New coach ready to tee off season

The men’s golf program will welcome new head coach Chris Curran when the 2010-11 men’s golf season tees off Sept. 12 in Pullman, Wash. at the Palouse Collegiate event.

Curran, who was the head coach of the women’s team last season, led them to a second place finish in the conference while setting three school records last year.

The men’s program is hoping Curran can help build up their program from last year’s eighth place finish and put the men’s program on the map.

“This will be a rebuilding year,” said Curran. “It’s time to establish this team as a powerhouse in the conference.”

Curran has high expectations of the men’s program and believes they have more potential than they have shown in the previous seasons.

“We’re a young team, and I’m excited to see these guys progress this year.” Curran said.

There are four golfers returning from last year’s team as well as a transfer, all of which are juniors this year.

Curran isn’t worried about having such a young team. In fact, he’s set the bar high for some of his golfers, such as freshman Stratton Schulz.

“He’s [Schulz] a freshman of the year candidate this year,” Curran said. “I’m excited to see what he does this year.”

Andrew Carlin and Nick Tarasiewicz are two other players to keep an eye on in the coming months. Curran noted that both Carlin and Tarasiewicz took the off-season seriously and expects them to contend with those at the top of the conference.

For those who want to check out the men’s team in action this season, the Purple and Red Invitational being held in Layton on Oct. 10-12 will be your best chance.

The Purple and Red Invitational is put on by the University of Utah and Weber State University. It is a great opportunity to watch the Wolverines compete locally and see how they match up to golf programs within the state.