Player Blog: Paul Partlow "Extending a Helping Hand"

Today’s player blogger, Paul Partlow, is coming from a place that Wildcat11 knows very well. While football at Linfield was a major part of my Linfield experience another part of that experience that had just as large of an impact was my participation as a member of Theta Chi (Delta Alpha Chapter). I lived at 405 College Avenue for 3 school years (2 summers) and had many great memories of living in the “OX” house. I’m sure what I’m typing now still holds true today but without that house and the friendships and bonds formed within its walls there are probably many of my friends from Linfield that never would have finished college or at least college at Linfield. It was really our home away from home.

Currently, Linfield Linebacker, Paul Partlow, is the acting Treasurer of the Delta Alpha chapter and a strong believer of the community service aspect of fraternity life. While Paul maybe an impact player for the ‘Cats on the football field, off the field you’ll find a bright, funny, and reflective young person who is working hard to counter the standard “frat boy” stereotypes you’ll find at most colleges.
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Beer, parties, girls, hazing, meathead, academically challenged, toga. These are the words that most likely come to mind when people hear the word fraternity. With Bluto from Animal House and Frank the Tank from Old School as the stereotypical frat boys. Though could you imagine either of these fraternities requiring community service as a requirement for membership? Of course not, fraternities never give back to the community and are only concerned with the coming weekend party. Yet, like most Hollywood portrayals, this could not be further from the truth.

At the Delta Alpha Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity at Linfield College, part of the requirement of being a brother is to complete a minimum of ten hours of community service each semester. WHAT! Theta Chi is full of meatheads who are self centered pricks! I won’t waste my time to argue the meathead status given that over half of the members are Linfield football players, with a handful of members involved in other sports including baseball and track, but I would like to point out that we do have a diverse group of guys, even including a thespian member, I will say that many do not realize that we actually help others. After all, the Theta Chi motto is “extend a helping hand.” In fact every year an executive member of the fraternity is elected to the position of Philanthropy Chairman. His sole responsibilities being to plan, organizes, and oversee Theta Chi’s community service events throughout the academic year.

The biggest philanthropy event that we put on every year is a goods drive during the holiday season we’ve coined “Theta Chi’s Twelve days of Christmas”. During this event we park an RV on campus where we accept donations 24 hours a day for 12 straight days offering donators and passers by some hot cocoa, coffee and cookies while listening to vintage Christmas music. Then we forward everything on to local organizations such as Goodwill, Kids on the Block, OHSU, and the food bank. Simply put, it’s a local drop off for students and McMinnville community members who may otherwise be unable or unaware of such community service and a place where they can pick up a hot beverage during the cold weather to warm themselves up throughout the winter days.

Other events Theta Chi participated in throughout the fall semester included a 3rd Street cleanup with the Phi Sigma Sigma Sorority and the annual “Think Pink Week” with Zeta Tau Alpha Sorority. For Think Pink week, we hold different events throughout the week in efforts to help raise money for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. This year Theta Chi contributed a bit extra by organizing a new event called “Bash out Breast Cancer” where members of the community could donate money to the cause and bash a car. So, not only could a student or faculty member give money to a great cause but they could also relieve some stress by smashing a car with a sledgehammer. In all, the event raised close to $300 in its efforts to bash out breast cancer.

Philanthropy events that we have coming up this semester include volunteering at the local soup kitchen, a mentor program with a local middle school, and collaborating with the Make a Wish Foundation. For the aforementioned event, we'll be sponsoring multiple events around campus that'll last all semester. Events include a golfing day, a "donation dance,” an auction of fraternity brothers and sorority sisters, a barbecue and something that we’ve labeled "meathead" events. These “meathead” events will include push up contests, races, and other events that will demonstrate “meathead status.” Our goal is to reach $5000 in donation funds to forward on to the Make A Wish foundation. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact our Philanthropy Chairman Grant Lucas at glucas@linfield.edu.

So just know that the next time you insult or hold a prejudice against a fraternity meathead, that meathead may have just made a difference in the community. And if you don’t realize that, then I may have Brother Heston, Brother Bolin, and Brother Nishizaki come out and eat you. Just kidding, that would never happen…or would it?...

-Paul Partlow
Class of 2010

Profile picture courtesy of Linfield S.I.D. Kelly Bird

Player Blog: Ian Estrada "On The Comeback, Again"

Battling back from a season ending injury is tough. But coming back from multiple season ending injuries? That kind of heart and desire takes a special person to fight through the mental and physical pain to battle back with no guarantee that you won’t get seriously injured again.

Right now, one of your ‘Cats is in the midst of that battle and I asked him to share his story about his comeback (again) to finish his playing career at Linfield next season. Defensive lineman Ian Estrada (Jr. Kailua, Hawaii) is a standout young man and should be an impact player for the ‘Cats next season on the defensive line, scars and all.

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Being all the way from Hawaii, it's not as easy for my family to come up and watch Linfield play on Saturdays, so they have to rely on the internet broadcasts and news articles to hear about the games. Some of my family tries to come up once a year to watch a game, but for reasons I am going to explain they're always too late. Next season my mom plans to come as early as possible because the past three seasons have ended much sooner for me than I'd ever wanted or expected.

So just to get them out of the way, here are a few reasons for having short season: my sophomore year I tore my right ACL the last day of fall camp during the afternoon scrimmage, junior was a little longer and I made it to the second game of the year against Hardin-Simmons where right before the half I sprained my right AC joint. I didn't think it was that bad so I decided to go back in the second half and left the game with two badly sprained AC joints that severely affect Defensive Tackle play, with all the striking and use of the shoulders, it pretty much ended any hopes for a successful season. Then there was the broken hand during spring ball that kept me from spring training and practices. Finally, this past season I tore my left ACL in the third game against Menlo. So to sum it all up I've had three surgeries in the last three years, probably over $100,000 in medical bills, thank God for insurance, and a secondary residence in the Athletic Treatment Center.

When VP (Dr. Van Patten) did the standard knee ligament check on me after being helped off the field against Menlo, he uttered a word that I wouldn't use in front of my mom, and I knew it was all over. I seriously thought I would never play football again. The tears started to form and all the images of crutches, limping, surgery, painful rehab, and more started to run through my head.

I’m not going to lie and say knee surgery isn’t that bad, because it is. They don’t just give you vicodin for the pain, they straight up shoot morphine into your knee. I decided to stay awake for some of the surgery this second time, and it sounded like the doctors were constructing a house on the other side of the curtain that blocked my lower half. Sawing, drilling, and hammering is what I heard, and a brand new ACL made from my patellar tendon was the result. Over the roughly 5 or 6 month rehab period, you painfully try to decrease swelling, rebuild muscle in a leg that feels like jello, regain full range of motion, and learn how to walk and run again.

I know that there are far more worse things that happen to other people in the world, but this is my life and my trial. Why me? Why my other ACL? I could understand if my ACL that had already torn once snapped again, but why the other one? I never questioned God's reason for letting it happen, I was just in absolute confusion as to what I was going to learn from this second ACL tear. I told God, "I've already been through this trial, and I thought I passed. Why do I have to do it again?"

In all honesty, I don't know the answer to that question still. But what I do know is that a chance to play Linfield football again is on the minds of hundreds of former Wildcats, and I will not live the rest of my life in regret and thinking what could've been. The concept of Linfield football is almost "ineffable", which means it cannot or should not be expressed in spoken words, its almost sacred. If playing another season of Linfield football means I get to play for guys like Coach Smith, Vaughan, and Thorson, and be on the field with players like Jay Jack, Nish, and T Chuck, then by all means I will do WHATEVER IT TAKES. I have the assumption that if I were at any other program I would've hung up the pads already, but it's not even about me anymore. I am consumed in this Linfield family and it doesn't want to let me leave. I really owe Jaymin Jackson a lot for the constant encouragement to play again. Jaymin would always say, "Who am I gonna run Flop Canes with next year?" Also the example set by "Old Man Rivers" Scott Olsen, who I understand now, just couldn't move on with his life until he gave Linfield everything he had, meaning one last season.

Will my knee hurt throughout the season? Yes. Am I going to have arthritis waiting for me in the future? Most likely. Full knee replacements? Very Possible. However, these things are really hard to focus on when all I can think about is running out of that tunnel, rushing that QB, and chanting "Linfield Wildcats" with my teammates after a hard fought game.

Lots of people told me I was crazy to think about playing again, and suggested I rethink my decision of coming back. Yes, to the logical person in their right mind would probably listen to their body and say, "hey man, I'm done. My body is just not made to play this sport." However, I refuse to do that, and I will listen to God who has given me more love and passion for this team than I have ever had.

-Ian Estrada (Class of 2010)

-Photo courtesy of Linfield S.I.D. Kelly Bird

Player Blog: Ryan Henderson "Scout Team to Starting"

Sophomore wide receiver Ryan Henderson has a fantastic blog entry for us today. His story will ring true for many of us former players that came up through the ranks of the scout team and eventually earned their way onto the field. I can remember after an Alumni/JV game was played and the question was asked to the Alumni team “How many of you guys played on scout team while at Linfield?” About 90% of the Alumni players raised their hand and among those with their hands up where guys who started multiple-years, All-Conference players, Conference MVPs, Team MVPs, and All-Americans.

Ryan will one day get to raise his hand years from now when he’s asked that question as the hardnosed slot receiver jumped on his opportunity to play and didn’t let go for the remainder of 2009.
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Reporting to camp and coming into your own in a place as unknown as college for an 18 year old kid is pretty nerve racking, especially when you don’t know what to expect. All the freshman have their expectations of what the school or football will be like, but most of these guys like myself, find out that it’s a lot different. I had never came to a Division III football game when I decided to come to Linfield. I had a pretty skewed idea that it wasn’t that competitive as far as what kind of athletes there are and what level of football is being played because it was D3. With this in mind I thought that I would be able to come down to Linfield and get a fair amount of early playing time and be able to have a successful career.

I think it was sometime freshman year training camp in between: getting destroyed by Rod Booth in the Innertube wrestling, watching WR John Torsey run a ‘4.3somethin’ 40 yard dash, seeing Saftey Keone Tawata kill people on the highlight film at the fieldhouse sleepover, watching Aaron Boehme throw the ball 70 yards and thinking to myself “damn, and he’s only second string”, watching Masters just do what he does, and listening to Coach Nagel talk about the most complex offense I have seen, was when I realized that Linfield football program is the real deal and if I ever want to play I better work my ass off and step my game up.

I think that my hardest time at Linfield would have to be my time spent on scout team. I was down there for all of my freshman year and the first week of my sophomore year. Scout team sucks. It’s hard work with no game time, its hundred and hundreds of reps while getting thrown into the air by Drew Ragan or trying to trying to block Andrew Woods. I remember after every practice the defense would break down the huddle with something like “thanks scout team” or “keep up the hard work its making us better!” Maybe it was cause was too tired to think, but to me those words or our actions on scout team never really felt like they meant that much, until the game against Willamette. I remember P.j. Sequiera and I were running hundreds of Willamette’s fly sweeps directly into Jeff Denny or Taylor Summers waiting to kill us all week preparing the defense for Willamette. And on that Saturday in 2007 down in Salem I was watching the play and I saw the man who I would have been on scout team come in motion and I knew exactly what was coming, it was a fly sweep to the right and I think it was Summers but I’m not sure, just blasted him for a 3 or 4 yard loss and I just went nuts. I truly felt that I had something to do with making that play.

Sophomore season came around and I felt like it was my turn to make my name as a Wildcat. I had worked hard and had a pretty good training camp. But when it came down to Coach Yen calling out who was going to stay with the 1’s and 2’s I wasn’t called. This time for me was probably hardest of my entire athletic career. I watched as the offense practiced and I still had to run hundreds of plays while listening to Coach Rombach scream. This time, although hard for me, taught me a lot. For one, I really found out what the Linfield program was about. So many teammates like Gus Morrison, Reggie Ford, Taylor Avritt, John Torsey, Travis Masters, Haberly, Bubba, Chris Saunders, lots more and even coaches all came up to me and talked to me on a personal level like a family would. They made it so much easier for me to look past my frustration and realize what I need to do. Which was work hard so the team can get better and through the hard work prove to coaches I could play.

I think my happiest day as a Wildcat was when Coach Yen asked me to stay with the 1’s and 2’s. I felt like my time on scout team was all worth it and I was ready to work even harder to keep moving up. It was the third week of the year we were practicing for Menlo and during the Thursday practice Gunnar Cedarburg got a concussion, and coach Yen came up to me after practice to tell me it was my turn to make it happen. I thought to myself about how many times Coach Smith talked about how people get one shot and sometimes that’s the only shot they get so naturally that just made me more nervous.

Saturday came along and I was nervous and pumped because it was a bright sunny day in the Catdome. The first play was an outside zone right to Reggie, I lined up, Bixenman snapped the ball and I don’t remember it until I got up after cut blocking some safety and saw Reggie 15 yards downfield, I had the biggest smile on my face jumping up and down and played like that the rest of the game. I think that is the most I have ever loved football in my life. This season to me was so much fun and helped me grow as a person and a football player. I don’t think I could have made the plays I did this year without practicing every day against people like Brian Mehl and Woods, the love I got from all my teammates and what I learned on scout team. Almost everybody goes through scout team and it only makes you a better player if you go through it with the right mindset. Playing against the best defense in D3 will only help you when you get the chance to make your name on the field. This is what Linfield is made of, we’re a family and we’re ready to do big things next year. CATDOME!!!

Ryan Henderson
-Class of 2011

Mug Shot Courtsey of Linfield SID Kelly Bird
Action Photo Courtsey of Brad Thompson Linfield Action Photos

Player Blog: Cole Franklin "Looking back on 2008"

Ask Linfield fans about soph. Quarterback Cole Franklin and the response back are ‘Cat fans raving about his ability to make plays with his both his arm and his legs. Cole was injected as the starting quarterback for the ‘Cats after junior starter Aaron Boehme went down in the first game of the year vs Hardin Simmons with a broken collar bone. Even if Boehme was to stay healthy, Franklin was still going to play a big role in the Wildcat offense this past season due to his game breaking ability.

What most Linfield fans didn’t know is that they were watching a quarterback, in Franklin, that was severely hampered most of 2009 with a bad ankle injury that limited Cole’s legs and ability to scramble. You may not believe that after watching him pick up huge chunks of yards and scrambling for TDs this season but yes…he wasn’t nearly 100% in 2008.
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Looking back on this years season, yes the end result was not what we all hoped for but, from my point of view we gained experience, and because of this as a team we developed tremendous depth. This quality will help us in the upcoming 2009 season. I too have saw consistant game time as a sophmore, and in turn I believe I have matured as a person and a player. Taking over the starting job as Quaterback for the Linfield Wilcats after Aaron Bohme's shoulder injury against Hardin Simmons was an eye opener for sure. However, at the same time I was excited to take up this new challenge and opportunity. My teammates, offense and defense were more than encouraging in making sure I knew they believed in my abilities to lead the team and I love them for that. In my first collegiate start against Southern Oregon University, my left ankle was crushed resulting in a third degree high ankle sprain. Even though I was able to endure through the rest of the game, It would cause serious upheavel in my performance to come. It was only until our last game against PLU was my ankle coming around. This was and still is very difficult for me to deal with mentally.

Making weekly trips to Vancouver for electrical treatment, I was able to limp through the rest of the season only starting in six games. Following my ankle injury I incured a contusion on my right forearm against Willamete. This would haunt me the rest of the season inhibiting my throwing motion. Overall my injury record was unfortunate, preventing me from going 100 percent. However, I was not the only one who was prone to injuries throughout the season. An accumulation of injuries on both sides of the ball denied us the opportunity to play at our fullest potential. The only benefit one can garner from this is we were given the opportunity to develope depth within the team which may not have been possible had our season been injury free myself included. I matured alot this year and by the end of the season I was making much better on the field decisions. I will come into the 09 season smarter, faster and stronger, ready to lead the Wildcats to a National Title.

-Cole Franklin

Class of 2011

*Photos are courtsey of Linfield S.I.D. Kelly Bird

Player Blog: Drew Fisher "From a recruit to a Wildcat"

Freshman Safety Drew Fisher is our latest player blogger for Catdomealumni.com. Just one year ago Drew was a Senior at Gresham's Centennial High School and trying to figure out where he wanted to go and continue to play football. Drew's decision has turned out to be great for himself and for Linfield. This past season Drew was name Linfield's Rookie of the year. Drew was nice enough to share his experience of being a high school senior and trying to decide just where he wanted to make his mark.
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Choosing where to go to school isn’t the easiest thing to do. There were a lot of different voices all hitting me at one time it seemed and it really made things confusing. I didn’t stress it too much though because I knew it would all fall in place sooner or later.

Deciding on a college fell down the list on my priorities because of my senior year of school, sports, and of course good old video games. However recruiters from schools from all around continued to drop in every week which was a constant wake up call to me to start narrowing down my college choices. Schools like Southern Cal and the Florida Gators were pretty impressed I must say, but they had nothing on what is now 53 consecutive winning seasons here at Linfield so it was an easy decision. But really, schools such as Willamette, Whitworth, Puget Sound, and Western Oregon were the schools that had been talking to me the most to come play some ball for them.

Leading up to my decision on choosing Linfield some key connections played an important influence. First and foremost there are three coaches back home in Gresham at Centennial high that are some of the greatest people I have ever known that went to none other than Linfield. Of course, I always had to listen to all of their stories about the glory days at the Catdome but it always made for a good laugh so it wasn’t that bad.

I had the great opportunity to spend the first week of my summer vacation every year at Linfield for the Wildcat team football camp where I not only received an early taste of hitting some opposing players, but it was nice to get a good look at a college campus and talk to some coaches about playing football. I talked to former players, Coach Smith, and this guy who thinks he’s pretty big time that goes by Coach Fendall. I talked to Coach Fendall in person at camp a few times about coming here to play for the ‘Cats, but Coach’s real game is his cell phone. Once you’re a recruit here they really know how to reel you in. I remember Coach calling me many times and listening to lots of voice mails basically telling me good night and sweet dreams. I got calls at lunch, during practice, heck I even talked to Coach Smith while he was skiing down the mountain with his kids. It just goes to show you how dedicated and determined these guys are out here to get what they want in order to bring the ‘Cats back to Salem Virginia and reclaim that title.

After all the recruiting and a lot of thought I came to the conclusion to give Linfield a go and experience what exactly it feels like to be a Wildcat.

This first year being a part of the Catdome has been a time to remember for sure. From the grinding practices and daily doubles to finding out I’m going to Texas an hour before the bus left for PDX, there has been quite the number of memories already. Making friends with the flying Hawaiians and playing next to some future Catdome greats has been a sweet deal. It’s been a wild trip getting to play on Saturdays with guys that love to play the game and have fun as much as I do and it’s only going to get better as the years go on. The ’09 season is more than promising for the ‘Cats and it can’t come soon enough.

-Drew Fisher
Class of 2012

(photo courtsey of Linfield SID Kelly Bird)

Player Blog: Bryce Comfort "Jan-Term Happenings"

Greetings to the ‘Catdome family. We’re going to be kicking off the player blog series again now that 2008 has been put the rest. I asked sophomore defensive back, Bryce Comfort, to kick off 2009 with a blog entry about what he’s been up to during January Term. For those of you that don’t know Linfield operates on a 4-1-4 schedule. That means the fall semester is four months long and the spring semester is four months long and sandwich in-between is January term. This is a one-month long optional term where students may go abroad to study or stay on campus to take a couple of intensive classes during the month. I loved Jan term when I was a student and it sounds like Bryce is having a good time too.
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What’s up Catdomealumni.com! I hope you all had a great New Years and have started ’09 out with a bang like the ‘Cats have! I’m currently sitting in my room on a lovely Sunday afternoon, writing out a little blog for you guys to see what’s going on in the life and times of a Wildcat during Jan-Term.

Right now I’m trying to juggle the heavy load of my one class that meets three days a week, training for next season, and spending some quality time with my friends. I must say it’s a rough life, but someone’s gotta do it. In all seriousness this blog is probably the most writing I have had to do since we started school back up (sorry pops if you’re reading this). But even when there is not a lot going on, hanging out at the Catdome with all the guys who are around is a great time to start to mesh together as a team. This weekend we had another one of our top recruit visits, and there were a lot of quality guys who came to see what we were all about. I got to host a kid who I went to high school with during my glory days in the beautiful Tacoma, WA. Hopefully we can continue to get more western Washington guys, seeing as that’s where the best athletes tend to come from. Just kidding all you Oregon boys I love you too! We’ve only been back for a week now but I’m having a blast with all the guys on the team. The other night I taught Jaymin Jackson (Jr. Linebacker) how to play the drums on rock band like a champ, but my performance was overshadowed by the dazzling vocals of Gunnar Cederberg (Jr. WR). He can really hit those high notes!

Winter workouts are going well and it has been great to see a lot of the guys get going on training for next fall. I can attest to the fact that the report date in August creeps up on you much faster than you think, and it is vital as an athlete to begin preparing now. Last spring we really got after it and the senior class did a great job of setting the bar for future teams. I expect even more improvement from last year as we all know what we are capable of and that we can push it much further. We are actually a step ahead this winter and all the credit goes to the amazing Coach Neil Fendall aka “the Weight Room Warrior” aka “the Prince of Plyometrics.” But seriously, Coach Fendall has helped to reshape our training philosophy and has instilled an attitude within the players that has already translated to our performance on Saturdays. This spring will be another chance to put some work in and see where it takes us in the fall!

Like I said before, I hope you all have had a wonderful start to 2009, and I can’t wait to see everyone at the Catdome next fall! We all have extremely high expectations for 2009 and it will be exciting to see them begin to unfold as the year goes on. Take care and God bless.

-Bryce Comfort
Class of 2011

(Photo courtesy of Kelly Bird, Linfield SID)

Linfield Football Holiday Family Adoption program was a great success!

I wanted to make sure I let the Linfield family know about how their Catdomealumni.com T-Shirt money was put to work this holiday season and Senior Defensive Lineman Joe Seifert, took the time to provide a great account of how the money was put together and just how big of an impact this program had on local McMinnville Families.

This is really a tremendous deal that is put on by the football program and I'm so very proud of this senior group and their efforts on and off the field! Go 'Cats!
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From Linfield Senior Defensive Lineman Joe Seifert

This year Linfield Football’s holiday family adoption program expanded from our normal Thanksgiving Feed to this year’s special Christmas edition. We decided not to do our traditional Thanksgiving feed because of the way the academic schedule worked out this fall. Students were not on campus or around town during Thanksgiving because we had the entire week off this year instead of just a few days. We also decided we needed to do a Christmas program that could involve not only large amounts of food but Christmas gifts as well.

This year we were fortunate enough to come up with a few thousand dollars to spend instead of our traditional few hundred. I will explain how that worked out… Last summer I was an intern at Delap LLP (an accounting firm) in Lake Oswego, Oregon. 2008 happened to be the firm’s 75th anniversary and it was decided that it would be more beneficial to donate time and treasure to local communities instead of holding one big event for firm staff and clients to celebrate. Beginning in July of 2008, Delap had a monthly community service event scheduled to donate their time and treasure to in the Portland Metro area. Back in June I saw a list of the events and I noticed that December was designated as “the people’s choice event.” Immediately I thought of what the CATS had done for families at Thanksgiving in years past and knew that we could expand to a much larger Christmas event if given the opportunity. I did some calling around during the summer and knew finding families would not be a problem come the holidays, so I put a plan together and submitted it for review by the partners. I thought my suggestion had a good chance of being selected because Dave DeLap, the firms managing partner, is a 1980 graduate of Linfield College, and two more of Delap’s partners had grown up in McMinnville. I knew that they all could connect with the idea and then it would just be up to them to decide if it was something they wanted to do. In September, I received a phone call saying that funding had been approved for Linfield’s Holiday family adoption program.

Thanks to Delap LLP for that sponsorship as it got the ball rolling and somewhat determined how many families we would be able to sponsor and if we were in fact going to be able to do gifts. With a sizeable donation already in place, we took what we had across the street to Roth’s and asked their manager to stretch our funds. The manager remembered our program from years past and without much discussion threw in an additional few hundred dollars in groceries. Additional finding came from the Linfield Football players themselves. Every year we ask team members to throw in a dollar or two if they can. Traditionally this is our primary source of funding and with such a large team, it makes raising a few hundred dollars very easy. To top it off and add to our abnormally large total this year, THANKS TO ALL OF YOU who purchased catdomealumni shirts, an additional $1,000 was raised for this cause as well! We appreciate your support and also want to say thanks to Wildcat11 for his time creating and selling those shirts.

Having well over $4,000 to work with, we were able to adopt 9 families that range in size from two to eight people in the McMinnville area. For each of these families, we wanted to provide them with a turkey and plenty of food for a holiday meal as well as additional groceries to get them through the holidays. In addition to groceries we felt it would be nice to give each family member 2 gifts. With so much support all around us, this was actually made very easy.

The shopping started on Sunday, December 7th. A group of us seniors, and Coach Kemper, went to Target in Sherwood to shop for all of the gifts we wanted to purchase for the families. In about 2 hours we piled 5 shopping carts full of gifts and spent nearly $1,500!

On Wednesday, December 10th, Linfield players teamed up with Delap employees (including former wildcat Ryan Boatsman) to shop for food and wrap all of the gifts that had been purchased. Half of the group went food shopping while the other half remained on campus and wrapped all of the gifts. Food shopping took place across the street at Roth’s. Each shopping team was given a budget for food of a few hundred dollars. Surprisingly at the register, teams were within just a few dollars of where they were supposed to be! Even more impressive, the entire food bill rang up within $1.52 of our budgeted amount of over $2,000!!! Thanks again to Roth’s for helping stretch our money and really stock these families up. Along with the food we purchased, Roth’s also had gift cards made for each family so that perishable foods could be purchased on a return trip to the store.

Once the food was purchased it was taken back to campus for sorting by family. Upon arrival to campus, players found that 10 pizzas had been delivered for lunch courtesy of Delap, again! After lunch, the food sorting and boxing had been completed as well as all of the wrapping. Then all of the goods were loaded up and ready for delivery. In all, there were over 75 man hours used to complete the wrapping as well as food shopping and sorting that morning. Around 1:00 PM the Delap team headed back to the office.

Wednesday evening, 10 of us went to deliver food and gifts to the families around town. We were able to meet the families 1 by 1, explain our project, and then tell them that we had something for them. We then stepped aside and showed them the 4-5 large boxes of food and the huge box of gifts that would be given to them. By their reactions, most of these families were not expecting anything at all. If they were expecting something, I think they expected just 1 box of food. It was easy to tell that the mothers of the families were the most touched and the words “thank you” were a struggle for most to say. The kids had huge similes on their faces and began to dig through the boxes. The Although none of the presents were opened while we were there, we all know the kids just could not wait to tear them open. For some, we were certain those gifts may very well be all they receive over the holidays. We couldn’t have done this without all of our supporters! Thanks to everyone both on and off the field!

-Your 2008 Senior Class.

Camp Diary: WR Trevor Patterson

In ripping off an idea from Johnniefootball.com I asked Linfield WR Trevor Patterson to keep a loose diary about the first full week of fall camp. Trevor is battling for a starting position and should be a big contributor for the 'Cats this season. Huge props to Trevor for being honest and giving us all a small glimps of the ups and down of fall camp.

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8/22/08

Second day of camp! First day was exciting but boring just all paper work! Today was a good day for me and I think our entire team. We really got to see some big gains in our testing and I think all the credit goes to (Coach Neil) Fendall and his program. Also, the team’s commitment to the 7 am workouts in the spring and the working out during the summer. For me I was real excited about my testing. Didn’t have my best number but I was sidelined with a contusion on my femur and had not actually ran for about 5 months. Strictly pool and bike workouts. Wish I could say I was a 100% but I’m still battling some soreness and tenderness. I’m excited after today and ready to see what this team could do!

8/23/08

Our first day of actual practice! As a veteran meetings are getting a little boring but I’m still able to learn…don’t know it all yet! First practice did not go my way at all. I had sea legs and struggles with running crisp routes. It’s hard not to get down on myself but I understand I’m just a little rusty. Plus my teammates understand and are supportive. We looked good today for a first practice but of course we exposed what we need to work on. I’m definitely excited for the receivers, especially the boys on the outside. I think we have a good group of guys and all mesh really well even though many of us are opposites in were we came from and our playing styles. The way we contrast each other is going to be why we are going to surprise people. Now to the not so good part of the day. It was time for gassers. This year we ran a 300-yard shuttle instead of the usual dolphins. As a speed guy we had to run 3 of them and each had to be less than 65 seconds. It was more intense then what we have done in the past as far as testing your lungs but even though it was intended to be easy on out legs it definitely wasn’t! The one positive is no one got hurt and it was over a lot quicker! For me it was a little tough on the legs but it was great to see everyone come together and finish hard! Afterwards it was a race to strip down and get in the ice bath. Nothing better then 12 sweat almost naked football players in a stock tank from Wilco (Wilco is where I work!). My roommates and I then celebrated by buying Ben and jerry’s ice cream and playing NCAA 09! Another day in the books and one step closer to TEXAS!

8/24/08

Only one word to describe today and that’s SORE! It was definitely a relief to have the conditioning test over with and just concentrate on football! The best part of today though was the YOGA we did to help us relax and relieve some of the soreness. I’m getting frustrated because I feel rusty and am not making the plays I should be making! Definitely have a talented receiving crew this year and so many returners have improved tremendously! Sunday was just another day in the 2008 football camp!

8/25/08

I am still struggling with my return from my knee injury. I am hesitant on my breaks and am not making the plays I should be! I am happy with where I am at mentally and now I just need to get there physically. This camp has been a lot more emotionally driven then the past two years. Lots of excitement and competition between the offense and defense. There have been some close calls with taking things to far but that is to be expected when you’re playing such an intense game. We’ve done a good job of keeping our cool.

8/26/08

I have forgotten what day it is at this point! Every day seems the same. Lots of talking going on between offense and defense, which can be good and bad. Had a little altercation between and receiver and a corner today after the corner took a shot at a vulnerable receiver. I didn’t find anything wrong with the hit besides the fact that is was one of our teammates. Everything worked out and hopefully those kinds of hits will not happen again so we can stay healthy. It’s nice to see that intensity at practice.

8/27/08

First day of doubles! Practice in the morning was tough on the body, especially the knee. Couldn’t really get warmed up and my knee was really sore. Practice started out rough for us. Everyone was feeling sorry for them self and it showed. We started out real sluggish. Some seniors really stepped up and by the end of the day I thought things turned around and we finished strong. The second practice was fun; it was our first night practice. The offense really seems to be understanding the scheme and we are starting to execute like we can.

8/28/08

Swim Olympics were today! It was the best one of my three years here at Linfield. Once again the WR’s dominated every event but got absolutely embarrassed in the synchronized swimming. The DB’s had the best routine I’d seen but they were topped by the coach’s routine which included coach Nagel doing the solider boy.

8/29/08

Last double day! Coaches seem to be getting frustrated with the mental mistakes that are being made, especially the ones by the veterans. We have the potential to be real good and the only one that can stop us is ourselves.

8/30/08

We had a live scrimmage today and to be honest it was frustrating for the offense. We did not perform like I thought we should of and a lot of things we need to work on were shown! I am excited to see the improvement we make this week and show the defense how tough we are next Saturday! Now I am going to enjoy my first day off with the roomies!

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 advantage 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 23^rd. 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 20^th 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!

Player Blog: John Torsey "Off-season at the CATDOME"

My name is John Torsey and I will be Senior receiver next year at the Catdome. The team is ready and eagerly awaiting the start of the year. Even with the season just around the corner, it cannot come soon enough. Our performances at the seven-on-seven sessions with Portland State have left us confident and ready to unleash our offensive attack on the NWC. A great recruiting class combined with the addition of outstanding transfer players has only added to the excitement.

I took the last year off from Track to be with the football team and I couldn’t be happier with the decision. Coach Fendell put together a great workout plan for the team and the camaraderie we forged five days a week at 7AM workouts will undoubtedly aid us in the upcoming season. We spilled the same blood in the same mud so to speak. As a receiver, it gave me great confidence to watch our linemen in the weight room. It’s a special thing to see a 300 pound man seamlessly transfer from repping 450 lbs in the squat cage to a surprisingly agile one footed box jumps.

The summer has gone equally well. All of our seven-on-seven practices with the defense have been very competitive. Our defense has preformed well even when playing incoming freshmen. The same is true for the offense. I won’t talk too much about the defense, I’ll leave that to the defenders, but from an offensive standpoint they are tough. The defense is simply hard to plan for. They have a 230 pound weak side linebacker who has the speed and presence of mind to easily play safety in any situation, a strong d-line and linebacking core, great coaching, and the corners have gone from one of the shallowest positions on the team, to one of the deepest. Those are just a few reasons I am confident the defense will come up with big plays when we need them. We compete every time we show up. If the offense gets a score, the defense will get it back next series, and vise versa.

Our running back core is as good as I have seen in my time here. They have been working hard and pushing others.

The receiving core looks strong as well. For the most part we are unproven in game situations, but that by no means hinders our confidence for the upcoming season. The youngest Lemon brother, Mikey, has been playing very well. The Junior class has been stepping up as well. Gunnar Cederberg and Chris Slezak are working into the offense and have been making big catches daily. Some of the important receivers have not been able to practice with us this summer, but I know they are working hard and will be more than ready to play when the fall comes.

I am excited to watch our pass and run games compliment each other. We will have a very well balanced team with the ability to beat teams on the ground or in the air. All the weaknesses in our team have been eliminated. Where we saw wholes last fall, we are solid, and where we were shallow, we are deep. I am looking forward to a successful season at the Catdome this year.

Player Blog: Travis Masters "A Player's Preview"

Junior Slot Back/Running Back/Kick Returner Travis Masters was nice enough to give us his personal 2008 Linfield preview right before the 'Cats kick off their spring drills. Travis was named a first team NWC slot back and kick returner this past season and Wildcat fans are expecting big things in 2008 from Number 5.
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Heading into my final season at Linfield, I am very excited for the 2008 season to get under way. In my opinion, this years’ team is going to be extremely dynamic. The mindset that our squad has been showing this off-season is pure hunger to get back on top to being the national powerhouse that many of us have been accustom to. I don’t know if I’ve seen a group of guys display the kind of tenacity that I’ve seen during our morning workouts the past few months.

When talking about this team I can’t help but to start with our offensive line. These guys work so hard and often times their efforts go unrecognized. As a core offensive group, they will be the most experienced players on the field and as a skill player this is exciting to me because we all know that without them we (skill players) can’t do what we do. Seniors Jared Hinkle and Jason Bolin are just a few of the great players and leaders that have emerged for all of the big men up front. This group of guys will allow us to either pound the rock or pick teams apart with the pass game.

Our skill players on the offensive side are going to be an exciting group to watch. At the receiver position we are probably the least experienced but have more speed than we’ve seen in previous years. Senior, John Torsey is going to be a great deep threat for us and junior, Trevor Patterson catches everything that comes to him. I’ll be thrilled to have these two guys line up outside of me in the slot. At running back we have a number of guys that can carry the load. A healthy Jon Montalvo will return after sitting out the majority of last season with a hamstring injury, Dan Lever will get our tough yards, and transfer Reggie Ford is going to give teams a fit. As a whole, the running backs have been hands down the hardest working group in the weight room. It really is remarkable to see guys motivate one another the way they do. As for the guy who is going to hold the reins to our offense, I can’t say enough good things about him. Aaron Boehme has an excellent arm and he adds versatility to our offense with his legs. Having Boehme at quarterback is going to allow us to do a lot more as an offensive system than in the past.

On the other side of the ball we took a big hit with seniors Brian Mehl and Keone Tawata graduating. However, their replacements will not disappoint this year. Sophomore Bryce Comfort and hard-hitting senior Tyler McCann will man the safety positions. Comfort is an extremely savvy player for only being a sophomore and he is comparable to Brian Mehl, which is saying a lot. The strongest part of our defense is probably our linebackers led by Jaymin Jackson and Alex Tkachuk. Jaymin is a great leader for us and is one of the most electrifying defensive players that we’ve seen in the last few years. Our defensive line is also a group that will be a force to reckon with. Returning from a serious injury suffered last spring, Scott Olsen will be a beast for us on the defensive front. Also senior Taylor Summers is coming off of a great year as well as junior Ian Estrada. Junior Paul Nishizaki and Sophomore Eric Hedin will also provide great support for our defensive line. It should also be mentioned that this year we have a very strong recruiting class for the defensive front.

This year we will be playing with a chip on our shoulders. As seniors, we want our team to play with the attitude that we will not be denied another conference championship or a playoff birth. It’s important for us to have the mindset that we are never satisfied with where we are at until there is nothing more that we can do. We’ve been working hard and it will show come the 2008 season. Get ready for a good one!

"Catdome"

Travis Masters

Class of 2008

Player Blog: Dan Lever "Gameday at the Catdome"

Welcome back to our 4th installment of the Linfield player blog series. Our blogger for today is Linfield running back Dan Lever. To me, Dan is a classic Linfield Wildcat football player. He came to the program as a freshman and put in hard work as a scout team player, then the next year he worked in on special teams, and as a Junior this past season Dan played a big part in the Wildcat offense as the featured short yardage back. Dan lead the team in rushing TD’s with 4 and converted numerous first downs in short yardage situation.

Dan is another example of what makes Linfield great. He understands why Linfield is important to so many people and that he represents more than just himself. I asked Dan to write about playing at the ‘Catdome and I feel he nailed the way so many of us ‘Cats feel on those fall Saturday afternoons.

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It’s very hard to describe in words what Maxwell Field and Memorial Stadium (or the Catdome) means to me or any player past or present. It’s something I think we all hold very close to us, and I don’t think that it makes a difference if you stepped on the field last year or fifty years ago. We all get that eerie chill that runs down our spines on those sunny Saturday afternoons when the sun is high in the sky, and Linfield is kicking off.

When we lace our cleats up on game day, we all experience many emotions. One emotion that stays constant is the staunch belief that we are going to win. This is not because we are cocky or arrogant people, but we’re confident (especially in our own backyard). The reason we feel this way is because we are surrounded by good people and the preparation to win has been done. On Saturdays, we get the opportunity to go out on the field and be a part of something that’s bigger than we are as individuals. For me, the juices really start to flow when we run out for warm-ups. I know this is going to sound corny, but I get this kind of feeling like the calm before a big storm. Opposing teams come onto our field, and they have these beautifully choreographed warm-ups. They hoot and holler and prance around like they are the Dallas Cowboys. We simply run out and circle up, stretch a little, and then go do things the Linfield way.

There are a lot of things that contribute to our game day atmosphere that are really awesome. The crazy student section, the jumbotron, and the massive sea of purple and red behind the bench in the stands all combine to create an awesome game experience. Also for me, it’s a very nostalgic feeling because my roots are in McMinnville, Oregon. I get to be apart of a tradition that both my grandfather and great grandfather were apart of. I also take a lot of pride in the fact that I can share the same field with some of Linfield’s great players and coaches. I take pride in the fact that I get to be a mere pebble on the great wall that is Linfield football.

When people show up on Saturday, they aren’t looking at bunch of scholarship athletes pursuing a degree that they won’t finish. Nobody is going to go in the first round of the NFL draft or win the Heisman trophy. When people enter the Catdome, they are not just looking at 125 men in purple and white. They are looking at:

-Men that play football for the love of the game
-Men that are on track to graduate
-Men that contribute to society in a positive way
-Men of integrity, good character, and valor

My only regret about playing in the Catdome is that it will eventually end. But when it does, I will get a new opportunity. I will get the opportunity to take the lessons of team work, perseverance, hard work, and unselfishness, which I have learned on the field, and apply them in the “real world”. This will be difficult but anything good is worth the work. The Catdome has taught us all that.

“Go Cats”
-Dan lever #27

Player Blog: Cory Ellis "There is no place like CATDOME"

We're back again with our player blog series and our blogger this time is Junior wide receiver Cory Ellis. Cory has an interesting story to me. He's a transfer from Oregon State where he was a member of the Oregon State National Championship baseball team and he's a two-sport athlete for the Wildcats.

Cory was primed to have a great 2007 football season after starting vs Western Oregon at Wide Receiver but a hip injury during Willamette shut Cory down for the majority of 2007. However, earlier in 2007 Cory had a stand out season on the diamond being named 2nd team All-NWC as a second baseman for the 'Cats and is a looking to help lead the 'Cats back to the top of the NWC this spring.

He’ll be entering the 2008 football season as a senior and I look for Cory to be a big playmaker for our ‘Cats but for now he’s busy patrolling the right side of the infield.

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Unlike the majority of my teammates, I did not come to Linfield directly out of high school. I spent my first two years of college at Oregon State where I was a member of the baseball team. Although I found an enormous amount of team success (Two Pac-10 titles and a National Championship), my playing time was very limited. Once I had made the decision to transfer, I began looking at different colleges. The thing that set Linfield apart was the chance for me to compete in two sports. Coach Smith and Carnahan were both very accepting of me playing the two sports.

I had a lot of anxiety coming to Linfield. I didn’t know one person on the football team and I hadn’t played the sport for 3 years. That is what makes Linfield so special. I was welcomed by everyone and found it very easy to fit in. I had a lot of catching up to do though. There are so many great traditions at Linfield that I had no idea about. Every past and present Linfield football player knows what I am talking about. The sideline reminders, the after practice chants, the pregame prayer, the alumni game, Catjacks, and the legendary “Catdome.” I truly believe that these are the reasons that Linfield continues to have so much success on the football field. In the 52 years of the winning streak, we continue to keep the same core values of Linfield Football.

Another thing that sets Linfield apart is the coaching staff. It is amazing to look at who I have been coached by over the past two years. I get to sit in kickoff return meetings with Coach Rutschman who coached Linfield to 3 football and 2 baseball titles. My head baseball coaches have been Scott Carnahan (14 time League Coach of the Year) and Scott Brosius (3 World Series titles with the Yankees). If I add up all of the Linfield National Championships my coaches have been apart of it comes to over 20. Linfield College coaches have very impressive resumes.

But what really makes Linfield athletics great are the past and present players. The guys here have such a team-first attitude. The goal for all of us is to have as much team success as possible and not worry about the individual awards. It is amazing how much support we receive from former players. They seem to always be watching us and making sure we are getting things done. I have introduced myself to some former players and they go “Yeah, I know who you are.” I wasn’t even a star player and they still know. The saying is true, “Once a CAT, always a CAT.”

I would love to see all of you football fans come out and support the baseball team this spring. It looks like it could be an exciting year. After the spring I will be getting ready for my final football season. With baseball and football, 2008 has a chance to be another great year at Linfield.

“There is no place like CATDOME”
--Cory Ellis
Class of 2008

Player Blog: Jared Hinkle "EXPECT TO WIN"

Welcome back to our second player blog entry on Catdomealumni.com's ADvantage Catdome. I contacted Linfield Offensive Tackle Jared Hinkle earlier in the week and his response was almost immediate. Jared was a 1st team all-NWC selection last season and will be entering his Senior season this fall.

With these blogs all I'm asking the players to do is to tell me about their Linfield experience and as you can and will read, Linfield is just as strong as ever in helping shape hard working and excellent young men.

When I read what Jared and Jaymin have to say it makes me even more proud to be a Linfield Wildcat and I didn't think that was possible.

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No words can truly describe what exactly this program has meant to me. Anyone who has ever had a hand in any part of Linfield Football knows exactly what I am talking about. You really have to see it and live it for yourself in order to fully appreciate what it is. But if I had to sum up the Linfield Football experience in one word, it would be family. It is this sense of family that has made my Linfield experience so special.

It‘s not just the coaches and players that make the Linfield Football family special, it is everyone who has ever been to a game at the Catdome or anywhere else for that matter. There is no better feeling than getting ready to take the field up in Spokane, down in California, or over in Texas, and looking up in the stands and seeing more people in the Wildcat section than the home team has in theirs. It is support like that from the parents, friends, and alumni that really makes you feel a part of the Linfield Football family, no matter where you are.

The coaches we have here I would put up against any other coaching staff in the nation, both in terms of their football knowledge and their effort. But that isn’t what makes them special. It is the family atmosphere they have created and strengthened over the years that really sets them apart from anyone else. We know they are doing everything they possibly can to allow us to succeed both on and off the field, which sometimes means neglecting their own families in the process. And while I am sure they would love to see their own families more, I don’t think they mind too much because they see us as a part of their family.

As good as our fans and coaches are, the best part of the Linfield experience for me has been the players. I know that the 124 other guys I go to work with every day are going to do everything they can to make this team successful. No one is getting paid to be here and none of us are going to be first round draft picks. We are here because we want to be a part of something special. We want to be in the weight room 6 days a week pushing ourselves to get that one more rep or that one more set in. We want to be up at 6 in the morning in the Spring, practicing before the sun is even up. We want to be out running gassers in the middle of the summer, when the temperature is up near 100 degrees. We don’t do it because it’s fun, we do it for our brothers, because we don’t want to let them down. We do it because we EXPECT TO WIN. Some other schools may have more talented players, bigger stadiums, or better facilities that us, but no one is going to work harder or prepare more than we do.

Thank you to every member of the Linfield Football family who has supported us in the past and will continue to do so in the future, we really appreciate it. 2008 should be a great year to be a Wildcat.

-Jared Hinkle
Class of 2009