Our current intramural system at Goshen College is broken. That might sound hyperbolic, but when 25 out of the 46 players in intramural futsal are collegiate soccer players, it feels like we may have lost the plot somewhere. And beyond that, 13 out of the remaining 21 are other collegiate-level athletes. So, only eight people on the original set of rosters are non-athletes. Part of the reason for this has been the changing rules for intramurals — especially the team sports.

In the past, there were almost always enough teams for both an A-league and a B-League, meaning there was some level of separation offered between those with lots of experience and those that just enjoy playing. Now, with dropping participation, the staff is forced to make concessions so that there will actually be enough teams to play. 

As things stand in futsal, each team is allowed six out of their seven players to be first team soccer players. In my opinion, this is completely unreasonable. The soccer players have an entire season and offseason to get to play at a high level, but some of us who really love the sport only get a few opportunities to play with our friends. Athletes don’t have anything to prove during intramurals, and this shouldn’t ruin everyone else’s experience. 

This critique is not directed at Chad Coleman and the intramural staff, but I do believe that they could be doing more to manage the crisis. The problem exists in other intramurals, but it is the most prevalent in futsal because it is one of the few intramurals in which athletes that play that sport collegiately are able to participate. 

As a result of this culture shift, tensions have also been rising. Most games, I am more worried about not getting caught between two men clashing than I am about getting the ball. So far this season, I have seen at least seven yellow cards, and just earlier this week, I had to physically separate one of my teammates from the student referee to diffuse the situation. 

Just Wednesday night, I took an elbow to the face while playing and multiple times had to check on teammates and opponents after they went to ground after a hard check. The refereeing has also been consistently soft, and I 100% understand why people are hesitant to want to play. I’m scared of getting hurt every time I get out on the court. 

While some of these problems could potentially be solved by structural adjustment, I do fear that a big part of the problem is also on students. I can respect that sports aren’t for everyone, but I find it somewhat hard to believe that we don’t have a few more students that could enjoy playing futsal, volleyball or even basketball for just a few hours over the course of the semester. 

My team this year makes up five out of the eight non-athletes playing, but we have won two out of four games this year. When discussing our frankly unexpected success, Vaughn Smoker aptly said after our most recent game, “It’s the power of friendship!”

When you think about it, intramurals have a lot going for them — healthy competition, good exercise and a great chance to build some comradery with your friends. So next year, maybe consider at least a double take on the intramural poster, or think about what sports you might actually want to play. Maybe, if enough people ask Chad Coleman, intramural archery can make a comeback.