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They experienced the madness that is March.
And they danced in the NCAA Division III Final Four.
So what's the goal this season for Franklin & Marshall's men's basketball squad?
"On to the Next One."
Indeed. The Jay-Z song may serve as the anthem for a team that has set its sights on returning to the Big Dance.
And bringing back a trophy.
"We have to exceed expectations, if that's possible," said preseason All-American James McNally, who joins frontcourt mate Mike Baker and guards Anthony Brooks and Georgio Milligan as the four returning starters Diplomat boss Glenn Robinson will put on the court.
"We want to set the highest bar possible," McNally added. "We're talking about getting back to the Final Four, getting to the championship game."
Brooks agreed.
"Expectations are higher," he said. "Last year we did things no one expected us to do. But we know we can still get better. Something we know we have to do to get back to the Final Four is to play at that (championship) level."
Returning eight of their top 10 players from a squad that went 26-7 last season, the Diplomats open their campaign at home Friday night against City Tech (N.Y.) in the Rotary Tipoff Tournament.
A heady confidence abounds in Mayser Center these days, and why not?
The Diplomats are ranked No. 1 in the Centennial Conference poll, and in national polls, fourth by The Sporting News and sixth by D3Hoops.com.
Yet Robinson, who has been in the position before of returning largely intact a celebrated squad, is preaching caution.
"Quite honestly, it's difficult for them not to feel overconfident," he said. "Right now, they're strutting around pretty confident and they should be confident. But if we let down even a little bit, that's going to open the door for every team we play.
"The simple truth is, we were very fortunate last year. We avoided injuries for the playoffs and the NCAAs, and the way the games broke down, the teams we played were all in the right order. Otherwise, we might not have had that run.
"And, that was last year. You can't live off last year."
Robinson knows from experience. In 1994, he beat fellow national contender Lebanon Valley, guided at the time by Pat Flannery (later the architect of Bucknell's stunning NCAA upset of Kansas) and eventual D-III Player of the year Mike Rhoades.
F&M had gone 26-4 the year before, and returned young stars Charlie Detz, Dave Jannetta and Jeremiha Henry. They were in the midst of another deep tournament run when Robinson recalled the team being slowed by illness en route to a Sweet 16 meeting with Amherst.
"And," Robinson said, "we lost."
And just like that, F&M's golden opportunity was gone.
McNally, for one, is aware of the lessons history can teach.
"We want to get to the championship game," he said. "But a lot of crazy things can happen."
The Diplomats have already been nicked by graduation, losing starter Clay Scovill and sixth man Danny Selig. In their stead are replacements who are raw, but talented.
Freshmen Alex Valencia and Brandon Beckford are 6-4 wing types. Two more freshmen, Kevin Henry and Hayk Gyokchyan, are 6-8 post men. Justin Driver and Max Brewer, another pair of freshmen, lend depth at guard.
Junior Steve Tolliver and senior Sal Salvati return as key reserves.
Among the starters, McNally averaged 16 points and 8 rebounds per game and was named to various all-star teams at season's end.
Baker, a conference honorable mention, returns following a campaign that saw him average 10 points and 8 boards per game.
Brooks (10.5 ppg., 47 steals) and Milligan (13.5 ppg., 5.2 assists) head the all-star backcourt. Milligan earned the D3Hoops.com's Middle Atlantic Region Rookie of the Year award.
"They're hungry," Robinson said. "They want it (a national title)."
They want everything leading up to it as well.
"We want to win every game," McNally said.
And after each game?
On to the next one.
