Cougar Corner: Dylan Lubbe

BYU captain and flyhalf Dylan Lubbe offers his thoughts as the Cougars start their 2010 season

In Fall 2009, the team spent a lot of time on conditioning and fitness in preparation for the 2010 season. The Fall semester allowed the team to recognize some new players and welcome back the old. We are now officially into our 2010 season and have gained a great start by getting our first win over UCSB Academy in Las Vegas 2 weeks ago. UCSB was a strong team and allowed us to work on the many aspects of our game we wanted to.

Following that the team recently attended a Special Forces challenge last weekend at Camp Williams. The team was split into four separate teams and we stayed in those teams throughout the challenge. The camp started with the boys doing a standard military P.T. test which required each member to do as many pushups in 2 minutes, followed by as many sit-ups in 2 minutes.

To end off the teams competed in a 2 mile run in the snow and cold wind. After the P.T test, the team was awarded a standard military meal that was in most cases surprisingly good. MRE’s (Meal Ready to Eat) was the order of the day.

The boys then had some well deserved down time before we geared up to take on some team building tasks in the snowy and cold hills of Camp Williams. The team building activities started with each team having to compete against time in four different challenges. These challenges required both physical and mental application from each team member to complete the challenge successfully.

The challenges also provided much entertainment for the coaching staff and sergeants who were watching players slip and fall over and over again. As the light started to disappear and the temperature dropped, the boys had one more task ahead of them. A 4 mile run up a mountain and back down was the last challenge for each team. It was this challenge that displayed the teams’ character as a whole.

There was much motivation and encouragement as teams helped each other up and down the mountain from start to finish. This 4 mile run up the mountain also provided the players a turn to be entertained as the coaching staff joined us on the challenge. Eventually, after fetching the coaches from the top of the mountain and carrying them back down, the boys were once again rewarded with MRE’s for dinner. I think all meals went down well and the boys all enjoyed a good night’s sleep.

Camp Williams was truly an eye opening and educating experience. The camp has ultimately helped the boys to become even closer as a team and has helped us increase the brotherhood we strive for. The team has yet another strong base to work from after Camp Williams and we hope to continuously improve as we prepare for the Las Vegas Black Jacks this weekend.

–Dylan Lubbe