HIGH HOPES
Erickson takes long view as he takes over ASU football program
By Michael Green

Dennis Erickson has arguably the most impressive view in Tempe, an office that sits high in the sky and looks out over Sun Devil Stadium through enormous bay windows. As he discusses the great things he hopes to bring to Arizona State's football program, Erickson calls the view "inspiring."

But that view can be potentially disquieting as well, a constant reminder of just how big college football is in so many ways, and how much is expected out of any head coach, especially one with Erickson's remarkable accomplishments. At ASU, where the football program in recent years has fallen just short of major success, the expectations are specific and unambiguous: get the team to a championship level.

Staring down at the empty stadium, with its eye-catching mosaic of maroon and gold seats, Erickson muses over his plans for accomplishing this, as well as the potential for ASU To win back local fans in a big way.

"They have the NFL here, but to me [Tempe] is a college football town," he says.

Erickson, who was named head football coach late last year in the wake of the departure of Dirk Koetter, is an equipped for this task as any current head coach in the nation. Among his achievements are nothing less than two national championships, as head coach of Miami in 1989 and 1991, and victories in three of the four BCS Bowls.

Closer to home, Erickson has been Pac-10 Coach of the Year twice, at Washington State and Oregon State, programs at which he implemented immediate turnarounds. His accomplishment at Oregon State in particular is considered one of the most remarkable coaching feats in recent years. There, he took a team that had not had a winning season since 1970 and, in his second year, coached the team to an 11-1 record and a 49-10 drubbing of Notre Dame in the 2001 Fiesta Bowl.

Altogether, he has amassed 148 wins as a head coach at five different schools. He currently sits at number 11 on the NCAA active coaching victory list, and would almost certainly be in the top five if not for his two stints as a coach in the NFL. He says his personal goal is to reach at least 200 career wins.

But first things first: before that happens, he must take ASU's program to the next level through savvy recruiting and the realization of a plan for success that has worked for Erickson and his staff for many years.

One key to that plan is bringing on board assistant coaches who have been a part of Erickson programs in the past. Amazingly, despite the fact that they were spread out across the country, eRickson had a relatively easy time convincing them to join him.

"The thing that I have with this coaching staff is a relationship that goes back many, may years," says Erickson. "Everybody except [Grady Stretz, defensive line coach] has either played or coached for me...We have a philosophy that's very similar...WE know what our goals are and what we're trying to accomplish."

Their philosophy starts with the idea that, whatever else football is, it is first and foremost a game, and that means having some fun on the field.

Stretz, one of only two coaches remaining from the Koetter regime, says the sense of fun has been immediately palpable. "[ERickson has] brought new energy and enthusiasm and excitement to the program and to the community as well," he says.

A newcomer to Erickson's methods, Stretz is impressed with the new coach's overall philosophy and how it translates across the board — in upper management, on the field, and in recruiting. "He's a great communicator," says Stretz. "He's very personable. He knows how to garner respect of his players. [They] believe in the plan, [in the] recipe for how to get things done."

In terms of on-field strategies, Erickson says that the average fan won't notice major differences. He does plan to step up the running game, a part of the offense that some say was undernourished in recent years.

ERickson, who has never had a losing record in his tenure as head coach, is enthusiastic about the coming season. Looking g out at the stadium again, he reminisces about his experiences here as a visiting coach. his eyes seem to settle on the field, a rectangle of lush green at the center of all that architecture, and it's obvious he can't wait to get back down there to do what he does best.

-- By Michael Green, a Tempe-based freelance writer.

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED
Women's track team captures national outdoor title

This is going to be tough to top. THe Arizona State women's track team followed up winning the NACC indoor championship earlier this year exactly the way they wanted: by winning the outdoor championship, as well.

It was the ASU women's first outdoor title. But if you think winning one championship makes winning the next one easier, you're wrong.

"I think for me, winning the second time is harder than winning the first time," said heptathlete Jacquelyn Johnson. "A whole lot harder. Now everyone's looking at you."

Winning - and the pressure that comes with it - is a subject Johnson knows something about. She won the heptathlon for the third time, twice consecutively. And while she recognizes the pressures of repeating, she also thrives on them.

"I think it make me better, and hungrier, too, for a win," she said.

In addition to Johnson's win, April Kubishta won the pole vault and Jessica Pressley captured the shot put.

Mission accomplished. CAn't wait to see what Johnson and her teammates do for an encore.

CHANGE UP
Murphy inspires baseball team with power of positive coaching

It doesn't take more than a five-minute conversation with Arizona State baseball coach Pat Murphy to realize that he is an unflagging optimist.

A year ago, coaching a young team, he preached positive results, confident things would work out as his team grew more experienced.

Sure enough, it paid off, with the Sun DEvils finishing 49-15 before losing to the University of California, Irvine, in the College World Series.

"I think our guys expect to win," Murphy said. "That's a nice thing."

It leads to nice things, as well, such as the Sun Devils winning the Pac 10 championship for the first time since 2000. Sophomore first baseman Brett Wallace was named Pac 10 Player of the Year, while junior second baseman, Eric Sogard was named the Pac 10 Defensive Player of the Year, the first Sun Devil ever to win the award.

Oh, and Murphy? He was named Coach of the Year.

Sounds like the team lived up to Murphy's lofty expectations.

"You just set the bar, and you hope they live up to the bar," Murphy said. "That's the key...It all comes back to how they feel about themselves."

What you play for, if you play for Murphy, is to win it all. It's a goal that Murphy sets every season.

"No question," Murphy said.

And why? "Because you can. Someone's got to do it. It's got to be one of the 293 schools. Why not us?"

SECOND SEASON, FIRST RATE
Sophomore follows up freshman splash with solid play

They may be the two most dreaded words in sports: sophomore slump.

After a freshman season that found her winning first-team All-America honors and setting a host of Arizona State records, they were words Kaitlin Cochran didn't want anyone using to describe her play.

"I was thinking things in the back of my mind, but I didn't want to have that kind of mindset," Cochran said. "I worried about it a little bit."

She needn't have. Cochran followed up her fantastic freshman year with a super sophomore season in which she again earned first-team All-America recognition, hitting .500, which led the nation in batting average. She also hit 18 home runs, drove in 53 runs and stole 27 bases, while helping lead the Sun Devils to the College World Series.

"I'm just trying to do my job, like the rest of the team," she said.

The job was successful; the Sun Devils finished 54-17 and advanced to the College World Series for the sixth time. Cochran's teammate and fellow All-America selection Katie Burkhart, a junior, struck out 517 batters, setting a Pac 10 single-season record - and the eight-best in NCAA history.

If that weren't enough, Cochran was named the Pac 10 Player of the Year, while Burkhart was named Pitcher of the Year.

For her part, Cochran didn't necessarily expect to be so good, so soon.

But she did establish herself early on as a team leader.

"Being the go-to person, I like that," Cochran said. "I like knowing that people have faith in me. In pressure situations, I don't really look at it as pressure situations. I look at it as an opportunity to show people what I can do." Which, she has proven in two stellar seasons, is quite a lot.

-- By Bill Goodykoontz, a Chandler-based freelance writer

ASU FINISHES 10TH IN DIRECTOR'S CUP STANDINGS

The Arizona State University athletic department has finished 10th in the United States Sports Academy Director's Cup standings, with the university's top 10 finishes in women's indoor and outdoor track and field, women's basketball, and baseball and softball leading the way.

This is ASU's 11th consecutive top 20 finish in the standings; the finish also ties its second-highest finish, as well as being the third time in seven years it has finished in the top 10.

Highlighting ASU's finish were a pair of NCAA championships earned by the women's indoor and outdoor track teams, the women's basketball team finish at the Elite Eight level of the NCAA tournament, and appearances by both the baseball and softball teams in their respective College World Series events.