Didn't Hawaii try that?

I remember walking around the streets of New Orleans on New Year's Eve 2007 seeing green "UNDEFEATED" shirts all over the place. I thought, "you Hawaiians are jumping the gun a bit aren't you?"

I thought of that shirt while reading about the Utah Utes gymnastics team. The Utes have printed t-shrits for their players declaring themselves "2009 National Champs." They are also wearing gold leotards to symbolize first place.

That takes huge balls ovaries considering that Suzanne Yoculan's girls have won the past four national titles...and the Utes have been their runner-up for the past three years.

In reading the article, you can tell Yoculan probably gets a kick out of their shirt. After all, she's no stranger to brash and bold statements. My favorite being this classic about Alabama's Sarah Patterson:

I don't believe in failure. I'd rather go out on a limb now and have it break once and a while than to never go out there. That's just my approach. It's offensive to some people, but it wins for Georgia. So I recruit athletes who can embrace going for it.

[snip]

I don't use nouns when I can use verbs. I don't call my team "underachievers." I say that they are "underachieving." I don't call Sarah Patterson a "loser," I said "don't gripe about losing." I don't hate anything but cauliflower and turnips.

The Gym Dogs go for the National Title in Lincoln, Nebraska from April 16-18.

PWD