Sports: February 23, 2000
Dartmouth assistant takes football
reins
Roger Hughes is selected from impressive group
When Princeton began looking for a new head football
coach, Dartmouth offensive coordinator Roger Hughes believed that he was
something of a long shot for the job-and with people like Al Groh (the newly
appointed head coach of the NFL's New York Jets) and John Garrett (the former
Tiger star and current quarterbacks coach of the NFL's Arizona Cardinals)
rumored to be candidates, Hughes's lack of confidence seemed warranted.
However, after an exhaustive seven-week search, Hughes emerged from a field of nearly 80 candidates. Athletic Director Gary Walters '67 said Hughes's "impressive academic achievement [a doctorate in exercise physiology], technical knowledge of the game of football, and tremendous relevant Ivy League experience," made Hughes the choice of both the campus committee (composed of Walters, three deans, two professors, and three athletic administrators), and an alumni advisory committee. In evaluating Hughes and the other candidates, Walters said that he relied heavily on the advice of former Tiger great and legendary coach Homer Smith '54, who analyzed game films of the Dartmouth offense under Hughes.
Hughes began his coaching career in 1982 as an assistant at his alma mater, Doane College in Nebraska. In 1984 he became a graduate assistant at the University of Nebraska, where he worked for three years under renowned Husker coach Tom Osborne. After a return to Doane as offensive coordinator, and brief stints at the University of WisconsinWhitewater and Cameron University, Hughes became Dartmouth's offensive coordinator in 1992. During his tenure, Dartmouth won two Ivy League championships.
The players expressed relief that the process was finally over and that they could begin preparing for the 2000 season. Quarterback Tommy Crenshaw '02 is impressed by the new coach. "He makes himself available to the players and he is very personable," Crenshaw said. "I think that will help him close the deal with recruits."
When discussing his immediate plans for the Tiger football program, Hughes pointed to what he refers to as his "trifecta": getting a staff of assistant coaches in place, contacting recruits who have been admitted early decision, and getting in touch with recruits who have already visited or plan to visit campus in the near future. Hughes seemed unfazed by the abbreviated recruiting season he faces. "I am aware of the recruiting situation. [I am] confident that Princeton is going to attract a tremendous quality of person and athlete . . . Princeton's a very attractive place." In fact, it was Princeton's overall commitment to excellence that piqued Hughes's interest in the position. "The thing that attracted me to the job is that Princeton makes a commitment to excellence in everything they do."
Hughes has hired fellow Dartmouth assistant Dave Rackovan as the team's offensive coordinator, but said, "It would be hard for me to envision not having a great input into the offense. I would like to do some things similar to what we were doing at Dartmouth because I think they are hard to defend." Specifically, Hughes pointed to his affinity for an abundance of offensive formations, the use of motion, and the creation of mismatches and leverage problems for opposing defenses.
Discussing whether the future Tiger offense would resemble the vertical passing attack that Jay Fiedler-now a backup quarterback for the NFL's Jacksonville Jaguars-piloted at Dartmouth in the early 1990s, Hughes said, "[My] philosophy adapts to the talent that Princeton has."
While Hughes would not offer a timetable for Princeton's return to the top of the Ivy League, he did say that he would "be surprised if we don't compete hard next year." He added, "I talk about trying to achieve excellence, not perfection. If we prepare as though we are going to be champions, I think we have a chance to be pretty good."
Roger Hughes does not have an NFL pedigree. What he does have is 17 years of college football coaching experience and a history of success in the Ivy League. Odds are, the self-described long-shot candidate will have Princeton football back in the winner's circle before long.
-Matthew Golden '94
Marathoner sets her own pace
Places 73rd among women at the New York City Marathon
Balancing schoolwork and some semblance of a social life is just about
all the typical junior at Princeton can handle. But, for Kerin Maganzini
'01 that wasn't enough. An economics major from Wyckoff, New Jersey, Maganzini
ran the New York City Marathon in November, placing 73rd among female competitors.
Maganzini, who does not compete in any varsity sport at Princeton, covered
the route in an astounding three hours, 15 minutes, and 34 seconds.
Maganzini began training for the race in mid-July, running six days a week, taking Fridays off, doing a long run on Saturday, and going for a light jog Sunday mornings. By the beginning of the fall semester, she was covering around 40 miles per week, but maintaining her strict training regimen was a bit overwhelming once classes started. "The first month I was here I began to think this was not such a good idea," Maganzini admitted, "but I reasoned that I had trained the whole summer and I didn't want to waste all that work." By October, she was logging 50 to 55 miles each week. In addition, she managed to hold down a position on the business staff of The Daily Princetonian, to be involved with the Student Volunteers Council, and work with Annual Giving.
With the goal of maintaining an eight-minute-mile pace, Maganzini joined 30,000 other women runners at the race's start. "They had clocks after every mile, so after the first, my time was 7:50, and it felt great," she said. "I remember people telling me that I would hit the wall at mile 20, but I didn't feel anything. When I entered the park at mile 24, though, I was really tired. But it was only two more miles, and I had done that hundreds of times."
"I'm really glad I did it," she said, "but I don't plan on making a hobby of running marathons." Women's cross-country and track and field coach Peter Farrell hopes that changes; he recently sent an e-mail imploring her to join the team. Maganzini, who played midfield for her high school's national championship soccer team and was also a hurdler and high jumper on her track team, isn't ruling anything out. "I am open-minded, so I will hear what he has to say about the program. Right now though, I am pretty laid back, and I like doing my own thing."
-Patrick Sullivan '02
Sports Shorts
Chris Ahrens '98 is one of 10 finalists for the AAU James E.
Sullivan Memorial Award, which annually honors the top amateur athlete in
the nation. An accomplished member of the men's heavyweight crew at Princeton,
Ahrens shared the William C. Roper Award as the outstanding senior male
athlete, and led the Tigers to national championships in 1996 and 1998.
Ahrens has also won four world championship gold medals while representing
the U.S. in international competition.
Larry Ellis, who was head coach of track and field at Princeton for 22 years and the 1984 Olympic men's head coach, was inducted posthumously into the National Track and Field Hall of Fame.
On February 19, the varsity wrestling program returned to Jadwin Gym after a seven-year hiatus. In 1993, the program, which dates back to 1905, was eliminated from varsity competition. Thanks to the tireless efforts of many alumni, the team is now wrestling a full varsity schedule, and last year had two wrestlers earn All-Ivy honors.
Susan Teeter, head coach of women's swimming, recorded her 100th career victory on January 29, with a win over Columbia. Teeter's team now boasts a record of eight wins and no losses.
Kavitha Krishnamurthy '03, a rising star for the women's tennis team, won the Georgia Invitational and is now 25-1 for the year, with a 24-match winning streak. She is ranked 21st nationally.
Another freshman making news is Spencer Gloger. The heralded men's basketball recruit set an Ivy League record for three-pointers in a game when he knocked down 10 in a December 18 game against University of AlabamaBirmingham.
Selected to the fall Academic All-Ivy team were: Susan Rea, Robin Dwyer, and Blair Smith (soccer), Courtney Ebersole (cross country), Emily Brown (volleyball), Matt Striebel (soccer), David Ferrara (football), Mike Pagnatto and Brian Edlow (sprint football), and Marshall Roslyn (water polo).
Saturday, February 5, Princeton was an official host for National Girls and Women in Sports Day, which was established by Congress in 1987. In related news, Madison Books released Silver Era, Golden Moments, which chronicles the history of women's athletics in the Ivy League. The book notes the accomplishments of several Princetonians, including Merrily Dean Baker, who was associate director of athletics and director of physical education at Princeton.
GO TO the Table of Contents of the current issue
GO TO
PAW's home page