By By Doug Bonjour

After posting a 38-20-7 record over the past three seasons and finishing each as the champion of the Colonial Athletic Association, the Hofstra men’s soccer team enters the 2007 season with the pressure to improve on its recent success.

Joining both New Mexico and Western Illinois as the only Division I schools to win three straight conference titles, Hofstra comes off a season in which it won its first NCAA tournament game since 2004.

If the Pride wants to claim the CAA’s top spot for the fourth-consecutive year, the team will have to do so with a different cast of talent after losing its All-American forward and All-Conference defenseman due to graduation. Both Michael Todd, who led last year’s team with 13 goals, five assists and 31 points and Gary Flood, who piloted a defense which allowed just over one goal per game, are now playing professionally.

Head Coach Richard Nuttall, who will be entering his 19th year at the helm, knows that the loss of star talent will mean greater responsibilities for returning players.

“What I’ve said to the returning players already is that they have now got to stop relying on [Todd and Flood], the two cornerstones of the team and they have to take a little bit of the weight themselves and step up,” said Nuttall.

Although the losses of Todd and Flood present big holes to fill for the Pride, Nuttall remains optimistic that the returning players will meet their responsibilities, which in turn, will lead to another winning season.

“I’m fully confident we will be an effective team next year. We’re positive and we’re looking forward to another successful year,” Nuttall said. “I feel we’re going to be better as a group. I think everybody will step up and make everyone better as a team.”

Among the key returnees who will try to limit the impact of last year’s losses and keep the team headed in the right direction will be Senior Midfielder/Forward Chris Cox, whom Nuttall referred to as, “an outstanding athlete and probably one of the best offensive players in the conference.” Cox finished second on the team in scoring last season with 12 points.

Although Nuttall knows it is difficult to replace Todd’s ability to score goals, he believes his players will be able to do what is expected of them and he knows that once the players begin game-action, it will be easier to judge the team’s talent.

“[Scoring] is a big hole to fill but we feel as though a lot of our players will shoulder the responsibility. You never know until you start the preseason and you actually see where people are and what their abilities are and how they relate to one another,” said Nuttall.

Sophomore Midfielder Rory McCrea, whom Nuttall points to as a “player that was playing outstanding at midfield toward the end of the season,” will be asked to duplicate his solid rookie season and help anchor the midfield position for the Pride. Junior Defenseman Corey Gudmundson and Sophomore Defenseman Richard Martinez will be among those hoping to fill the vacancy left by Flood.

Although the pressure remains for the Pride to win yet another conference title, Nuttall believes the greatest pressure that looms over his team is created by the players and coaches themselves.

“I think the biggest pressure is the pressure that you put on yourself.” he said.

With the team’s recent tournament victories, both Nuttall and the players have raised their expectations.

“Getting to the tournament is something you always want to achieve and now that we’ve been there, we want more. We enjoy the success, but we want more,” Nuttall said. We want to go to higher levels and we won’t be satisfied. We want to achieve a greater level of success.”

As for the hopes for this season, Nuttall said, “Our expectations are to be in the mix in the end for the conference and to hopefully push for an at-large bid. Maybe if we can’t win the conference, with our strength of schedule we can get an at-large bid.”

Any team hoping to win the CAA will have to play at its highest levels all season as Nuttall expects the conference to regularly have multiple teams ranked among the nation’s top 20.

Even if Hofstra is unable to secure its fourth-consecutive CAA title, an at-large bid would give Hofstra a chance to improve on its recent level of success.

“Once you’re in the tournament you never know. You can get on a roll,” said Nuttall.