
Boston
College
Brendan
Morrison
(well, at least get a hand in the voting.)
The Hobey Baker Memorial Award, presented annually
to college hockey's most outstanding player, is accept-
ing fan nominations for the 001 trophy.
To tally your vote, head to:
www.hobeybaker.com
K
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Heisman finalists announced'
The Heisman winner will be handed out Saturday at the New York
Downtown Athletic Club. Yesterday, the four finalists were announc
Josh Heupel - Oklahoma Chris Weinke -
While his statistics are not as Florida.State
prestigious as other quarter- Leads the nation with 4, 67
backs this year, he is the only yards passing. In Florida State's
unbeaten candidate for the only loss he threw for nearly 500
Heisman, not unlike Charles yards while battling the flu- At
Woodson three years ago. He has 28, Weinke is older than raw'
thrown for 3,172 yards, 18 touch- professional.quarterbacks.
downs and 11 interceptions while De
facing every ranked Big 12 team.
Is the career leader in Big Ten
passing yards with 11,517. He
has also led the BoilermakeSW'
there first Rose Bowl since 1967'
with 3,909 total yards, 29 touch
downs and 12 interceptions.
Volleyball not quite over the hump in 2000
EASON WRAP
By Richard Haddad
DJiiy Sports Wrjtcr
The Michigan volleyball team
began its 2000 campaign under the
weight of heavy expectations. A veter-
an nucleus coming off of an NCAA
Tournament appearance and a presea-
,n top-25 ranking fostered grandiose
creams. An 8-1 start and subsequent
five-week stay in the national polls
further entertained hopes of playing
deep into December.
For the third time in four seasons
and the second in coach Mark Rosen's
two-year tenure, Michigan qualified
for the NCAA Tournament to achieve
"something we'd all hoped for," Rosen
uid. "This team has a lot to be proud
for making the tournament." And a,
first round victory over talented
Louisville (26-8) provided another
source of team pride.
gut Friday night, the Wolverines'
season was terminated at the hands of
-No. 5 Arizona and for the second
straight season and third in the last
four, that termination came in the
tournament's second round.
Somewhere between a promising
beginning and a bittersweet conclu-
sion, adversity struck.
Injuries --to seniors Sarah Behnke
and Joanna Fielder toward the begin-
ning, and freshman Chantel Reedus
and sophomore Katrina Lehman near
the conclusion "prevented our line-
up from being as consistent as we had
thought it would be," Rosen said.
In the nation's best confierence. a
lineup marked by injury and iiconsis-
tency led to a 3-9 start in the Big Ten.
"Over the course of such a long sea-
son, problems will happen,' Rosen
said. "But the best teams are those that
overcome adversity."
Against Purdue on Nov. 3,
Michigan took the offensive in its bat-
tle with that adversity.
"Purdue sparked things; it really got
us on a roll," said Rosen of the con-
vincing sweep of the Boilermakers.
"We started to play a lot better and to
get used to what proved to be our best
ilieup ."
That lineup, utilizing freshmen
Reedus and rin Moore, Lehman and
tjunior Shannon Melka to complement
the leadership of senior captains
Behnke and Alija Pittenger, spurred
Michigan to a finish in which it won
five of its last eight matches. That
stretch was highlighted by triumphs
over No. 25 Michigan State and No.
13 Ohio State.
"Our depth was our strong pointt,
Rosen said. "Our young players did a
great job making an impact as soon as
possible to overcome a lot of adversi-
tv."
All in all, an 8-12 record earned
Michigan a seventh-place finish in the
Big Ten - one spot higher than last
year.
The improvement represents "not as
big a step as we wanted, but a step in
the right direction," Rosen said. "One
of our goals was to get to the Sweet
16," Rosen said. "But our record was-
Food For Thought
The Leaacv
n't good enough to draw as high of a
seed as we would have liked."
Due to that low seed in the
Tournament, the Wolveries ran into
mighty Arizona prematurely.
And despite Michigan's myriad of
team and individual accomplish-
ments, "I don't think we fulfilled our
potential," Rosen said. "We had a
tremendous amount and fell short a
little bit."
AP PHOTO
LaDainlan Tomlinson - TCU
He led the nation in rushing f'W
the past two years and is fourth in
NCAA career rushing yards. Some
consider him an also-ran' because
of the weaker WAC competition.
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It's never too early to look ahead
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