Everything you need to know about the strongest men's division event of the year.
February 26, 2025 by Edward Stephens in Preview, Video
Ultiworld’s 2025 college coverage is presented by Spin Ultimate; all opinions are those of the author(s). Find out how Spin can get you, and your team, looking your best this season.
Ah, March. The month of lions and lambs, of Daylight Savings, of equinoxes and hares and Ides. Perhaps most famously it’s the month when college ultimate shifts into a higher gear. As soon as the last breath of February blows over the horizon, the early season is officially over. The event in the men’s division season that has commemorated this transition is Smoky Mountain Invite, which quickly became one of the premier events of the ultimate calendar upon its inception in 2020. This year perhaps marks the tournament’s strongest field yet, as the University of Tennessee plays host to 14 ranked teams (the lowest ranked of whom are last seasons national champions, #22 Brown Brownian Motion), perennial Nationals qualifier Minnesota Ultimate1, and their own team, the charming but annually overmatched Tennessee Prohibition.
What should you watch for? Who could step up to win? Are there any stories below the marquee worth paying attention to? Read on for streaming details and a tournament preview.
Full Smoky Mountain Invite Competition Schedule
How To Watch
We’ve got you covered for all the exciting action this weekend. You will need an Ultiworld Standard or All-Access subscription to be able to watch games from the Smoky Mountain Invite 2025 Event Page. Or get access for your entire team and coaching staff with a 2025 College Team Pack!
The event begins March 1, LIVE on Ultiworld.com. All broadcasted games will be available on-demand for viewing immediately following the live broadcasts.
Full Broadcast Schedule
Tournament Preview
Undefeated Seasons on the Line
#1 Oregon Ego and #2 Carleton CUT aren’t quite the only teams in the division with undefeated records, but they’re the only two who matter. Heading our power rankings by virtue of wins at Florida Warm Up (CUT) and Presidents’ Day Invite (Ego), they are the class of college ultimate. For the moment. Can they keep it up?
The fact that, at minimum, one will inevitably take a loss if they meet in the final is irrelevant. Unless that eventuality produces a blowout, both teams will consider it a successful weekend. No, the real question is will they remain a clear step ahead of the rest of the division? Oregon have mounted a relentless multiheaded air attack on offense that has caused challenger after challenger to wither: the foursome of Mica Glass, Raekwon Adkins, Max Massey, and Aaron Kaplan have proved impossible to contain in the season’s opening weeks. Even when they look a little off-kilter, as in the Pres Day final, they win comfortably. Carleton have been leaning heavily on an unending supply of rookies and second-years (Nobi Lorenz, Ellis Newhouse, Ryan duSaire, Nate de Morgan) to support team leaders like Daniel Chen and Declan Miller. CUT are rowdy and brilliant.
Both Carleton and Ego have shown that they can play at a championship level, but it takes a lot of effort, both physical and mental, to keep at that level over the course of several months. Especially when SMI winners of the past like #4 UNC Darkside and #5 UMass Zoodisc, both of them star-studded, well-coached, and hungry, lurking right behind them and ready to take advantage of any slip-up. (Nota bene: It is expected, though unconfirmed as of this writing, that UNC superstar Ben Dameron will skip SMI to attend the second round of Team USA World Games tryouts.) It could be another weekend to remember for Ego, or for CUT, or for both. Alternatively, the rest of the potential championship field could catch up to them.
Looking for a Step Up
If Ego and CUT (and, to a slightly lesser extent, Darkside and Zoodisc) started the year on a high, there were a few squads who stumbled more than they would have liked and will be looking to use Smoky Mountain Invite as a chance to get right again. Uneven performances in February from the likes of #8 Colorado Mamabird (losses to #11 Northeastern Huskies and #15 California Ursa Major) and #9 Georgia Jojah (a pair of losses to #7 Texas TUFF) have them feeling as though they have room for growth. With stars like Aidan Downey and Jack Krugler (Georgia) and Tobias Brooks and Ryan Shigley (Colorado), it’s hard to argue against that thought. They’ll try to work out the kinks.
And then there are the teams who need a little bit more than just working out the kinks. #17 Vermont Chill carry a 3-5 record to Knoxville that includes an almost unimaginable loss to Tulane Tucks. #13 Georgia Tech Tribe, who famously beat UNC at Carolina Kickoff in January, have lost to Virginia Night Train. #18 Penn State Spank finished third at Queen City Tune Up and only have the loss there to UNC in the minus column, but, frankly, they rolled over in that one.
And then there is the curious case of Brown. Last year’s champs languished in the 9th place bracket at Florida Warm Up after a loss to Emory Juice knocked them down a level. We know how much production they graduated from last year’s team. Elliott Rosenberg, Cal Nightingale, Jacques Nissen, Leo Gordon all posted a double-double at Nationals last year and, combined, accounted for 170 of the team’s 208 goal-scoring stats there. And there’s an argument to be made that the 82% scoring contribution almost undervalues how important those four were to the team’s offense last season. Jason Tapper, Luca Duclos-Orsello, Emmett Young, and rookie sensation Nolan McCloskey (in the Nissen slot) are doing what they can to play up to that skyscraping standard. They showed glimmers of it in February. Are they poised for a big ramp up in March?
Regional Battles Brewing
The dangerous #10 Oregon State Beavers, like in-state archenemies Ego, are making the long trek east for SMI. With all due respect to Callahan Bosworth, Felix Moren, Henry Wayte, and Ben Thoennes, though, the Northwest pecking order appears to be settled after three consecutive Ego wins in the rivalry. You’ll have to look elsewhere for spicy intraregional action.
Happily, there is plenty of intrigue afoot. Let’s start the tour in the South Central. The upperclassman-heavy Aaron Barcio/Xavier Fuzat/Owen Smith/John Clyde TUFF made a strong opening statement at Warm Up. They might have the chops to overtake Mamabird, who are also stacked but were not quite as steady in their first outing at Pres Day. It’s a similar story in the Southeast. Jojah have been the dominant force in the region for years, but there is a theory being mooted that Tribe (armed, famously, with Grossberg brothers Adam and Sam, as well as Neil Barry, Nikos Verlenden, and Flavius Penescu) can get the better of them this season. The two programs have taken separate paths up to this point: this weekend, though, there is a chance that they meet on the field. The theory will either hold water, or it won’t. And is this the year that Penn State, building on last year’s new success with many of the same pieces (Doug Hoyer, Logan Piercy) usurp #14 Pittsburgh En Sabah Nur? Tristan Yarter, Julius Clyburn, Micah Davis, and Nicky Troilo look very solid so far, but not necessarily untouchable in the Ohio Valley.
The most interesting region to keep an eye on, however, is New England. Even setting aside the fascinating notes presented by the semi-encouraging early season showings of McGill MUT and Tufts E-Men, neither of whom will take the field at SMI, it’s going to be cinema. A first glance says Zoodisc are the team to beat, stacked as they are with talent like Luca Harwood, Caelan McSweeney, Gavin Abrahamsson, Ethan Lieman, and a raft of underclassmen as sturdy as CUT’s. It’s not set in stone though. Vermont haven’t shown the same kind of consistency (not only game-to-game, but half-to-half) but boast similar depth and star power and could be very punchy if they settle down. Brown’s potential, despite a starkly different approach to team construction and game planning, to repeat as regional champions is clear. And Northeastern, after a surprise 3rd place finish at Pres Day, appear to be much more squarely in the mix than anyone outside of Boston realized. Their offensive and defensive approaches have proven highly effective. Jack Simmons, Ben Chamis, Jackson McGuinness, and Kalten Toone look great. Peter Boerth moves around the field like a bulldozer with a wrecking ball attached. Could the Huskies become the region’s lead dog?
Author’s Note: Do you know how much willpower it takes not to type Grey Duck? A lot. ↩
