By Steve Siniski
So what does the early ranking mean? If you use the 2005 Bruins as a point of reference not much. They opened the year as the No. 5 seed and ended the campaign at the top of the mountain, holding the conference crown. And don't think head coach Steve Carroll is wasting any opportunity to show off some of the hardware the program earned as a result. Any bit of motivation can be significant.
"I wore the ring and the jacket," he said, of his attire at a recent event. "I want to instill that this is something that took a long time to get in a big conference."
A recent week of early practice helped give Carroll an early jump on what promises to be a season full of new faces. Just one captain has been named to date - Kwaku Boah - and he's also one of the few with a definitive position. Well, sort of. Boah is slated to play at either the guard or tackle spot on the offensive line and is the likely nose guard on defense after an off-season spent in the weight room.
"We'll probably have some new faces at every position," he said."No one's proven themselves yet. We have a lot of young seniors It was all positive [the early work]. It was a good thing."
As the official start of summer practice on August 21 nears, the importance of the early groundwork cannot be overlooked. Though nothing more than the basics were addressed, the newcomers and those hoping to become new starters, got a little taste of what lies ahead.
"We put in the simple stuff," Carroll said, noting the instruction on offensive and defensive huddles. "We ran four or five sets out of the Power-I and four or five out of the even set. Fortunately our teams [historically] tend to get better as the season goes on. There's 22 questions to be answered."
Baldwin begins its 2006 campaign on September 16, on the road against Uniondale. They then host Hempstead on September 21 followed by a home tilt with the preseason No. 1 seed, East Meadow, on September 30.
