University of Massachusets Athletics
UMass Lacrosse Coach Stays Focused
May 17, 2006 | Men's Lacrosse
May 17, 2006
By JEFF THOMAS
jthomas@repub.com
AMHERST - If Greg Cannella tells you this week that he doesn't really want to talk about the past, it isn't because he's not a student of history.
The head coach of the University of Massachusetts men's lacrosse team for the last 12 years, with another four years as player and assistant coach, Cannella knows all there is to know about UMass lacrosse.
Placed prominently on the wall behind his chair in his office in Boyden is a picture of the great man himself, Dick Garber, taken in 1965, the year Cannella was born.
He has a collage of photographs to the left of his desk. Sure, there are pictures of his wife, Laurie, and his children Vance and Virginia, but it is also a photographic history of UMass lacrosse in his time.
And then there is the framed newspaper article of the Minutemen's 2005 victory over Syracuse in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
It was a great moment in the history of the UMass lacrosse program, and obviously Cannella knows that. But he's also aware of the pitfalls of getting too high over a single victory.
"Last year we beat Syracuse, and people were patting me on the back for a full week, then you go into a game and you get whooped, and we got whooped," Cannella said. "You don't want that to happen, you want to move forward and concentrate on Hofstra, because if we don't, we'll get whooped again."
The past is for learning from, not dwelling on. And the same traps that can be set by the past pose similar dangers for those looking too far ahead in the future.
"I think (my approach) has changed from in past," Cannella said. "I think it's been spoken that this is our chance for the final four, but you're focusing in on something that's two weeks ahead of you rather than focusing on the game. If you don't play well in this game you go home.
"In 2003, I think it was (different), and we ran into a good Maryland team, and last year we ran into (Johns) Hopkins, who is national champs," Cannella said. "Maybe that comes with experience, my experience with the feeling that there is an opportunity for us, so let's not take it for granted."
The Minutemen have never reached the NCAA national semifinals, not under the late Garber, who Cannella played for, or son Ted Garber, who coached the team for four years between his father and Cannella.
Four times previously Cannella has brought the Minutemen to this point of the season, but no further. Last week's 10-9 upset of Cornell has made possible Saturday's game with Hofstra at Stony Brook, N.Y., a neutral site.
Cannella, a native of Lynbrook, N.Y., is familiar with the Long Island university since he was an assistant coach there for four years, earned his Masters and met his wife there.
The Minutemen already have a victory over the Pride this season, defeating them 11-7 at Garber Field to open the season.
Hofstra is in a similar position as UMass, having never reached the national semifinals, which will be held at Philadelphia's Lincoln Financial Field May 27 and 29.
But Memorial Day weekend is not on Cannella's mind, and he and assistant coaches Jason Miller and Jake Coon are working to keep Hofstra as the sole focus of the players, and not to dwell on last week's success.
"It's hard for our guys because they see it on TV a couple of times and read about it in the newspaper, which is great, the guys deserve it," Cannella said. "But we made a point yesterday in practice that we're moving on as coaches, and the team needs to do the same."
The Minutemen are thrilled to still be practicing because that means they're still playing. They know they have a chance to do something no UMass lacrosse team has done, but without the proper preparation, that moment will not come.
"Not only in my time, but when I was a player and the great teams we had in the late 80s, you wonder why UMass hasn't gotten there," Cannella said. "I'm taking a different approach, and I'm going to just focus on the game and not what has happened in the past.
"Let's focus on playing this game and preparing the right way, and as coach Garber would say, let the fur fly," he added. "You can't look ahead, and you can't look back, you just have to go and play."
His approach has changed, but some things Cannella won't have to because whatever he does, coach Garber will be looking over his shoulder.
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