Spring Break
They are Champs
A look at the weekend warriors of Intramural football
Adena Andrews
Issue date: 11/29/06 Section: Sports
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For those high school stars that weren't good enough to make a Division I team or just didn't have the confidence to try out, Intramural Sports is the place for you.
On any given Sunday you can find teams on the Howard Jones practice field ready for some football. Wide receiver for this years undefeated championship team Fikayo Babatunde, is just one of the many players out early on Sundary morning.
During practice he demonstrates his speed by catching a long pass from his roommate Ashton.
"Nice speed Fi," his coach Ricky Collins said.
"Just like in high school baby" Babatunde said.
"It's just fun to compete to go out there with your friends and have a good time and stay active," said Babatunde
His captain Ricky Collins is the epitome of the spirit of jest that surrounds the IM flag football league. He is a loud mouth who makes his impact from the sidelines. During the opening play Collins jokes with his team saying, "What was that? Did you let them complete a pass? You guys suck."
After that comment his players suggest that he get in the game instead of talking trash from the sidelines.
"Man if I play now it won't be fair," Collins said " We're too good that's why the other team didn't show up"
On days when his team is not playing, Collins is also a referee.
There is no such thing as conflict of interest in IM flag football.
"The best thing about IM football is that we don't take things too seriously," Ashton Ajayi, senior at USC.
The premise of flag-football is the same as the varsity sport, but there are additions to the game that make it more fun and at times even more challenging.
One of the challenges in intramural is the something I like to call the f*** factor. In IM flag football players are not allowed to curse. If they are caught cursing by a referee they are giving a warning and the second time they are thrown out of the game. Many games have been lost due to star players being eliminated due to an f-bomb.
On any given Sunday you can find teams on the Howard Jones practice field ready for some football. Wide receiver for this years undefeated championship team Fikayo Babatunde, is just one of the many players out early on Sundary morning.
During practice he demonstrates his speed by catching a long pass from his roommate Ashton.
"Nice speed Fi," his coach Ricky Collins said.
"Just like in high school baby" Babatunde said.
"It's just fun to compete to go out there with your friends and have a good time and stay active," said Babatunde
His captain Ricky Collins is the epitome of the spirit of jest that surrounds the IM flag football league. He is a loud mouth who makes his impact from the sidelines. During the opening play Collins jokes with his team saying, "What was that? Did you let them complete a pass? You guys suck."
After that comment his players suggest that he get in the game instead of talking trash from the sidelines.
"Man if I play now it won't be fair," Collins said " We're too good that's why the other team didn't show up"
On days when his team is not playing, Collins is also a referee.
There is no such thing as conflict of interest in IM flag football.
"The best thing about IM football is that we don't take things too seriously," Ashton Ajayi, senior at USC.
The premise of flag-football is the same as the varsity sport, but there are additions to the game that make it more fun and at times even more challenging.
One of the challenges in intramural is the something I like to call the f*** factor. In IM flag football players are not allowed to curse. If they are caught cursing by a referee they are giving a warning and the second time they are thrown out of the game. Many games have been lost due to star players being eliminated due to an f-bomb.
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