As the school year approaches, so too does the start of the intramural season. Signups for flag football, water polo, individual tennis, and table tennis take place August 28th-September 5th so make sure you get ready. In that spirit we visited with T.J. Peele who will be intramurals coordinator for the fifth year. Here are some things to know:

Everybody does it…
While no specific numbers exist on what percentage of the student body participates in IM contests, there were 7,765 participants in the various sports throughout the last year (with some people obviously playing more than one sport). That meant that 2,144 games were played last year.

If you want to win…
Play in the right league for you. If this is your first time, you should probably try playing in the lowest level available (c league or freshman leagues) in part because IM rules take some getting used to. Peele advises that the reading the rulebook helps avoid many early mistakes, and said, "The first week is not only training referees, but the players too."
We recommend you try one of the less popular sports winning a championship in Flag Football with over a hundred teams entered will be more difficult than water polo which typically fields 12-15 teams.

Team Names
Be creative. Freshman hall names have all been done, said Peele. "They think they're being original, but they're not." Bostwick/Babcock Bombers he's looking at you. Among T.J.'s favorites were softball team The Bloody Sock and dodgeball team "Do it for Patches". Bonus points if you can make it sound dirty.
Good Examples: Wilt's Illegitimate Children, Ball Bashers, Funky Buttloving…
Bad Examples: The Bab….cocks!; anything that starts "The team formerly known as…" ; and Team We Rock! (or anything with an exclamation point)

In case of rain
In the event of cancellations, each team's captain will be notified. They will then disseminate that information to their team. Also, this year, you can look at The Student sports page and we will post cancellations under our "Notifications" section as soon as it is decided.

There are no team size limits
For football, you need at least 7 people, but Peele recommends 12-13 people to allow for scheduling conflicts and injuries. Put as many people as you'd like on the team, but remember you can only sign up for one team per sport (although you can do both a single-sex team and a co-rec team for a single sport). Girls are eligible for Men's League teams, but not vice versa.

When does ultimate frisbee start?
Not this year. Peele would be happy to add it, but needs more resources in order to get additional sports off the ground. "There are schools that are three times our size that don't have the participation we do."
Currently, Wake offers in addition to the events already mentioned, soccer, volleyball, and dodgeball in the Fall (sign-ups don't start until later in the semester) as well as basketball, indoor soccer, bowling, softball, racquetball, and team tennis in the spring. Golf tournaments occur somewhat sporadically throughout both semesters. Talk to Peele if you have an event that you'd like to add.

Referee?
Do you crave the whistle of power? Beautiful, corrupting power? If so, good referees are always at a premium. All you need to do is show up to work and try. Being blind, apparently, is not required in intramurals, "Only in the ACC," said Peele. Training starts Monday, September 10th. Email Peele (he's listed) if you have additional questions.

Don't be Rasheed Wallace
The referees try. Really. Plus, it's always awkward sitting in Chem next to the kid you cursed at for forty minutes. Also, you get graded by the refs on sportsmanship, and if you don't have a B-average, then you are not playoff eligible. However, barring someone on your team pulling a Ron Artest, you are unlikely to get disqualified. In his five years, Peele has only blocked 5 teams from playoff participation.


Will I play football against Josh Adams?
Only if you are willing to put on pads and get hit very, very hard. Varsity players can't compete in IMs in their own sport, but are eligible to compete in the top divisions of any other sport. Every now and then, however, a red-shirted football sneaks into an IM contest. It tends to make for a good story.

What if I can't make our weekly game time?
You're out of luck. Teams submit their eligible times to the IM office, and every effort is made to ensure teams can play in a time they choose. Still, with the large number of teams and limited number of fields, it is sometimes impossible to ensure that all teams get their first pick. This is one reason teams should carry extra players. In addition, playoff games occur outside of the regular time slots, so there may be a chance to participate later on.

Official IM homepage: http://www.wfu.edu/intramural/