After a five-year hiatus, Albion College is kicking off the fall semester with a revitalized focus on student engagement through intramural sports. This semester, students can participate in disc golf, volleyball and flag football. Starting Oct. 2, pickleball will also be available to those interested.
Intramural sports are sports organized by a specific institution for the players to have fun and exercise.
According to Albion College’s Athletics page, the college has previously hosted clubs for canoeing, cycling and skiing activities.
Assistant Football and Defensive Line Coach Dennis “DJ” Rehberg, and Assistant Coach for Men’s and Women’s Tennis Alex Dowley both said they are excited about students participating in sports on campus. The coaches will not be “coaching” the intramurals, but they will be advising the sports.
Dowley said these programs provide “Non-Athlete Regular Persons (NARPs)” a chance to enjoy campus life, connect with others and escape the monotony of their dorm rooms.
Disc Golf
One of the new additions to Albion College’s intramural lineup is disc golf, a sport that blends traditional elements of golf with Frisbee.
Players aim to throw discs, or Frisbees, into cages replicating the golf holes. Games will take place at Victory Park, where players will play one round of 18 holes and keep track of their score with at least one other player.
Players have six days each week to record their scores for the week to report to Rehberg. This season spans six weeks, with the winner taking home a shirt as their trophy.
Dowley added that “A and B” divisions for different skill levels might be added to the season, one for experienced players and one for beginners.
“Right now, there’s two people who are going to win,” Dowley said. “Everyone else will be having fun.”
Beach Volleyball
Women’s and men’s beach volleyball will both play on the sand courts outside the Dow, on Sunday and Monday nights, respectively. For students to play they must form a team of four to seven.
“We’re going to try to put together a few special one-day tournaments that might fit into some people’s schedules that can’t do a whole season,” Rehberg said.
While Rehberg may not know much about volleyball specifically, he said, “If we have the facilities, let’s use them. Those beach courts are nice.”
Flag Football
Flag football brings the familiarity of American football to campus with a twist: instead of tackling, players pull flags to simulate a “tackle.” Each team will be made of at least six members, the games will be six-on-six and other members will allow for substitutions. The games will be played at Sprankel-Sprandel football stadium in a five-week season.
After playing the first game on Sunday, Kalamazoo junior, Brandon Lipson said his experience was “really fun.”
“It was really fun to get out there, it was a super nice day,” Lipson said. “It was good competition, good sport and well-run.”
Brayden Rowley, a Grand Haven Senior who played against Lipson’s team also added his experience playing flag football on campus.
“It’s a good opportunity, I think it’s good to just bond with your friends no matter what group you’re in,” Rowley said.
The Future of Intramural Sports
Rehberg said signups for intramural sports have been “somewhat low,” but he has hope for more once things get going.
“I think when we get into certain sports we will see participation increase, like when we get into basketball,” Rehberg said, adding that he hopes there will be a surge in participation after pickleball starts.
Students added on to the lack of participation, by wanting more signups for flag football.
“It’s just us versus one other team,” Rowley said. Lipson added on by saying, “I wish more teams would sign up.”
Rehberg said if student turnout improves, the college hopes to add more intramurals next semester.
Dowley said that Albion College will “throw darts at the wall until something sticks.”
“They’re open to everything,” Dowley said.
Editor’s Note – 11:52 a.m. Friday, Sept. 13 A quote was clarified to correctly define the term “NARPs” as “Non-Athlete Regular Persons.” The original publication of this article was at 9 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 13.
Aidan Shapiro also contributed reporting to this story.
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