November 12, 2025
By Evan Lepler and Adam Ruffner
Sometimes you just gotta go for it all immediately. Sure, we appreciate careful consideration and nuance, but every once in a while, you have to huck and hope. Welcome to “The Quick Huck", a new back-and-forth column where Evan Lepler and Adam Ruffner of the "Swing Pass" podcast will ask questions, offer perspective, and debate what the future holds in the Ultimate Frisbee Association.
Today’s prompt: Over the past two seasons there’s been a trend of an upstart team going from a losing record to a division championship appearance—think the 2024 Seattle Cascades and the 2025 San Diego Growlers. Both teams built on solid cores with big-name additions in free agency, and had numerous young players make visible growth leaps in their performances.
So, the question is which team will be the biggest surprise in 2026?
Ruffner’s Response:
The Philadelphia Phoenix had a dream start to 2025. Three straight wins to begin the season, including a road win against their fiercest rivals in DC in Week 1, set the Phoenix atop the toughest division in the league after the first month of play. But with one of the youngest rosters, and a raft of midseason injuries, a late May home loss by one goal to New York sparked a four-game losing streak that put Philly outside the playoff picture for the 10th time in the last 11 seasons.
Yet there remains an impressive foundation of playmakers, and perhaps the most underrated defensive unit in the league. Sean Mott and Scott Heyman combined for over 11 scores and 1100 yards of total offense per game last season, and both can be the focal point of an attack on any given drive. Rookie Sam Grossberg really complemented the mobility of Heyman and Mott, and all three worked well as the primary engine for the offense, especially in the red zone. If Greg Martin can return to full capacity—he had 152 goals from 2021 to 2023—and add another big receiving option alongside the promising Michael Maroon, the Phoenix offense could move into the top 10 in efficiency. Nate Little got an extremely deserving All Defense nod this year, and has developed into a giant killer on the back end. Paul Owens is still one of the best handler defenders in the UFA, and a top five D-line thrower on the counterattack. Rookie Jack Wisner had blocks in nine of his 11 starts, and already has some of the best closing speed in the East Division.
The Phoenix already have the spark of a competitor, and the addition of an outright star—say the return of James Pollard?—could take Philadelphia into contention in 2026. Also: I just don't think the teams atop the East are as impervious as in previous years. The gap is closing, and Philly has been leading that charge.
Lepler’s Response:
Technically, the Phoenix did not have a losing record last season, finishing 6-6 and just a game out of the playoff spot in the uber-competitive East Division. But that minor detail aside, I definitely understand your focusing on Philly. They’ve got quality young talent, plenty of motivation, and a true belief that they can hold their own against everyone they play.
Unfortunately, they’re also currently cursed by geography. Montreal and Toronto are just as hungry to rise up into the playoff picture, and it’s not like Boston, DC, or New York are likely to nosedive from the league’s elite anytime soon either. The East is just a ridiculous gauntlet, and while I agree the Phoenix are capable of beating anyone on any given day, they also have to scrap and claw for every single result. If they were in the Central, they’d likely be favored to make the playoffs. But in the East, progressing from 6-6 to 7-5 or 8-4 feels like a really huge hurdle to clear.
Meanwhile, the Seattle Cascades have already shown they can surprise everyone out West, but they slipped from 9-3 in 2024 to 4-8 in 2025, a disappointing journey that included an 0-4 record in games decided by one goal (or multiple goals in overtime). During their incredible run to Championship Weekend in ‘24, they went 5-1 in those close games. While it’s not all about luck, it seems safe to say the ‘Scades enjoyed some good fortune in ‘24, and the karma may have turned against them a little bit this past season.
But more importantly, Seattle is somewhat similar to Philly in terms of having a core of young athletes that are ready to rise up alongside some established stars. Garrett Martin earned All-UFA recognition for the third season in a row, and the roster is littered with other impact players that any team in the league would want. Lukas Ambrose is less than two years removed from being the MVP Runner-Up and Defensive Player of the Year. Zeppelin Raunig was the only player in the entire league to score double-digit goals in a game during the 2025 season.
Furthermore, while I’m not ready to report anything specific, I know that there are some excellent frisbee players who have moved to Seattle in recent years but haven’t played for the Cascades yet. If team leadership can make the right recruiting pitch, it’s not hard to fathom this team adding some truly elite talent to bolster their already solid foundation.
Perhaps there’s a notion that the Cascades, having been at Championship Weekend less than 15 months ago, don’t completely qualify as a surprise team for 2026. But to remind you: they were 4-8 last year. They blew a four-goal halftime lead against 3-9 Oregon. They only led by a single goal at the half against winless Vegas. There was plenty of mediocre with the ‘25 Cascades.
But they also lost by just one goal in games against Oakland and Salt Lake, the two teams that met in the West Division title game. Seattle, like Philly, was also seemingly not that far away from matching their level from the season before.
With a few additions, some minor tweaks, and a tad more luck, the Seattle Cascades could absolutely return to the playoffs in 2026–and perhaps even do some real damage when they get there!
