Niko Bogojevic – Photo by Dustin Cox

Massari Arena hosted the NCAA Division II Wrestling West Super Regionals Feb. 27 and 28.

Fourteen teams competed in hopes of their wrestlers moving on to the national tournament set for March 13 and 14. The Thunderwolves finished sixth overall in the tournament and advanced three wrestlers who will be competing for a national title in St. Louis.

CSU-Pueblo has hosted national NCAA events in the past, including a wrestling championship in 2012 and consecutive outdoor track and field events in 2012 and 2013. The university was determined to put on another quality hosting with this weekend’s tournament.

“We are excited and honored to host the 2015 Super Region Four Wrestling Championship,” said Athletic Director Joe Folda back in 2013. “Our last wrestling championship was a huge success and our university and community is committed to putting on another first class championship event for the NCAA.”

CSU-Pueblo didn’t disappoint as the Massari Arena was filled this weekend with great competition from all 14 teams. Senior wrestlers Eric Hughes and Niko Bogojevic both performed well at the tournament.

“I think the kids did a good job at the tournament. All three worked hard this year. The two seniors have been with me for two to three years and they’ve remained coachable and done what we asked them to do,” said wrestling coach Dax Charles.

JaCobi Jones – Photo by Dustin Cox

Senior Niko Bogojevic, a heavyweight wrestler, qualified for the national tournament for the second time in the last three years and finished fourth in his weight class. Bogojevic will be going to St. Louis with a 27-13 record.

Senior Eric Hughes qualified for nationals with a four win streak throughout the tournament. His only loss came in the semifinal match, where he finished third in the tournament. Hughes came into the tournament ranked eighth nationally and will look to bring home a title in two weeks.

“Anytime I get a chance to represent CSU-P is a great blessing,” Hughes said. “I feel incredibly fortunate to be able to compete at the national tournament.”

Coach Dax Charles expressed great pride in both of his seniors but stressed how competing at the national tournament isn’t enough for him, and shouldn’t be enough for his wrestlers.

“If Hughes or Niko do not make it to the podium we’ll look at that as failure,” Charles said. “It’s all about coming back with an All-American title. Winning the national championship. That’s what it comes down to.”

Charles attributes his senior’s success to how they’ve grown as people off the mat. He remarked that if his wrestlers “live their life in a good way then good things will happen.”

His wrestlers seem to think so as well.

“Coach Dax has given me this opportunity by never giving up on me. He’s always challenging me and my teammates to strive to be better on and off the mat,” Hughes said. “Dax has been an instrumental part of everything I’ve done thus far and I couldn’t have done it without him.”

Perhaps some of the biggest news from the West Super Regional tournament was the qualification of a third Thunderwolf wrestler, freshman Jacobi Jones.

Jones has been on a hot streak all year earning RMAC Freshman of the Year honors, earning fourth in his weight class, and boasting an impressive 20-9 record going into his first national tournament.

Eric Hughes – Photo by Dustin Cox

“The freshman that we had qualify, he’s something special and I look forward to coaching him the next 3 years,” Charles said. “We haven’t had a freshman qualify for the national tournament in 25 years so he’s pretty unique and pretty special. He’s a freshman phenom, good character kid, so I see him on the podium his freshman year at the national championship.”

All three wrestlers will get their opportunity to bring home a national title for the Pack March 13 to 14 in the NCAA DII Wrestling National Championship in St. Louis, Missouri.

The All American Rejects will be playing at the 2015 spring concert.

Student Engagement and Leadership has officially booked the rock band All American Rejects for the CSU-Pueblo spring concert, which is slated for April 10 at 8 p.m. in the Massari Arena.

For more than a decade, the university has been putting on the spring concert event as a means to bring in revenue for the school and provide the student population with high quality entertainment.

“I think they’re good. Everybody likes music so why not have a concert?” said CSU-Pueblo senior Brittany Vigil. “I think they’ll get a turnout (with whoever they have). It’s a concert and it’s cheap for college students.”

The spring concert has featured well-known acts in past years including Bubba Sparxxx, Kirko Bangz and Kanye West.

A lot of effort goes into selecting an act that will perform for students and the process is complex and detailed.

“First off they have to be a band within our budget. In this case (the student government) sent out a survey through Facebook at the end of last semester,” explained Student Engagement and Leadership graduate assistant Tyler Hobson. “It asked you to rate the top band out of a list of five and then it asked you to vote for a second choice and this one was All American Rejects so that’s why we offered it to them.”

In addition to polling students, SEAL also tries to include variety and musical diversity when it comes to the decision making process.

“We always try to change it up each year. Last year was rap, this year is rock, next year is country and we do try to match the demographics in our school. We want to get something that the students are going to love so it’s geared towards someone we think the students want to see,” Hobson said.

With last year’s spring concert featuring Sir Mix A Lot, the man behind the 1992 rap hit “Baby Got Back,” it seemed the age demographic of the school didn’t necessarily fit the act they booked.

This year, students said SEAL seems to have picked a band more relevant to them. With their debut album released back 2003, All American Rejects is a band that most of the students at CSU-Pueblo grew up with.

“I think it will bring more people. Last year’s concert was swayed towards an older generation and was a select kind of music that maybe not everyone was into,” said SEAL student assistant Kelli Gawel. “The fact that All American Rejects was popular with our generation gives the concert that much more interest and appeal to students.”

Students also seem to be looking forward to this band more.

“I’m way more excited for All American Rejects (than I was for the Booty Tour). I actually know their music. I definitely think they should always try to get more acts that we as students grew up with that way we can go and enjoy them,” said junior Haley Gansz.

The doors of the Massari Arena will be open at 7 p.m. and tickets are on sale now. Non-student tickets may be purchased for $25 per person either online at www.csupueblo.edu/concert or in person at the Massari Arena Box Office during the hours of 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Wednesdays and Thursdays.

CSU-Pueblo students must obtain their tickets, for $10 each, at the Massari Arena Box Office. Students must present their CSU-Pueblo IDs at the box office to purchase tickets and only two will be allowed per student.

New wide receiver/quarterback coach and passing game coordinator Jeff Hecklinski
file photo

Fresh off a national championship victory and the departure of offensive coordinator Darren Wilkinson, ThunderWolves football has found its play caller. Jeff Hecklinski has been hired as CSU-Pueblo’s wide receiver/quarterback coach and passing game coordinator.

“First and foremost, I want to say that I’m excited to be here and my family is excited to be here,” Hecklinski said of his move to Pueblo.

Hecklinski takes his spot on the coaching staff after a four year career with the “Big Blue” at Michigan, where he personally coached receiver Jeremy Gallon to a record setting season in 2013.

Over the last three seasons at Michigan, Hecklinski coached wide receiver corps that contributed to offenses averaging 400 yards a game.

This impressive statistic was with a team that had a lackluster running attack, with both of their top running backs averaging a mere 3.4 yards per carry on the season. Now, imagine the damage he could do with a Pueblo offense sporting a rusher who’s coming off a 2,000 yard season and an average of 6.0 yards per carry.  

As far as experience goes, Hecklinski has also found himself coaching at programs like San Diego State, Ball State, and Arizona where he took on major roles directing the offensive attack.

“We have a tremendous opportunity in front of us. We get to defend a national championship, and that’s something that I’ve never done before, and none of you have ever done before,” Hecklinski said in a team meeting Tuesday. “We’re going to get everybody’s best game because we have a target on our back. Everybody wants to knock off the national champs.”

With a coaching style that focuses on togetherness, being a tight knit unit, and holding everyone accountable, Hecklinski’s winning attitude seems to be contagious around the Pack House.

“I think that Coach Heck is a pretty nice guy. He’s a family man, which is going to be essential for the unity of our offense and our team,” said senior quarterback Malcolm Rueben. “He’s extremely excited to work with us and it shows. He has coached some pretty dynamic players, so a lot of our receivers are excited as well to see what he brings to the table.”

Rueben, a backup quarterback last season, will be looking to step into the role of starter for the ThunderWolves. With a cannon for an arm and the added element of being a mobile quarterback, he exhibits many traits that former Michigan dual threat Denard Robinson displayed while under Hecklinski’s coaching.

“I’m excited for the change that’s going on, and I’m extremely excited to be coached by him. He’s been around some good football for the past few years, so he knows what it’s supposed to look like,” Rueben said.

With most of the starting offense returning from last season, CSU-Pueblo looks to continue their dominance on the offensive and defensive side of the ball. After a national championship season, expectations for a repeat title are high, and Jeff Hecklinski is just one more tool Pueblo has to accomplish that.  

Image from Wikipedia

Every year, the developers at EA Sports simulate a Madden football game featuring the two teams in the Super Bowl. This year, the simulation was done on Pro difficulty on the Xbox One version of the game with the Patriots’ and Seahawks’ updated rosters. The video game simulation not only correctly predicted the Super Bowl champion, but it was eerily accurate down to the last detail.

“It’s strange, but games are so real now that it doesn’t surprise me. The artificial intelligence that games have now is just making it too realistic,” said Mitch Tenerio-West, a sociology-criminology major at CSU-Pueblo. “I don’t think the difficulty would make a difference either because in Madden tournaments, they set it to Pro because sometimes it takes a crazy play to happen, just like in a real game. All Madden difficulty would just make it harder to do, and it would end up being an all defensive game when that’s not the case in today’s football.”

This year’s Madden simulation predicted the Super Bowl better than any NFL analyst or expert could’ve dreamed of. The game’s final score was dead on with the Patriot’s defeating the Seahawks by a score of 28-24.

But it gets even spookier. The simulation also predicted the Patriots would be the first to score.  However, it clearly foresaw that the Seahawks would control the third quarter while the Patriots’ offense failed to get on the board, and that the two teams would go into the final quarter with the Seahawks leading 24-14.

The simulation even predicted that the Patriots would score on a last minute drive with a pass from Tom Brady to Julian Edelman.

Freaked out yet? Don’t worry it gets weirder.

The Madden game predicted that Tom Brady would be the MVP, which he was, after throwing for 336 yards and four touchdowns. Brady actually threw for the same amount of touchdowns but was just seven yards off from his virtual performance.

But it doesn’t stop there. The game closely predicted Julian Edelman’s finishing stats as well, with the wide receiver hauling in eight passes for 106 yards, and during the Super Bowl he caught nine for 109 yards.

The surprising fact about all of this is that it isn’t the first time this has happened. In fact, EA’s Madden is 9-3 when it comes to predicting the winner over the last 12 Super Bowls, and it seems to be getting more and more accurate as the years go on.

For now, the Madden simulations are just a game of fun and novelty, but as the artificial intelligence for games gets better every year and our game systems continue to get smarter and more advanced, this type of analytic insight could become a legitimate tool in sports.

“Well, no game can accurately and perfectly predict a real situation, so I’d say it’s just a fun way of seeing what the Super Bowl players can potentially do, at least right now,” said CSU-Pueblo senior Richard Wheeler.

We will all have to see how accurate Madden is next year and see if they can add to their winning record.

Over the last five years, the Super Bowl has set and broken the record for the most-watched television broadcast in United States history four times according to ESPN’s online site. Last year’s blowout between the Seattle Seahawks and the Denver Broncos brought in 111.5 million viewers.

However, with the same few teams dominating the NFL year after year, it’s understandable why fans might not be interested in a Super Bowl featuring NFL dynasties like the Patriots, the Seahawks, the Packers or the Steelers.

“It does get kind of boring watching the same teams over and over. At the start of the year, you have so much hope for your team, but by the end of the season you always know who the real contenders are,” said Gary Dixon, a history major at CSU-Pueblo

Throw in the fact that the Patriots are currently under investigation by the league for “Deflategate,” and interest can really start to go down.

“It gives everybody, who doesn’t actually read into the [whole] story, a good reason to hate the Patriots even more,” said Trace Gray, a Patriots fan at CSU-Pueblo. “And since there wasn’t much else going on in sports, it’s all anybody could talk about.”

In the AFC Championship game, the league found that 11 out of the 12 balls the Patriots opted to play with were underinflated, or less than the 12.5 pounds per square inch requirement mandated by the NFL.

The Public Polling Policy took to the Web to research what the fans actually believe. After polling 612 registered voters, they found that 50 percent of self-proclaimed football fans believe that the Patriots cheated.

“I get a lot of crap. Especially in the midst of Broncos country,” Gray said. “Everyone thinks Tom Brady is a cry baby, and Belichick is a cheater, but they can’t deny they’re one of the best teams in the league.”

This isn’t the first time the Patriots have found themselves in the spotlight for scandal. It was only eight years ago that the NFL and other teams found out that Bill Belichick was taping defensive signals on opposing team’s sidelines in the highly publicized “Spy Gate.”

However, CSU-Pueblo students don’t seem to be buying into the media and are only focused on watching quality football this Super Bowl Sunday.

“It’s just not a big deal. Scandals happen in sports all the time,” said Skylar Conner. “I don’t support it, but way worse things happen in sports all the time. The only reason this is a big deal is because it was right before the Super Bowl. If that wasn’t the case, they’d get a slap on the wrist, and everyone would go on with their lives. I’m just hoping for a better game than last year.”

The game is shaping up to be a better competition than last year, but almost anything would be. With both teams coming into the Super Bowl as the number one seed after struggling early on in the season, this match up between NFL powerhouses is sure to bring out the best in both teams.

CSU-Pueblo will be holding two Super Bowl viewing parties in the Crestone and Belmont residence halls Sunday from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Free food and drinks will be provided, and students are encouraged to invite friends and enjoy the game.

Kieren Duncan (left) signs autographs with his teammate Jarred Radebaugh at the Celebration of Champions. Photo by Dustin Cox.

National champions. I still don’t think the magnitude of that achievement has fully hit me yet, and most players feel the same way.

It was such a surreal feeling after the game. The moments of celebration as confetti rained from the sky, where tears were shed, and where players embraced the family they’ve sweated and bled with for the last six months will never be forgotten or ever cease to feel like a dream.

However, the Celebration of Champions parade drove home the fact that this accomplishment was much more than fantasy.

I didn’t know what to expect as the team loaded the buses and departed for the Rawlings Library in downtown Pueblo. Personally, I’ve never achieved anything as big as this, and I know I’m not alone in saying that.

I mean, we are talking about a national championship. Not a conference title, not an NCAA bowl game but being crowned the best Division II football team in all of America. Again, it still doesn’t feel real.

Stepping off the bus, we were greeted by two floats covered in CSU-Pueblo’s red and blue colors and three beautiful trophies: the Division II NCAA National Championship trophy, the Coaches’ Trophy and a trophy from the National Football Hall of Fame Foundation.

Our 16 graduating seniors took their place on one float, and the rest of the starting roster filled up the other. It didn’t take long for the team to break out in dances and cheers before the engines revved up and the parade was underway.

As we made our way along the streets, the band’s music at our backs, we saw fans scattered on both sides of the road.

Applause and cheers came from the light trickle of fans nearest the library, and I thought to myself, “Well it did snow a couple days ago. Plus it’s a Friday at 4 p.m. so maybe people are still working,” trying to rationalize the nearly empty sidewalks running parallel to the floats.

“Just be appreciative of who showed up,” I told myself.

And then we heard it. The low rumble of cheers and applause in the distance. The wheels of the float gave a small bump as they rolled onto Memorial Bridge, and we were able to put faces and bodies to the cheering. Hundreds, quite possibly thousands, of voices all ringing out in appreciation and excitement of what we did as a football team and as a school.

As the floats drove deeper downtown into the thick of the parade, I was able to make out familiar faces. Fans, teachers, fellow students and athletes, seniors in the community, young kids, police officers, veterans; every demographic in Pueblo was represented. All of these people yelling, screaming, jumping up and down, as the enthusiastic cheering surrounded us. I found myself having to raise my voice in order to talk to my teammate Jarred, who was sitting right next to me.

“I love this city!” yelled freshman wide receiver Deshon Williams. A smile crept up my face as I realized he was right.

Pueblo isn’t necessarily known for its overwhelming population, but it blew me away. The amount of support and enthusiasm that was conveyed through the community was incredible.

I could tell how much this championship meant to this city, and as a player I was overcome with a strong sense of pride. This was our town, and you could tell we had done something that had never been done before and something this city would never forget.

After a brief ceremony where President Di Mare and a few premiere seniors spoke and thanked the fans and the community, the players were moved outside to a tent where fans could get autographs and photos of their favorite players.

I’ve never felt like a celebrity or been one to necessarily think of in the spotlight. However, seeing the amount of fans who came to the signing party asking for our autographs made us feel special.

I took photos with kids who later tagged me in them on Instagram. I had fans thanking me and fellow players for the positive influence we have on their children. I even had a man shake my hand claiming his football season had been made because he met me.

The whole experience was ironically humbling. It let us know that we play this game for us, yes, but it means so much more to some people who we’ve never even met.

Alumni are proud of us, and kids want to emulate how we are on and off the field. It’s an incredible amount of responsibility and pride that, until that moment, you don’t completely realize the magnitude of.

The community came out in a huge way with electric energy and unrivaled support and pride. We are truly “Pueblo Proud”. It’s for this reason why I, now a part of our team’s senior class, can personally promise and guarantee that no senior will be satisfied until we bring that trophy home again next year.

Steve Sewell has been coaching ThunderWolf football for seven years. Photo by Dustin Cox.

After a seven-year career as a football coach at Colorado State University-Pueblo, Steve Sewell has retired following the team’s national championship season.

The running back coach and ex-Denver Bronco boasts more than 35 years of football knowledge. It’s this experience that will be absent from the future of ThunderWolf football as he retires from the program.

Sewell played running back for the University of Oklahoma Sooners for four seasons from 1981 to 1984. During his career, he rushed for a total of 1,178 yards and 10 touchdowns on 187 attempts averaging 6.3 yards a carry. A versatile back, Sewell also hauled in 33 receptions for 560 yards and 4 touchdowns as a Sooner.

“I’ve always been a team player,” Sewell said.

Following his senior season at OU, Sewell opted to enter the NFL Draft. Taken by the Denver Broncos, he was the 26th player selected in the first round of the 1985 NFL Draft.

Sewell played for seven seasons with the Broncos, retiring at the age of 28.

He finished his career with 917 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns. However, he did more damage receiving, as he totaled 187 receptions for 2,354 yards.

Following his football career, Sewell focused his efforts on being a father and coaching.

Since the rebirth of the CSU-Pueblo football program in 2008, Sewell has helped lead the Pack to four straight conference championships, four playoff appearances and a trip to Kansas City for the NCAA Division II National Championship.

“We’re coaching football,” Sewell said in 2008, when he accepted the job. “We do everything as if we’re a Division I program. Our players are a little smaller and we take the bus instead of flying.”

Along with his contributions to the team as a whole, Sewell is also responsible for a number of exceptional running backs that have come to success through his leadership and guidance.

From classic names like All-American running back Jesse Lewis and the 2010 RMAC Freshman Offensive Player of the Year, J.B. Mathews; to the more recent names like the single-season rushing yards record-holder Cameron McDondle, it seems running backs under his coaching improve tremendously.

Sewell plans to stay home and be a father to his children and be there to watch and support their sporting events.

“He’s definitely going to be missed,” said senior wide receiver Jarred Radebaugh. “It’s going to be weird without him around. He was family to everyone.”

“He was the coach that everybody liked and you could trust him with anything. He cared about you,” he said.

Redebaugh is one of many players who have played their entire career under Sewell’s coaching.

Sewell’s son Samuel will succeed him as the Pack’s new tight ends and running backs coach, quite literally walking in his father’s footsteps and stepping into his old office.

Sam Sewell returns to CSU-Pueblo after leaving the program in 2012 to help coach at McKendree College with former ThunderWolf offensive coordinator Mike Babcock.