Junior midfielder displays wide array of talent

Ryan Mack winds up his arm and throws a little soccer ball into the stands before a match. Mack follows the toss with a huge, childish grin as he watches spectators scramble for the ball.\nHe then sprints onto the field for the kickoff and usually clowns around with a teammate. Prior to Sunday's Michigan game, Mack jumped up and down, trying to knock over sophomore midfielder Pat Noonan.\nHe started the match against the Wolverines just like almost all of his past 61 games -- with a high level of energy. Mack, a junior midfielder, often practices with a smile and makes brash predictions about the Hoosiers (9-3), who he thinks can win a third consecutive NCAA championship this year.\n"We can't have anymore losses," Mack said. "We need to move forward like we have been. We've shown we could play with the top teams, even the ones we lost to. In a lot of those games, we outplayed them.\n"Now everyone's realizing a national championship is not far away."\nMack has started for the past two championship teams, and scored the goal to end a four-overtime Final Four game against UCLA in last year's tournament. After 12 games this season, the National Player of the Year candidate leads No. 2 IU with six assists and is third on the team with four goals.\nNow more often a forward, Mack has gone from attacking as a midfielder to dominating games with his offensive skill. Using his finesse, Mack can fire powerful shots from long range, stunning a defense or making crafty passes from a wing.\n"Ryan is an excellent passer," coach Jerry Yeagley said. "Many people don't recognize him for that. He can unbalance the defense and draw on a couple of defenders, and he'll find a way to get the ball to the back post."\n"He's got a future. Ryan will play beyond college."\nMack can unleash a shot with equal power from either foot, which distinguishes him from other top college players in the country. Last year, while commanding the midfield as a sophomore, Mack took on both offensive and defensive responsibilities because then-senior Yuri Lavrinenko led the offense and senior Justin Tauber anchored the defense in the midfield.\nIn recent games, Mack has been switched with Noonan at forward, a move Yeagley uses to surprise opponents. While Mack dishes long passes to his teammates and takes all the corner kicks, Noonan rushes past defenders as he takes the ball straight to the goal. Noonan has scored five goals and tallied four assists this season.\nAside from Mack's ball-handling skills, another valuable asset is his never-ending energy. He has started 61 consecutive games, the most of any current player. After practice, when his teammates leave, he'll stay to run 100-yard sprints in order to improve his speed.\n"He's got a kid body," Noonan said. "He can run all day, defensively and offensively. He's able to move the ball, pass the ball. His game, he's got so many options, you don't know what he's going to do."\nAlthough he displays a huge range of skill, Mack is still a work in progress. Yeagley said Mack can still develop better accuracy and play more effectively in the air.\nAlong with Mack's scoring prowess comes dedication. Junior defender Ryan Hammer said he often walks into Mack's room and finds Mack watching films of soccer games. Mack started playing soccer when he was five and eventually picked the sport over baseball. He started competing on club teams when he was seven and was attracted to IU by its No. 1 national ranking in 1997.\nAlthough he scored 32 goals in his senior year at Birmingham Seaholm (Mich.) High School, Mack was overshadowed by standouts like forwards Dema Kovalenko and Aleksey Korol during his freshman year at IU. Nevertheless, he was fourth on the team with seven goals and was named to Soccer America's All-Freshman Team.\n"Instead of watching all the other guys, I now have to take more control of the team," Mack said of his role this season. "Now I want the ball. When I was a freshman, I didn't want the ball that much."\nSince his rookie year at IU, much has changed for Mack. His hair is now cropped short, rather than the ponytail he sported as a freshman, and he's improved offensively and defensively. But the smile and passion for the game still thrive.\n"He doesn't get stale," Yeagley said. "He's still a boy in some respects. I'd like to see him keep maturing in that respect as well. And yet it's one of the things you can't help but like about him. He's one of my favorites, even though he's a little bit immature"