Huck Finn Recap

The Illini finally decided to look like a legitimate ultimate team, and it was nice to see. Sure, the Michigan and Notre Dame games exposed some long-standing weaknesses, but we were able to string together a lot of good points this weekend.

Focus on what happened during those good points. Remember the energy. Remember the mentality. Remember the intensity. We’re gonna need it when we go to Naperville in two weeks.

The Wash U game went exactly as I predicted it. They were a good first game, and we started the tournament with a win 13-8.

We were pumped to face Wiso again. After having a good second half against them in Mardi Gras, we wanted to show them what we were made of. This game was intense. Despite the fact that this team is made up of contestants from Tool Academy 2, the Illini held their composure. I have two favorite moments from this game, both of which involved #11 on their team and #11 on our team, Miles. Their number 11 (hereafter referred to as Tool Boy) clearly fouled Miles on an in cut. When Miles called the foul, Tool Boy got pretty upset. Instead of the normal “contest” that a normal person would say, Tool Boy threw an epic tantrum on the field. No matter how loud and bratty Tool Boy got, Miles stuck by his call. Tool Boy then tried a passive aggressive approach, “No it’s okay if you want to cheat. You just don’t know the rules. No it’s fine. Really, I’m okay with you being asshole about this.” Seriously Tool Boy? Why even open your mouth? My wife uses that strategy (honey, that’s joke, please don’t take it personally). But seriously Tool Boy, that was unbelievably unprofessional. But that’s okay. Remember a few points later when you and Miles both went up for the disc? You both missed it, but then Miles laid out over you to catch the disc in the endzone. How embarrassing for you, Tool Boy.

The Illini lost to Wisco 10-9 on universe point, but it was worth it just to see Tool Boy explode in a steroid induced rage.

The Illini faced Iowa next and quickly took half 7-2. We then went up 9-2 only to have them claw back in it. We won the game 13-8, but it had its scary moments. The key to our success is having the confidence to know we can play well. They rattled us a bit, and we almost lost it. Trust your throws; trust each other. That makes ultimate fun.

I don’t want to talk about the Michigan game. We’ll see them at regionals, and I’ll hopefully have something better to write after that tournament.

The Georgia game, although a loss, proved to ourselves that we could come back if we get down early. They took half by a wide margin, but none of us saw that as the end. We came out and went on the attack. Yes, they won 13-11, but we have nothing to prove anymore.

In the game against Indiana, I guess we decided to test our comeback ability. We let them go up on us 11-9, and then they never scored again. This game had the best match-up. Walden vs. Evil Walden. Good work boys. Good work.

I don’t really want to talk about the Notre Dame game either. We gave them the number one seed at sectionals. I vote we take it away.

Huck Finn Preview

This tournament is shaping up to be a Big Ten Tour for the Illini. Cultimate is still using their competitive parity format, and Wisconsin, Iowa, Michigan, and Indiana are on the menu along with Wash U and Georgia. I love good competition, and it looks like we’re gonna have to bring our A-game all weekend.

This weekend, the Illini are looking to break out of their recent slump. It’s been a tough season trying to adjust to injuries and missing players due to various circumstances, but it looks like the Illini will have a full and healthy squad for this tournament (ish). Even Chuck is flying in from Florida to get a piece of the action. Having our various “impact” players returning to the field comes with positives and negatives. Will we be able to adjust to new playing styles? Will these players be able to compete at the tournament level after being away for so long? These questions will be answered this weekend.

Huck Finn is our last tournament before the UPA series, so it is imperative that we take each point as a learning experience. If we score, we need to ask ourselves, “What worked for us?” If we don’t score, then ask, “Where can we improve?” You must make a mental effort to ask either question after every point, even if you were on the sidelines that point. Our key to advancing in the series will be our ability to review our performance and apply it to the next point. That is how you take each game one point at a time.

We have Wash U in the first round on Saturday, which provides the Illini with a good first test. They aren’t a great team, but they are a good team. We should beat them in a rather quick fashion (“should” being the key word). At our last tournament we came out pretty flat in our first game. Let’s learn from that experience and flip that mental intensity switch to “on” from the moment you cleat up.

Our next game throws us right into the fire of elite competition against Wisconsin. Like Denis said, we’re running out of time to play well against great teams. I expect this to be a close game, especially after our second half performance against them in Mardi Gras. Both teams know what to expect, so this one could go either way.

Iowa had a really strong showing at Vegas, but then flopped at Centex. They have the players and the skills to be a great team, but injuries could be their downfall. It’s all of matter of which team shows up. I expect that Jake Bradley and his boys will be bringing a good squad since the tournament is fairly close. I’ve been wanting to play these guys all season, and I’m really excited to finally get the chance.

Oh Michigan. Do you guys still have all your Mohawks? I was really expecting something different this year, but you disappointed me at Centex. Mohawks were so last year. Maybe you guys should try mustaches? Or how about capes? Yeah, capes are cool. Team tattoos? Too extreme? I know! You guys could all wear sunglasses and call yourselves team Hollywood.

I don’t know what to think of Georgia. They aren’t ranked by Cultimate’s standards, but they’ve had a historically strong program.

Indiana is the only team that I’ve ever seen Stupca actively hate, but then again, that was a year ago at Mardi Gras when we crushed them 15 to negative 3. I even threw a forehand invert upwind for a score, which is like the newb killing you in Halo. I don’t think much has changed with this team. They probably still have a kid that wears an American flag for a hat or for shorts, and they probably still act like a bunch of tools. Just remember, crushing chumps is a lot more fun than getting crushed by chumps.

I’m predicting wins over Wash U, Georgia, and Indiana. The other 3 teams are too close to call. We need to start turning some heads if we’re going to Columbus in May. Keep that in mind when your man slows up on an in cut. I think it’s worth laying out for.