Huskies begin season with team bonding
TACOMA, Wash. — The Washington Huskies began a week of practice and bonding in Olympia, Wash., Monday, away from modern civilization’s most unavoidable distraction.
“Your cell phones barely work,” sophomore tailback Shelton Sampson said of the final frontier that is The Evergreen State College.
“Of course, you can bring your PlayStations and whatnot, but it’s all team oriented.”
That teammates-only isolation is part of the appeal that has regularly drawn the Huskies to the wooded Olympia campus in recent seasons.
Its benefits may never be more appreciated than now, when coach Keith Gilbertson has labeled “team-building” as his No. 1 preseason priority.
“We’re going to have to play as a football team,” he said. “We don’t have a lot of margin for error. I don’t know that we have that guy that you just flip it to and he takes it and goes 80 (yards), like we’ve had. We’ll have to play as a team … being enthusiastic with each other, playing very well in special teams. This has to be a team effort to be successful.”
That message has gotten through to his players, who noticed that the recent NBA season ended without new rings on the fingers of Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant, Karl Malone and Gary Payton.
“Nobody ever predicted (the Los Angeles Lakers would) lose to the Detroit Pistons, but Detroit was the better team,” said Khalif Barnes, senior guard and Huskies captain.
“They weren’t arguing, they weren’t worrying about who got the wealth, who was named all-what. When those five guys were on the court, they played and they played well. And every time I watched them, it reminded me that I was sitting home and not playing in a bowl game because we didn’t play as a team. Olympia is going to be a team-building thing.”
The Huskies practiced there Monday afternoon, and then work in full pads for the first time today. Olympia practices continue through Saturday, when the Huskies return to Seattle for their final two weeks leading to the season opener Sept. 5 against Fresno State.
“We’ve been (going to Olympia) for the past four or five years,” senior fullback Zach Tuiasosopo said. “We skipped it one year, and we missed it. It’s a great time for the team to get to know each other as one unit. And we also get to know some football when we’re up there with no distractions or outside hoopla.”
Despite those advantages, there is no guarantee the Huskies will return next season. Once a few logistical issues are resolved on the Seattle campus, Gilbertson expressed interest in remaining there.
“I hope we come together, and I hope it’s beneficial,” Gilbertson said. “But we’ve got great facilities (in Seattle). I think now that we’ve got (Husky Stadium) and that practice field, I think it makes sense to stay.”