DENVER - Junior forward Justin Coughlin's upbringing in Yuma, Colo., has long been the source of entertaining questions from and conversations with teammates and friends.
Yuma is a small town of about 3,300 people in northeast Colorado, about 40 miles from the Nebraska border.
Because most of his teammates are from cities or their suburbs, they are often fascinated by Coughlin's tales of growing up in a small town.
Between workouts, pickup games and school work, Coughlin enjoyed a recent visit from his brother Jared, who made the 2.5 hour drive to DU. Coughlin wanted to show Jared what it was like to live in Denver.
"Denver's a little different than Yuma," Coughlin said with a grin. "There's no Chili's or anything like that, and the movie theater only shows two movies a night."
A Google search for restaurants reveals 15 restaurants within Yuma with the next closest a little more than 13 miles away. The one after that? It's 26 miles away in Otis, Colo. If somebody in Yuma has a Big Mac attack, he's going to have to drive 43 miles to Sterling, Colo., which is also the location of the nearest Wal-mart.
Yes, Yuma is small, but Coughlin would have it no other way. He's proud of his hometown and speaks often of Yuma's friendly people and supportive atmosphere, which is also obvious throughout the season when many people from the town head to Magness Arena for games.
"Sure you only have two movies to choose from, but they're usually first-run movies and only cost about $3," Coughlin said. "They show the same movies in Denver, but it will cost you about $12 per person."
When Coughlin arrived at the University of Denver two years ago, he could have been described as skinny and a little timid, which to be fair describes a lot of college freshmen.
These days, Coughlin walks around campus with more confidence after growing in both maturity and body - the 6-9 forward has added about 30 pounds of muscle since arriving at DU.
Coughlin sat out the first four games as a freshman, but he has started all 59 Pioneers games since then - leading the team in blocked shots each of the last two season - and he and his teammates are excited for the season to start.
"We are feeling good and looking forward to this year," Coughlin said. "We all worked hard during the summer, and the trip to Spain should be a big help for us heading into the season."
Open Practice: The men's and women's basketball teams will have open practices on Saturday, October 16, the day after the men's team is officially allowed to start.
Fans will have an opportunity to meet coaches and players from each team. Look for more details on DenverPioneers.com early next week.
Yuma is a small town of about 3,300 people in northeast Colorado, about 40 miles from the Nebraska border.
Because most of his teammates are from cities or their suburbs, they are often fascinated by Coughlin's tales of growing up in a small town.
Between workouts, pickup games and school work, Coughlin enjoyed a recent visit from his brother Jared, who made the 2.5 hour drive to DU. Coughlin wanted to show Jared what it was like to live in Denver.
"Denver's a little different than Yuma," Coughlin said with a grin. "There's no Chili's or anything like that, and the movie theater only shows two movies a night."
A Google search for restaurants reveals 15 restaurants within Yuma with the next closest a little more than 13 miles away. The one after that? It's 26 miles away in Otis, Colo. If somebody in Yuma has a Big Mac attack, he's going to have to drive 43 miles to Sterling, Colo., which is also the location of the nearest Wal-mart.
Yes, Yuma is small, but Coughlin would have it no other way. He's proud of his hometown and speaks often of Yuma's friendly people and supportive atmosphere, which is also obvious throughout the season when many people from the town head to Magness Arena for games.
"Sure you only have two movies to choose from, but they're usually first-run movies and only cost about $3," Coughlin said. "They show the same movies in Denver, but it will cost you about $12 per person."
When Coughlin arrived at the University of Denver two years ago, he could have been described as skinny and a little timid, which to be fair describes a lot of college freshmen.
These days, Coughlin walks around campus with more confidence after growing in both maturity and body - the 6-9 forward has added about 30 pounds of muscle since arriving at DU.
Coughlin sat out the first four games as a freshman, but he has started all 59 Pioneers games since then - leading the team in blocked shots each of the last two season - and he and his teammates are excited for the season to start.
"We are feeling good and looking forward to this year," Coughlin said. "We all worked hard during the summer, and the trip to Spain should be a big help for us heading into the season."
Open Practice: The men's and women's basketball teams will have open practices on Saturday, October 16, the day after the men's team is officially allowed to start.
Fans will have an opportunity to meet coaches and players from each team. Look for more details on DenverPioneers.com early next week.
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