2011 Preview – Cal Poly San Luis Obispo SLO CORE

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School Name: Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
Team Name: SLO CORE
Captains: Jacob Juszak, Adam Paicely, Peter Raines
Coach: Tyler Bacon
Year Founded: 1978
Jersey Colors: Traditionally, green and yellow (will probably change this year though…)
Website: www.slocore.com
2010 Record: 15-9
Score Reporter

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Tell us a little about yourself. How did you get involved with ultimate at SLO?
Jacob Juszak: I played pickup and went to random tourneys in high school and just wanted to keep playing when I got to college, so I started playing my Freshman year. Sooo much fun.

How did your team do last year? What was the highlight of your season?
Jacob: Last year was a bad year for us. We were stupid and didn’t get our paperwork in last year to go to the series. This year, our team is under better management though and we’re on top of everything. The highlight was probably the amount of fun we had at Trouble in Vegas.

Who is your favorite team to play against? Tell us about a memorable game.
Jacob: My favorite team to play against is UCSB Black Tide because I know a lot of the guys on the team and there’s always a bunch of shit-talking. They have a consistently solid team so it’s always a challenge to beat them. A great memory was playing against them at Sectionals in 2009. We played them twice and they beat us the first time, but we beat them the second time. I think we just wanted to beat them in front of their ladies.

Tell us about your coach and captains.
Jacob: Our coach, Bacon, refuses to graduate college. Our team runs so much smoother when the captains talk less and Bacon runs the show. Bacon’s a smart dude and loves to lead by example. As captains, we just try to follow suit and run as hard as we can.

Are there players on your team who deserve consideration for Callahan, All-Region, or Freshman of the Year?
Jacob: Being considered for Callahan is an honor in itself. We have some good players that are constantly getting better, but I think this year we are more of a solid unit where everyone has to do their part for us to be successful. In a year or two, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Peter Raines in the running. The dude’s a boss and loves pushing himself to improve. As far as FOTY, we have a ridiculously athletic rookie, Rob Correll (Not sure about last name spelling),  with gigantic ups and great speed. If we can develop his throws and get our team a little more into the spotlight, he definitely will deserve some recognition.

What player is most likely to make a huge play as a thrower? As a receiver? On D?
Jacob: Peter Raines has a huge flick boost that he loves to unleash whenever he gets the chance. Adam Paicely, when he’s back and healthy (hopefully soon), will get at least a couple layout D’s a tournament. And you can expect to see our little rookie, Rob, jumpin’ over seven footers and signing posters soon. Keep your camera ready..

Who’s a player you have to watch more carefully to see how valuable they are to your team?
Jacob: Dave Uth is our guy that’s just consistently good, runs a good fundamental offense, and rarely makes mistakes on D. He won’t get many layout D’s but he’ll play smart and is always good with the disc on offense (Except for the unmarked backhand he turfed yesterday).

How does your team bring new players up to speed on ultimate?
Jacob: We’re letting Bacon do his thing this year. He’s the most experienced guy out there and when he talks, you fuggin’ listen. We’re trying to spend more time working on fundamentals this year to try and develop necessary skills instead of just hoping our rookies pick up the game while runnin’ around at practice..

Without giving too much away, what does your team like to do on offense and on defense?
Jacob: We run both Ho and Vert stack on O. On D, we have a solid man D, but our zone D is typically our bread n’ butter. Plus our rookies love to run cup so that makes it easier for our vets. Favorite rookie class ever.

Has your team set any goals for this season?
Jacob: We’re trying not to look too far ahead right now. Our goal is to work as hard as we can every practice and improve as much as possible. It’s pretty cool that we have so many people who are down to push each other to work hard. I’ve never seen a team so happy about a suggestion to run more sprints at practice when I brought it up yesterday after the tourney.

What has your team been doing this fall to prepare for the spring season?
Jacob: Workin’ hard! We’re doin’ everything we can to get everyone on the same page and develop quickly. Hopefully we don’t get too fat and out of shape over Christmas Break.

What tournaments do you plan to attend in the spring? Which one are you most looking forward to?
Jacob: Well we’re obviously going to the series in Spring, and I think I speak for everyone when I say we’re most excited for Regionals. We have a lot of making up to do from last year.. I’m not too sure what other tournaments we’ll be going to in Spring, but we’re going to SB Invite, Pres Day, Vegas if it happens this year, Stanford Qualifier, SLUT, and maybe DUI. Maybe a couple others and I’m not sure which ones are in Spring or Winter.

What does your team do to get pumped up for a big game?
Jacob: To get pumped for a game, we definitely like to pump up the jams and listen to some good music. We also fire each other up with big layouts in pregame drills. And I’m gonna go ahead and say we cheer louder and harder than any other team out there.

What song would you pick for the soundtrack to your team’s 2011 highlight video?
Jacob: I’m not sure what song we’d pick… Our team finds a way to rock out to any song. Personally, I might go with the Ding Dong Song by Gunther Levi. Nah, but seriously I don’t really know what one we’d pick. There are so many good ones to pick from.

What do you think about the USA Ultimate College restructuring ?
Overall I like it because I don’t have to fly to Colorado anymore. I’ve been spoiled by perfect California weather. I think they did a good job with all of the changes this year. I feel like our Region is going to be very strong this year with the new boundaries.