NCAA TENNIS FALL PREVIEW

The leaves here in New England are beginning to change to the colors of the fall. The students are beginning to fill the streets around my homes of College Hill in Providence, Rhode Island and Northern New Jersey. That can only mean one thing... the NCAA Fall season is about to arrive!

The fall season was my favorite time with the Rutgers tennis team. There was so much excitement to see which of my teammates "did their homework" during the off season - and what talent the new freshmen and transfers could bring the program.

Fall college tennis features individual tournaments. I always enjoyed the team bus rides on Thursday night to invitational events. Those tournaments give coaches a chance to size up their teams and play with starting line-ups for the spring. But for the players, it's a great chance to grind for a fall regional ranking... or go after a spot in the regional singles and doubles tournaments.

What can we look forward to this season? On the men's side, expect to see teams like [National Champion] Georgia, Texas, UCLA, and Virginia have deeper squads than ever after inking impressive recruiting classes.

Head Coach Manny Diaz and his Georgia Bulldogs begin fall play with a West Coast trip to Napa, California. They have one of the most competitive schedules in the country with eight or nine events scheduled before the spring dual matches. UGA lost their leader, Luis Flores, but Nate Schnugg is now an upperclassman and should be a force on the roster. Nate will be joined by a strong core of three other juniors, one senior and two sophomores. Jamie Hunt was a hero last spring during the NCAA Team Championships, winning a number of clutch singles dual matches... he will most likely use that experience to have a successful fall season. Beware of a well-rounded Bulldogs squad come spring 2009.

As for the ladies, UCLA is still riding high after its magical run to the title in 2008. I recently bumped into their head coach, Stella Sampras, at the US Open in New York. She had Tracy Lin and Riza Zalameda competing in the ladies main draw [kudos for making the second round!], and seemed optimistic that her program will be in good form in the upcoming weeks.

Unlike the Georgia men's championship team, Stella's Bruins don't travel as much this fall, as they virtually don't leave California, slated to compete in only four events before their spring season. Nonetheless, the Bruins have the ultimate mix of veteran leadership and youth: two seniors, two juniors and two sophomores come back this year, and they have a strong recruiting class as well.

Northwestern, UCal Berkeley, Baylor, and Florida appear to have elite line-ups again this season, and should stay among the nation's elite.

So another NCAA season has arrived, and for me, it's the most magical time of the year. The excitement... anticipation... freshman fulfilling dreams of finally playing college ball... seniors giving it one last hurrah... and the classic conference rivalries. God Bless College Tennis!