Joshua Helm Rebecca Agosta Eng.

1101 November 19, 2013 Intramural Flag Football Ethnography

Introduction Most think that playing an intramural sport in college is a joke and to an outsider it may seem that way, but in reality these players take it just as seriously as a club team or even a school team. There are rules and guidelines that everyone must follow and fees that everyone is responsible for paying. There are playbooks, practices almost every night and games on the same days every week. I chose to write my ethnography about a specific flag football team that I felt helped explain to outsiders what it really means to play an intramural sport. Those qualities I talked about, such as, the organization, rules and the communication that this group has makes it a discourse community. Although, I am an outsider, I have connections to this group through my roommate and friends and, therefore, I can explain an insiders point of view. Observation I have observed this team off and on the field, and Ive found that there is a connection to how they act together when theyre just hanging out and when they are in game mode. Off the field I can see the bonds that are being made, as well as the friendships that have already been made and are now being tested by being on a team, and spending every moment with people who all have their own opinions. Many of the players live on the same hallway in my dorm and some are roommates. For example, my roommate is on the team and thats one of the reasons I chose

not to play because in the past I have seen that being how being on a team could affect your friendship. Im not implying that being on a team together ruins all friendships, but I just dont think that being on the same team is a good idea. On an average day I would have to say that seventy-five percent of the flag football team sees each other. On the field its a different world and you have to experience it inside the group to understand. First off everyone arrives at the field approximately thirty minutes before game time to stretch and warm-up. Some of the guys are joking around and having a good time while others keep to themselves and get in the zone, which is just a mental state where they are very focused and hyped. There are enough players on the team so that if someone had missed a game, another player will fill in. A flag football team must have seven participants for offense and defense so the team is usually made up of about sixteen. Once the game begins attitudes change; the smiles are overcome by frowns and things get serious. Throughout the game, I focused my attention not just on football but also on the emotions and language in the game. When a player would mess up or do something wrong many would assume that the reaction would be negative; ironically, the team is supportive and lifted the morale of their teammates by saying positive things even though its easier to be negative. There is a saying that one of the players always uses which is, dont worry you will get the next one. This type of encouragement will keep a team motivated even when all hope is gone. The players choose their positions but if you are on defense you stay on defense and if youre on offense you stay on offense. Each team can pay to get their own jerseys but usually they just use the jerseys provided but the school. Interview To have a true insiders point of view I interviewed my friend, who is the quarterback for the flag football team. I developed a set of questions that are helpful for research of the group.

Jarrin joined the flag football team because he played some football in high school and wanted to still play some in college, even if it was just intramural football. What makes this flag football team different from others is, we are friends and formed a bond because we all live on the same hall, says Jarrin. He only wanted to quit the team once and it was because the emotions and competitive nature on the field started to carry over to off the field, which was affecting some of the friendships. Jarrin said that in order to be on the team, you must have some knowledge of the game and you have to be able to help the team in some way. Jarrins favorite thing about playing flag football is being able to play and be competitive without having all the rules that come with playing at a different level. The hardest part of flag football as a quarterback is having to constantly avoid pass rushers who try to blitz me, says Jarrin. He said, in order to improve the team there would have to be more practicing and also some people would have to take the games more serious. Artifact Analysis The artifact I chose to represent my discourse community is a playbook. In all levels of football there are playbooks so that everyone is on the same page. A playbook is a book containing a sports teams strategies and plays. What I found interesting about this object is it shows organization and communication, which are to very important parts of having a successful team. Every playbook is unique to the team that is using it and only its members know how to understand the plays and when that play is happening. As an outsider if a play is called out loud I still would have no idea what each player was about to do. The playbook is important to learn for the players because if one player doesnt know what to do it will ruin the whole plan. In the playbook there are xs and os that stand for the defense and offense, as well as lines and arrows that show what route the player is running. This artifact shows that the team is organized and

they have unique communication. As an outsider you can see teams in college and the NFL using playbooks just like they have been for several years. The playbook uses a lexis that only the team knows. For example, this team name plays using states then a color like NC Blue. Analysis A discourse community is a group of people that share a set of values and assumptions, and ways of communicating about these goals. The flag football team is a discourse community because it has all the characteristics that make up a discourse community. The teams goal could be different from a single players goal but they all want to help the team win. If the team is unsuccessful then nobody is happy, so this gives the players incentive to practice and play hard. The guys on the team mostly live on the same hall, so they communicate very frequently but the team also communicates through text, calling, and email so that everyone understands the schedule and how they are getting to the fields. An important aspect of the teams lexis is the playbook, which has terms in it such as, Georgia red, which tells the players what play they are running without letting the other team know. Also on the field the language is different than off the field because players are trying to hype each other up so that they will perform better. Off the field players are calm most of the time, so the terminology is slightly more proper and sophisticated but the lexis from football commonly spills over into other activities. In order to be considered an expert you have to have a lot of previous experience and you have to be athletic. The guys on the team that are in charge or act like coaches arent even the best players. They are the guys the put the team together and have stepped into the role of a leader. With that being said the players that are in charge arent necessarily the experts. The experts are the guys with the most athletic ability and that know the most about the game. The novices are guys that havent really played much before and they thought it would be fun to play

some flag football. Some of the activities consist of practice and games for flag football, and as a hobby most of the guys play pick up basketball games at the student activity center. Being on the same team has helped these guys become closer so if they are not at football then they are going to eat together or hang out in the dorms. There is a stereotype for all intramural sports that they are not competitive and its all about just having fun. Based on what Ive observed this is completely false because the games I have watched were very competitive and nobody was there just to have fun. For example, at one of the practices my roommate and another player collided after a catch and they both had to receive twelve stitches to heal their wounds. Another stereotype I have heard is that intramural sports are a waste of time and nothing can be gained from them. This isnt true at all; in fact there are very many positive things that can be gained from being on a team. People make new friends, they stay active, they have less time to party and drink, and players can have fun and be competitive. Sign ups for flag football were about a month and a half ago and that was when people started putting their teams together. A couple of the guys on my hall had talked about being on the team but as time progressed it wasnt until someone took charge that everyone started joining. In order to be a part of the team, you had to talk to the person in charge and to make it official you had to fill out questions on the rules and regulations and pay a ten-dollar fee which covers the fee to register as a team and get rental jerseys. Once guys asked to be on the team, they had to go through a tryout that gave the coach an idea of what position everyone would play. After the team was set, no more people could be added to the roster.

Conclusion The flag football team uses different artifacts such as the playbook to communicate the teams specific lexis but this group also has communication outside of the game. I was easy to connect the group to a discourse community because of all the similar qualities, such as the lexis and communication. I enjoyed researching about discourse communities and I was intrigued at the fact that they are all around us. Also I am surprised that even being an outsider I felt almost like an insider because I learned so much about this group.

Works Cited Sullivan, Jarrin. Personal interview. Nov 12, 2013.