Eli Soccer Coach Thinks Ivy Players A Rare Breed

"I don't want to be snobbish, but Harvard and Yale players are extremely intelligent," Yale soccer coach Hubert Vogelsinger observed.

Intelligence, of course, is usually a plus in athletics, but Vogelsinger has found that the quality of Harvard and Yale players creates many problems for a soccer coach.

"Most importantly, you have to be honest with the guys," Vogelsinger said. "You can't string these guys along. I told my team at the start of the season that I was predicting we wouldn't win a single game. Could I try and kid them along with any other attitude? A lot of these guys are as smart as I am, so you have to level with them."

Vogelsinger felt that his major problem as a Yale coach was deflating his players' ego. "Most of my players have a high school background of being a big fish in a small pond. Well, now all the fish are in one pot and we've got to work together.

"Individual talent helps in a game, there's no denying that. But to really excell at soccer you must have a team effort. Here at Yale I've found my greatest challenge is to get these great individualists to see the value of team effort.

"In the school, they are trying to develop themselves. It's not easy to place personal ego behind you out on the soccer field. You never really succeed until you make them realize that they'll get the most recognition when they all work for the same purpose.

"I say to them, 'We can still be Vogelsingers or what have you, but you must be Vogelsingers fitted into a team effort.'"

The special opportunities offered to foreign students at Yale, Harvard, and Columbia naturally brings foreign players out to soccer practices. Vogelsinger felt the international flavor of his personnel brought many challenges.

"When players come from different cultural and geographic areas you're going to have to figure out a way to combine these diverse talents. It helps if a couple guys come from the same area, like Gomez and Thomas. I think it even helps if you have many foreign players rather than one or two because then you make the conscientious effort to unite the different styles.

"But whatever the number of foreign players, you must take advantage of the talent you have. You can't change these guys styles in one season."

Vogelsinger traveled to the NCAA championship with the Harvard team last year and decided that he does not ?nvy Harvard coach Bruce Munro's job. "I took some time and got to know [Phil] Kydes, and a few of the other foreign students," Vogelsinger said. "But it would take so much time to get to know them all very well.

"I feel for Bruce. His first job must always be to keep the kids sticking together. He may be winning, but I wouldn't want to switch places with him today."

But Vogelsinger did not deny the advantage Harvard and Yale had over other New England schools because of the educational calibre of the players. "These guys can comprehend sophisticated plays and strategy. If you are honest with an extremely intelligent player, you can do things with him that aren't possible with a less sophisticated player.

"I think a good indication of this advantage is the fact that my teams at Yale have always done much better the second half of the season. They are ready to learn from experience."

Weighing the advantages and disadvantages of coaching a Yale student, Vogelsinger said he was happy in his position. "You must be a coach off the field more than on it. But the talent is there and with solid coaching the results will come."