Sunday, August 31, 2008

Fall Camp: What's in the bag?


Whenever a Wildcat gets a ding or suffers a serious injury the first people on the scene is the athletic training staff. They've been taking great care of the 'Cats players for years and are vital to keeping the 'Cats nice and healthy during the team's respective season.

An athletic trainer is pretty easy to spot on the sideline because each of them carry a trainer's bag around their waist. Don't call it a "fanny pack" because that might lead to a roll of tape getting chucked at your head but these "bags" carry many of the tricks of the trade.

So we decided to ask Linfield head athletic training Tara Lepp "What's in the bag?".

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Fall camp: Sights and Sounds


The beginning of camp is always an anxious time as new faces are adjusting to a new level of football or to a new team. Teaching technique and scheme are taking place in a concentrated time frame and at a break neck speed in order to get ready for that first game.

Here is just a very small sample of some of the sights and sounds from last Saturday's practice as the 'Cats work on getting into winning form.

Tomorrow we'll ask Linfield head athletic trainer Tera Lepp what's in the medical/trainer bag.

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Fall Camp: The 300-Yard Shuttle


During the first couple of days of each Linfield fall camp the 'Cats legs get a test of where they are at in terms of endurance. This year the 'Cats ran a timed 300-yard shuttle where the staff grouped players by positions.

It's pretty simple; cones are set 25-yards apart and the players have to run down 25-yards touch the line and come back to the other line for one full set (50-yards). Do that 6 total times and you have a 300-yard shuttle. The linemen had 2 sets of 300-yard shuttles while everyone else had 3 total sets of shuttles.

Instead of just shooting a wide shot of the whole team I thought it would be better to just focus in on one player's experience. I thought that senior running back Dan Lever would be a great guy to follow so I trained the lens on #27 and off he went.

Tomorrow: Sights and Sounds of Linfield's Fall Camp.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Fall Camp: Sled Work



I'll admit it...the pop-up sled was my least favorite drill to run way back in the day. Didn't have best hips and I swear Coach Smith would let the hinges of our old sled rust up. However, it's a great drill to work on separation when taking on an offensive player.

Defensive Coordinator and Linebacker Coach, Jackson Vaughan, is working with his LB's and Rovers on the correct way to shoot the hands so our 'Cat defenders can make a play.

Tomorrow's video: Linfield running back Dan Lever's 300-Yard Shuttle Run.

Monday, August 25, 2008

Fall Camp: How to Snap, Hold, and Kick a field goal




Catdomealumni.com will be posting up some behind the Catdome footage and a few different video clips of fall camp.

Our first entry is brought to you by our PAT/Field Goal specialists has they give you a quick run down in how to Snap, Hold, and kick a field goal.

Tomorrow, we'll hit the pop up sled and work on taking on some blockers.

Sunday, August 24, 2008

Camp Photos


Wildcat 11 (me) took the video camera and shot video and took a number of pictures of the first Saturday practice of the 2008 season.

My early impressions from practice is that this a focused group with strong senior leadership. Of course there is a huge amount of teaching happening at this point of the season but the mood was very upbeat and the tempo was fast.

I'm always an optimist when it comes to my 'Cats but I truly believe that fans of Wildcat football are going to be very fond of this team. The 'Cats know they have two VERY challenging teams to kick off the season but are looking forward to the opportunity. Keep checking back every day as Catdomealumni.com will try to have a new fall camp focused blog entry.

Until then you can click on the link below to view all the photos that were snapped this past Saturday.

LINFIELD WILDCATS FALL CAMP- Saturday Aug 23rd 2008

Thursday, August 21, 2008

NCAA Helmet Quiz Part II

Guess who's back? It's the NCAA Division I helmet quiz.....PART II. Old Wildcat11 wasn't able to get all 50 and again was stuck on 47 correct lids. I'd be VERY surprised if somebody could nail all 50 this time around (without cheating). Post up your score in the comment section. The link to download the excel file is below. Good luck!

NCAA DIVISION I HELMET QUIZ PART II

Monday, August 18, 2008

Video-boarding in 2008.

As we’re fast approaching the 2008 season Linfield fans will have 5 chances to root on their Wildcats in the comfort of the Catdome. Linfield Sports Information guru, Kelly Bird, and myself have been working on some of the in-game entertainment that will be pumped through the videoboard (sidenote: we should really give the video board a name…”Catvision”, “Jumbo Cat”, ect.).

-“Scoreboard Intro”: Last night I put the wraps on the 2008 team introduction video that will be played before the ‘Cats hit the field for kickoff. I have to put our work over and say this video is rockin’. The length is 2 minutes long and we blended some scripted shots with a couple of current ‘Cats with the last minute of the clip a rundown of the tradition of the program. Our hope is to give you the chills and amp up the excitement even more.

-“Senior Moments”: This is a return sponsored segment (our wildcat backing local Quizno’s sponsored last year’s moments) where we sit down our current crop of seniors and have them share why they choose Linfield and share in some of their other thoughts. So far in the seniors I’ve talked to have been great. BTW, Linfield senior lineman Jared Hinkle likes the color purple.

-“This day/week in Linfield history”: This is another return sponsored segment where we pull out a piece of Wildcat football history that occurred on the same date in the past. I was hoping that one of this year’s games would line up with the 2002 Linfield/Menlo game because I’ll always be fond of the pre-game Dillon Hall incident where a few Oaks had some choice words to a few ‘Cats eating breakfast about Linfield’s 2001 come from behind victory. The game in 2002 was a little different.

-“Linfield Football Trivia”: A new segment to the video board this year is our trivia contest. Each week we’ll ask some current ‘Cats a trivia question about Linfield football to see if they are up to snuff.

So when you’re at home games this year be sure to keep an eye on the big board during timeouts to reminisce about a past great performance, learn a little more about a current ‘Cat, or see if you know your Linfield history.

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Player Blog: Alex Tkachuk's Semester at Sea

Linfield Head Coach Joe Smith will tell our players that one of the best classrooms at the college is the practice field because that's where you can develop a work ethic and life skills that will last a lifetime. As someone that is 10 years removed from those practice fields I agree 100% with that statement but there are many great education experiences that Linfield offers to all their students.

Linfield starting middle linebacker Alex Tkachuk took ad
vantage of one of those education opportunities and spend this past spring traveling around the globe in a dynamic study abroad program. I asked Alex to share in his experience and his blog entry is an awesome story of how these types of programs can shape a young person's life and world view. Thank you "T-Chuck"
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This last spring term, I participated in a study abroad program called Semester at Sea. As an International Business major, my curriculum requires that I study outside the U.S. at some point before I graduate. When I came in as a freshman in 2006, Catdome alumnus Drew Ragan had returned from the same program, so I was able to hear some incredible stories about his time abroad. I looked into Semester at Sea, decided that it would be a great fit for me, and applied. After getting the mountain of paperwork and visa applications taken care of during the fall, I was ready to go on January 23rd. Linfield’s International Programs office made the process very easy, and the coaching staff was supportive of me even though I would miss spring ball and weights. I have come to be so grateful I wound up a student-athlete at Linfield. It is not about churning out All-Americans (though we have many), but high quality men. The coaches knew that in the long-term, this experience would be more rewarding for me as a person than a spring in McMinnville.

Semester at Sea works something like this: A former cruise liner was converted into a “floating campus” with classrooms instead of casinos and a Student Union rather than an entertainment venue. Students take between 12 and 18 credits on the ship, which has a faculty as diverse as the students. Classes meet while the ship is sailing between ports, and my credits will be issued by the University of Virginia. When the ship docks in the next port of call, classes are put on pause, and you are more or less free to go and explore the country for a few days, until the ship sails on to the next port. So it goes a few days of classes, a few days of traveling, classes, traveling. Basically, it is a cruise around the world with classes. They hailed the program as a “voyage of discovery”, and that is what it was in every sense of the word—discovery.

The ship was docked in Nassau, so I flew to the Bahamas packed lightly, ready to see the world. There were 5 other students from Linfield, 2 of them close friends that I went through the application process with, so I did not feel any sense of isolation from home. I remember sailing out of Nassau, thinking about how many crazy/shocking/wonderful/new experiences were out there waiting, also thinking about how I would not be back to North America until May. It was a strange feeling of anticipation and excitement, kind of like those first few days of college.

I got an inside cabin that I shared with a roommate, which included a small bathroom, small closet, small TV, and small refrigerator. It was small, but you can’t ask for much more than that when you get to be on a cruise ship for 100 days. No windows, but a giant mirror instead. I put a map up on the wall so I could chart our progress each day, as our momentary coordinates and speed were on the TV at all times. The food was great. The crew made local dishes from our ports, as well as classics like meatloaf. All in all, it was a pretty easy life.

I loved the classes I had. Global Studies was a mandatory class that everyone took together in the Union every day. Different professors would present a lecture about the next country on the itinerary, usually having something to do with its history, economics, or environmental and social issues. For example, I had a World’s Biomes class, kind of boring, but it satisfies a science requirement, and a 20th Century World History class. We were assigned 10 memoirs to read, to learn about growing up in the countries we would visit. The class that I enjoyed the most was Traditional Chinese Medicine. I had seen an acupuncturist a few times for sports injuries, and had great results, so I wanted to know more about it and see why it worked for me, even though I was a little skeptical. The professor was a licensed acupuncturist from Utah who studied at Oregon College of Chinese Medicine. The class covered TCM’s roots in Taoism, elemental philosophy like yin-yang, acupuncture, herbs, and balanced diet. This class was great because it exposed me to so many new lines of thinking as it comes to health, which inspired me to explore other ideas that I formerly thought were “untrue.”. It also introduced me to some awesome movement exercises. We did Tai Chi once, and I caught myself thinking that I wanted Coach Fendall to add it to his training regimen. It was great for balance, energy, and calming the mind.

I also looked into Yoga. I had some hamstring injuries this last season, and wanted to improve my flexibility, so I brought a yoga mat with me so I could stretch somewhere on the ship. It turned out to be one of the best things I brought, and it certainly got used quite a bit. A student from Colorado was teaching a yoga/core strength class on the back deck every day, so I went, got one of the best ab workouts of my life, and came back every day after that. I went from being so stiff I could not touch my toes, to being in the best flexibility and shape of my life.

Here is the itinerary in order, and lengths of stay:

Nassau, Bahamas: Embarkation

San Juan, Puerto Rico: 3 days

Salvador, Brazil: 5 days

Cape Town, South Africa: 6 days

Port Louis, Mauritius: 4 days

Chennai India: 5 days

Penang, Malaysia: 5 days

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam: 5 days

Honk Kong: 2 days

Shanghai, China: 2 days

Kobe, Japan: 4 days

Honolulu, USA: 1 day

Puntarenas, Costa Rica: 2 days

Panama Canal

Miami, USA: Disembarkation

When we came to a port, I was more or less free to see the country the way I wanted to, as long as I was back before the ship sailed. Generally, I chose to pack light and head to the nearest bus or train station with some travel companions, and come up with a good place to go see that probably was not on the tourist pamphlet. I did not go to the Taj Mahal in India, Great Wall of China, or go on safari in South Africa. I came to find that the simple things were often the most rewarding, and least expensive. I enjoyed nothing more than sitting around a café, pub, or hostel in a smaller, more remote town, and talking with the people who knew these places first hand and learning about their lives. It’s incredible how much English is known around the world, and after getting to know them, how similar we all are. I had a healthy balance of seeing cultural and religious sites, a fair bit of hiking, wandering around the world’s biggest cities with a backpack, outdoor recreation, riding trains and buses, knocking feats off my bucket list, and finding a good beach with a sunset and friends.

Last spring was definitely the most carefree time of my life. It gave me a chance to take a step back and analyze what I find important, and what kind of meaning I want my life to have. I also was able to see the world and the places I only knew from books and photos firsthand, just getting to go explore places and find some adventure while I am still young. The world is definitely a smaller place now.

Let me finish by noting how very fortunate I am to have had this experience, studying abroad under the guise of a world cruise, and I am grateful to everyone at Linfield that helped make it possible. The coaching staff gave me their blessings to go and do this. 3 players from Linfield have done this program so far; I doubt that many other programs in the country would let that happen. I am looking forward to this coming season, camp is almost here, and I am confident that this year’s team is really going to surprise the whole country. In the spirit of the blog, let me rephrase that: this year’s team is going to surprise the world. Catdome!

McMinnville's Wortman Field: No More Mud

For any fan of Linfield Wildcat football, McMinnville High School's Wortman Field has a special place in their heart. Wortman field was the location of three of Linfield's NAIA title games appearances during the 1982, 1984, and 1986 seasons.

Back in the old NAIA days all of the playoff games were rewarded not by a top seat format but by bids that teams/cities would place to host the playoff games and even the championship game. All three of Linfield's 80's NAIA titles would have been hosted at the 'Catdome but turf was beyond repair after being ripped up from previous weeks of playoff football.

In the fall of 2006 McMinnville School District voters approved a $62 million dollar bond to improve multiple aspects of facilities in the district and one of those improvements was installing field turf at Wortman field. Construction is just wrapping up as the field turf has been installed, new lighting erected, and the resurfacing of the track is wrapping up. So here's to the muddy battles at Wortman field that cemented Linfield's legacy as one of college football's premiere programs.



Wildcatville: Linfield Play-By-Play over the years

The author of a fellow Linfield Wildcat blog "Wildcatville" recently contacted us here a t Catdomealumni.com and asked to pass along this entry about Linfield Football play-by-play radio men during the years.
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For my blogsite, Wildcatville, which is mainly about Linfield College football, I
compiled the following list of those who were or are now commercial
radio station
play-by-play "voices" for Linfield Wildcat football. I'm
posting only the names of play-by-play voices, not those who were
color commentators during the broadcasts. And, this is a list only for
McMinnville's 1260 AM commercial radio station (KMCM-KCYX-KLYC), not
Linfield's student FM radio station KSLC, which also has carried
Linfield football over the years. Here's the list, if you have
corrections/updates, please contact me, Tim Marsh, are
wildcatville@gmail.com. Thank you.

1956 Craig Singletary
1957 Craig Singletary
1958 Craig Singletary
1959 Craig Singletary
1960 Craig Singletary
1961 Craig Singletary
1962 Craig Singletary
1963 Craig Singletary
1964 Craig Singletary
1965 Craig Singletary

1966 Dick Bacon
1967 Dick Bacon
1968 Dick Bacon
1969 Dick Bacon

1970 Chuck McKeen
1971 Chuck McKeen
1972 Chuck McKeen

1973 Larry Ward
1974 Larry Ward
1975 Larry Ward
1976 Larry Ward
1977 Larry Ward

1978 Dave Hansen
1979 Dave Hansen
1980 Dave Hansen
1981 Dave Hansen
1982 Dave Hansen
1983 Dave Hansen
1984 Dave Hansen
1985 Dave Hansen
1986 Dave Hansen
1987 Dave Hansen
1988 Dave Hansen
1989 Dave Hansen
1990 Dave Hansen
1991 Dave Hansen
1992 Dave Hansen
1993 Dave Hansen

1994 Steve Lindsley

1995 Mark Marshall/Joe Dominey
1996 Mark Marshall/Joe Dominey
1997 Mark Marshall/Joe Dominey

1998 Marty Hough
1999 Marty Hough

2000 Darrell Aune
2001 Darrell Aune
2002 Darrell Aune
2003 Darrell Aune
2004 Darrell Aune
2005 Darrell Aune
2006 Darrell Aune
2007 Darrell Aune
2008 Darrell Aune

Monday, August 4, 2008

A note from your webmaster…


Catdomealumni.com only has two more videos left in our 2008 video season and not to toot my own horn but this has been our best. I’ll keep working on upping the ante and we’ll see if 2009 can top this year.

The next two weeks will be our 2008 offense and defense preview. I have mix feelings about these two weeks because I feel that I don’t truly do justice to how the offense and defense is going to look once the season hits. The reason is these videos cannot account for the players that are getting the opportunity to step into rotation and show their talent. On offense, players like Cederberg, Patterson, Lamson, Reggie Ford, etc. are going to have a huge impact and players like Comfort, Nishizaki, Seifert, Morrison, will do the same defensively. So while I hope you enjoy the season preview but do keep in mind these vids don’t really show the full picture of your 2008 Wildcats.

-T-Shirt update. We’re a little close in putting out the Catdomealumni.com shirts. We’ll need a few more weeks before I can get these in my hands but I promise I’ll fast track them to the Catdome family once they are in.