Like any other freshmen, Cal water polo players Ivan Rackov and Luka Saponjic are nostalgic for some good home-cooked food.

They have already circled December 20-the day they fly back to their homes in Belgrade, Serbia. The plan is to immediately head from the airport to a Serbian eatery where they will order punjena pljeskavica-a meat patty stuffed with, well, more meat.

Meanwhile, the pair have taken a liking to the American delicacy of doughnut. Liking might be a weak word, actually. Try obsessed.

Only three weeks into life at Cal, they rely on trips to the Golden Bear Cafe and King Pin Donuts to feed their unhealthy cravings. They estimate that, over the course of the week, they each consume at least 14 doughnuts.

"In Serbia they can't make it like they do here," says Rackov. "The guys from the team told me you can eat whatever you want because practice here is so hard ... You can jump in the pool and burn it off. Actually, I'm so tiny I need a little fat."

A few years ago, if you told Rackov and Saponjic that they would have unrestricted access to doughnuts they probably would have been surprised, though exceedingly happy.

The pair grew up in Belgrade, Serbia, and became good friends while playing for the youth team of the Partizan water polo club-one of the top clubs in Europe.

The decision to simply leave the club that they had spent more than half of their lives and move to the U.S. was a difficult one, as the top youth players on the club team are expected to sign professional contracts with Partizan after they finish high school.

And not only were they the best players on the club, they were considered to be the two best Serbian youths after their play at the last two European Youth Championships.

"In Serbia it's not popular to say that you're going to America to study," says Saponjic. "The coaches and staff raised you. They made a player of you, and then you leave them."

At the same time, these were precisely the reasons that helped Saponjic make his decision.

His entire life, he had a guiding hand helping him along the way; it was time for a change. He wanted to learn how to become independent.

"You leave everything. You come here and you're alone," says Saponjic. "That's why I came here. Because I wanted to come here and learn how to live alone by myself."

For Rackov the choice was easier. Even in Serbia, people have a lot of respect for a Cal graduate. That, coupled with a poor experience with Partizan, left him wanting something else.

"When you're young you have maybe a few times in a year when you have some tournaments on the weekend," says Rackov. "There was one year that I didn't even play in one game, so it was really tough for me."

In making the jump the players worked through Andrija Vasiljevic, a recent graduate of Cal and former member of Partizan. Vasiljevic is a trailblazer in the sense that while at Partizan he made direct contact with college coaches as opposed to working through agencies that set up foreign athletes with college scholarships.

"Their parents actually approached me telling me that their kids were interested in coming," Vasiljevic says. "We kept it on the down low so that people in Serbia wouldn't hear about it."

Vasiljevic notified Bears coach Kirk Everist about the players and that they would be making a trip to Long Beach, Calif., to play in the 2007 World Junior Championships. There, Everist must have seen enough. In no time at all both Rackov and Saponjic were offered spots on the team.

Due to the timing of the 2008 European Youth Championships, Rackov and Saponjic arrived on the Cal campus three weeks into the current semester and were immediately thrown into fray.

Not only did they have to immediately learn how to play in a totally new system, they had to adjust to the academic rigors of Berkeley. But Everist and Vasiljevic picked out a couple of classes-one on Slavic Languages and another on the history of Yugoslavia-that should, at the very least, reduce their number of all-nighters.

"We (take those courses) because we can speak a little in Serbian and a little in English," says Rackov.

The players do not, however, have the same liberty when it comes to playing water polo for Cal. Their late addition has, at times, left the team feeling confused as to where the ball is going or who is going to shoot it.

Nevertheless, the veterans on the team have spoken positively of the squad's potential once Rackov and Saponjic are fully integrated and on the same page as everyone else.

Last Saturday, during the Arizona State-Cal football game, the entire water polo team went onto the field during halftime as part of honoring last year's NCAA title winners during National Championship Week.

Both freshmen were taken aback by the sheer magnitude of standing in front of 50,000 cheering fans.

"When I saw the crowd, it was so crazy," says Rackov. "I can't describe it. I can't describe it."

Prior to the experience, Rackov and Saponjic had simple goals-get a college degree and make the Olympics in 2012. But afterwards, the freshmen felt more like Cal students than ever before, and are taking pride in being a part of a premier school.

No longer are they simply happy with doughnuts from King Pin. They want another one for their finger.

"I really want to get a ring," says Saponjic. "Especially this year."

Tags: TYSON ROSS