One of the biggest concerns in going off to college and finally being on your own is finding the people you will befriend.
All of your hometown friends go off to different schools, and you have to learn how to survive in a social environment you are not used to. For your average student who is not part of a club, RSO, sports team, etc., meeting new people can be very overwhelming and intimidating.
Out of all the different opportunities that Ferris provides for their students. One particularly great way to put yourself out there and meet new people while having fun at the same time? Intramural Sports.
If you are a student on campus trying to find a way to meet new people and get involved, intramural sports are a great way to get out there in a fun social environment.
Justin Harden, the Assistant Director of Intramurals and Club Sports, elaborated on why intramural sports is such an excellent opportunity for students.
“I think it is a good, social environment — they come here, and there are a lot of people playing sports in the gym in our building at night,” Harden said. “We have anywhere from 600 to 700 people come through our building. It’s a great social experiment, they get to hang out with friends, meet new people and they just really enjoy it. You get to forget about that class load and that exam coming up and kind of just have fun and enjoy being around people.”
We all know the stress of being a college student. You have an exam on Thursday, a paper due the following week, and a speech after that. This allows you to put all that behind you for a couple of hours on a weeknight and have some fun with some friends. If you are wondering if you fit the description, this message may help you out.
“We provide these sports for a chance for students … to continue to play sports they have been playing their whole life,” Harden said. “Maybe they’re not good enough to play at the college level, but they still want to continue to compete in a way that is not just a pick-up game. So we offer different sports like basketball, football, slow-pitch softball, soccer.”
“It allows them to keep playing those sports when they come here at a little more competitive level than a pick-up game. We keep score have officials’ things like that,” Harden said.
If you are tired of just playing pick-up games or one on one with your buddy, intramural sports is a way you can play the games you played growing up and in high school with a real team, refs and scorekeeping. They keep track of your record and play playoff and championship games.
Ferris senior Jared Ozella has been participating in Intramurals for four years.
“When I first started here freshman year, I really wanted to continue playing sports after high school. Bunch of my friends got together and thought about ways we could do something,” Ozella said. “We found intramural through the rec and started playing basketball and flag football and just kept playing all four years now. It is a mix of everything; you get to play sports less competitively then high school or at the collegiate level. So, it’s less pressure, and you get to spend time with friends but still participate in sports that you enjoy.”
This spring, they are offering leagues in basketball, floor hockey, soccer, cornhole, volleyball and broomball. You can have teams that consist of just men, just women, co-ed, with your fraternity or sorority. Last you can also team up and play with the Area 5 Special Olympic athletes as well. They also offer tournaments, which include softball, wiffle Ball, indoor flag football, table tennis and euchre.
So, if you are looking for new ways to meet new people this spring and want to stay connected with the sports you played growing up, check out Intramural Sports at the Ferris State Rec Facility.