The 2005 UD mens soccer season can best be characterized as a program in transition. It’s a Transition from the exploits of a departed senior class, the talents of Chris Rolfe, and the coaching of former Head Coach Dave Schureck. Schureck is now on the Xavier sidelines coaching his alma mater. In his place is new UD Head Coach Dennis Currier, the product of a tremendously successful campaign at Division-II Incarnate Word University in Texas. New leadership on the bench, new leadership from another senior class, and fresh faces from a massive influx of newcomers make the 2005 season a year of transition to be sure, but also a year of transformation.

After a slow start to 2004, the Flyers rebounded to earn yet another postseason A10 tournament berth. In fact, late in the year UD even had thoughts of winning the regular season title. But like seasons prior, Dayton did enough to position themselves near the top of the conference standings and earn an opportunity to play for an automatic NCAA bid, yet failed to cash in and claim the program’s first ever trip to the Big Dance. All things said, finishing 11-7-1 meant another winning season but the Flyers beat nobody of significance and flamed out in the A-10 semis with a 3-0 loss to the Temple Owls – a team Dayton handled with a 2-1 win earlier in the year.

In light of the circumstances, perhaps it was time for a change. With the UD women’s team enjoying NCAA success on a yearly basis, the men’s program has yet to find the special sauce to get there too. That’s somewhat ironic considering the men’s team has had similar expectations, earning a national ranking of #9 just two seasons ago. Dennis Currier brings a winning attitude and completely new approach to soccer. Fans are hoping that’s just what the program needs to finally reach the postseason Promised Land.

PERSONNEL LOSSES

The Flyers lost a number of players, but only a few of them earned quality minutes in 2004. The two biggest losses occur at midfield and striker.

The biggest hole to fill belongs to departed forward Chris Rolfe, a NSCAA 2nd Team All-America selection in 2004 despite playing in just 13 of 19 games due to nagging injuries. In spite of that, he led the team in points on seven goals and 10 assists while terrorizing defenders with his happy feet, ball tricks, and wicked left foot. Dayton may miss Rolfe’s unselfishness most however because he made everyone around him better and always shared the ball – even when he could have (maybe should have) accomplished things on his own. Rolfe was one of the all-time Flyer greats and will be missed but not forgotten as he currently starts for the Chicago Fire in MLS.

Tye Stebbins was a four-year starter in the midfield and finished third in points last year. A hard-working albeit undersized ball winner, Stebbins was a Dave Schureck favorite who rarely didn’t start and rarely took a break on the bench. His largely blue-collar duties over four years will be missed. An A10 1st Team selection in 2004, he was also an Academic All-American.

Several players with eligibility remaining are no longer with the program. Senior-to-be Mpoki Tenende, a semi-reliable scorer with speed and physicality, did not return this year. So too promising sophomore GK Matt Troop and junior forward Clint Loughner. Finally, juniors Chad Tetirick and Scott Allen, both products of Turpin HS, are no longer an option either. Of these losses, only Tenende and Troop played significant minutes. Troop earned A10 All Rookie last year.

THE RETURNEES

On offense, senior Omar Jarun, a 2004 A10 2nd Team selection, returns to help provide goal scoring for the Flyers. Jarun finished first in goals scored last year (9) and has the tools to do that once again, provided he gets some help up top with the absence of Rolfe. At 6-5, Jarun is lethal on set pieces and is more of a goal scorer than pure playmaker. His physical tools serve him well and when the Flyers need to score, Jarun usually comes through. He led the conference with five game-winners last year.

Sophomore speedster Tyler Imbrogno, a Centerville product, has the potential to be a player who can step up and make big strides. After spotty action last year, his chances should improve considerably this season and with perhaps the best jets on the team, Imbrogno has the pesky frontrunner skills to grind out goals with his shiftiness and hustle. After just a pair of preseason exhibitions, he has looked dangerous on the field and appears ready to step forward.

Aaron Swanson earned A10 All Rookie honors in 2004 and at 6-1, has the physical tools and terrific speed to cause difficulty for opposing defenders. The sophomore from Ft. Wayne, IN, made 15 starts last year and works extremely well on the right flank – either in the midfield or at forward. Nobody seems to work harder than Swanson and that effort alone should put him in serious favor with the new coaching staff. He stands a great chance of improving upon the two goals and four assists he tallied as a freshman.

A trio of senior midfielders should be key contributors between the penalty boxes all year. Brennen Randquist, George Nanchoff, and Damian Blackburn have seen major minutes over the last two seasons and have the work ethic and ball-winning skills to help the Flyers win possession and move forward. Randquist does much of the dirty work and goes all out on 50/50 balls in the air. He should also supply a good deal of leadership. In the exhibition season he has looked very good and the coaches feel confident with his presence. Nanchoff can move forward and make plays offensively, oftentimes finding teammates or creating chances on his own with a crafty touch. Blackburn, a former walk-on from Beavercreek, has earned his stripes over the years and now finds himself as a likely starter. Blackburn is steady, tackles hard, and overcomes the tendency by some players to take too many uncalculated risks.

Junior Antti Arst has the work rate as an outside midfielder to make plays offensively and defensively. The 5-8 Estonian product looked extremely competent in the preseason and has enough starting experience to lend credible leadership on the field in 2005. With three assists last year, the new coaching staff will want some scoring punch to go along with it. That’s an expectation Arst is capable of living up to. An All-Rookie selection two years ago, he could be one of the players to watch – a player making a sizeable leap in productivity given the favorable opportunities.

Somewhere in the midfield, junior Michael Huff and senior Oliver Condell will look to make a bigger splash than years prior. Combining for just eight total appearances in 2004, the duo did not see action in the exhibition matches so the verdict is still out on their potential contributions this year. If nothing else, their availability continues to strengthen overall team depth.

Defensively, the Flyers return a trio of goalkeepers familiar with the program and with the departure of GK Matt Troop, two are likely to see significant minutes.

Senior Nick Tarkany, a senior from Miamisburg and former player at East Carolina, returns for his final season and looked very sharp in the preseason. What Tarkany lacks in playing time and career starts, he has made up for in hard work during the summer. Tarkany played all 90 minutes in a victory over Ohio State two weeks ago and might be the man to beat between the nets in spite of playing in just two matches last year.

Fighting for the starting job alongside Tarkany is fifth-year senior Steve Ladislaw. Appearing in eight matches in 2004 alongside six starts, most felt Ladislaw hung up the cleats in the offseason. He was a late roster addition however and due to a redshirt freshman year, had one more chance to help the Flyers reach the NCAAs. He’s taken that opportunity and looked competent in one half of action against Valparaiso.

Sophomore Greg Robertson is the third returning goalkeeper but did not play as a freshman.

Defensively, senior Nate Darr is the man in the middle. Capable of occupying the central defensive position or in the midfield, Darr uses his 6-1 frame to win high balls in the back line and score goals in the front line on Flyer set pieces. There may be no player in the country better in the box than Darr and his offensive prowess on corner kicks and free kicks can sometimes be the difference between winning and losing. With five goals and three assists last year as a defender, there’s no mistaking his ability to change the game with one redirection of the ball. The Centerville HS product looks ready for an All-Conference season and found the back of the net – with his head – against Valpo last week.

Junior defenders Richie Campbell and Devin McKenney have improved more in two seasons than perhaps any other pair of players on the Flyer roster. Both took a redshirt season in their freshman year but appeared in a combined 34 games in 2004. Both players have excellent pace and tackle hard, but more importantly like to win loose balls. Whatever experience they lacked as first-year players should be long gone by now and both should have no trouble seeing significant playing time this fall.

Junior Tony DiBello and senior Dasan Robinson are two-way players who may split time as defender and striker. DiBello, a 5-8 bulldog, spent his freshman year exclusively at striker but started transitioning to defense a year ago. Likewise, Robinson has helped anchor the Flyer defense over the last three seasons but has the athletic ability to play nearly anywhere. With 14 starts in 17 matches as a junior, Robinson registered a pair of goals and three assists. DiBello made 12 starts last year primarily in the defense. Either player has the tools to move around the field and such flexibility should make for interesting times.

Senior Ian Mulligan has been a mainstay in the back line for the better part of two seasons and nothing should change in 2005. With good size (6-1), instincts, and tackling ability, Mulligan took a redshirt year upon arrival but gradually fell into the daily rotation in his sophomore and junior campaigns. Making six starts in 10 games last season, he started both exhibitions this year and should be an early favorite to lock down a starting job for much of the fall. After this year, he’ll have a year of eligibility left and fans are hoping he uses it.

Senior Dan Hartwig is in similar shoes as Mulligan and started 15 games a year ago. Hartwig can float as a defensive midfielder or lock down opposing strikers in the back line. A starter in both exhibitions, he should be a mainstay in the Flyer lineup all year as a player willing to do the dirty work and leave the glory for others.

THE NEWCOMERS

Never before has the Flyer program seen such an influx of new names and faces, so many in fact that the newcomers almost outnumber the holdovers. Perhaps some of that is expected during a coaching change, but a lot of it has to do with several other holdovers that elected not to return. Thankfully, the new faces appear talented and capable of performing at a high level given proper instruction and some divine guidance by the upperclassmen already familiar with the ways and means.

At the top of the list are a pair of transfers from Coach Currier’s former home at Incarnate Word University. Both seniors, Lubomir Bogdanov and Terry Alvino have something else in common – they were NCAA D-II All-Americans.

Bogdanov, a three-time All-America selection, may have been the best returning player in all of D-II had he stayed. What the Flyers gain is a savvy, speedy, technically-gifted striker capable of putting goals on the scoreboard. He’s looked extremely dangerous in both exhibition matches and notched two goals on a pair of penalty kicks. In no uncertain terms, Bogdanov will be expected to carry much of the scoring burden alongside senior Omar Jarun. Both players have the potential to put up big numbers in different ways; Jarun with strength and aerial assaults, Bogdanov with the ball at his feet.

Alvino was a 3rd Team All-America selection at IWU last year and despite missing the Ohio State match two weeks ago, looked very competent as a central midfielder against Valparaiso. Alvino is confident yet patient, calm yet determined, and seems to feel right at home as an intermediary between the back line and the strikers. Both Bogdanov and Alvino are major coups this year and should help fill the void of Stebbins and Rolfe.

Freshman Caleb Lindemann, a highly-touted recruit from Indiana, is another option at striker and could play off extremely well with Bogdanov and Jarun. Lindemann has great size at 6-2 and uses every inch and every ounce of it to cause problems up top. He missed the OSU game but played last week against Valpo and looked like a prospect capable of supplying immediate contributions. What Lindemann currently lacks in style, he appears ready to make up for in pure substance – physical play and 110% effort. He’s a player worth watching and has the tools to be an A10 All-Rookie selection – or better. A holdover Dave Schureck recruit, he should have no problem finding playing time this fall.

The Flyers receive transfer help from former Creighton product Jonathan Welsh. Welsh, a 6-0 midfielder, should be used to playing at the top level of D-I soccer and appeared in 16 games last year for the Bluejays. He also has NCAA tournament experience, something of a hot commodity within the program. With two years of eligibility remaining, hopefully Welsh’s winning attitude will rub off on others. He did not appear in either preseason match.

Help in the midfield comes from several new faces: Joe Olwig, Ryan Hefley, and Troy Thompson. Olwig played for high school power Christian Brothers in Missouri and helped his program to the Missouri state title as a senior and #4 national ranking. He saw his first action off the bench against Valparaiso and has a bright future in the Flyer program.

Hefley played in both exhibitions and might find himself earning his keep as a defender before it’s all over. The first Flyer recruit from New Mexico since Wade Fischer, Hefley hails from Las Cruces and earned 1st Team All-State as well as New Mexico 5A State Player of the Year. The coaching staff appears very confident in his skills and ability to contribute right away.

Trinidad product Troy Thompson has yet to appear in a Flyer match, but the international should get his chance before too long. Thompson has experience playing in the U20 Trinidad national pool.

Alex Davis is the lone goalkeeping addition, but he’s a good one. A two-time 1st Team All-State selection out of Holy Angels HS in Minneapolis, MN, Davis was Runner-Up for the Minnesota Mr. Soccer award.

Defensive newcomers Jeff Boyer, Lawrence DeGeest, and John Paulus round out the Flyer roster. Boyer, 5-11, was a 2nd Team All-State selection as a senior at Rockwood Summit HS in Missouri. DeGeest played for Hinsdale Central HS in Hinsdale, IL, and was named All-Sectional as a senior while earning a University of Dayton Presidential Scholarship. Paulus hails from Elkton, MD, and was named 3rd Team All-State as a junior and 1st Team All-State as a senior. Considered one of the Top-10 players in the state of Maryland, he also has regional ODP experience. Neither Boyer, DeGeest, or Paulus saw action in the preseason but should get a chance as the regular season gets underway.

Considering how late in the recruiting process Coach Currier’s staff got in the door of many recruits, this class can best be characterized as deep and consistent. What the Flyers might lack in a couple bona fide top-flight prospects, they made up for in bringing talented players from winning backgrounds with winning attitudes. Several should see significant minutes this fall and a couple others might surprise.

THE SCHEDULE

Dayton has a chance to win some games this year. With no legitimate national powers to go up against, the Flyers also miss out on playing St. Louis in conference action. The non-conference schedule isn’t easy however. It includes a tough backyard contest against Cincinnati to open the season on Sep. 4, then a west coast trip beckons with matches against Sacramento State and extremely talented UC-Davis. The Flyers return home with matches against Marshall and Cal Poly in the Dayton Marriott Flyer Classic. Both games are very winnable. Missouri State (formerly Southwest Missouri State), improving Evansville, Michigan, and Wright State round out the non-conference portion. Michigan could be in the thick of the Great Lakes region race again, but Wright State still struggles to field a competitive program. Missouri State fields a competitive program and finished 11-6-1 a year ago while competing in the tough Missouri Valley Conference.

The A10 schedule contains the usual list of suspects, minus St. Louis of course. With just nine league matches, the Flyers play five at home and four on the road. A10 contenders Richmond and Temple are on the road, but Dayton also avoids Duquesne and Rhode Island. All told, the league’s season title is attainable.

WHERE SUCCESS WILL REST

Dayton has new leadership on the sidelines and the ability of the new coaching staff to assimilate their coaching style, tactics, and expectations with the players may end up being the only thing that ultimately matters. Coach Dennis Currier has extensive winning experience and knows how to get to the NCAA tournament. In fact, he knows how to win once he gets there. With a new offensive-minded playing style geared toward scoring goals, the Flyers will take calculated chances on the field and attempt to turn them into goals. By and large, goal scoring was never a problem in 2004, but defensive miscues and mental lapses usually spelled disaster. It only takes one casual mistake or error in judgment. Fans are likely to see higher scoring games, so UD may be able to outscore opponents rather than out-defend.

If Bogdanov, Imbrogno, Swanson, Lindemann, Randquist, and others can supply scoring balance to go with Omar Jarun, opponents will have a tough time clamping down on just one or two guys. Perhaps Dayton’s greatest strength is team depth. With 20 or more players capable of playing starter minutes, the staff has many alternatives when things are grinding to a halt. The newcomers must step up and contribute right away – at least a few of them. Last, solid goalkeeping will make everything easier. The loss of Matt Troop is not insignificant, but Tarkany and Ladislaw have looked decent in the preseason.

POINTS OF CONTENTION

Fans will learn quickly if the new coaching staff’s style of play can work at the upper Division-I level. The direct style of moving the ball forward with long passes sometimes gets a bad name. Those who despise it call it kick-and-run, but those who fine-tune it and exploit its potential can be the last ones laughing. From the looks of it, the new style resembles more of a counter-strike offense. If the Flyers struggle to score goals with it on a consistent basis, things could get interesting. The players must buy into it completely and if they get frustrated early on, they may take a set against it. The Flyers must also get off to a good start. They did that with two preseason victories including a win over Top-25 Ohio State. The regular season is a different animal and the Flyers can’t afford to fall below .500 before digging out during conference play.

THE VERDICT

One thing is obvious: the A10 doesn’t think too highly of the 2005 Dayton Flyers. Picked to finish 7th, such a preseason rank in the A10 is virtually unprecedented for a program used to finishing no worse than the Top-4. In our discussion with Coach Currier, we found him to be clear, confident, and perhaps most of all, convinced that soccer is still soccer, whether its in D-II or D-I. What Currier left was a program currently ranked #4 nationally in the D-II preseason poll. What Currier inherits is a successful program looking to make its first-ever appearance in the NCAA tournament. St. Louis, new members to the A10 this year, must be considered the odds-on favorite given their pedigree and in spite of a marginal (by SLU standards) 2004 campaign. But we also think if Dayton is the 7th best team in the A10, the league is a four-bid conference. And knowing as we do that the league is not a four-bid conference, it must mean the Flyers are being overlooked. The Flyers won’t finish seventh, or anywhere near it. Look for UD to make the A10 postseason tournament at the very least with a Top-4 finish. The question everyone wants answered however is: can Dayton get to the NCAA tournament? It will take 13-14 regular season victories and a strong showing in the A10 tournament. Or it will take winning the A10 tournament altogether for the automatic bid. Neither is a prediction we’re going to make, but nothing can be ruled out either. Never underestimate the power of a new coach with a new vision and fresh approach to a program hell-bent on getting over the hump. The hump awaits, and the Flyers are hoping to conquer it.