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Chat with Track & Field Head Coach Rick Sloan on Wednesday, Feb. 27, from 8:30 a.m. to 9 a.m
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| Moderator: Good morning Cougar fans and thanks for visiting wsucougars.com and today's online chat with Washington State Track and Field Head Coach Rick Sloan. Coach Sloan, thank you for joining us this morning. |
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Rick Sloan: Great to be here and thank you for giving me the opportunity to talk about Cougar track & field. |
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| Moderator: Okay, without further ado let's get to some questions. |
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| Jake (New Jersey): Coach Sloan, how do you see the Pac-10 playing out this year? |
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Rick Sloan: I think most people would agree the Pac-10 is the strongest track and field conference in the nation. Unlike team sports where offensive and defensive strategies play an important role, an individual sport like track and field comes down more to individual performances. On the men's side, Oregon and Arizona State appear to be very strong. On the women's side, Arizona State, UCLA and Stanford look to be front runners. |
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| Bryan Mack, Arlington, WA: Do you have any advice on methods of relaxation or preperation before a race? Ways to focus on your race? |
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Rick Sloan: Bryan, the ability to prepare and focus on an upcoming race, and at the same time stay relaxed, is unique for each individual. As a coach, I encourage each of my athletes to experiment with different methods and determine which one is best for them. |
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| Paul (Seattle): Rick, tell us about how Ebba Jungmark ended up at WSU? Picking up a jumper of that caliber has to be a huge recruiting feather in your cap! |
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Rick Sloan: Assistant coach Mark Macdonald did the majority of the work in recruiting Ebba. One of our current student-athletes, Sara Trane, is from Sweden and told us about Ebba. She is an outstanding jumper and we are fortunate to have her. |
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| Spangle: I am a pole vaulter from the 50's, Do you need volunteers to help at your meets? |
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Rick Sloan: Ernie, thank you for your interest. We are always looking for new officials to join our organization. Anyone who is interested in helping at our meets may contact Elliot Flavors at eflavors@wsu.edu |
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| Seattle: Do you ever think that you are too hard on your athletes? |
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Rick Sloan: I have always had very high expectations for the student-athletes in our program. Because of the type of student-athlete that we recruit, I have felt over the years that the athletes are often harder on themselves when they are not successful than I am on them. Our philosophy can be summed up with what we put on the back of our T-shirts: "All we want is all you got." |
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| John: Can the Coug track program recruit the football Sophomore Joe Eppelle to throw for the team? He was a National Thrower in Canada and seems like at 6-7 and 265 he might have some tools. |
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Rick Sloan: John, Joe Eppelle came to WSU to play football with the intention of throwing hammer for the Cougs. However, injuries have limited his participation with the football program and he has been unable to participate in track at all. Our hope is that a healthy Joe Eppelle can make a positive impact to both our football and track programs. |
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| Bill (Prosser): Rick, what is your coaching philosophy? Has it changed throughout the years? |
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Rick Sloan: Our hope is to recruit the most talented student-athletes to our track and field program and provide them with the techniques and training to develop their skills to compete at the Pac-10 and national levels. As an athlete and coach, I've always been about hard work. I also feel that it is important to train intelligently, and when you're preparing talented athletes the most important aspect is getting the athletes to the competition healthy. |
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| Steve (Portland): What do you see as the strengths of the men's and women's teams? |
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Rick Sloan: I'm very excited about our men's team this year. We have outstanding individuals and good team depth in most areas. Individuals to watch for in 2008 are two-time All-American Matt Lamb, a junior discus thrower, and senior captain Jon Jeffreys in the javelin throw. Freshman Jeshua Anderson in the high and intermediate hurdles is also someone to keep an eye on. Jeshua broke the national scholastic record in the 300m hurdles last year. Hurdler Robert Williams and sprinter Justin Woods were NCAA participants last year. Triple jumper Moreno Zapata was the Pac-10 and regional runner-up in 2007 as a sophomore, and sophomore Trent Arrivey has already high jumped 7 feet one and a half inches indoors this winter. Senior decathlete Rickey Moody is off to an outstanding start this season. On the women's side, the loss of Julie and Diana Pickler to graduation will have a significant impact on our scoring. This year we will be depending on freshman Ebba Jungmark in the high jump; defending Pac-10 champion Sara Trane in the steeplechase; freshman Marissa Tschida, the 2007 national junior champion in the javelin throw; senior captain Sarah Burns in the triple jump, and All-American discus thrower McKenzie Garberg will be competitive in the shot, discus and hammer events. Sophomore Princess Joy Griffey in the sprint events is also someone to keep an eye on. |
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| John (Utah): It's not a well-known fact that WSU has experienced success in the past in the men's sprint events at the Pac-10s. What do you attribute that success to, and why do you believe it is not a well-known fact? |
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Rick Sloan: Yes, John, we have had a great deal of success in the men's sprints events in the Pac-10s. I attribute this success to the sprint program developed by coaches Mark Macdonald and Ellannee Richardson. They have identified hidden talents in the athletes that they have recruited and successfully developed those talents to a highly competitive level. As for the notion of not being well-known, the perception nationally is that northern schools are distance programs and southern schools are sprint programs. We have an outstanding indoor facility that allows us to train our student-athletes exactly the way we want on a year-round basis. |
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| Joe (Portland): Hi Coach:
What are your expectations out of Trent and Kyle in the High Jump this year? Are there any other High Jumpers to keep our eye on?
Also, why do think the High Jump has flattened out (or even declined) in the last twenty years? I remember in the early to mid '80s you had five 7 footers on one team?
On the Gal's side, I am looking forward to watching Ebba this year. How do you think she can do?
Thanks Coach and Good Luck with the season. Go Cougs! |
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Rick Sloan: Joe, I have very high expectations for Trent and Kyle, as well as for freshman Ryan Deese out of Colorado. Ryan is an outstanding talent who is developing rapidly. I think you're correct in your observation that the high jump has declined recently and I really don't have an explanation for it. WSU has always had good success in the high jump in the Pac-10 and NCAA in both the men's and women's programs. Ebba Jungmark is an outstanding jumper and should contend for Pac-10 and national titles as a freshman. |
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| Chris (Spokane): Rick, being a northern school and facing competition from southern Pac-10 schools, is it difficult to recruit track athletes to WSU? If not, why? |
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Rick Sloan: Chris, WSU is a great place to go to school and compete. The university and community have many positive aspects to offer a student-athlete. In this day and age many young people are looking to move away from congested areas to a simpler lifestyle; WSU offers a rare blend of big-time Pac-10 education and competition placed in a very personal and caring environment. |
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| Tauni (Bainbridge) McGraw: This isn't really a question...just a comment. I ran for you in 1995-1998...and I have graduated and moved on. I don't know if you remember me, but I was one of the first pole-vaulters at WSU. Anyway, I saw this email that my sister sent to me and wanted to tell you how much you have taught me and how I really appreciate the time that you took for me. I obviously wasn't the best athlete, but you still took time for me. Thank you. I was at WSU when you had some health battles and I am hoping that this reaches you in good health. |
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Rick Sloan: Tauni, I do remember you as a triple jumper and pole vaulter, and enjoyed having you on the team. My health is excellent and thank you for asking. I hope you are doing well. |
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| kaye from pullman: I heard you speak before a basketball game about a hydroworx facility. What athletes do you think it will benefit most? |
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Rick Sloan: I think that all of our student-athletes will benefit from the hydrowork. It will serve as an additional conditioning and rehabilitative technique for those athletes whose injuries prevent full weight bearing. This facility will once again keep Washington State on the leading edge of technology. |
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| Rich Gustafson, shoreline, WA: Status on Jeshua Anderon? Will he be competing for the track team this spring in the 300 hurdles? What is his commitment to track and football? |
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Rick Sloan: Rich, Jeshua will be competing for the Cougars this spring in the high hurdles, 400m hurdles, as well as both relays. He will spend the spring running for the Cougars and preparing for the upcoming 2008 Olympic Trials in the 400m hurdles. |
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| Jordan Sneva - Stanwood: Does WSU and other Pac-10 schools still try to recruit out of country? |
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Rick Sloan: At WSU, as well as other Pac-10 schools, we are looking for the best student-athletes we can find. Our first priority in recruiting, however, is the state of Washington, and secondly the northwest. Our objective is to attract the best student-athletes from the state to WSU. |
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| Coach Schauble-Kennewick: Diet Coke or Pepsi? |
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Rick Sloan: Diet Coke |
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| Rich (Seattle): How has scheduling changed since you've been at WSU? Has it become virtually impossible to get top 10-15 programs to come to Pullman? |
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Rick Sloan: Over the years, track and field has moved away from the dual meet format and other scored competitions to non-scoring invitational meets. In years past, the schedule was predominately scored meets against one or two teams; more recently the emphasis is placed more on championship competition. On a personal note, I think this is a mistake. I have always enjoyed the head-to-head competition between two or three teams, and I believe this is what made collegiate and USA track and field so strong. |
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| Tim (Boise): I've enjoyed the sprinting prowess of the men's team over the years, Buchanan, Henry, etc. What do the men's sprints and relays look like this year and who are the key guys? |
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Rick Sloan: The men's sprint and relay teams look strong again this year. Junior Justin Woods is our top sprinter and he will be joined by freshmen Jeshua Anderson, Andre Jennings, Marlon Murray and junior Robert Williams. |
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| Moderator: Okay that's all the time we have. Coach Sloan, thank you once again for taking the time to join us. |
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Rick Sloan: Thank you. I want to tell our fans that for any information about Cougar track and field, our media guide is online at wsucougars.com. |
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| Moderator: Okay. And thank you to everyone for your questions. Remember, to get all the information about Washington State University Athletics, go no further than wsucougars.com, the official website of Cougar Athletics. Please check back to wsucougars.com for future online chats. |
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