Intramurals bring healthy competition
This article has been read 273 times.
New school year prepares students to get competitive
Illustration by Tiarra Wantz
With only a small percentage of UNLV’s student body playing NCAA sports, the majority of students resort to intramurals to get their fix of competitive play. With almost 50 sports to choose from, there is no doubt any student can find their passion and have a chance to prove their dominance.
Sports range from team sports like seven-on-seven football and softball, to individual games like “Wii Sports” and chess.
“There are two different options for registration for intramural sports,” said Steven Thiele, program coordinator for Intramurals. “If you know enough people and can put together a team, come to the service desk at the [Student Recreation and Wellness Center] and pick up a registration form.”
The second option is a little more complicated. If you don’t have enough people to create a full team, you can sign up for the free agent process. Teams will be made aware of the free agents and if a team is in need, they can pick up whomever they want.
Thiele encourages free agents to go to the orientation meetings in an effort to meet captains and attempt to secure a spot on a team.
Another way a free agent can get on a team is by showing up at game time in hope that a team is lacking a player. But because teams pay to play, a team cannot be forced to pick up a free agent.
Registration is the same as last year, but instead of requiring a full roster upon sign-up, only the minimum number of players must be signed up. The rest of the team can sign up courtside prior to games.
“We’re trying to simplify the process a little bit more, trying to make sure there’s little confusion, especially for those groups that don’t know who’s playing from night to night,” Thiele said. “That way you don’t have to set your schedule right then and there, but rather when it’s time to play.”
There are two main differences between last year and this year. Ultimate frisbee is the only sport removed from the schedule and Free Day Fridays have been added.
Free Day Fridays feature picnic and backyard games like cornhole (bean bag toss) and ladder golf.
Winners receive a cup and Free Day Fridays will occur whenever there is an open Friday. The event will be held tomorrow and the following.
There are between 15 to 20 Free Day Fridays planned throughout the school year, with a finale featuring a water balloon contest, is scheduled for the last Friday of the school year, April 30.
Intramurals are continually ultra-competitive, as teams strive to win the Rebel Cup. There are typically three different groups that win: Intra-Fraternal Council Red, IFC Silver and Open league.
The Rebel Cup competition will not be free this year, as it has been in the past. The registration fee will be announced at the first orientation meeting.
Zeta Beta Tau has won Rebel Cup the past three years, once in Silver Division and twice with Red.
“I’m excited for the upcoming intramural year,” said ZBT member Mike Clarke. “There should be a lot of good competition like in previous years, but hopefully we’ll be able to keep our winning streak alive.”
Intramurals is seperated into three leagues: men, women and co-ed. Within those, there are conferences: greek, dorm and open. The different time slots in which they play determine their divisions, and a team plays strictly within division until playoffs.
The majority of games are played between 6 p.m. and midnight Monday through Thursday.
“We’re not necessarly giving teams as many games to play,” Thiele said. “The goal is to try and get a minimun of four, maybe five games for each one of our team sports.”
The biggest addition comes with the announcement of a sponsor.
“We’ve partnered with US Bank this year as a title sponsor for all of our championships,” Thiele said. “We’re trying to a create almost a [Bowl Championship Series]-type atmosphere where we have an intramural championship series sponsored by US Bank.”
The addition of a sponsorship will add to the competition that students crave.
Be on the lookout as intramurals will start soon. It is a great way to feed that competitive spirit and to stay in shape.
ON THE WEB:
UNLV Intramurals:
unlv.recsportal.net
EDITOR’S NOTE: Noam Amir-Brownstein is a member of Zeta Beta Tau.
