Focus on Steven Brooks’ carefree demeanor and you’d be overlooking his methodical preparation to each game.

Focus on the Syracuse’s midfielder’s free-wheeling style that has become a signature of the Orange offense and you’d be overlooking his sharp field awareness.

Focus on Brooks’ strong left-handed abilities and you’d overlook what Syracuse head coach John Desko sees as an equally right-handed shot. Johns Hopkins goalie Jesse Schwartzman found that out when Brooks stung him with a right-handed goal. After the score, Brooks ran up to Schwartzman and said, ‘I’m all righty’ – a playful jab to the Blue Jays’ netminder, who admitted afterward he put in loads of preparation to stop Brooks’ left-handed shot.

If opponents focus on one aspect of his game, Brooks will burn them with another. After sitting out last season due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament, Brooks has been able to lead the Orange offense with 14 goals – including 11 in the past three games – for a unit that is continuing to build its chemistry. Brooks will look to carry that offensive sparkplug when No. 12 Syracuse meets No. 10 Loyola at 1 p.m. Saturday at Diane Geppi-Aikens Field in Baltimore.

‘I try to have fun in practice,’ Brooks said. ‘That’s the key thing to have. You can’t just run through the same things all of the time. Having fun in what you do is important.’

Brooks likes to keep himself and his teammates loose. He’s often the first player to offer the playful dirt or to provide a nickname to a teammate. He and Syracuse defenseman Steve Panarelli have held an ongoing debate this season determining who the fastest player on the team is, but have delayed competing in a sprint because, according to Brooks, ‘I think he is scared.’

But Brooks still stays focused. For two years he has gone through the same pre-game routine. It consists of taping his left ankle before his right, putting his left sock on before his right and tying his left shoe before his right

Brooks also listens to the same music, starting with Immortal Technique’s album, ‘The Point of No Return.’ It’s followed by the soundtrack to the movies, ‘Boondock Saints’ and ‘Last of the Mohicans.’ Brooks tops off the music session with Pearl Jam.

SU assistant coach Kevin Donahue points out all great players go through such preparation so they can visualize what they want to accomplish on the field. When he sees Brooks going through his mental preparation, Syracuse midfielder Greg Rommel admits it’s hard not to tease him, but he doesn’t so he doesn’t ruin the concentration.

‘I’ve known him for a long time and I still haven’t figured him out,’ Rommel said. ‘Whatever he’s doing before the games, as long as he keeps doing it and putting the ball in the net, that’s fine with me. I pick on him to a certain extent. But when it gets close to game time, you see the look in his eyes like he’s had in the past couple weeks. So I just stay away. He knows what he’s doing.’

Donahue sees Brooks often limits his stretches so he can have extra shots during practice. That’s why Syracuse goalie Pete Coluccini is relieved when he sees the preparation carry over as Brooks scores at ease. Coluccini hates facing him in practice, although he said Brooks never intentionally fires shots at him. If that were the case, Coluccini jokes he would quit lacrosse because the hits hurt too much.

‘It’s been going so well so far,’ Brooks said as he knocked his fist not on wood, but on his head. ‘I’m still working on my shooting to shooting high to shooting low, shooting low to high. Changing up the shot confuses goalies. I’ve been working on my (right) hand a little bit. I’m working on it more. When I rubbed it in (Schwartzman’s) face for shooting a righty on him, it was pretty funny.’

Published on March 29, 2007 at 12:00 pm