Oklahoma State University already started intramural flag football games, but even though the season is already in session, many people still don’t know the rules. Have no fear, that’s why I’m here!
First off, I will break down the different leagues. There is the Men’s Team, Women’s Team, and the Co-Rec Team. Rules are pretty the same for all three leagues, but I’m going to use the Co-Rec Team to make sure you readers know what’s going on. Here we go!
Rule Number One: To play the game, you have to be eligible!
To be eligible, you have to have good grades to be able to play. Specifically, you must be a student of OSU or NOC. You must also register though the official intramural website with a team, or depending on your preference, you can sign up and you can be put on a team.
Rule Number Two: Have the right attire; look the part!
In order to have the right attire, you cannot wear shorts with pockets. This is because the refs want to assure there is no cheating going down. Also jewelry is strictly prohibited. Taking off the jewelry just assures your safety in the game. If your team doesn’t have jerseys, wear matching colors. Finally, all articles of clothing must be tucked in to make sure the flags can be seen.
Rule Number Three: Forfeiting means a$25.00 fee.
The refs will not tolerate teams that forfeit. Not showing up to a scheduled game wastes their time, and because of that the team will be charged a $25.00 fee. So in other words, if you play at 5:30, show up at 5:15 to warm-up and meet the officials.
Rule Number Four: At least 5; No more than 8.
The Co-Rec team can have at least 5 players play. There can be 4 girls and 3 guys, or vice versa and 4 boys, and 3 girls, depending on the captain’s preference.
Rule Number Five: To win, grasp the concept of the game.
Flag football is all about getting open and running. Once you get open, that means that you found space between players and caught the ball easily. In the game, there is a quarterback, whose role is to see his open teammates so they can get a touchdown. To get a touchdown, you have to maneuver and think around the defense. Defense is the other team preventing you to score. When you are trying to score, you are on offense. During the game there are “open and closed” plays. Open means the quarterback can do anything. A “closed” play means that the quarterback can only pass it to a guy; however the quarterback can be a girl or a guy. There are 4 downs, which mean four chances to get down the field to score.
Most importantly, have fun being active!