The University of Alabama is widely known for its national championship athletics program, Saturday nights under the lights at Bryant-Denny Stadium and Sunday afternoons at the Sewell-Thomas baseball field.
But something that is also widely loved in the hearts of students at the Capstone is all the intramural sports that University Recreation provides for clubs, teams and anyone who is interested in staying active through athletics.
Whether it’s softball, flag football, ultimate or basketball, many students participate in these sports year-round.
Senior accounting major Josh Oakman, who has played over six intramural sports during his time at the Capstone, said he originally got involved through his friends.
“My friends played them, and I played high school sports with a team and wanted to keep this trend going because I missed it,” Oakman said. “They are extremely fun, and I get to do them with my friends.”
Oakman, who has played everything from volleyball to Spikeball, will be playing in the newly formed pickleball league this fall. While the sports offered change from semester to semester, this fall marks the first time that the intramurals program is adding the quickly growing sport to its schedule.
Although intramurals are very student dominated, the sports are also available to faculty and full-time staff, as well as spouses of these UA personnel, with the purchase of a membership.
There are many different sports to be played at Alabama, including flag football, ultimate, soccer, basketball, softball, indoor soccer and volleyball. Some of these sports take place in the fall semester, while the others are during the spring. The University offers different teams that consist of co-recreational and gender-specific options for different sports.
While the most traditional method of signing up for intramurals is by forming a team through a club or independently, there is also a free agent option. Individuals can sign up for intramurals through UREC’s online registration system, and team captains will invite them to their team if they have roster spots available. Unfortunately, roster spots are not guaranteed for free agents.
Intramurals are diverse and offer many different opportunities to make friends but also present the chance to compete at a competitive level with other athletes.
Sophomore business major Emily Onofry has a different approach to intramurals.
“I do it because I miss playing softball,” Onofry said. “It’s just something fun to get involved in during the spring since there isn’t much going on during the spring semester because it’s not football season.”
Many students who miss the fun and competition of high school sports fall in love very quickly with intramurals. Some play on different teams that might not be as competitive but are still very fun.
The sports options vary depending on the different types of leagues they are in. There will be men’s, women’s, co-rec and fraternity leagues. Ultimate will offer men’s and co-rec leagues. Volleyball teams can be men’s, women’s and co-rec. All other leagues will be “open,” meaning any participant regardless of gender can participate among each other.
For those who want to be involved with intramurals but don’t want to play, University Recreation hires and trains students to be the officials who regulate the semester’s sports. No experience is necessary, but those who are interested must attend the training session for the sport they are interested in officiating.
Junior engineering major Colton Hollingsworth plays a few different sports for reasons similar to Oakman and Onofry.
“It’s a great way to continue to be active as well as have fun with a sense of competition,” Hollingsworth said.
Tournament intramural sports include Spikeball, floor hockey and 3v3 basketball. Major league sports include flag football, pickleball, 11v11 soccer, ultimate and volleyball. The schedules and registration forms can be found on the University Recreation website.
Tournaments
Spikeball: Registration Aug. 30-Sept. 13. Tournament Sept. 15 at the Student Recreation Center Fields.
Floor hockey: Registration Sept. 20-Oct. 2. Tournament Oct. 5-6 at the Witt Center Multi-Activity Court.
3v3 basketball: Registration Oct. 25-Nov. 7. Tournament Nov. 9-10 at the Witt Center Basketball Courts.
Major league sports
Flag football: Registration Aug. 23-Sept. 6. Season starts Sept. 10 at the SRC Fields.
Pickleball: Registration Sept. 6-20. Season starts Sept. 24 at the Parker-Haun Tennis Facility.
11v11 Soccer: Registration Aug. 30-Sept. 13. Season starts Sept. 17 at the SRC Fields.
Ultimate: Registration Aug. 23-Sept. 6. Season starts Sept. 10 at the SRC Fields.
Volleyball: Registration Sept. 20-Oct. 11. Season starts Oct. 15 at the SRC South Gym Courts.
To get involved, all you need to do is find a sport you are interested in playing and join or create a team. Once you do, you can visit the intramural website and sign yourself up.
