Located on seven hundred and fifty magnificent acres in the heart of New England sits a school famously known as being one of the “little Ivies”. Pictures of this idyllic campus which overlooks the Long Island Sound makes one yearn for the days when they once strolled across their own campus lawns. Long known as being one of the top Liberal Arts schools in the country, Connecticut College is beginning to make moves in the water.
Recently made the full-time coach of Connecticut’s up and coming varsity squad is J.J. Addison. The former USC player did an admirable job in a part-time capacity as he was named Division III Eastern Championship Coach of the Year this past fall while leading the Camels to a third place finish. Addison came to Connecticut College from the University of Colorado where he led their collegiate club team to a 29-5 record in his final campaign. I had a chance to sit down with Coach Addison and below is our interview.
Connecticut College is returning a nice core of talent. What does your squad need to do to improve on their finish at Division III Eastern Championships as well as move up the ranks in the Northern Division?
We need to improve our speed and endurance. Last year we spent a lot of time in training working on things that gave our players game situation experience, but we sacrificed a lot of conditioning time to do so. In games, we got burned at times we shouldn't have last year. We gave up some easy goals on counters that took us out of it-this year we are committed to not letting that happen again.
Sam Mitchell is a returning All-American for your team. What makes him the strong player that he is?
I was fortunate enough to play with Marco Pintaric at USC and Sam has some qualities that are very similar to Marco's-he's a great shooter, who can seriously frustrate opponents on defense, and he has a relentless energy and passion that make him a great player and a great teammate. Just like Marco, Sam is one of the most experienced players on his squad and he is also one of the most likely to spend extra time working on parts of his game before or after practices and, again, just like Marco, he is always willing to get in and help, or just do some extra work, with a teammate. Sam was actually quite limited last year because of an illness, so we are expecting him to have a really special senior year. He has also been chosen as one of our captains for 2011, and I know he is excited to lead the team in a whole new way.
Clayton Witter did a nice job in the cage for your team. What makes him effective between the pipes?
Clayton has spent some critical years developing his leg strength to the point where he now often plays, as I prefer goalies to play, without his hands in the water in most situations. His leg strength is nicely balanced by a strong arm and that allows him to make deep, accurate passes. The other thing that makes Clayton so dangerous is his experience in the field. I think when goalies can come out and play offense, they can learn what offenses look for, and, when they are back in the cage, they start anticipating 'the next pass' better and therefore are better positioned for a save or a steal. The other thing that is nice about putting a goalie in the field is they are forced to mix it up a bit physically which makes them more aggressive and less tentative when coming out of the cage for a steal later on. Clayton is strong, smart and fearless-everything I want in a goalkeeper.
What are your offensive and defensive philosophies and what is the optimal style that you would like your Connecticut College squads to play at?
I was trained at both Harvard-Westlake and USC to play tough defense, counter hard, work for ejections around strong center play and finish man-up opportunities. I think that's a tough philosophy to argue with. That said, I've never imposed a pre-determined system on a team I've coached. Instead, we have always started with the basics, simple strategies, and, once our team's strengths and weaknesses are clear, we try to structure our game plan to maximize the former and minimize the latter. For example, when Clayton Witter came to us two years ago, we were immediately able to use a variety of different drops because of his ability to make saves and come out for steals. A few years ago we had two strong centers, one right handed and one left-handed, and during that time we sometimes ran a double set. This year I anticipate more of a driving game on offense and more pressure on defense, but I also have to be prepared for something else since I won't see the team until just three days before classes start. So much depends on who makes the most of their summer: who played polo and lifted all summer and who took it easy, who worked on their weaknesses and tried new things and who stayed in their comfort zone. I am more optimistic about the group we have in 2011 than ever before because some special things happened last spring that sent them all away for the summer with the understanding that they have the opportunity to come back and contribute to something really special, at a really special time, if they were willing to put in some solid preseason work away from campus.
There are a number of high schoolers, junior college and international players who frequent Water Polo Planet. What is your pitch to them? Why should they come to Connecticut College?
Great question. We don't have a big name in the water polo world..yet, and the college has recently committed at a whole new level to our program to help us get there. This year, for the first time ever we will have an assistant coach, and the head coach position will be full time. The goal is to provide an even better experience for the current student athletes, while also committing time and energy to attract more experienced players in the future. At CC we have a very unique educational opportunity because our school is so small-students work with professors in small classes on research and subjects that both are really interested in. One of the great freshmen we have coming in this fall said she liked Connecticut College because everyone she met from professors to coaches, was really passionate about what they did and seemed eager to share their on-going experience with the students. She is a great example of what CCWP offers because she was recruited by more established programs, some with a history of great success at the highest level, but she chose us for the academic opportunities and the chance to not only play as a freshman, but contribute something significant to a program on its way up. That's our 'pitch'. Come here and get a great education while you PLAY water polo against some of the best teams teams on both coasts. Come here and be a part of the first ever Connecticut College D3 championship team, the first ever eastern qualifier or _____. We have a lot of great firsts ahead and we're looking for serious students with serious athletic experience to help us get there.
With that our interview ended. It is always exciting when you hear about a school increasing its investment in our sport. I will be completely honest. Before I began researching this column, I had no idea as to how great an opportunity awaited future water polo players at Connecticut College. Now I do. It is a gorgeous campus that is located at the midway point between New York and Boston. The Camels have a coach committed to water polo excellence. Do not be surprised when you see Connecticut College challenging for both a Division III Eastern Championship and pressuring the top squads in the Northern Division.
