The ETSU intramural soccer playoffs are in full swing this week.
All divisions have either begun playoff games or finished their season by crowning a champion.
All four teams of the women’s division squared off Monday with the Grass Kickers taking home the coveted championship T-shirt.
Versatile intramural athlete Mandy Ruff believes the key to her team’s success was the amount of soccer experience of the team. “All of the girls on the team have played organized soccer before. It was cool how we all came together, because some of us are from different sororities and some of the girls aren’t in a sorority at all.” Ruff said. “I had a lot of fun, I only wish we could have had more games to play. I think we only got to play four.
“I also wish I was taller so the ball wouldn’t go over my head, but I guess we can’t always get what we want in life.”
Not everyone enjoys the same success and amusement as the Grass Kicker’s Mandy Ruff, however. “I have a severe disdain for soccer,” Steven Reagan of the SAE b-team said.
“I rarely have fun unless I’m kicking other people or pushing them down, and you’re not really even allowed to do all of that,” he said.
Soccer does not field the same amount of teams as the rest of the intramural programs. Statistically it is the least popular intramural sport.
Some of the participants, especially in the men’s recreation league, have never played organized soccer before. “I would have to say that we are one of the worst teams to ever step foot on a soccer field,” said Dustin Blazer, coach of the DuckSquad team. “None of us know what we’re doing, we’re not at all skilled with our feet. I’m surprised no one has gotten hurt yet.”
The biggest question for some of the participants are the rules of the game.
According to Kyle Caldwell, the enjoyment of the game is often lost in the translation for most people. “Intramural soccer at ETSU is a microcosm of soccer in the United States, especially in the south,” Caldwell said. “Soccer in America is not a very popular sport because it’s not a game that originated here. The three biggest sports in America are baseball, basketball and football which have all have their roots in America.”
“Most people at ETSU have not played organized soccer and they don’t understand the rules so they’re not likely to run out and sign up for intramural soccer.” Caldwell said.
Americans, Southerners and students at ETSU are not incapable of appreciating the game, Caldwell adds. “Soccer is big in places, it’s the biggest sport around.” Caldwell said. “But those places are few and far between.

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