By Jackie Luskey and Gary Cahen

Nothing beats the sound of the opening whistle, opening the first set of games at the 2012 NIRSA National Campus Championship Series Flag Football Tournament.

“It was a real rush to get all of the action started on day one,” said Gary Cahen, the Associate Director of Programs at the University of Central Florida’s Recreation and Wellness Center, which also happened to be the host for this year’s NIRSA NCCS Flag Football Tournament, January 4-6, 2013.


2013 NIRSA National Campus Championship Series Flag Football Tournament

That initial whistle was so sweet after all of the build-up toward flag-football’s landmark event of the season. With the University of Central Florida’s strong flag football tradition, Gary noted that building up to the tournament, the buzz around campus extended beyond the Recreation and Wellness Center department and was tangible in student participants alike.

This enthusiasm permeated the NCCS staff, as well, who planned and executed an impeccable tournament. Led by volunteer Tournament Director, Sarah Fain of Georgia Southern University, the 2012-2013 NCCS national championship tournament staff was composed of collegiate recreation professionals and students from all over the country who volunteered their last days of the winter break to make sure this event for students to engage in healthy play and sportsmanship went off without a hitch. Gary commended the work of the staff with, “From tournament veterans to those experiencing the NCCS for the first time, every NCCS staff member was very professional and here for the right reason, which made our job easy.”

In addition to the staff and teams traveling from all over the country for the NIRSA NCCS Flag Football Tournament, the year’s tournament also included a team from Mexico’s Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León. The Nuevo León Tigres brought a welcomed international flair and excitement that was unique to this year’s tournament. With snappy uniforms, enthusiastic and well-coordinated cheers, and close-call games, the Nuevo León Tigres gathered a crowd with their joy for the game every time they took the field.

Angelo State University climbed to the final round in the men, women, and co-rec divisions; though, only their co-rec team took home the champion title. In the women’s division, Florida A & M University added to their long list of tournament victories. Gary noted, “It was nice to see a team from Florida win in their home state. From the men’s division, University of Nebraska beat Angelo State. Gary remarked that while the University of Nebraska wasn’t a flashy team, they made big plays where it counted via efficient offense and limiting turnovers. Finally, the co-rec division solidified a championship title for Angelo State after their game with the University of Central Florida. What was especially remarkable about Angelo State’s co-rec team, is that they were comprised of players from both the women and men’s teams, which is a huge testament to their players’ endurance and stamina.

Overall, tournament sportsmanship was excellent. Gary noted the good spirits of student participants at the tournament social being a good reminder the camaraderie between teams is just as important as the competition aspect.

Gary and University of Central Florida student, Jamie Mineart, made a push to bring the tournament further into the digital realm by reporting close tabs on the tournament via the @NIRSANCCS Twitter feed. Their efforts proved successful as they doubled their Twitter followers and received tweets from people all over the country who wanted updates on specific games and teams. Gary joked, “I think the battery on my phone and the NIRSA iPad were the two hardest workers during the tournament with how drained they were at the end of the day.” With the warm reception of an amped social media presence, NIRSA NCCS is making plans to continue in real-time social media interaction during its championship events.

Another favorite moment of the tournament? Gary said, “The sound of the last whistle of the men’s championship game.” Makes sense that the runner up to the opening whistle would be the last one, signaling “a real sense of satisfaction from the last game ending on a positive note.”