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Umile, 50, feels he has eased up some with experience. Coaching any team, he says, comes down to the same thing: communicating.

"We did a clinic and we each talked about an aspect of the game," Umile says. "The point I tried to get across was that 15 years ago, I was where they are—the coach of a high school team—and it's not much different. It's experience and playing against a higher level of competition, but the foundation is the same. The game is pretty simple. It's how you communicate. It's discipline and listening and all those things you're doing."

He rattles off the names of teacher/coaches he admired and who molded him at Melrose High.

"It's like any other job, you get better with experience," Umile says. "You learn to listen more. You have to be clear. Everyone has to understand what you're talking about. There are different ways to do that, whether it's through repetition or diagrams or videos. You have to make sure you're clear and being heard. That's communication."

Mike Souza '00, the Wildcats' new captain, says Umile "does a good job of picking his spots. Whether it's individually, going one-on-one with someone or constructive criticism for the whole team. To be a good coach I think you have to pick your spots. Our coaching staff does a good job with that, and it obviously comes from him."

Umile has never had any trouble getting across how he feels about UNH.

"The guy bleeds blue and white," says Souza. "It's amazing. Sometimes he gets so into it in the pre-game talk that it's funny. But it's great. It's something you kind of want everyone to see once." ~

Allen Lessels '76, a sportswriter for The Boston Globe, lives in Contoocook, N.H.

Legends of the Past

Paul Sweet and Charlie Holt worked opposite sides of the street in Durham during their tenures at UNH—Sweet at the Field House and Holt at Snively Arena. But today, they are linked as legends of UNH coaching.

Sweet was in charge of track from 1924 to 1970—for 46 years. He turned 98 in March, lives in upstate New York, and until very recently made frequent trips to Durham. Holt, 77, who headed up men's ice hockey from 1968-1986, is a Durham resident and a regular at Wildcat hockey games. Both presided over highly successful Wildcat teams, and between them they coached hundreds of UNH athletes. And both, like others through the years, left rich coaching legacies.

Ralph Stevens '53, a runner, keeps in touch with Sweet today. "He was hands-on and individualistic and democratic," says Stevens. "He was as happy to spend time with the new guy who was learning technique as he was with the No. 1 competitor. One thing that made him so beloved was his attitude. He was upbeat and always optimistic. He encouraged you to do your best and to do a little better, not necessarily to win, but to do your best. And he was fun to be with. He had a good sense of humor.''

It's an attitude he has maintained through the years. In a recent letter to Stevens, Sweet wrote: "It's like the old song—'Ain't got much future, but oh, what a past.'''

UNH hockey coach Dick Umile '72 played for Holt after being recruited by Rube Bjorkman. "Charlie knew how to play the game, and he really taught you how to play the game, all three zones," Umile says. "It was maybe complicated at the beginning, but he stuck with it and taught you how to do it."

Holt credits assistants like Bob Norton, Dave O'Connor and Bob Kullen with getting him players and helping him coach them. And he credits the players. "What I desperately wanted to do was find the best way to use an individual, to find a spot that would make him the most profitable," Holt said. "Where to put him to give him success, and that generally would give us success. When we asked someone to do something, we tried very hard to ask of those guys that which they could do best."

Holt remains excited about UNH hockey. "It's going to be fun," he said. "How about (sophomore) Darren Haydar? It's almost unbelievable a guy that young is doing so well. We have had crackerjack players."

—A.L.

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