For many teams the biggest theme is that shortcomings and successes of the last season have become history and now they must start over.
Jojah, at this moment, is the same as many teams, a group of young men trying to find its identity for the season through hard work and play. The following is a transcription of conversations with Jojah captains Tom Ball, Caleb Edwards, and Charlie Herrig about what they think about this weekend.
What are Jojah's greatest strengths going into this weekend?
Tom Ball: I think I'm going to say that our greatest strength is going to be our depth, both within lines and across lines. The rookie class this year is going to be extremely strong, and last year's rookies have improved tremendously. I am excited to see how many different, but still effective, D lines we will be able to throw at the other teams. I am also confident that we will have very few weak links. I think our offensive lines particularly will be very deep. I anticipate we will make use of our fourth and fifth cutting options.
Charlie Herrig: Jojah's greatest strength is the return of a group of veterans that know what high level ultimate is. These veterans know how to achieve high level ultimate with fundamentals. (i.e. dump swing.)
Caleb Edwards: Our greatest strength is that our team everyone is pumped to play this weekend.
What about Jojah's Weaknesses?
Tom Ball: We lost a number of incredible playmakers last year. I think we may have some difficulties, particularly early in the weekend, with people waiting to cut, expecting Pete or Taylor to take over, and then realizing too late that we can't just let Pete and Taylor take over anymore. We may look a little like fawns, with players still trying to find their legs as they move into more prominent roles.
Charlie Herrig: Our biggest weakness is that we don't know what type of team we are. We lost 11 seniors and had a group of veterans had been playing together for three or more years.
Caleb Edwards: Our greatest weakness is that we have not had very much practice time as a full team.
With the much ballyhooed turnover from last year's roster, who do you believe is going to step up and become a major role player for Jojah?
Tom Ball: Max Leonard. He was an integral player for Atlanta Rival this year. He was a very strong player going into the summer, and has only improved. He is going to do some spectacular things this weekend. I expect Fletcher Hartline to lead the D line. He will get flying blocks. From the rookies, I expect Elliot to get a lot of attention and put in a very early bid for FotY.
Charlie Herrig: Our returning veterans will look to take the load this year and try and get back to college nationals. We have veterans such as Cameron Macke trying to anchor the D-line with his huge hucks, Fletcher Hartline getting d's and going to his home, David Hooten playing stellar d against the team's top players. On the offensive side we have veterans such as Captain Tom Ball, Max Leonard, Caleb Edwards, and Nate Kelly looking to lead jojah this weekend. Tom Ball brings this group together by his willingness to work for every inch of space. Look for Caleb Edwards and Nate Kelley to be primary cutters looking for Max 'white man can jump' Leonard to go deep. This weekend we are out with one of the best cutters in college Matthew Bailey. He is studying in England, but make sure to keep your ears open for him in the spring. We also have many rookies that are going to step up such as Elliot Erickson, Mike Peters, and Tyler Haskell.
Caleb Edwards: Everyone has a chance to step up this year. It will be exciting to see who steps up
and plays huge at CCC.
What teams are you most excited to watch and play against this weekend?
Tom Ball: I always get excited to play against North Carolina teams. Our rivalry with UNC predates my presence on the team but I feel very much a part of it. I always get excited to play against them. UNC-W too. We have had a few incredible match-ups in the last couple of years. I would love to get the chance to play against them. Florida, of course. I want to see who their new 7 are going to be. Tech I'd love to see as well.
Charlie Herrig: I'm looking forward to seeing how Florida is going to be after losing many of their starters. Many teams come from the region, so I'm excited who makes a statement. I hear USC has played quite well this fall.
Caleb Edwards: It sounds like most of the other teams lost alot of their big time players, so I am excited to see what every team looks like.
