Yo Mamabird

I thought I would wrap up my college previews with a team that everyone knows, fears, and likes to watch, Colorado Mamabird. I managed to get a few questions answered by 5th year Martin Cochran and I thought I would share some thoughts about MB's 2008 season.

Player Departures
I think everyone is waiting for Beau's eligibility to run out. However, if his freshman year was really back in 2004, he could theoretically be available for a 5th year in 2008. However, peripheral to Beau, the biggest loss to MB this year will be Justin "Rabbit" Salvia. This kid was unreal. I really enjoyed watching him play at college nationals last year. Despite only being 5'7" he is awesome and really earned his team's callahan nomination. This little guy ran harder than any player I saw and was never shown up. His video footage is also top notch and I really encourage anyone who wants to check out MB in action, to watch stuff like this. Justin is a phenomenal presence for Colorado both on MB and Bravo and his experience will be missed. However, like most MB alums, I am sure he won't go far.

2008 Playmakers
The fantasy all stars for Colorado this year will be many. They usually have one of the best starting 7's in the country and 2008 will be no different. First and foremost, Jolian Dahl. I am saying it right here: Jolian can, should, and will be the 2008 Callahan winner. This kid can do it all: send the huck, bring it down, sky you on D and layout past you. He has the same overall build as Beau and is comparably athletic. He has the throws and the offensive composure of Parker and Chicken, he is the ROCK and captain of one of the most exciting teams in the country, and he has more experience than any other player in college ultimate. As a Paideia Alum, a 5th year player for Mamabird and stellar standout on Johnny Bravo, there is no one in the country that can contain, control or take Jolian out of his game.

If Beau comes back, he will obviously be a standout for MB. He and Jolian were both freshman when Colorado won their last national championship and like Dan Heijman, I am sure they want to end their careers the same way they began. I will say that having him back as a handler was really lame to see last year and I sincerely hope they have him down field where he belongs. I have also heard from a few sources that he is training harder than ever and with some top notch help. Yikes.

Another standout for MB is Martin Cochran. This grad student was also on the 2004 team but missed most of nationals in 2005 when he punctured his lung in Corvalis. He has always been a great defensive force on Colorado's D line and has the experience to run a decent offense once a turn is generated. Martin is also another, in Colorado's army, of 6+ footers and depending on a foot injury, could be a veteran standout for Colorado. Another MB veteran and Johnny Bravo crossover is Mac Taylor. He is a vicious underneath as well as deep cutter/defender for MB and has the experience to plug himself anywhere in Colorado's explosive offense. Lastly, veteran Kevin "Pebbles" Schipper, will look to have a big year with spectacular quickness underneath and great vision on both sides of the disc.

Young Guns
In addition to scores of veterans, there will also be some new faces getting points for Mamabird this year. One name that will generate some Ds will be Junior Tom Higginbotham. He is a 6' moose of a player and can handle just about any teams major deep threat. Andrew "Stitches" Graham (junior) will also get some PT as a staunch defender and will help generate the breaks that MB's O-line will need to secure W's. Freshman Hylke Sneider is another up and comer that could really make plays. He was on the cover (courtesy of Jason Mechler) of the Fall 2006 issue of Ultimate News, not to mention the 2006 Fall League player of the year in Colorado. With his 6'2" stature and club experience playing for Sack Lunch, I am sure he will be making life hard for whomever lines up against him.

Tournament Schedule

Probably the most exciting thing about Colorado this year is their tournament schedule. They start off the same as they did last year, with Trouble in Vegas. They usually do OK (meaning quarters/semis) at this tournament but the wind combined with the fact that its the first tournament, usually exacerbates the weaknesses in Colorado's grip and rip style of offense. Teams that have more composure and patience usually do a bit better, which is why I think Florida has done so well in the desert, despite being evenly matched talent wise.

After TiV, Colorado heads out to Stanford Invite, something they have not done since I have played ultimate. This year Stanford Invite will probably rival Centex as far as competition goes with Colorado, Wisconsin, and Florida all in attendance (but no Georgia, which is weird because they won it last year). Centex is a grueling tournament where teams have had to play 5 pool play games on saturday, not to mention quarters, semis and finals on sunday. For those folks that think less is more, the 7 "games to champ" schedule of the 20 team Stanford Invite might give a better indication of who is the best. Either way, I wish I was headed to Palo Alto in early March.

Towards the end of March Colorado heads to Centex as usual. They have made the finals there twice ('04 and '05) winning it all in 2005 but have yet to break past semis since then. Unlike most teams that do not play an additional tournament between Centex and the series, Colorado will make their usual trip to Lawrence, KA for Fools Fest where they have won a number of times in a row. The series will be uneventful for Colorado, as usual. They will get to play sectionals and nationals at home, while only having to travel to regionals which will most likely be in Arizona again (accoriding to mamabird's website).

Goals and Challenges

It is tough to say what Colorado's goals for 2008 would be. They were in the finals last year as well as in '04 and '05. How can you hope to improve? I will say that Colorado can definitely be better than they are. They seem to do a few things that hurt their performance against equally talented teams such as Wisconsin. First, it seems that Colorado really clings to their O and D line sets. Last year I saw a lot of Jolian, Beau, Rabitt, and Mac Taylor on one side of the disc and then once they scored, they switched out for players like Cochran, Pebbles, and Andrew Graham. This is good if you have stellar defenders but this is college and unlike club, generating the score is not guaranteed. I have seen it so many times where Colorado generates a great D but can't turn it into a score against a good team because their best offensive personnel is not on the field. Without the ability to generate breaks, Beau, Rabbit, and Jolian ended up having to do double time and they ran out of gas late in games. I think that this is what allowed Georgia to beat them in quarters back in 2006.

In addition, Colorado has always had a grip and rip style of play. With so much height, speed and experience, they can usually pull anything down and therefore come at teams with brut force. However, with adverse weather (college finals last year) or teams with equal ability in the air (Florida and Wisconsin), 50/50 hucks and hammers can potentially put them in a hole they can't get out of. They are then forced to play underneath ultimate, something that they are not used to. If I were Catt Wilson, I would work on narrowing the talent gap between my players. Beau and Mac Taylor are great deep threats, Mike Davidson and Rabbit were great around the disc, Jolian does everything, but I think it can be hard for the 4-7 players on Colorado to be effective. Like Florida back in 2006, they seemed to just want to isolate their best players and make easy scores, rather than take what the defense gives you and spread it around. However, with injuries, exhaustion and crafty opponents, this can really limit the ability of the rest of your team to make plays. I think this is what allowed Brown to come back and win nationals in 2005.

Basically, I think Colorado should open and mix up their rotation in order to get all of their talent comfortable with each other and themselves. In college the best players are the ones that are confident doing it all. If you focus just on defense or just on offense, it is tough to be good at anything else. I think they should focus on developing chemistry between all players. Sometimes you get yourself in a situation where legs are the most important thing and if every player is good with every other player, your 7 on the line is always ready to go. I also think this helps because everyone knows Beau is gonna burn you deep and Jolian is going to get the disc every other throw. Teams have been paying attention and they will have a game plan ready and waiting. If you come out with a different set of threats or just have a highly dynamic and fluid offense, one that the defense can't adjust to, you will see better results. With better all around talent, it will be easier to find those mis-matches and get scores to the "Wes Welkers" out there. I am just ranting though. I am sure the coaching staff for MB has the situation well in hand. I mean come on, they have made nationals 10 years in a row, they haven't lost a pool play game at nationals since 2003, and they have made the finals 3 out of the last 4 years.

Closing Thoughts

I want to say that with players like Rabbit, Jolian and Beau at the end of their careers, MB is in trouble. But for people that have been watching Colorado for years, they know that another superstar will emerge. Before Chicken it was Parker, before Jolian it was Richter and JV, before Beau, it was Mickey. MB seems to always get and/or develop the best players in the country with their sterling reputation and program. With that being said, many other teams are getting better, and I think Colorado is going to have to sharpen their game to remain on top. Subtle things like breaking the mark more often, unconventional cutting, a more "faceless army" feel are all things that Colorado could benefit from. Their brut force offense and athletic D won't always work anymore. Brown's conservative and crafty tactics worked in 2005 and Georgia's depth worked in 2006. Wisconsin was untouchable in 2007, but I think the most important factors for Colorado this year will be the players I have failed to mention here. We all know that Colorado's top 7 can do it all, but games are played to 15 and if Colorado wants to win it all again, they will need their 8-21.

just my thoughts

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