USA Ultimate

Open Division Southeast D-I Regionals Preview

Event preview by Florida State's Ben Stringer, as a part of our 2013 Regionals coverage.

Ultimate in the Southeast has taken a long and winding road to get to where it is today. LSU had success in the late 90s and early 2000s, Georgia was a national powerhouse for most of the 2000s, and Florida was one of the most dominant teams in the nation from 2006-2011. Still, the Southeast has been largely overlooked up until this point, but all that is about to change. This year, the Southeast landed three teams in the top 15 of USA Ultimate’s final rankings and two other teams ranked in the top 30. With three bids on the line, teams will flock to Tupelo, Miss. this weekend to compete for a chance to make it to Madison and taste the glory all college ultimate players dream about: taking the field at the College Championships.

The Top Dogs

Five teams come into this weekend having clearly separated themselves from the rest of the pack this year and could all contend for one of the three bids if they put together a complete weekend: Central Florida, Florida State, Florida, Georgia and Georgia Tech, who are seeded 1-5 respectively. The fact of the matter is, if a team wants to make it to Nationals, they will have to go through some combination of these five to do so.

1. Central Florida.

UCF has been on the cusp of Nationals since Coach Andrew Roca was a peach-fuzz ridden freshmen, but stayed just on the other side of that hump until last year. Since Roca took over as coach three seasons ago, they have transformed from being just an athletic team that relies on skill and big plays, to a team with a very disciplined system and focus. 2012 was the breakout year for the Dogs of War, but this year they are looking to make a statement. Mike Ogren and Mischa Freystaetter are easily two of the top 20 players in the nation, but this team is deeper than most realize. John Best, Michael Hickson, Alex Bullock and Matt Carlson are all contributors for the Dogs that would start for any elite team.

This year, UCF has focused on developing depth and peaking at the right time. If their play at Florida Conferences is any indication, it would appear their plan is working. This team is very good at recognizing what to take away from the opposing team’s offense and then punishing you deep in transition. Any team looking to beat them at Regionals will absolutely have to play their best ultimate and take advantage of what few mistakes UCF may make.

2. Florida State.

DUF has been a pesky team in the Southeast for several years now, but until this year has never really put it all together. Finally, the right combination of coaching and leadership has the Freaks on the brink of their first Nationals appearance since 1996. Regular season results indicate that this team has the talent to compete with the nation’s best but still need to find that little bit of extra mental composure the elite teams all seem to have. Having lost five games on universe point, this team will be hungry to finally prove the season wasn’t a fluke and that they are here to stay. Chris LaRocque has become an undeniable weapon and offensive leader for this team (many of you probably still remember his play-of-the-year winning grab against Carleton). Jordan Huston has been the most underrated player in the region since Daniel Petronio and will undoubtedly be the guy shutting down your best player this weekend. Connor Holcombe, Ryan MacFadyen and Cory Logan will all be making huge contributions for DUF this weekend as well.

3. Florida.

Every year it seems Florida might finally drop off, and every year Coach Cyle Van Auken finds a way to reinvent the wheel and keep these guys winning. After a lackluster fall, the nation’s Gator Haters were all ready to revel in UF’s downfall, until they came out and shocked Pitt in their first game at Warm Up. Since then, Florida has been what we’ve all come to expect: a team that brings their best every game and can hang with anybody. This team will go exactly how far sophomore Bobby Ley and his ridiculous play-making ability can take them. Whether it’s behind the disc, downfield or in the air, few can adequately cover Ley, who will be looking to touch the disc every other pass on offense. Bennett Wachob and James Dahl help generate a ton of the team’s offense with an impressive arsenal of breaks and hucks. Jason Silverman is an incredible defender who can frustrate any team by consistently shutting down the dump. Rob Brice and Rob Brice’s beard are just monstrous; both should be taken very seriously.

Truthfully, this team has a very sour taste in their mouth from losing two games-to-go at Regionals last year, and finishing third at this year’s Conferences after Sunday play was eventually rained out. Look for them to come out firing on all cylinders, and keep an eye out for what Van Auken might have up his sleeve. The guy has a strategy for beating almost anybody, but can they execute it?

4. Georgia.

The Dawgs just don’t seem to go away, and this year isn’t any different. They have the talent, but their issue is consistency. After a long layover between their last regular season tournament and Conferences, Georgia seems prepared to make a run at Regionals and give the top three a heck of a time. They are 2-3 this season in games against the other teams in the top five, so they already know they can win, but doing it when the pressure is at its highest is a very different task.

Elliot Erickson is rapidly becoming a household name in the ultimate community based on his time with Chain, and now his invitations to the U-23 National Team and NexGen. To summarize, Elliot is very, very, very quick, but his ability to create space for his other cutters and neutralize the other team’s best guy are what truly make him dangerous. Javid Aceil and Wright Dickerson will also make huge contributions this weekend. On a personal note, I’m hoping Caleb Edwards is back and playing for the Dawgs this weekend. As a fellow fifth year, I’ve had the privilege of playing against Caleb a ton in my career, and it broke my heart when he tore his ACL earlier in the season. He’s a great player and an even better person who deserves to take the field at one last college regionals.

5. Georgia Tech.

Have you guys heard about that time Jay Clark jumped a building in a single leap and reversed Earth's rotation to travel back in time? Well if you haven’t heard the myths by now, let me be the first to tell you they are all true. Last year, he proved he could be an awesome wingman. On Chain, he proved he could dominate in a conventional system, and this year he’s just doing everything. So what is holding Tech back? With Jay Clark becoming the Tribe’s new Nick Lance, somebody has to become the new Jay Clark. Meaning somebody has to help Jay makes plays this weekend. With Jay’s abilities alone, it is difficult to count out the Tribe, but if one or two guys really step up big and give him a hand, they could be deadly.

The Dark Horses

Even though these five teams have established themselves at the top, there are several talented teams that could make some noise and surprise someone this weekend.

Alabama - The four-year winner of the Gulf Coast Conference comes into Regionals ready to turn heads and steal a ticket to the big show. Brian Moore and Chris Browning are both very talented players that have seasoned their games together from their time in Tuscaloosa and playing together for Tanasi. For Yellow Hammer to surprise one of the big boys, someone else will have to step up and give those guys a hand. Look for them to pull an upset on Saturday, but will they have the firepower on Sunday to make a deep run?

Tennessee - This has been a bit of a down year for Agent Orange, but that doesn’t mean much once games start on Saturday. Truth be told, this team has as much high-level club talent on their team as just about anybody in the region due to the recent success of Tanasi. However, Tanasi’s Club Nationals appearances haven’t yet lead to College Championship berths for Tennessee. Matt Radcliffe and Matt Pirkle are both extraordinarily talented and intelligent players who can hold their own with anybody. Do not overlook this team.

LSU - After school commitments kept them from making the trip last year, LSU is back at Regionals this year and ready to rumble. They run a small rotation, but their talent and chemistry seem to always keep them in games. This team plays with a lot of emotion, which can be good or bad depending on how things are going. If things start going well for them, though, they can get on a roll and become almost unstoppable. "Pickle" (sorry I cannot seem to remember your birth name) is an excellent player who will be making tons of big plays for the Tigers.

Rest of the Field

All of the remaining teams would love nothing more than to pull an upset against the eight teams mentioned above, and if they get overlooked, they very well may do it. That being said, most these team do not possess the depth or experience necessary to make a deep run on Sunday. However, Regionals can be a great way to send out your seniors and start building a foundation for next year. Not to mention, there’s no better feeling than taking the field with your boys for one more weekend before it all goes away for the summer.

I will refrain from making any predictions because I am both biased and would like to avoid putting any bad juju on my team. Regardless, this should be an exciting weekend of ultimate that helps show the nation just how competitive the Southeast really is. Safe travels and best of luck to all teams competing this weekend!
 

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