2013 Preview Season Preview
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YEAR TWO OF POTTER ERA BEGINS AT OKLAHOMA Head coach Matt Potter’s second season with OU soccer to feature core of returners, 15 talented newcomers. If you’re going to practice soccer outside in Oklahoma during the month of August, you’ve got to find a way to avoid the heat. When the soccer team reported for their first day of preseason practices in early August, they accomplished just that by hitting the field at 7:30 a.m. As the sun started to peek over the horizon in Norman, the 2013 OU soccer season was beginning on John Crain Field. “As a coach, you are always intrigued to see the players after a long break,” Oklahoma head coach Matt Potter said. “You quickly get a feel for who has done what they said they would do, as well as the energy and buzz of being reunited. This group did not disappoint. The energy and enthusiasm has been exceptional.” Potter arrived at OU last season after successfully rebuilding the Washington State program into a perennial NCAA tournament contender. His goals are no less lofty at Oklahoma, and the athletic department has been quick to provide the resources necessary for the team to reach those aspirations. With some of the finest soccer facilities in the nation and a staff dedicated to the success of its student-athletes on and off the field, Potter’s vision for the OU soccer program is already beginning to take root. After capturing seven wins in 2012—the most by a rookie head coach in program history—Potter and his staff will take the field this fall looking to continue implementing their vision and philosophy in the student-athletes they coach. 6 - 2013 SOCCER MEDIA GUIDE
Assisted by associate head coach Graeme Abel, assistant coach Kacey Burke, volunteer assistant Matt Armstrong and director of student-athlete performance enhancement Buddy Huttanus, Potter is on a mission to take OU to the next level as a soccer program. The 2012 Sooners (7-9-4, 3-3-2 Big 12) finished their campaign with a thirdstraight Big 12 tournament appearance (a first in program history) under Potter’s leadership. After losing a core group of upperclassmen that included Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year Renae Cuellar and four-year starting goalkeeper Kelsey Devonshire, Potter and his staff will debut a retooled roster full of young talent. There will be plenty of challenges in store this fall for the Sooners. OU fields a young roster that includes 15 newcomers, 12 of whom are true freshmen getting their first taste of college soccer. Couple that with one of the nation’s most demanding schedules and it becomes clear that Oklahoma’s young squad will be asked to rise to the occasion many times this season. OU will face eight NCAA tournament teams from the 2012 season; Florida State (20-4-0) made a Final Four appearance last fall, while BYU (20-2-2) was an Elite Eight squad. Other opponents from last season’s championship include Baylor (19-1-5), UF (19-5-1), North Texas (16-5-2), Tennessee (14-5-3), Texas Tech (16-6-1) and West Virginia (11-5-4).