By Amber Greviskes

Senior writer

Generations will clash at the Atkins Tennis Center on Saturday when Illinois takes on Clemson.

The match pits Illinois assistant coach Kent Kinnear against his mentor, Clemson head coach Chuck Kriese. Kriese was Kinnear’s coach when Kinnear played at Clemson in the 1980s.

“Coach Kriese has had a huge impact on my life, not only in tennis,” Kinnear said.

It will not be the first time Kriese has coached against a former Tiger. Kinnear, who is coaching his first year of college tennis, models his coaching theories after Kriese.

“It probably won’t be any big deal to him,” Kinnear said. “But for me, to be coaching against him, will be strange.”

Clemson is led by a talented group of underclassmen, including Sander Koning, the 41st-ranked singles player in the country. The Tigers have suffered just one loss this season, to No. 2 Georgia.

“They have good players up top. They have good players in the middle of the lineup, and they have good players at the bottom of the lineup,” said Illinois head coach Brad Dancer. “They’re going to be a handful for us – a very big handful.”

This is Clemson’s first trip to Champaign since the 2003 NCAA tournament. The Illini beat the Tigers to advance to the Sweet 16 in Athens, Ga. Illinois won the NCAA team, singles and doubles titles that year. Not knowing the Tigers’ playing styles could put the Illini at a disadvantage, said Illinois senior Ryler DeHeart.

“I really haven’t seen them play since freshman year,” DeHeart said.

Clemson will not be the only test for the Illini. On Saturday at 7 p.m., Harvard will come into the Atkins Tennis Center.

Harvard, whose list of impressive alumni includes professional tennis players James Blake and Thomas Blake, has struggled early on this season.

The No. 51 Crimson, however, are well coached and could prove quite a test for the Illini. Harvard’s doubles combinations are usually a force as well. This season, the Crimson’s top tandem of Ashwin Kumar and Sasha Ermakov make up the 15th ranked doubles team. Illinois has struggled at the No. 3 doubles position lately, too, which could hurt the team if Kumar and Ermakov win.

“During doubles, we’ll just have to come out swinging,” DeHeart said. “We’ll just have to go out there and get it done.”

Playing multiple matches during the day could also be strenuous for the Illini. But Kinnear said, he believes the squad is fit and ready for the challenge. Illinois freshman Marc Spicijaric agreed.

“It’s going to be more physically and mentally tough,” Spicijaric said. “But it’s only going to help us get better.”