During his first four years at Duke, Mike Pressler toiled and sweated over his duties as the Blue Devils' head lacrosse coach in what one might call a rather "cozy" atmosphere.
His office was stashed away in the locker room normally reserved for visiting football teams, and it was small enough to make the recently-condemned Hanes Annex look like Trump Towers. His desk was close enough to assistant coach J.B. Clarke's that having a phone for each of them seemed a bit extravagant. And then there were the other minor inconveniences to deal with--like the occasional leaky roof, the lack of a paved parking lot and the daily trek to the edge of Duke Forest just to get to work every morning.
But this year, Pressler has changed his address, moving his office to a more spacious venue on the second floor of Card Gym. His immediate neighbor, fencing coach Alex Beguinet, adds a little international flavor to the surroundings. The walk to the gym's basketball courts, where Clarke is teaching a hoops class this semester (he's a bruiser in the post), is just down a flight of stairs. And the other coaches you might see at a neighborhood picnic? They go by names like Goldsmith, Goestenkors and Krzyzewski.
It's not the only move Pressler has made in the last five years. And it's not even the biggest move the 35-year-old native of Wilton, Conn., has made since taking over the reigns of the Duke lacrosse program in 1991.
For that accomplishment, you'd need to look just a bit further. You'd need to look at how he inherited a team that went 6-7 in 1990, and how he hasn't had a losing season since. You'd need to reflect on Duke's two NCAA tournament appearances under Pressler--the first two in school history. And you'd need to realize how he has transformed the Blue Devils from a perennial also-ran waiting to place a bid on national prominence to a legitimate national contender with a down payment on a nice little place somewhere along the road to the final four.
"We've had four years of recruiting now," Pressler said. "It takes four years or so to get your team in place, and you've got to have the horses, you've got to have the athletes to do it.
"This is the year we've pointed to as a culmination of our efforts. This is the year we want to make a charge to the top of Division I lacrosse."
With such lofty goals in mind, 1995 couldn't have begun much better, as the Blue Devils are off to a start that could leave even Speedy Gonzales in the dust. They opened the season with a 19-4 thrashing of Butler, and have won six of their first seven games overall. Their only loss came at then-No. 10 (now No. 2) Maryland, when the Terps handed Duke an 8-6 defeat. The wins have come over teams as highly-touted as then-No. 9 Brown and former No. 11s Navy and Georgetown. The Blue Devils are ranked No. 6 in the USILA's latest poll, the highest ranking in school history.
The Duke defense has been stellar throughout, allowing no more than nine goals in any game and an average of under seven. Pressler credits much of this improvement to a new concept of team defense. He said goalie Joe Kirmser is playing "the best lacrosse of his career."
On offense, a cadre of wiley veterans has, as expected, led the way. On attack, it's been Scott Harrison spearheading the charge with a team-leading 26 points. At the midfield, Matt Ogelsby is on track for another stellar season with 19 points through last Saturday's win over Georgetown, and Ross Moscatelli has chipped in a team-high 16 goals. Steve Finnell has added another 13 goals from his attack position, and, according to Pressler, has been this year's biggest surprise.
There is no question that Pressler's squad is full of stat stuffers. But it may be what Harrison, Moscatelli, Ogelsby, Finnell and the Blue Devils' five other seniors add outside the score sheet that has made this team so successful.
"This year, more than any other year, we've had good leadership," Pressler said. "We've had mature teams in the past, but this is the most mature team we've ever had. The seniors on this team are well prepared, they don't get rattled, they're very confident. Our big guns have been under the gun in big games, and they know what it's like."
Indeed, the nine players who comprise Pressler's first recruiting class and current senior class have seen Duke's program grow from the ground up. Their first year they finished 7-7 and earned Duke's first-ever trip to the NCAA tournament. In their sophomore season, they finished the year at 9-5, but narrowly missed the 12-team NCAA field. Last year the Blue Devils were back in the tournament and didn't leave until they had their first-ever tourney win and a near upset of top-seeded Syracuse in their pockets.
With the bigger successes have come bigger goals. This year, Pressler has said time and time again his team is striving for a victory in the ACC tournament, something Duke has yet to accomplish since the tournament's inception in 1989. Added to that are hopes for a win over North Carolina (the two teams meet Wednesday at Duke Lacrosse Stadium), a promise the Blue Devils made good on in 1987, four years before Pressler's arrival. Down the road are expectations for a run deep into the NCAAs.
"Making the tournament just isn't good enough anymore," Pressler said.
This year's team certainly is good enough. The obstacles in Duke's path to greatness are falling faster than Mike Tyson's first victim will when The Champ steps back in the ring. The foundation is now in place; all that remains is to build on it.
"Our administration has been outstanding for us," Pressler said. "They've given us everything we've needed to be competitive as far as facilities, locker rooms and equipment goes. It's taken five years to get the players and the schedules in place. Now we just have to get things done on the field.
"I think we're finally getting that done."
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