Education Quote by Natalie Gulbis

Nostalgia is doing double duty here: it reads like a casual homecoming line, but it’s also a small, savvy act of brand maintenance. Natalie Gulbis isn’t just saying she enjoyed revisiting her college town; she’s reinforcing a lineage. By naming “the new Wildcat players,” she places herself inside an ongoing program story, not a completed personal chapter. That’s a subtle flex athletes often learn: legitimacy isn’t only about what you did, it’s about staying tethered to the pipeline that keeps producing the next you.

The quote’s intent is public-facing warmth. “It’s fun” keeps it light, accessible, and non-threatening; it signals goodwill rather than ego. The subtext, though, is about continuity and belonging. Coming back “to the town where I went to school” suggests roots and gratitude, a counterweight to the itinerant, sponsorship-driven reality of pro sports. She’s making the return feel organic, like she’s still part of the community, not just a name on a media guide.

Context matters: for women’s sports especially, institutional ties can be a crucial amplifier. Collegiate identity provides a ready-made audience, a reason for local press to care, a way to be legible beyond leaderboard moments. “See all the new” also carries a faint note of time passing, but it’s framed as delight, not loss. She’s positioning the next generation as a source of energy, and herself as a welcome bridge between eras.