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n o r t h w e s t e r n f o o t b a l l • D I G I T A L P R O G R A M • N O R T H W E S T E R N v s . U M A S S
What's his goal now as the season winds down?
"I want to make the most of these last three games. I feel I've barely tapped the surface of my full
ability, and I just want to put that on full display."
What must he do to accomplish that?
"I just need to relax and play confident. That's the biggest thing. I go above-and-beyond in the
weight room, in film study, do all that. But the biggest thing is mental."
So he's holding himself back?
"I would say that, yeah. I think so. Like I said, my preparation is A-One. So, yeah. I would say that's
the biggest thing. That's the only thing I can put my hands on."
QUICKLY NOTED: UMass is 1-9, having defeated only Akron. (Remember those Zips, 'Cat fans?) Its
last five losses were 44-0 to Florida International; 69-21 to Louisiana Tech; 56-35 to UConn; 63-21 to
Liberty; and 63-7 to Army. That helps explain why the 'Cats, despite their own record, are 40-point
favorites. "I just want to win by one, man," Pat Fitzgerald will say when told that. "Thanks for the
heads up. But we just want to win by one. That's the bottom line. We've got to get a win. We've got
to get some positive momentum.". . . Fun facts: Giant receiver Victor Cruz is a UMass grad, as are
Kings' goalie Jonathan Quick and former U.S. Women's National Soccer Team goalie Briana Scurry.
Then there's this. Back in the basketball season of 1970-71, when freshmen were not eligible for the
varsity, the point guard of its frosh team was Rick Pitino and the star of its varsity was The Doctor,
Julius Erving.
AND FINALLY, Rashawn Slater, on the 'Cats seven-game losing streak: "You never get used to it.
It sucks every week. But you learn, yeah, you've got to shrug it off and next week is a new week.
Just like when we're succeeding, we can't rest on that success. It's the same when we're losing. We
always want to shake it off and get back to work."
