“It’s a great day to be a Bobcat”
The phrase is popular among the Upton school district and as coach Joe Samuelson points out, it has never been more appropriate than it is now. Coming off the heels of a state championship season in which the Bobcats lost but 1 game all year, they are back at it again with their dominance over the 1A Wyoming boys basketball scene posing a 20-1 record, being ranked #1 in the class, and with their only loss coming to an out-of-state opponent. Coach Samuelson would further elaborate on what he believes is the biggest key to the Bobcats current run of success over the 1A;
“We’ve worked hard to create a positive culture around here and when you have guys that buy into it and they spend a lot of time working not just with the team but on their own you can really have a lot of success”
Thus far, the culture is working as well as could be asked as the Bobcats are not only riding an 11 game winning streak but averaging 68 points even offensively this year which is the best in the 1A, but also giving up just 30.6 points per game defensively which is also #1 in in the class. A +37.4 point differential average is as impressive as any team in Wyoming can boast and Upton looks primed for yet another championship run, but Coach Samuelson has his eyes on a few teams he believes could stand firmly in the way of the back to back hardware;
“Down in the Southeast you got Guernsey, Southeast, and Lingle” Coach also believes there are “A lot of teams up in our conference as well that are gonna be right there and competing” which could lead to some intrigue yet, come regionals and of course State a little down the road. Most of the Wyoming AP and Coaches seem to predict a sure fire road to a Dubois vs Upton state championship game on the horizon as both teams remain undefeated in conference play, boast the #1 and #2 ranked offense and the same rankings on defense in the 1A, and have a combined overall record of 37-3 on the season which is simply incredible. However, despite the rumblings around the media and the talking heads like myself that like to make our opinions heard, Coach Samuelson isn’t being swayed from his tried and true path to success or looking ahead, his team’s mission is simple “Focus every day on getting better”. Dubois is making noise no doubt about it, but the Bobcats aren’t hearing any of it until they need to.
“Focus on us”
That is the mission, that is the game plan, that is the recipe for dynasty levels of success for the Upton Bobcats and they will take that recipe to Torrington from the 24th-26th this week for regionals.
Catch the full interview above from last weeks episode of Sports Friday, and don’t forget to tune in again this week for more such interviews with some of Wyomings brightest high school sports stars.
