After that, the games count for real.

Head coach Mike McGinty says that while the result of an exhibition game is important, the real importance of an exhibition game is the high-level training it provides for the regular season.

Once the regular season starts, at the University of New Mexico on Wednesday, Sept. 1, the Billikens will begin their attack on a litany of ambitious goals.

“We have goals in our locker room that we look at every day: we want to be the national champion; we want to be the regular-season Atlantic 10 champion; and we want to be the conference tournament champion,” McGinty said.

“So those are things we put out there that are definitely tangible goals, and we’re trying to figure out the best way to get there.”

The Billikens’ many goals for this season form a sort of pyramid. At the bottom of the pyramid are character-related qualities, such as discipline and teamwork. These characteristics provide the foundation for the higher-order goals, such as the conference championship and the NCAA championship.

On Aug. 9, the head coaches of all the men’s soccer teams in the A-10 picked SLU to win the conference.
Senior James Dice says that more is expected of the players on the men’s soccer team, both on and off the field.
“In training, we’re more structured; we’re more organized,” Dice said. “The intensity has gone up a lot since [McGinty’s] arrival in spring. People are a lot more accountable for things they do on and off the field. Responsibility for the older guys is there.”

If they are to achieve their lofty goals, including a target of fewer than 10 goals allowed all season, the Billikens will have to rely on a combination of returning talent and an influx of newcomers.

Seven players who made starts last season return to the squad. At the same time, 10 players will be on SLU’s regular-season roster for the first time.

“We have 10 players out of 30 who are new,” McGinty said. “So just doing the math, a third of my players are brand new guys. So some of them better help out, or we’re in trouble.”

Two Billikens earned spots on the preseason A-10 all-rookie team: incoming freshmen Christian Briggs, from Trinidad and Tobago, and Adnan Gabeljic, from St. Louis.

Sophomore midfielder Alex Sweetin and junior midfielder/forward Mike Roach also earned preseason A-10 plaudits, being named to the preseason all-conference team. But despite all the high expectations and preseason honors, McGinty, who last year served as an assistant at the University of Virginia in the Atlantic Coast Conference, knows that his first year in charge of the program will be a learning process.

“Once I’ve had a season to look back on and evaluate, then I’ll have a better understanding of the league and how it differs from the ACC, if it does,” McGinty said.

“My approach will be the same: try to get ready and try to win the league. Soccer is soccer, whether you’re in the A-10 or the ACC; it’s just the letters that are different. Everybody wants to play and win.”

Senior midfielder Stephen Bortolon doesn’t have a problem with the high expectations for this year’s team.

“We need to have high expectations here with the history this school has had,” Bortolon said.

“I feel like we do have a young team, but we are completely capable of competing at the highest level of college soccer.
“And we had a couple unlucky breaks at the end of last season. We’ll definitely make it as far, if not farther, than last year.” If the 2010 edition of SLU is to advance further than last year’s squad, they will have to do so without two of the most important individuals from last year’s squad.

The most notable departure was former head coach Dan Donigan, who is currently coaching at Rutgers University after 13 years coaching at SLU. Former defender Tim Ream also must be replaced in the Billikens’ back line. Ream was drafted by the New York Red Bulls of Major League Soccer and has made 21 starts this season. Ream’s current teammates include French striker Thierry Henry, Mexican defender Rafael Marquez, and Colombian forward Juan Puablo Angel.

McGinty says finding a replacement for Ream can’t be a distraction for the team.

“I think you have to just give another kid a chance. He’s not going to look like Tim Ream, he probably won’t play like Tim Ream, he’s gotta be himself,” McGinty said. “We got guys that are capable of coming in and helping. Do we have a guy whose going to come in and play like Tim Ream?

“I’m not really sure because I’ve never worked with him, but we definitely have a lot of holes to fill. Not only with Tim,” McGinty continued.

Whoever steps into the starting lineup this season will be charged with a typically ambitious goal that the Billikens have set for themselves this year: to concede less than ten goals all season. “I think everybody is excited, positive, and open-minded. and we’re getting a lot done as quickly as possible,” McGinty said.

They will find out as soon as the season begins. The Billikens take on two nationally ranked teams and NCAA contenters in the first two weeks, South Florida and Drake.