Siedlecki prepares for regular season debut

SUNDAY

9:00 a.m.: Coach Jack Siedlecki arrives at his office in Ray Tompkins House, where he will spend much of his week. 148 hours remain until his Ivy League coaching debut.

3:30 p.m.: The team holds its preliminary game practice for one-and-a-half hours, spending the bulk of the workout on special teams and basic offense and defense.

MONDAY

7:30 a.m.: Siedlecki heads to Dunkin' Donuts for his breakfast, and organizes his meetings for the day.

8:30 a.m.: He then meets with offensive coordinator Keith Clark and running backs coach Larry Ciotti.

The coaching staff gathers to watch film of the Brown offense in a modern conference room that also serves as Siedlecki's office. Scattered about a large oval table are 19 tapes, several copies of Brown's depth charts, and Brown's media guide. "We've had a head start. We've had all the materials all summer, since there's no `last week's game' to watch," Siedlecki says.

Afternoon: Siedlecki fields telephone calls from local radio and newspaper reporters.

Siedlecki is proud of the day-to-day role he plays in the operation of his team. "I still coach. Many head coaches very seldomly call the plays," Siedlecki emphasizes. "I call the plays. This is my fun time of the game. I really like it, dealing with the players every day, doing game plans."

The football team has had key injuries; its top three quarterbacks, as well as last year's starting tailback, Jabbar Craigwell, JE '98, hailed in the team media guide as an All-Ivy League candidate, have all been sidelined. Siedlecki says that "the injury list is shortening; I just took a look at it. This quarterback thing, I've never seen anything like it, three quarterbacks hurt in one week."

4:00 p.m.: Fox News arrives from Hartford with a TV camera. Siedlecki tells the interviewer that he is eager to "get the season rolling, see where we're at; the first game is tremendously important."

Naturally, they want to talk about Carm Cozza, too.

Cozza is still around, keeping a well-furnished office right next to Siedlecki's. The new coach realizes that the change is "momentous for the people who have been with the program for a long time. I haven't been here the 32 years he was. I have a sense of the Yale tradition, but it's our first season. The 1997 team is ready to play. Tradition is one of the great things, but tradition doesn't win any games. It's this year's team, these players preparing for this week's game. I'm truly replacing a legend."

Cozza is maintaining a low profile around the facilities. "I try to stay out of his way," the legend intones. "But if he needs me, I'm there. I know what it's like to be new..." After the two pose for pictures in the conference room, Siedlecki gets right back to his planning.

TUESDAY

7:30 a.m.: The coach stops by Dunkin' Donuts en route from his home in Madison.

Noon: The coaches hold a press conference at Whitty's, the restaurant at the Yale Golf Course.

Today is the day to try the possibilities Siedlecki and his staff have chosen over the weekend. They'll see how the play on the field looks different from the concepts on the board. "By the end of Tuesday, we will have eliminated the questionable things," Siedlecki declares.

4:15 p.m.: Whistles blow and the team comes together and begins a storm of clapping in unison. The team splits up for calesthenics. "Come on, get better every day," calls one coach. At last, the whole team thunders to one side of the field and begins to clap again, punctuated with shouts of, "Come on, Blue!"

The crash of helmets and full contact mixes with loud grumbling; calls are garbled by yellow mouthguards. Something pleases the coaches. They clap, and it's not just in accompaniment to the stream of "Come on, let's go, get inside, hustle, hustle." Siedlecki smiles. "Come back to the huddle, go out there and run a play!" demands one coach. As an assistant coach sets up an offensive play, Siedlecki looks on and mutters, "This'll make the difference for us." The group runs the same basic play over and over again, with minor personnel changes. "This needs to be a beautiful 10 minutes," Siedlecki warns.

When the players finish, one coach yells, "Jesus! If they show a blitz, hold your poise! That's what they want you to do!" Siedlecki jogs between the fields, trying to watch everything. "This is unbelievable!" Siedlecki exclaims at one point. "Do they not know the formations?"

6:15 p.m.: The team reconvenes on Frank Field. The clapping sounds like rain off the aluminum bleachers. "Mentally prepare for the game so that you can play 100 percent physically," advises Siedlecki. The players head for the showers. 90 hours remain.

WEDNESDAY

7:30 a.m.: Dunkin' Donuts.

3:40 p.m.: In front of Payne Whitney Gym, Jabbar Craigwell cradles his cast. "I'm trying to get second opinions," he says, smiling bleakly. Or third, fourth, and fifth opinions. He has consulted a half-dozen orthopedic specialists already. "I'll be watching this weekend," he says ruefully.

"By Wednesday, we will know exactly what we are doing. It will be a matter of repetition and recognition." Siedlecki wants "a good solid day of offense and defense." Siedlecki last coached at Division III Amherst College. About the transition, he says "the size of the school is a huge difference, but coaching football is coaching football. That doesn't really change from one place to the next." When asked about his expectations for the year, he responds, "If we don't have a goal of winning the Ivy League title, we don't belong here."

THURSDAY

7:30 a.m.: Time to buy the Donuts.

Thursday is a final day of polishing. Siedlecki is demanding, but also recognizes that his players are under significant strain, and doesn't want to completely wear them out in practice. "They're under tremendous time constraints. This is a tough school. You put in all this time," he says. "I want them to get enough rest on Thursday and Friday nights."

The individual who faces perhaps the most scrutiny as gameday approaches is Mike McClellan, SY '01, who will start at quarterback against the Bears. McClellan is the first freshman to start as the signal caller since 1905. "It's a unique situation I've been put in," McClellan says, "and I'm grateful. I'd like to make the most of it. My goal was to make the travelling team and start my junior year or maybe my sophomore year, but I have a good team around me--the linemen are taking me out to dinner on Friday night. On Saturday, I will do the best I can."

FRIDAY

7:30 a.m.: Jack Siedlecki eats breakfast. You know the drill.

4:00 p.m.: Unpadded practice. "I need them to be as fresh as they can be," Siedlecki says. "We do all this work and it all comes down to the kids going out there with tremendous emotion and play for 60 minutes. It's very profound beyond the Xs and Os."

7:00 p.m.: Practice ends. 18 hours to go.

SATURDAY

10:00 a.m.: Where is the Coach on the morning of the game? Meeting with recruits at Smilow Field House. Siedlecki feels that the Yale name gives him a recruiting advantage. After all, Yale is home of Walter Camp and the birthplace of modern football. But "what we need to do is to take the edge the name gives and do something with it," Siedlecki declared. He introduces the coaching staff and gives a long presentation on Yale's football and academic offerings. Not only is Siedlecki constantly thinking about his current players, he is also dealing with his future players.

12:45 p.m.: Siedlecki heads out to the Bowl.

1:00 p.m.: Kickoff.

The new era begins.

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