Mastering the Game: A Deep Dive into the World of Foosball with Champion Sullivan Rue

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Get ready to be taken on a fascinating and inspiring journey into the competitive world of foosball with none other than world champion player, Sullivan Rue. Unravel the story of this young prodigy from Crowley, Louisiana, as she walks us through her experiences of beating older boys at their own game and her rigorous training regimen that led her to win both women's open singles and doubles titles at the Tornado Table World Championships. From being the lone girl in a man's world to a world champion, Sullivan shares her unique insights and experiences that promise to fuel your passion for this underrated sport.

Strap in as we travel the globe discussing the foosball circuits and tournaments, and learn about the unique and varied table setups used in these competitions. We'll uncover Sullivan's secrets for dominating the table, her strategies for reading opponents, and her game plan that changes with every table setup. Listen to her debunk the misconceptions surrounding foosball, and understand the importance of respecting and understanding the sport. From explaining the basics to sharing her physical therapy techniques, Sullivan leaves no stone unturned in this comprehensive discussion on foosball.

In the final leg of our journey, we explore the world's passion for foosball and address the misconceptions surrounding US players in contrast to their European counterparts. Sullivan, with her infectious passion and zeal, paints a vivid picture of the foosball community both in America and overseas, and discusses the evolution of the sport from a gentleman's game to an intense global competition. As we circle back to her personal journey, Sullivan shares her future goals, advice for new players, and how she deals with losses. Hear her share about her journey as a professional foosball player, the obstacles she encountered, and the passion that propels her to keep competing. Our conversation ends with a heartfelt request for likes, follows, and subscriptions. So gear up for this thrilling exploration into the world of foosball with the world champion herself.

AcadianaCasts Presents: Sullivan Rue!

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Thanks to our sponsors:

RISE PT & Sports Lab

Krewe Allons

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Transcript

Carter Simoneaux: 0:11

On today's episode of AcadianaCasts Presents,, we have a very special guest. She's a fine you nursing student at UL, but that is the least interesting part about her. She is a world champion foosball player. That's right. I'm not quoting the water boy, I'm talking actual foosball folks. Sullivan Rue is here with us today talking about the world of foosball. How she got in, how a girl from Crowley got so many awards this early in her life. It's a really cool story can't wait for y'all to hear.

Carter Simoneaux: 0:39

But before we do that, I got to talk to you about my friends over at Rise physical therapy and sports lab. You know we're talking to an athlete today. They do well with athletes. Are you tired of typical physical therapy clinics? They don't cater to your unique needs? Will look no further than rise physical therapy and sports lab. Founded by Kerry Hoffpower and Roddy O'Quant in 2020. Rise takes a holistic approach to treating every client who walks through their doors. They fuse their passions for sports, medicine and performance to provide a unique and individualized program for each patient. Rises healthy habits for living program helps achieve sustainable weight loss goals and a healthy lifestyle, and recently they added rock steady boxing at katiana to provide those battling Parkinson's disease with a health program specifically catered towards their needs. You can watch my story on rock steady boxing, katiana, on the katiana cast youtube channel. If you're watching on youtube, we'll link it right there in the in the video.

Carter Simoneaux: 1:35

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Carter Simoneaux: 2:25

Now, without further ado, I katiana cast presents. Sullivan Roo, glad to have you on, carter Siminoe, host of a katiana cast presents. Go to a katiana cast dot com for more south Louisiana source content. You can also follow us on Facebook, instagram, twitter. Tictoc got kicked off of LinkedIn, but we'll be back there soon. We got all kind of different shows and content that we're building. If you want to get involved, or if you just simply want to see what's going on here in a katiana from our content creators, go to a katiana cast dot com and follow us on social media. Now let's talk to the woman of the hour sully, how are you doing today?

Carter Simoneaux: 3:30

great how are you doing? Oh man, it's Friday, so I'm excited about that. Got the weekend coming up, I don't even know where to start. So, first of how does a girl from Crowley Louisiana, become a world champion foosball player?

Sullivan Rue: 3:43

well, I was pretty lucky, being that my parents brought me, since I was like a newborn. Basically, my dad started playing in the skating rink and my mom and dad started dating, so they both got involved. They found someone that went to a professional tour and he thought it was cool, so he took a trip out out of state and then from there they were both hooked and started traveling nonstop and I was brought along the way and went to every tournament since I was zero yeah, we actually.

Carter Simoneaux: 4:21

We actually have video evidence of this. Jai, pull up that first video of her as a little baby.

Sullivan Rue: 4:27

Yeah, wow, there she is yep, it's me and my grandma. I was standing on a chair, so ever since I stand up, I was playing wow, and then good form, good technique.

Carter Simoneaux: 4:38

Right there too, I appreciate it. Okay, so you just started. When did you start competing?

Sullivan Rue: 4:44

my first tournament. I was six years old. I played in juniors, which is 18 and under. I was the only girl I mean really the only girl my age up until this point in time. So I was six years old playing 18 year old boys with beards, and I got third place in singles. So not too bad for my first tournament. And after that I played juniors, started winning, became the first girl to win a lot of the junior events and singles and doubles, and then when I turned 13, it all started really clicking and I started doing well in the open events against women. I was starting to be pros world champions. I started beating and then from there I started to really, really win open events.

Carter Simoneaux: 5:33

And now I'm here okay, so try help me. Help me break down the difference. Events circuits like how are you get? Like do you have to qualify for certain things? Like how does this whole structure work and where do you go to do it?

Sullivan Rue: 5:48

okay. So there are ranking systems. You go and you put your name into the system and you first start your beginner and then, as you win or as you place, you get points so you can go beginner to rookie, to amateur, to expert, pro and then master. There's only maybe 12 masters that are men and less than that that are women, and then you get ranked through the brackets. So there's women's events and then there's open events, or men's events, which it's called that typically because the men win. So there's tons of events to play. And then there's designated mix, which is when the woman plays front the whole time. There's open mixed, all sorts of different things, so it lasts quite a while wow, and what is it?

Carter Simoneaux: 6:41

is there like a hub here in America for foosball, or it just kind of rotates?

Sullivan Rue: 6:46

I mean, what do you mean?

Carter Simoneaux: 6:47

like is there every single year, or like tournaments in the same locations, or no, typically there are certain tournaments that'll always be in this state.

Sullivan Rue: 6:58

For example, texas state always gonna be in Dallas. We have a tournament called Hall of Fame, which inductees get brought into the foosball Hall of Fame every year and it's always in Las Vegas, which is a great spot for it. The hotel will get moved, but it's always in Las Vegas, I feel like it brings the most people. Worlds generally rotates every four or five years, so I think this year will probably be the last time in Kentucky. World Cup it's always in another country France, spain, germany, italy so what's the difference between worlds in World Cup?

Sullivan Rue: 7:34

okay, so world's the thing that I just won this past month. It's particularly our table US table it's called the tornado table. I typically compare it to tennis, how there's different courts. It's the same concept, they play a little differently.

Sullivan Rue: 7:53

So we have the tornado table, germany has the Leonhart table and they had their own worlds in hard it's called Leonhart, it's a green table, there's Bonzini, which is a French table, there's Garland or a bird of sport, all sorts of different tables. So World Cup is all of those tables and it's country versus country depending on their version of the table and then again for like singles events at World Cup. I don't have to pick my table of choice, like I can pick the German table to play on if I feel like I want to play on that table.

Carter Simoneaux: 8:25

But you have to set that in stone before it starts right, okay, so this past month you just mentioned, what did you just win?

Sullivan Rue: 8:34

so I won the world championships of tornado of the tornado table. I won women's open singles and women's open doubles, and I won doubles with my partner, hannah, and this is our third year in a row winning, and we're the one of two teams who ever win three back to back hell yeah so yeah so you're also the youngest person to hold a world title.

Carter Simoneaux: 8:58

What's it like walking around knowing that you are the youngest person to have a one world?

Sullivan Rue: 9:01

title. It's interesting because I get that type of question a lot, but for me, even when I was 14 and I won, I didn't see the big deal.

Carter Simoneaux: 9:11

I see it more now but after you put in the work, you see other people from across the world putting in work as well.

Sullivan Rue: 9:16

I do see it more now. But the fact that I grew up my whole life playing, I feel like it didn't seem a such a big deal that I was 14 because I played for 14 years like of course I want to win, of course I feel like I'm good enough to win, so I didn't find it as much of a shock. Now I can see why it was such a big of a deal, because I'm older and I know that it's really really hard to win a world title and it took me a few years after that to win another. But it is super cool. But I feel like since I grew up my whole life, I didn't really understand how big of a deal it was at the time but I do yeah, I do know we have a couple more videos that you sent us, one from singles.

Carter Simoneaux: 10:01

Let's pull that one up. Is this the most is the most recent? Yeah, okay, let's get that that video going. It's that second video. Yeah, right there, you can give us some volume on that yeah, I had to play my partner in the final oh, those that.

Sullivan Rue: 10:12

So that's your, that's Hannah yep, that's Hannah, and notice she changed her because we would be matching other so is this like match point right? Now this match point. She has the ball in the five bar and then I make a block. I get a defensive block and now I've got it on the five bar to pass to my shooting rod and have opportunity.

Sullivan Rue: 10:32

Okay, so I got it on my shooting rod, now it's, I have the opportunity to win there it is there, it is, wow, the oh my gosh, it probably just a long weekend tour really was and that match was not at all easy because, like I said, she's my partner, so she knows me very well and I have to play the absolute best game against her. I had the king's seat, which means I won. I didn't lose at all and there's when her side and loser side in this particular event and she came through the loser side and made it back to the final. She beat me in the first set. So when you come from the loser side, you have to double dip or win twice. She beat me the first set.

Sullivan Rue: 11:23

So I'm already feeling the pressure. This typically doesn't happen to me, but she's my partner, like I said, she knows me so well and has a specific game plan just for me. So I really have to play the top of my game and I really felt the pressure. So it went third game to two out of three match went third game, the first set and third game, the second set. Super long match and, yeah, I was super relieved yeah, I bet.

Carter Simoneaux: 11:48

So at these tournaments are you doing both singles and doubles and they're just different days or different times, or?

Sullivan Rue: 11:55

so there's a schedule and I don't just play women's, I play pro men's open, I play mix, I play all sorts of things and they'll start on a particular day. They usually don't finish because there's lots of people and a lot of women play a lot of events, so it conflicts everything. So it's just Taking forever to finish. But after this finals match I had to play my doubles finals match with Hannah, who I just beaten in singles, which is unfortunate that they waited to play them Right back.

Carter Simoneaux: 12:28

But so she's got the lock down and then she's got to get right back up to why I told her I mean, there's a part, well, on the live stream of the Tournament.

Sullivan Rue: 12:37

I'm hugging her afterwards and we're talking. You can't really hear. And I told her I'm so sorry, I wanted us both to win, but we're gonna win doubles. I'm gonna win doubles, to make this up to you, because I just felt so bad.

Carter Simoneaux: 12:48

Oh yeah, I can't imagine. But there's still something so cool though that, like man, if I was in the doubles about to face you guys and I'm watching the two people about to face each other in the singles, I start getting a little worried the coincidence, you know that we're both there.

Sullivan Rue: 13:02

We're the top of our game right now and I mean I feel like we both equally deserved it so you're the first female to be ranked and and to beat men in competition.

Carter Simoneaux: 13:13

Is that correct?

Sullivan Rue: 13:14

Yes. So Going back to the ranking system Beginner, rookie, amateur, expert, pro master. Okay, I'm a master woman because I mean I went a lot of the women's events. It's really not abnormal. But for men's events I was the first girl to go from expert to pro ranking men's events, traditional points, whatever and I was the first girl playing the forward position to win a pro doubles title. And Then I won the next year after that and I was the first girl to win an expert singles Men's title. I won like three or four of those. So I feel like after that happened, a lot of women began to play better in the men's events and I feel like it opened up a lot of opportunities. And another History breaker that I accomplished was making it to the open doubles finals, which never happened before. A girl to make it just like in any sport, like the top men playing. And then there's a girl in there and I actually played my dad.

Carter Simoneaux: 14:20

Wow yeah.

Sullivan Rue: 14:21

So how'd?

Carter Simoneaux: 14:22

that go.

Sullivan Rue: 14:22

It went 10 games. 10 games in the last game. In the fifth game it's went by two up to eight. So I Lost eight to seven.

Carter Simoneaux: 14:34

Mmm, the old man got you.

Sullivan Rue: 14:35

Yep, sure did, and we surely had him too. But Funny enough, the next year after that, me and my partner made it back to the finals again, lost again, but we're consistent.

Carter Simoneaux: 14:49

Well, well, we do have a video of you and your partner winning. Let's pull up that last video there, jai, yeah, right there.

Sullivan Rue: 14:55

Okay, so this is 2017. And holds on to it and this was the history breaker for women's.

Carter Simoneaux: 15:03

The wrist action is incredible. You do that to try to get a championship point for.

John Aiken: 15:12

That one up the table.

Sullivan Rue: 15:15

Oh yeah.

Carter Simoneaux: 15:20

It's a nice crowd.

Sullivan Rue: 15:22

So it's 2017.

Carter Simoneaux: 15:24

How old were you, my gosh? Yeah. Sullivan rule the leaves of bomba.

John Aiken: 15:30

Here comes mom dad can't be far behind. As, yeah, my dad win the 2017, I see my mom's in front row and my dad pacing. You just can't watch.

Sullivan Rue: 15:45

Yeah she, we knew that so yeah, and that also happened to be the way well back there. So, it was a very special moment where was that?

Carter Simoneaux: 15:56

this was also in Kentucky, Okay and this happens.

Sullivan Rue: 15:58

That's good, I'm spring from this year, I mean from that year.

Carter Simoneaux: 16:02

Oh, wow, yeah, that's pretty cool. So, okay, I mean, you already kind of talked about how you know you being the first woman to have this success. It's kind of starting to open doors, do you? First off, why has there not been before you much success for women? It's just they're not interested in it's lack of access, and Do you think that's starting to, that ties are to change?

Sullivan Rue: 16:26

I'm not really sure. It's not that they weren't skilled enough to do it, maybe someone just had to get out there and do it. But the women always play men's events and they always try their best. I just think it hadn't happened yet and I think my game and the way that I was brought up and trained it's similar to a guy's style of game. It's very dominant and I Think that just works well for me. A lot of times I feel less nervous playing in men's events for that reason.

Carter Simoneaux: 16:55

Hmm, okay, yeah, well, you grew up with your dad training, right?

Sullivan Rue: 16:59

So mom and dad, but I play my dad every day. Wow, so I was very I mean, I always got the beat down, like every day. I had to adjust something and figure it out.

Carter Simoneaux: 17:09

I mean, your dad sounds like a huge nerd in the best way, like like. I love people who are just infatuated with like something you know and just go, just go pause the wall on it. Yeah, so it's got to be so cool for him to like have this thing that he loves and is interested in and then sharing it with His daughter and then, not only that, see success through you. I mean that's got to be so awesome for him.

Sullivan Rue: 17:28

It's cool, and we've also got to play together, me and my dad have won some things, and me and my mom have won some women's titles, so it is super cool, it's. It's literally a family thing. Yeah like we don't even do vacations, because this is our vacation. It's. It's so awesome and besides that, the foosball community in itself is a family. It really is, and no guy.

Carter Simoneaux: 17:50

Group text.

Sullivan Rue: 17:51

Yeah, we got group texts, Yep, and now, like a lot of these people are my best friends, which I guess you wouldn't really expect coming from foosball, but I've made the best connections from this Bar game that everyone right doesn't even know about so yeah, it is traditionally a bar game and I mentioned in the intro that you're a fine.

Carter Simoneaux: 18:12

You have you ever, you know, hustled a frat guy at like okay? So I walk me through that like Guys hosted, okay, I'm okay. I was a K at UL. So say we're hosting a party right at the K house, we have foosball table. See a cute girl girl walk by and she goes I want to play some foosball. You're like all right, baby, come on, let's play some foosball.

Sullivan Rue: 18:31

And then what you just Come well, I mean, they're not that nice about it.

Carter Simoneaux: 18:35

It's like either oh, you think you can play.

Sullivan Rue: 18:38

Yeah, either they know who I am or they don't. And they're still like okay, bet a hundred dollars, I'm gonna beat you, sullivan, like you suck. And I'm like y'all, I can beat you with my eyes closed. I'm not even kidding. And they're like yeah, right, like play with your right hand only. And I'm like okay, I'm gonna use my right hand and I still beat them. But it's always like oh, you play foosball, right? Yeah, I could bet, I bet I could beat you, like I'll put money on it.

Carter Simoneaux: 19:04

It's always I mean, yeah, the only reason like that I bet she's winning is because I'm not playing. I'm not competing these tournaments. Yeah, you're only the world champion because I don't play like if I were to do it Like, I would obviously sweep the table, yeah the classic go-to statement was that oh is that so? Are you allowed to the hustle in the professional world?

Sullivan Rue: 19:23

Oh yeah, I mean, why not? Whatever works?

Carter Simoneaux: 19:26

There's there. I can't imagine that there's massive paydays from from champion it depends.

Sullivan Rue: 19:31

It depends. This world was cool because I won two tables, okay, and there's something called a travel package, which it's given by the World Cup Group to help pay for my trip to World Cup, because it's always overseas, so I'll get that money when I go overseas. It's really nice to win the travel package, and it's always like a one tournament a year and I just so happen to win this one. So nice.

Carter Simoneaux: 19:57

So do you have like a favorite bar in town? Our favorite table in town, I should say, besides your own, I imagine your y'all's table at home is out this world.

Sullivan Rue: 20:07

Well, I did just win a new one, so that's nice when you replace it. There are local tournaments, like at Max's. Every Thursday they have a local tournament. So I mean, when I'm not in school slaving away, yeah, go and play the local tournaments in Max's that's fun. Those tables are nice because they're from tour tournaments. That makes sense like they're bought from the tournament and brought.

Carter Simoneaux: 20:32

Oh nice, so they're top quality. Okay, so what makes a table top quality?

Sullivan Rue: 20:36

For example, if you go to the Bulldog, you can kind of assume that's not a top quality table because alcohol is built all over it and the balls are black instead of pink, but the men they can have little tweaks in them or little chips. You need to change the men out. You can hear it when you're tic-tac-ing, which is moving the ball back and forth between them, and you can hear it have a little weird sound and it can affect the roll. The table can be unlevelled. So if I just put the ball down and it starts rolling this way without me doing anything, you need to fix that. Some people care about the balls if they're too old or not sticky not sticky but just kind of grippy. It can be very slick. Older tables are very slick, so you can tell the difference.

Carter Simoneaux: 21:23

Are doubles and singles tables the same? Yeah, you can kind of gloss on it over. I can't speak today. Kind of gloss on it over. Keep all this in. I'm an idiot. You touched on it is what I should say. I'm like freaking like a loony tune over here. But strategy, talk to me about some different types of foosball strategies, like you were mentioning that the men are a little more aggressive, I guess.

Sullivan Rue: 21:49

I mean, there's so much to this, just like in any sport, and it's hard to break it down with just speaking on it without showing yeah. You can try to kind of simplify, but let's get it. An example is last night I watched my singles final to see what I can do better.

Sullivan Rue: 22:05

Watching film Especially. Yes, it's literally the same thing and you get an overhead view of the table so you can really see what's open, what's not, how they're moving to your movement, how they react. Let me think, like I said, playing Hannah is difficult because she knows things that I favor, if that makes sense and that can be a concerted tell. I watch foosball. I watch certain players to see their tells. Do they like to go to this side of the goal? Like a more percentage of the time? Do they go to this side of the goal? Do they love this particular pass? Are they going to do it in under pressure moments? What are they going to hold and wait? Are they going to really work this one hole so that they can do their favorite shot later whenever it really matters?

Sullivan Rue: 22:55

There's defense, so I'll work on my defense In singles. When they have it in the goalie, they have a point opportunity from the back. There's a lot of shooting goalies, if that makes sense. So you don't just score from the front shooting rod, you score from the back as well, and that's something I really like to do.

Carter Simoneaux: 23:15

Is a goalie shot worth more.

Sullivan Rue: 23:17

No, it's not.

Carter Simoneaux: 23:18

It's just cooler.

Sullivan Rue: 23:19

It's just cooler, yes, and it's more difficult because you have to clear a lot more men and there are specific zones. So you want to go on the table set up. Okay, this one has three men on it and this one has five, so you want to match up these two, if that makes sense. There's two men here, so this hole's open. So with this front guy I'm going to block it. So you basically just match the holes, you just cover the holes and then you can bait. There's such thing as baiting, where you leave this hole really open for like three seconds and then they go do a new move and you stretch and you get a defensive goal.

Carter Simoneaux: 23:53

It's like a defensive back and football, allowing a receiver to get a little space, but then he knows that when the ball is thrown he can catch up to him.

Sullivan Rue: 24:00

And I'll change my zone depending on the player. Do they have a really banging shot out the back that I need to be aware of, or can I just kind of you know, chill?

Carter Simoneaux: 24:10

So the only thing I know rules wise about foosball is no spins. Yes, I imagine you don't see any of that.

Sullivan Rue: 24:18

Unless it's an accident.

Carter Simoneaux: 24:19

Okay, why? Why no spins?

Sullivan Rue: 24:24

I don't really know honestly. I mean, a lot of people think playing me, oh I'm allowed to spin because it'll be easier, but I feel like it's a disadvantage because you really have no control over where it's going. I'm not sure why it's a rule, probably just because everyone would just be spinning and it's just an ugly game from there.

Carter Simoneaux: 24:41

Yeah, the times I play foosball I have no control whatsoever. It's just fine ball hit ball.

Sullivan Rue: 24:46

Yes, yeah, it's a lot of hand-eye coordination.

Carter Simoneaux: 24:49

Yeah, I wish I don't have. It's amazing. It's amazing how you can play this thing, this guitar.

Sullivan Rue: 24:54

Yeah, people would be surprised how much skill actually goes into it and you can tell if you try to get on a table and do any sort of control without any practice. It's impossible, it's not easy, like you have to work on ball control specifically when you're first learning. I mean I would stay on the table for hours just moving it between each thing and weaving it, trying not to lose the ball. That's the basics of it, and then you build from there.

Carter Simoneaux: 25:20

Who is the goat? This is debatable, so hopefully I don't get some fire, I can't debate you, but so you got a platformer, at least now to talk your shit. Yeah, who do you?

Sullivan Rue: 25:32

think the goat is. I think it's a difficult call for men. I would say there's a guy named Fredric and I would say he is the goat Actually, 100%.

Carter Simoneaux: 25:42

Is he still playing?

Sullivan Rue: 25:43

Not so much, but he dominated every tour stop.

Carter Simoneaux: 25:49

Where is he from?

Sullivan Rue: 25:49

He's from Belgium.

Carter Simoneaux: 25:51

Belgium.

Sullivan Rue: 25:52

So Tornado is not his table, but he has won so many Tornado World titles.

Carter Simoneaux: 25:56

See if you can find a bio for him on the old Google machine there, jai, what's his name? Fredric?

Sullivan Rue: 26:01

Colin Yeholtz.

Carter Simoneaux: 26:02

What's that say there Jai?

Jai Benoit: 26:04

Having won more World Championships on more tables than any other player in history and, additionally, being the only European player ever to have been dominant in the United States, Colin Yeholtz regarded by most as the greatest player in the history of the sport, although Colin Yeholtz himself instead regards LaFredo as the greatest.

Carter Simoneaux: 26:21

So what I want to know is thank you, jai. What I want to know is what's it going to take for Sullivan to reach that pinnacle?

Sullivan Rue: 26:27

It's going to take me being out of school and traveling. I know I can do it, it's just finding the time to fly overseas is really difficult.

Carter Simoneaux: 26:38

So answer me this you know you're in clinicals right now at UL A very good nursing program, but a difficult one, takes up a lot of your time. So do you have you know? Are you on like a path to get your degree and then maybe dip your toe more into the international play Because you'll have that RN or your BSN? So is that kind of the plan, or are you just going to go straight into work?

Sullivan Rue: 27:02

I mean I would like to take a world tour, me and my partner Hannah. Like I said, we want to branch out. I mean we know all the overseas players and we see them for the World Cup, but not so much for anything else. We did get to go to Germany this past summer for kind of a league thing. We got asked to be on a team called Bears Berlin, so we went. We went play with them against some other teams. We were the only US people there, but it was a great experience and it showed us that we are 100% capable of winning a different table worlds if that makes sense like a Leonhart worlds. We're capable of it because when we went we didn't have our table, it was just their table. We had nothing to fall back on. It was this table. Switching to this table both that aren't ours and it's uncomfortable, but it really really made us a lot better.

Carter Simoneaux: 27:57

Do you think you'll be in Louisiana or living in Louisiana your entire life?

Sullivan Rue: 28:00

Yeah, I'm a baby and I need my family.

Carter Simoneaux: 28:04

Fair enough, it seems like you'll get along quite well. So, with that being said, I mean you're one of the greatest foosball players in the world right now, but I've never heard anything about foosball in Louisiana. So, logically, I'd like to think you'd like to grow the game, especially here. What does? What would that entail for us to grow the game of foosball in Louisiana?

Sullivan Rue: 28:25

Well, I know that people are trying to get tables in schools because it's a more popular thing out of state in New York They've got clubs and it's for kids maybe that have to stay late after school and they can go and play foosball and they can get taught how to play. I've been asked to go out of state and teach and do these little I don't know camps of foosball, or even I was invited to go to India in schools and do this and that, and I think if we could get that in Louisiana who like it would be perfect. I'm a younger girl. I can get girls to play. We need more younger girls to play. I think it would be perfect. I think it would be a great opportunity.

Sullivan Rue: 29:06

But by being in FIMU and in nursing and knowing a lot of people, I brought a lot of light to it, so that is a good thing. Yeah, I think getting in the schools and stuff like this, which I'm very grateful about because not many people, like you said, in Louisiana know about it. So I think doing many things like this, sharing it, posting it can really bring a lot of attention and I know a lot of my friends that enjoy to play or that have wanted to play. They start and it's addicting it really is and once you start it's like you're hooked.

Carter Simoneaux: 29:41

I hope you're right back to the episode in just a second, but we want to talk real quick with our friends over at Crew Along. Joining us now is John Akin, president of Crew Along NIL Collective supporting Raging Cajun athletes. John man, this is so exciting, this collective. We had you on the show before but we want to just get you on every now and then real quick to just keep in mind folks about this collective. What do folks need to know? How do they get involved?

John Aiken: 30:07

Hey, thanks for having me, carter. Yeah, there's so much momentum growing and awareness. The best way to get involved is to go on to our website, wwwcrewallahcom, and when you go to there, there's several different things. You can join the crew. There's some links to join the crew. You can pick your level. You can donate a dollar. You can donate up to $10,000. There's an FAQ section. There will be a section for our board, so that's a great place to find out information and to get involved.

Carter Simoneaux: 30:40

Alrighty. And what is this collective going to be doing for Cajun athletes? That's different from other collectives.

John Aiken: 30:48

Sure. So a collective is different from a lot of the giving that goes on on campus really, in that this directly goes to the student athletes. So every dollar that is given to the collective will directly enhance the experience of UL student athletes through the monetization of their NIL name image and likeness. That may be appearances, that may be opportunities on social media, partnering with businesses, and so ultimately the collective is just partnering with different individuals and crews in town to help monetize and educate and create brand recognition for our student athletes.

Carter Simoneaux: 31:26

Alright, you guys. You heard the man go to wwwcruelonccom, that's K-R-E-W-E-A-L-L-O-N-Scom. John, thanks so much for joining us and for all the work you're doing for those athletes.

John Aiken: 31:39

Thanks brother.

Carter Simoneaux: 31:40

So how much is a pro table run?

Sullivan Rue: 31:44

Probably 3600. Okay, but like I said when I won two tables and I'll probably sell one since it's used for like 1800. So I mean, you don't need to buy a brand new table.

Carter Simoneaux: 31:55

Here's what we're going to do. We're going to start you a non-profit alright, and the goal of non-profits is to raise money in order to donate professional tables with the, I guess, equipment to upkeep it, whatever that might entail, to local schools around Louisiana. How's that sound?

Sullivan Rue: 32:14

Super cool.

Carter Simoneaux: 32:15

Alright, I won't do that personally, but for all the listeners and watchers out there. If you own a business, pour in money, you're going to do it, yeah, yeah. But no that, yeah, I think, just access to it at an earlier age and but seeing you know people like you sharing stuff on social media, I think that can go a long way.

Sullivan Rue: 32:31

Yeah, definitely, and you know we've been on ESPN a few times from World Cup. They've done specials. Oh, we had a documentary. Hello, I forgot about that.

Carter Simoneaux: 32:40

Nice, what's it called?

Sullivan Rue: 32:41

Yeah, it's called Foozballers, so go check it out. Yeah, go check it out. And they basically go to, I don't know, maybe the top seven Foozball players in the world and they stay with them at their house. So they stay with us for about a week. Super cool. They followed us around, like we're famous, and just recorded our life, and it was super cool.

Carter Simoneaux: 33:00

Where can people watch it?

Sullivan Rue: 33:02

You can honestly.

Carter Simoneaux: 33:03

Probably prime. Yeah, okay.

Sullivan Rue: 33:05

If you just look it up, it'll come right up.

Carter Simoneaux: 33:07

Foozballers love it. Do you have a nickname?

Sullivan Rue: 33:11

Sully Sullivan, sully Bear.

Carter Simoneaux: 33:14

Okay, I've got a few for you that are kind of Louisiana themed. Okay, All right, how about the? Now you're not allowed to guys do this, but what about the Swamp Spinner?

Sullivan Rue: 33:23

Okay, okay, yeah.

Carter Simoneaux: 33:25

The Bayou Baller and my favorite, the Voodoo Victory Vixen.

Sullivan Rue: 33:31

Oh, I like that one yeah, triple V.

Carter Simoneaux: 33:34

Triple V I like that one I mean Rue like that's your last name, is like Asian ingredient.

Sullivan Rue: 33:40

Oh, I get another one. It's someone just made this up and it's called the Wolf and I don't know what. The Wolf, yeah, I look like a wolf.

Carter Simoneaux: 33:49

Are you a lone wolf? You run a pack.

Sullivan Rue: 33:50

Yeah, I don't know where that came from, but another one is Orca.

Carter Simoneaux: 33:55

Orca.

Sullivan Rue: 33:56

Like to toy with my opponents and then killed them.

Carter Simoneaux: 33:59

Like an Orca.

Sullivan Rue: 34:00

Yeah, like an Orca, and then do you do that. Yeah. Sully but not rude, no, I just I'm very, very rude, Very infamous for getting a super big lead.

John Aiken: 34:13

And then I'm like uh boy run a little bit.

Sullivan Rue: 34:16

Boom, it's some game point. I'm like, oh my God, I just need to take it seriously. I take it seriously, but let's say I'm just kind of I'm leading four, four to zero and then I guess I kind of let off the gas. I'm so bad at that, I'm so bad at letting off the gas, I don't toy, but I guess that's what that's talking about. But I've gotten better at it. Like worlds this year, I was like I'm not doing that, not happening in.

Carter Simoneaux: 34:47

Dialed in.

Sullivan Rue: 34:47

Yeah, dialed in.

Carter Simoneaux: 34:48

No, orca, no, no, no, no, whale play over here.

Sullivan Rue: 34:51

No, just shark.

Carter Simoneaux: 34:54

So, being a you know top tier athlete such as yourself, there's got to be some sort of training that goes into this. What is, what does training look like for you?

Sullivan Rue: 35:02

So I'm also known for my training regimen because I feel like it was very intense, and I'm known because it was in the foosball or documentary um, which was filmed when I was like 12 or 13. And that's when most of my training was done. I don't really need to do so much of it now, and I can't anyway because of school, but thankfully when I was able to like it was enough to keep me and help me win all of these things. So I would do thousands of passes a week.

Carter Simoneaux: 35:36

What's a pass?

Sullivan Rue: 35:37

A pass is from the five bar, which is in the middle guy, to the shooting rod or three bar. So that, in my opinion, is probably one of the most important.

Carter Simoneaux: 35:47

So literally is passing the ball to yourself.

Sullivan Rue: 35:50

You can't, it doesn't matter how good your shot is If you can't get the ball. So that's kind of where my head goes is five bar is probably the most important aspect. And so there's different types of passes. There's a wall pass, simple. It goes along the wall, you bring it down and it goes along the wall. There's a lane pass, so okay, it goes up a little above the wall and you catch it out. You bring your guy out and you catch it.

Sullivan Rue: 36:17

All sorts of other passes, and I'll do 50 of each, 10 sets. If I miss one, I start all over. So you can imagine a 12 year old girl getting very frustrated. I'm on number nine and I miss one pass and I have to start over again. So I did a lot of reps, countless reps every day. I did not stop until I was done. And then after that, okay, super solid five bar. And then I started adding little wrinkles, which is aside from the basic three passes. I would add different types of things. God weave it. Bounce it off the wall. Bouncing it off the wall is kind of a fake. If you bounce it off the wall, they're going to race to the wall because they think you're going to do a wall pass, so things like that.

Carter Simoneaux: 37:07

Oh, my God, I'm just you explaining all this. I'm just thinking to myself like I would be absolutely decimated and my pride would be sent through. I mean, I have no pride anyway, but yeah, you would kick my ass for sure. Any sort of like physical activity that you do like it, sort of stretches or warmups.

Sullivan Rue: 37:25

Well, recently I feel like my shoulder is about to fall off, and I don't know why. Possibly because I've been playing for 20 years.

Carter Simoneaux: 37:34

Also, probably because that's a wild thing to say.

Sullivan Rue: 37:36

Yeah, it's definitely going to fall off and also I'm lifting larger patients every week.

Sullivan Rue: 37:43

So it's not really helping my shoulder issue, but I think I played five tournaments back to back out of state. One tournament I played in six finals in a weekend. So my arm was just destroyed. So me and my dad had been doing some physical therapy at home. As for the rest, I danced as well my whole life. So I was always kind of flexible and didn't need much. But before matches, especially in the morning, I'm super cold, freezing, especially in the hotels. It's just so cold in there. So I'll get up and do some arm stretches, wrists whatever. Nothing too intense. I've always I'm used to standing up for long periods of time. I'm used to moving around and transitioning fast with dancing, so I was kind of lucky with that.

Carter Simoneaux: 38:27

So there's no gym routine specifically for foosball. As you can tell, so these tables remind me do you get to decide with your left or right hands what position you are, or is it the same across the board, like the defense is your left hand or your offense is your right hand?

Sullivan Rue: 38:45

I mean typically, the offense is your right hand. Okay 99% of the time you can do. Such thing called a five bar shot, which five bar passing rod. But let's say it's three, three, you're not scoring too well. It's really tight and you see this hole open. You can, you can move it around and then you can bring it up and hit it across the table. Five bar shot.

Carter Simoneaux: 39:08

So are lefties better defensive players.

Sullivan Rue: 39:11

I think, I think. So I know a few lefties and I feel like they do have great five bar defense. I used to have terrible five bar defense. I was all offense up until a year ago because people All gas no breaks. Gas and it worked. Now not so much because I have to be smart, but before I was mindlessly just, you know, doing whatever.

Carter Simoneaux: 39:35

What are the biggest misconceptions when it comes to foosball? Is it just that it's just a bar game, or or maybe there's a misconception within the style of the game in and of itself?

Sullivan Rue: 39:45

Obviously the bar game thing. It's huge, it's huge thing Gets mixed up with like ping pong somehow I don't know. But that kind of stuff doesn't really offend me because I get it, it's a unique thing, whatever. But I think what does kind of affect me and maybe others, is people downplaying it. Like winning worlds is the biggest accomplishment I've ever had Because it's my sport and it's the world championships and I feel like throughout my life some friends don't understand how big of a deal it is to me. So that can kind of be frustrating.

Carter Simoneaux: 40:23

But um, what have you won, fish?

Sullivan Rue: 40:29

Another thing is within the sport, like misconceptions about US foosball players compared to foreigners or like Europeans. I think the rest. The rest, I think.

Carter Simoneaux: 40:41

America.

Sullivan Rue: 40:43

I think that me traveling overseas more and some foreigners coming here for worlds and stuff, it's really made people realize that we're not stuck up. People like they just kind of assume.

Carter Simoneaux: 40:57

Oh fat America, exactly.

Sullivan Rue: 41:02

But it's definitely been cleared up for the most part.

Carter Simoneaux: 41:05

I bet we got some units though playing foosball.

Sullivan Rue: 41:08

And we have like those Mississippi players. They are intense and I could see why they would look super mean from the perspective of someone that is not.

Carter Simoneaux: 41:19

Well, they have a way to find or something.

Sullivan Rue: 41:20

Yeah, oh yeah, and they're loud. They're really big Like super muscular. Hannah is my partner. She's from Mississippi. She's very loud, fiery. I love it, but they take it in their way. That's kind of disrespectful.

Carter Simoneaux: 41:34

I was supposed to be like a gentleman's game or something. It's foosball.

Sullivan Rue: 41:37

Yeah, we're loud in the States. Okay, overseas they're loud too, but they're kind of I don't know. I think they just take it as a I don't know an insult. But I think we've cleared that up, because people even took me as a rude person, which really Offended me, and I was so shocked about it, like going overseas for the first time and A lot of girls mocking me and how I'm chewing my gum and how I shoot my shot, and I'm like what's going on. Guys, I'm nice, I promise trying to break it down.

Carter Simoneaux: 42:09

Yeah, all you can do to the champ is this is this needle, needle?

Sullivan Rue: 42:13

And I noticed that when I start winning I'm getting haters. I'm like I'm the nicest girl guy.

Carter Simoneaux: 42:17

Bring him on. Yeah, I'm on silly.

Sullivan Rue: 42:19

No, no, I'm good, I'm good, I'm the shark now, not the orca anymore.

Carter Simoneaux: 42:24

Love. That that's. You got that killer instinct in you when you're not playing with your food, which you're what you're, apparently you're a one to do. So do you see? I mean, you said that the World Cup is always overseas. What does it take for the World Cup to come to America?

Sullivan Rue: 42:38

I guess we have more access overseas to bigger stadiums, like the place that World Cup is held is huge, like tons of bleachers up and down, different rooms for different type of players, just like a big stadium, and maybe we need more access to that here. It also just be difficult, like I said, because all of them would have to fly here, rather than you, a team, usa flying, and like Costa Rica and this, and that I feel like it's less people from here having to go there. So maybe that has to do with it.

Carter Simoneaux: 43:12

Have you talked to you L about any sort of club or anything like that? Is there one? No, there's not.

Sullivan Rue: 43:17

I feel like we could start one and actually how I was mentioning I never had anyone my age as a little girl, someone from Lafayette she started playing. Her dad always played. I knew him, her name's Isabelle and she's one of my best friends. Now she's 18, 19 and she goes to you well, so I feel like we can bring up some, some ideas.

Carter Simoneaux: 43:40

Yeah, absolutely, there's definitely a space for it yeah where do you think Home base would be For a UL team or just a club?

Sullivan Rue: 43:49

I don't know not the bulldog not the bulldog.

Carter Simoneaux: 43:52

Sorry, Mary.

Sullivan Rue: 43:53

Nobody get any ideas, please. I don't know, max is gonna be a good one. Honestly, we've got like four tables in there right Max's yeah obviously my house, but I live in Crowley so it's kind of a drive. But yeah, Like we could work something out.

Carter Simoneaux: 44:07

I just want to see more. I want to see more foosball around here. I want to go to some events.

Sullivan Rue: 44:11

Yeah, what's pretty cool is that we have several top players my dad world champion, my mom world champion, me. We have Brandon Munoz from Costa Rica, who's living here now world champion, current world champion Isabelle. She's an up-and-coming player. Me and her one Nationals this year. She'll be a world champion soon enough for sure. We have other top players in Louisiana, tons of players in New Orleans, tons of world champions and other Events like expert pro. We have local tournaments with a good turnout every week and we also have tournaments in New Orleans like a Louisiana State coming up next month, which is gonna be big where they do it in New Orleans.

Carter Simoneaux: 44:53

I just go gotta look at the email, yeah.

Sullivan Rue: 44:55

I just go.

Carter Simoneaux: 44:56

What would be your advice to someone who maybe there's a young girl or guy watching this or sees us? She's a clip, or hears a clip, and they're like you know what I I didn't realize this through a whole world of foosball existed and I've always really enjoyed playing. What would be your advice to them?

Sullivan Rue: 45:11

is just a step out. I feel like it can be intimidating to go on tour. I feel like I hear a lot of people, even new players, that go there kind of intimidated by, let's say, if they're a girl, they're intimidated by the top women players, same for guys. It's scary, you don't want to go up to them. But foosball is different than any other sport in the way that beginners can communicate with the number one player in the world and they will. Top players aren't gonna discriminate and they're not gonna be rude. We're gonna help and we're gonna talk and we're best friends with new players. It's not like if you're not a top player you can't hang out with us, you can't right.

Sullivan Rue: 45:51

It's not like that at all. We're all Intertigned and all super nice to each other, so we love new players. And you know, let's say, you come to a tournament and you're worried, nobody's gonna talk to you. Everyone's gonna talk to you, everyone's gonna say hey, come here, let me give you a tip, let me show you something. So I think you just really have to get out there and go get that over with, rip the band-aid off and then from there you're hooked.

Carter Simoneaux: 46:17

Yeah, cuz the top players, I mean you guys, are incentivized. There's an incentive to, you know, talking to the young players and growing the game because at the end of the day, that the Bigger the game is, the bigger the pot.

Carter Simoneaux: 46:27

Yeah and I bet you know having like some access to like ESPN, as it has helped with that as well. I mean, I've seen like the professional cornhole championship. They've got that down which I and which is electric, so I would love to see a broadcast of a food ball. They're doing darts too, like the bar games are coming.

Sullivan Rue: 46:47

We're just missing foosball, but we have inside foods, calm, which if any of y'all want to go watch it, you can subscribe and you can watch live. So my tournament next month, if I'm playing on table one, you can watch and watch me live. Or you can pull up any film ever filmed by inside foos. You can watch 1970 worlds. I mean it's fun to do for us. Like my friends come over, my foosball friends come over, will watch some super old film. Or like look at my dad when he was a beginner. It's hilarious, but it's also good for studying, for strategy. Like I said, I watched my world's final yesterday. You just have access to everything Ever filmed and we have Jim Stevens, the best commentator. It's it's just like another sport. We have commentation, we have this and that. It's just not on TV.

Carter Simoneaux: 47:34

So I mean, are you guys at the point yet where the commentators you have, like former foosball players, coming in and giving the Color commentator? You did that nice.

Sullivan Rue: 47:42

Yeah, I like to go in sometimes, yeah cuz.

Carter Simoneaux: 47:44

I was noticing whenever we were, you were watching the video and you were kind of talking over exactly what's happening, play by play. I was like, oh damn, she's on.

Sullivan Rue: 47:51

Yeah, sorry.

Carter Simoneaux: 47:51

No, it's good Perfect.

Sullivan Rue: 47:52

But we do that a lot, or even some of my interviews will just have a you know, one of my matches up on screen and I'll start talking about it, but live During the tournament. They have an inside foos booth and that's where they're sitting and they'll. They'll say, hey, come up, just let's do this match. So put on my headphones and talk about it. You kind of just follow along what's going on and talk about it.

Carter Simoneaux: 48:15

What happens when the when the ball is just at a precise location on the table that it just can't be touched?

Sullivan Rue: 48:22

Yeah, so area. Usually, if it's in the goalie area or like it's not touching the goalie barely, it'll go to that side of the goalie. If it's in the middle of the table and it can't be touched, it goes to Whoever didn't score last. So like if I let's say I get the ball, I have it on the five bar and I lose it and it's in the middle, I get it again. Mmm cuz, I didn't score last.

Carter Simoneaux: 48:45

Oh, okay.

Sullivan Rue: 48:45

Yeah, so if you score, I get the ball in five.

Carter Simoneaux: 48:48

What about off table?

Sullivan Rue: 48:50

It flies off the table. It depends.

Carter Simoneaux: 48:51

You have refs.

Sullivan Rue: 48:53

Yeah, if we want a ref, we'll get one. For finals you typically get a ref and, like me and Hannah, we don't need a ref. But there are certain times are such thing as a jar, whenever you're fighting for it and you may bump the table and they lose the ball. I Trust Hannah enough and she trusts me, that if one of us does that accidentally, I'm gonna give you bet the ball and that happened twice in our match, not on purpose, but I had it on my three bar. She bumped the wall, I lost it. She's like here Doesn't matter, if it's four, four, we're gonna give the ball back, but other people not so much. There's kind of known people to be cheaters or maybe pull a point or you know dirty Snaky.

Sullivan Rue: 49:30

So there are certain people. I will always get a ref, one every single time. Okay yeah, and there's refs for jars and they'll put their hand on the table and feel for the bumping, or there's times there the ref takes time because each particular ride you have a time limit.

Carter Simoneaux: 49:47

So you mean you mentioned that like sneakily, like throwing a point your way as a way to cheat what's, what's another like under the radar.

Sullivan Rue: 49:55

You can take the drop. Let's say you scored last. It should be my ball. You can maybe see it if I'm paying attention and you up to yourself.

John Aiken: 50:04

Mmm.

Sullivan Rue: 50:04

I mean just jarring the ball off on purpose. Like I said, me and Hannah, we did it to each other on accident. I'm fighting and I hit the wall, but some people, when you have it, they'll be bumping the wall kind of quietly. Pro jar is what we call it as a joke. Pro jar because you can't tell they're doing it in a way that you can't tell that they're doing it but for some reason you're losing the ball. And that's how I can tell because, like I said, I was so consistent with my practicing that if I'm not tic-tac-ing the ball correctly and I'm losing it and I'm like what's going on, that's what's happening.

Carter Simoneaux: 50:36

So I have a. I've got a buddy who is probably the most competitive human being I've ever met in my life. His name is Jake Argus Shout out Jake. His little sister, lindsay, plays softball college softball but like really competitive family, they're always doing games, whatnot? I want to put him in a game against you to just shut him up. Can you do that for me?

Sullivan Rue: 50:56

Yes, 100% yes.

Carter Simoneaux: 50:57

Okay, I have this idea for some new content. I called uh, no one take this, uh called Carter Kant, which essentially like almost like a dirty jobs, but not necessarily a dirty job. But I go out and I do something like I go be a professional football player for a day or whatever like that, and just fail miserably at said task. So I would love, down the road when I get that thing going uh, hit you back up 100%.

Sullivan Rue: 51:22

We can do like a one of our Lafayette tournaments. Bring you there.

Carter Simoneaux: 51:24

Perfect, but I want to get Jake to come within the videos and just watch. You just smack the shit out of her yeah. Okay, so before we get going, um, give me, uh, is there a name for foosball fans?

Sullivan Rue: 51:37

A name for foosball fans.

Carter Simoneaux: 51:38

Yeah, there's like a nickname for foosball fans. No Foozies.

Sullivan Rue: 51:41

Yeah, foozies, yeah, I'm calling that foosballers, whatever.

Carter Simoneaux: 51:43

Okay, foozballers, foozies, I like foosies. Um, uh, actually foosies sounds like like a groupie. Yeah. A foosball group. Are there foosball groupies? That are just people, people hanging around.

Sullivan Rue: 51:56

They're like come all together. Well, not so much anymore, but they'll all ride together in a van and like pull up to all of the tournaments, drive to everything.

Carter Simoneaux: 52:03

How deep do you roll? How deep do I roll?

Sullivan Rue: 52:06

Gosh, I don't know.

Carter Simoneaux: 52:08

Just you and your family and our partner. I'll go by myself, sometimes leveling up here, flying by myself, but I mean have you been able to take any friends or family who are not really in this world to any of these?

Sullivan Rue: 52:21

Yeah. So what is really cool is that my dad's mom has actually seen me win all of my world titles and she got to come to France with us my aunt and my cousin. They flew over with us to France this well, not this past summer, but the one before, and then the Spain World Cup the year before that. So I think they're hooked on coming, like next World Cup they're coming and they come watch, and it's funny actually to watch new people come because they're standing back there like biting their nails, so scared, so nervous, cheering. It's super exciting and I feel like it's a culture shock almost coming to World Cup especially and seeing all of these people so excited about this bar game and so thrilled and so much passion, because really people are so passionate about it, including myself, that I mean losing it's not oh, it's okay, it's just a game. No, it's really tough to lose.

Carter Simoneaux: 53:21

Yeah, I bet I put a lot into it.

Sullivan Rue: 53:23

Exactly.

Carter Simoneaux: 53:24

You mentioned that in the next month you got competition and then you're also in nursing school. But like, what does the future for you look like? Do you have any goals that you want to hit before you hang it up, or is this something that's going to be in your life forever?

Sullivan Rue: 53:37

Oh yeah, 100% Okay, I'll never stop playing, I think, if I but you already hit so many milestones already.

Carter Simoneaux: 53:44

What's next?

Sullivan Rue: 53:45

So it's interesting because I feel like you're saying I've hit so many milestones at tournaments I could win three or four events and I'm like I still want it to do something better and it's kind of good and bad to have that mindset.

Carter Simoneaux: 54:01

Yeah, drive.

Sullivan Rue: 54:02

Yeah, I mean, it's why I do so well, but I feel like some more things is winning the open doubles and the men's. Like I said, I've took two seconds so close and after my first loss I was so heartbroken, like only able to talk about it up until recently because it's just so upsetting and so many people want to ask me about it and it's like I just really don't want to talk because I know I'm capable of doing these things. But an open men's category for me to get there was already such a big deal and you have to be perfect. In women's I can get away with mistakes, but in this you have to be perfect. And what are the odds that you're going to beat five top men's teams in a row?

Sullivan Rue: 54:46

On this particular occasion I was heartbroken, thinking what are the odds this is ever going to happen again and I'm ever going to have a chance again, and I did so. Now I'm confident that I can win and I think that's my next goal, along with obviously maybe winning a separate table world title, which I think will come once I'm out of school. So the goal now is finished school. Then I can do more overseas travel and start weighing and knocking those off the shelf.

Sullivan Rue: 55:14

I wonder if you could parlay being a travel nurse somehow, and to no, I think I can, because you can take even as little as two weeks and I can go to Texas and play Texas State there or whatever. It is Nice yeah.

Carter Simoneaux: 55:26

Okay, well, so for people who are interested in this world, and you, what's the best way to kind of follow your? Is it social media?

Sullivan Rue: 55:35

Yeah, I mean you can always. If anyone has questions about anything, just ask me. Like I said, I'm so passionate about this I love to talk about it. Like I told you, I could talk about it all day, always here to answer questions. Yeah, you can follow social media because I'm always updating about my foosball and stuff. Like I said, inside foos you can watch anything you want. You can watch the top men players, you can watch Frederique, you can watch me, my dad, whoever you want. I think those are the best things.

Carter Simoneaux: 56:04

Yeah, you've got a lot of content on your Instagram page.

Sullivan Rue: 56:05

Yes, I do a lot of foosball.

Carter Simoneaux: 56:07

What's that handle?

Sullivan Rue: 56:08

Sully underscore Rue.

Carter Simoneaux: 56:09

At Sully underscore Rue.

Sullivan Rue: 56:11

Yes, sully with an I, because everyone spells it with a Y.

Carter Simoneaux: 56:15

With an I folks. There is an I and Win. She is a winner. Thank you so much for joining us. Is there anything that's you know maybe I didn't do a good enough job as an interviewer asking you about or that you wanted to share with us today?

Sullivan Rue: 56:29

No, I think you did great, thank you.

Carter Simoneaux: 56:32

Thank you. When you're not at the hospital or Wharton Hall or a foosball tournament, what are you doing? What are you doing around town?

Sullivan Rue: 56:40

I hang out with my family a lot. Like I said, love my family and I'm a baby and I can't leave. I like to go out, I like to dance, I like to draw.

Carter Simoneaux: 56:51

Where are we going dancing?

Sullivan Rue: 56:52

It depends. I used to teach dance but I'm not able to because of school.

Carter Simoneaux: 56:56

When you talking about like club dancing?

Sullivan Rue: 56:58

Oh yeah, that's what I do like if I can go out on the weekend.

Carter Simoneaux: 57:01

Going to the office.

Sullivan Rue: 57:02

I'm going, yeah, I'm going to the office. Surprisingly enough, I don't drink, but okay during the summer, I'm there every weekend.

Carter Simoneaux: 57:08

I don't know how long I can sit at the office without drinking. No offense to you guys, but yeah, that's a tough scene, but good on you for being able to do that. So thank you once again for joining us, excited to see how you do next month. And you got to let us know and we'll share your stuff and follow your journey and then, like I said, I'll reach back out to you and see how we can make some cool foosball content for Katie and Cass.

Carter Simoneaux: 57:36

As we end every episode. You can take a look at your solo cam right here, yep, and it could be a word, a phrase, advice, a quick story, it could be whatever you want to kind of end the episode with for all the folks in Acadiana and internet land out. There you get the floor.

Sullivan Rue: 57:54

Hey, I would just say to give foosball a shot. I think a lot of people want to get out there and just don't, because they don't really know where to start. Like I said, you can ask me anything. We have so many players everywhere. We just don't many people just don't know. So don't be afraid to try something new, because it's super fun, it can be a hobby for you, it can be your job, you can travel everywhere in the world. The only reason I've traveled out of country is because of foosball, so I feel like this is a perfect opportunity to do different things like that and meet a bunch of different people, have great opportunities outside of foosball as well.

Carter Simoneaux: 58:31

So foosball is not the devil.

Sullivan Rue: 58:33

No, it's not the devil.

Carter Simoneaux: 58:37

Hey, thanks for tuning in to the show. Since you made it this far, mind as well, give us a like, a follow, a subscribe. You know whatever you gotta do to alert you that there's a new episode out. Look, it helps us grow and it allows us to give you the content that, well, you deserve. If you want to be a sponsor, if you want to be a guest, if you just want to berate me, hey, all goes in the same place. Info at akadienakastcom.

Carter Simoneaux: 59:01

Email info at akadienakastcom and for more locally sourced podcasts, go to akadienakastcom. Bye.