Oct. 27, 2008
He was quick to learn.
The tradition surrounding the UCF baseball program overwhelms people sometimes. In just 24 seasons in Division I, the Knights have made nine NCAA Tournament appearances and witnessed 64 players selected in the Major League Baseball Draft. Names like Justin Pope, Jason Arnold, Mike Maroth, Dee Brown, Chad Mottola, the Bono brothers and Tim Barker all signify a history of success on the diamond.
Terry Rooney keeps that in mind every time he steps into his office. He also understands fans are anxious for a rebirth of the Knights as they attempt to evolve into a consistent contender in Conference USA, one of the top collegiate baseball leagues in the country.
UCF's fifth head coach since the program's inception in 1973, Rooney takes over a team loaded with seniors who are hoping to return the Knights into the national spotlight in their final season donning a Black and Gold uniform. They were greeted, however, by a completely different voice when the fall season started Sept. 21, a voice that echoed a passionate, winning feeling throughout the ballpark.
During UCF's scrimmage that night, Rooney saw a lack of raw emotions and excitement that championships clubs have on the baseball field. When the final out was made, he knew it was time for an attitude adjustment, and his words sunk deeply into every player that night.
"As far as how I address them, I'm always going to tell them the truth," explained Rooney. "Everyday in practice, something comes up that leads me to talk about winning. Enthusiasm and energy take you a long way. If you have those two, then it means you really like what you are doing, and that's the only way we are going to be successful. I think these players have enjoyed being out there so far. They see an energetic style from this coaching staff and that's the way I want them to play the game.
"The response from the guys after that first scrimmage has been great. There shouldn't be any limitations for what this program can do. They have to understand that. It's all about expectation levels. We want this team to go to Omaha. And my expectations aren't going to be shorter than any other program in the country. That's where we want to go. But to get there takes a lot of steps along the way."
Rooney certainly does not fall into the rhythm of talking a big talk. He is always backing it up with a game plan.
"Number one, you have to have discipline within each player and to understand what it takes to get to the postseason," said Rooney, who helped LSU to the College World Series as an assistant coach in 2008. "You have to believe that you're going to get there. They can go out and accomplish anything if they believe it.
"And step two is that each one of them needs to hold each other accountable for their actions. If this team holds themselves accountable for doing the right things all of the time on and off the field, then we are going to be successful."
These Knights should get used to listening to a coach who craves maximum effort every second of every practice. It also helps that although UCF fans have high hopes for the program, Rooney will not let any pressure get to him.
"I truly don't feel any pressure and that's partly because of my own standards and expectations," smiled Rooney. "Nobody's expectations in this community and university can be higher than mine. The pressure is what I put on myself, and mine is at the highest level."
The skipper's fellow coaches have embraced his sentiments. Cliff Godwin (LSU), Jeff Palumbo (George Mason) and Aaron Smith (UNC Wilmington) all came to UCF from three separate universities, but they all have confidence in their new system. Typically it might be very difficult to get veteran players to adjust to a coaching change, yet these instructors are hoping their fall schedule will bring everything together.
"The biggest thing is to just keep things simple for them," said Palumbo, who specifically handles the Knights' defense. "Anytime you have a new coaching staff, there is always going to be a transition period where the guys have learned a specific thing, and now have to go through a different approach. So that's why we want to keep it simple and not overload them with too much information. If you do that right now, it takes away from their ability to just go play the game.
"The guys are really intelligent and picking things up very quickly. It's making it easier from our standpoint to expedite the process a little bit with what we are trying to implement."
There also might be a secret ingredient added to the new UCF recipe this season: swagger.
"That's a word we are using a lot around here," admitted Rooney. "Swagger is how you carry yourself. To have it means you have confidence. This team is going to have a swagger when we take the field. I tell our guys all of the time that when we play teams, we are going to respect everybody, but we are going to fear no one."