Simian juggernaut captures second title in three years
The Full Monkey! Intramural flag football team mauled opponent after helpless opponent this semester en route to winning not only the men's and coed leagues, but also the all-campus tournament for the second time in three years.
Art graduate student Andrew Weidinger attributed the team's success to playing smart and not making many mistakes.
"We have to be the smartest team out there," Weidinger said. "(Our opponents) are going to have to do something they don't normally do to beat us."
Anyone on the team will tell you that without quarterback and Arizona Daily Wildcat staff writer Charles Renning, Full Monkey! would have a tough time beating anyone.
"A lot of teams say all we have is a quarterback," Weidinger said. "And if that is the case, go out and try and stop us."
Renning, a journalism senior, who has been a part of both championship teams, mixes quickness with good decision making to lead the team's offense.
"We just look to run first and pass second, because there isn't a single quarterback that is really good," Weidinger said. "As long as we don't drop passes, we move the ball down the field."
Weidinger was a co-founder of the team, which he put together with some of his high school friends, and said the initial roster wasn't that good. In its pursuit of excellence, Full Monkey! has continued to add a variety of players over the years.
Pre-business sophomore Brittany McCain joined the team this year. She said she felt no added pressure joining an elite group of intramural athletes.
"I knew a couple of people on the team, and they asked me to play," she said. "The guys are really nice to the girls. Our team camaraderie is really good, and we all get along really well."
Team members said they don't practice, relying only upon their ability to outsmart the team they are matched up against.
The theory has worked, with Full Monkey! dropping only a handful of games in three years.
"Nobody is going to put a ton of points on us ever because we adjust to everything," Weidinger said. "Most teams don't know what they're doing. It is just a bunch of kids running around."
Senior Brian Holstrum said that it is the system Full Monkey! runs that makes the whole team click.
"We just have a system that a lot of people have played in," said Holstrum, a second-year player. "We're not that athletic. We just play a system that works and our defense is solid."
Holstrum said the best approach to defense in intramurals is simple: Follow the leader.
"We throw a ton of guys at the quarterback and make them make mistakes," he said.