Here at UCLA we boast an NCAA-record 100 national championships and a laundry list of legends in virtually every sport. From 1984 until 2004, UCLA had more Olympic gold medal winners than all but four countries. So it’s safe to say that we know something here about athletic competition. But, since not all of us can be five-star recruits, UCLA also offers extensive and highly competitive intramural and club sports programs.
While both programs are run through UCLA Recreation, there are some important differences between intramural sports and club sports. Intramurals, while competitive, put most of the emphasis on having fun. There are no tryouts, and the leagues are generally pretty relaxed. In effect, it’s an organized pick-up league. As an added bonus, certain intramural sports offer the opportunity to compete in some of UCLA’s most famous venues, including Pauley Pavilion, the Los Angeles Tennis Center and Drake Stadium. There’s no shortage of players either, as UCLA Recreation estimates that last year approximately 16,000 students played on over 2,200 intramural sports teams.
On the other hand, club sports are generally more structured and competitive, with each club having elected officers, fundraisers and weekly meetings. The level of competition is higher in club sports, and many of the participants are former high school athletes looking for a chance to keep playing without the pressures of being a Division I athlete. There are tryouts (at least for some A-level teams), multiple weekly practices, and the teams compete against other colleges within the area, state, and even around the country.
Part of the appeal of the intramural and club programs is that the wide variety of sports offers something for everybody. Of course, there are traditional sports such as basketball, football and volleyball. UCLA also offers less-mainstream sports such as archery, badminton, dodgeball and ultimate frisbee. Each quarter there are usually at least half a dozen different sports playing, with several open tournaments to participate in throughout the year.
UCLA even hosted an archery tournament in May 2006. The team earned a bronze medal in the division of men’s recurve. Archery tournaments are broken down into four different categories: men’s and women’s recurve, and men’s and women’s compound.
Here are two popular intramural and club programs at a glance:
Intramural basketball
One of the most popular intramural sports, and reasonably so: this is UCLA, a school rich in basketball tradition. There are a number of different levels, and both same-sex and coed leagues. The men’s league is divided into A, B and C levels, with the A level being the most competitive and C being the most relaxed. There’s one final perk to playing intramural basketball: Tournament championship games are played at the center of the UCLA sports universe, on the Nell and John Wooden Court inside Pauley Pavilion.
Smaug Ultimate
Ultimate is very popular throughout UCLA, and nightly it’s easy to find students escaping their studies by tossing a disc on and around campus. But, Smaug isn’t exactly playing the same Ultimate Frisbee you may remember from middle school P.E. One of UCLA’s largest club sports takes the game very seriously. They practice three times a week, have weekly conditioning practice, and are expected to lift independently. So far their work seems to be paying off, as they have never lost to crosstown rival USC in any major competition and currently hold a 15-2 record overall against the Trojans.
Looking to sign up? For intramural teams, all the necessary forms and fees can be handled at the Intramural Sports Clubhouse in the Wooden Center. There’s also a free agent list where you can sign up to be placed on a team if you don’t have one of your own. Club teams handle their own fees and tryouts, so it’s best to just contact their president directly. Information for doing so can also be found at the Wooden Center.