2006 FIFA World Cup Coverage

Of all Arena's tools, ears count most

U.S. coach Bruce Arena absorbed things he saw, or usually overheard, coaching in college.

By GREG AUMAN
Published June 7, 2006

Long before Bruce Arena had established himself as the coach of the U.S. soccer team, before he would lead the Americans with confidence into World Cup competition, he was a young coach at the University of Virginia soaking up knowledge from, of all things, college basketball.

A regular at Cavaliers games, he'd pay special attention to the visiting bench, building an appreciation for the mind of Dean Smith, the midgame tinkering of Bobby Cremins, the wit and banter of Jim Valvano's arguments with officials.

Now, after five national titles at Virginia and more success at the pro and international levels, the 54-year-old draws comparisons to another dynastic college coach.

"I refer to Bruce as the John Wooden of soccer," said Jim Larranaga, who led George Mason to the Final Four this spring and was a young assistant at Virginia from 1979-86. "He was the master. He has his own pyramid of success. He knew everything you needed to know about running a program, and he clearly has a vision of what it takes to be successful."

Arena was at Virginia from 1978-95, and as luck would have it, his office was next to the visiting basketball locker room. What he couldn't glean from watching during games, he could pick up by eavesdropping at halftime. The roots of Arena's motivational skills came from listening to Mike Krzyzewski and Lefty Driesell through an air-conditioning vent, acquiring their best secrets through surreptitious osmosis.

"He was always one to sit and observe practice, to absorb as much as he possibly could," said Virginia athletic director Craig Littlepage, a basketball assistant from 1976-82. "He used every possible means to learn how successful coaches handled their teams. He'll tell you that coaching isn't specific to a sport; it's leadership, it's a high level of personal interaction."

Arena helped Virginia basketball as well, working with center Ralph Sampson on the best angles for blocking shots, applying soccer strategies where it might seem foreign. He was a regular in pickup basketball games among Virginia's young coaches, who included Dave Odom and Geno Auriemma. Littlepage offers a quick scouting report, knowing Arena was really the one picking up little things from those around him.

"He was very good inbounding the ball, good at setting screens, a good scorekeeper," he recalls with a laugh. "Some guys were there to stay in shape, some for a good time, some playing as though they were looking for a tryout. Bruce was always there to study people."

After winning national titles at Virginia in 1989 and from 1991-94, Arena went to D.C. United in 1996, winning MLS Cups his first two seasons. After the U.S. national team went 0-3 in the 1998 World Cup, he took over as coach. In 2002, his U.S. team reached the quarterfinals, and he has since amassed more international wins than any coach in U.S. history.

What hasn't changed since the early Virginia days, his coaching friends say, is a trademark confidence, an attitude that quickly permeates to his players regardless of expectations on his teams. Another brash, outspoken coach has a respect for what Arena is attempting this month in Germany, and for his swagger.

"Imagine if a guy from Yugoslavia came over here and was at a clinic with Bobby Knight, Dean Smith, John Wooden and Red Auerbach," Auriemma, a Virginia women's basketball assistant from 1981-85, told the Hartford Courant. "And the guy from Yugoslavia comes in and goes, "Hey, you know you guys have been doing this all wrong. Let me show you how to do it.'

"Ultimately, that's what teaching and coaching is all about, is the force of your personality. You hate to put it in bad ways, but that's how dictators become who they are. I saw pictures of him on TV and the only thing bigger than his personality and his level of confidence is the amount of pasta he's eating."

Asked for a moment what typifies Arena's boundless self-assuredness, Littlepage points to the 1991 NCAA championships, held in Tampa at USF. Top-ranked Virginia and Santa Clara were deadlocked in a scoreless tie through 90 minutes of regulation and four overtimes, and through all that plus deciding penalty kicks, Arena never flinched.

"I was with that team the whole weekend, and I never sensed there was doubt they were going to win," he said. "Everything about him portrayed a guy who knew he was going to win. A guy with that confidence, who can instill that confidence in those around him, he can make them achieve at levels that might not seem possible."

Larranaga's friendship with Arena continued with Larranaga at George Mason, in Washington, Arena coaching D.C. United; their wives were frequent running partners. The couples talked about their futures one night, and Larranaga is still struck by the clarity with which Arena envisioned his.

"He said his goal was to coach our national team, to get it to the point where it could compete for a World Cup," Larranaga said. "I asked him how realistic it was. I don't think he answered my question."

Arena's success can transcend his sport, and the respect from fellow coaches can draw parallels to Wooden and other national coaches who believe they're capable of anything. When Larranaga saw Miracle, the Kurt Russell movie about the U.S. gold-medal hockey team from the 1980 Olympics, one thought came to his mind.

"As I watched that, I thought of Bruce," he said. "I said to myself, "I wonder who will play the role of Bruce when they make a movie about him in the World Cup?' "

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MEET BRUCE ARENA

AGE: 54

BORN: Brooklyn, N.Y.

LIVES: Fairfax, Va.

U.S. SOCCER: Named coach after 1998 World Cup. Won the 2002 and 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup titles, and led the United States to the quarterfinals of the 2002 World Cup. The Americans reached their highest-ever international ranking of fourth in April and are now fifth.

BACKGROUND: Coached 18 seasons at Virginia, winning five national titles between 1989 and 1994. Moved to MLS in 1996 and guided D.C. United to the league's first two championships, then lost to former assistant Bob Bradley's Chicago Fire in the 1998 final.

PLAYER: Was an All-American in lacrosse and soccer, playing at Nassau Community College and Cornell, where he graduated in 1973. Played one season of pro lacrosse and one of pro soccer before entering coaching.

[Last modified June 7, 2006, 08:23:56]