Intramural regulars enliven competition year after year

Column by Joanie Barry

Barry is a junior radio-television and secondary education double major and can be reached at joan.barry@drake.edu

“The Beaver has an ID.” Many intramural regulars are not surprised to learn that Duff has started its intramural season with a bang. Anyone who does not understand that last statement may want to pay close attention to this article. Today we are going to talk about some favorite, regular teams who return year after year to intramural basketball, including Duff.

The Firm

Always fierce, the Firm shows the benefits of a few extra years in school. Some of the members on these teams started their undergraduate careers at Drake and continued on to law school. This extra experience has given them an edge in their intramural careers. In addition to their experience, these future lawyers know how to be aggressive. They go to school to learn how to win an argument. It is not surprising that they have an extra edge in any competition. Not to mention, they all seem to be at least six feet tall. I think it’s a conspiracy.

Old Guys

If the Firm has an edge on the competition because of its experience, these guys should be intramural champions for every sport. In the past few years there has always been a team made up of experienced Drake faculty. This team always gives everyone a run for his money. They may not move as quickly as freshmen, but they certainly know all the tricks of intramurals.  This is a team we have not seen around much this year. Hopefully, it will come out of retirement soon.

Any Sports Teams 

These are the teams that make other intramural contestants groan when they see the schedule. Many of Drake’s athletic teams play intramurals as a team bonding activity. Obviously, they cannot play their specific sport but their natural athleticism is lethal on any playing field. For example, the volleyball team won competitive basketball last year. It is hard to compete with their height and talent no matter what the sport. So, if you see a Drake athletic team on your schedule, I would recommend a few extra pushups before your game.

Duff 

Last, but certainly not least, is Duff. Duff is a basketball team comprised of FIJI men. Duff’s goal is not to win the coveted intramural championship shirt but to push the limit to every intramural rule. It is hard to describe Duff to anyone who hasn’t seen it in action. However, as I mentioned earlier, Duff returned to the Bell Center with vigor this season. This story sums up Duff pretty perfectly.

Anyone familiar with Duff knows its mascot, the Beaver. The Beaver is literally a stuffed beaver that accompanies Duff to all of its games and sometimes tries to make substitutions. A few years ago, the Beaver took the jump ball to start the game. However, a problem arose with the Beaver. All intramural contestants know no ID, no play. The rule applies to all players, including the stuffed variety. This year however, Duff threw a new one at us. They have an ID for the Beaver. It is a real Drake ID including a picture of the Beaver. According to our rules, if the person has an ID they can play, right? Unfortunately for Duff though, the point of the ID rule is to make sure people are students. It is pretty obvious that the Beaver was not a student.

That leads me to my rule of the week. Everyone knows no ID, no play. Now it feels necessary to say that the ID must contain a picture of an actual student. As always, stay safe and play ball.