Section IX.
Campus Recreation Services (Intramural Sports)
A. Intramural Sports
- Philosophy
The Campus Recreation Services Program at Francis Marion University is committed to promoting healthy lifestyles within the campus community. By offering various programs and services, the Campus Recreation Services Program is dedicated to providing safe, enjoyable, and educational activities for faculty, staff, and students. Involvement in Intramural Sports does not require a high degree of skill, knowledge, or physical fitness. Only a sincere desire to participate and have fun is necessary. Our goal is to provide every individual with the opportunity to participate and develop skills and interests in a friendly, competitive environment. The program offers all participants the chance to improve their health, relax from work and study, and the opportunity to meet new people and socialize with others.
- Objectives
The objectives of the Francis Marion University Campus Recreation Services Program are to provide:
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The opportunity to better health through satisfactory physical exercise.
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The opportunity for each participant to develop skills and interests which can serve them throughout their lifetime and enable them to live healthier and longer lives.
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The opportunity to develop sportsmanship and honesty in regards to rules, officials, and opponents.
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To assist in the fulfillment of the mission and goals of the Office of Student Affairs.
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To provide a wide-range of activities and services for the diverse campus community.
3. Eligibility
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All participants must be enrolled or be employed by Francis Marion University. Only those who are members of the respective organization or team may participate in any event for that team.
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No varsity athlete may compete in his/her corresponding or related sport. A varsity athlete is someone who was on the roster after the first scheduled competition excluding scrimmages. Any person who was a varsity athlete must sit out one calendar year (365 days) from last season of competition to be eligible to compete in related sport.
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The Coordinator of Intramural Sports and Evening Activities will be final judge in all cases of eligibility.
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Players may participate in only one team at any event or sport. The first team that a participant plays with is the only team that participant can play on. Exception: It is possible to play on a co-ed team if an individual is playing on a men or women’s team.
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The Intramural Office is not responsible for checking eligibility of the participant unless specifically requested to do so by another team. Violations noted by Campus Recreation Services staff will be acted upon.
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Any person pledging a fraternity/sorority who was originally playing for another team may NOT play on the fraternity or sorority team. An individual must finish the season with the same team throughout the season.
- Penalties for Eligibility Violations
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Ineligible player: Any person participating in a Campus Recreation Services activity found to be ineligible shall be suspended for the remainder of that program season.
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Teams using an ineligible player: Any team using an ineligible player shall forfeit all games in which the ineligible player participated.
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Assumed names: A player competing under an assumed name shall be barred from intramural competition for the remainder of the term.
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Teams using a player playing under an assumed name: Teams using the ineligible player shall forfeit all games in which the ineligible player participated.
- How to Enter Intramural Competition
Entry forms must be completed and returned to the Intramural Office before the entry deadline for each sport (UC 214). However, late entries will be permitted if a team drops out of competition and there is an opening in a particular league or tournament. For example, a late entry will be accepted if it helps round out a bracket for a one-day tournament. This is the sole discretion of the Intramural staff. Entry forms and activity schedules are available in the Intramural Office, on the Intramural Sports bulletin board in the University Center, or the Campus Recreation Services Web Site.
All team rosters must include first and last name, social security numbers, and phone numbers of all team members, and the name, address, social security number of the team captain and the team name.
Schedules will be available no later than two working days after the mandatory captains meeting. All rosters will be frozen after regular season play.
New names may be added to the team roster in the Intramural Office between 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.
An entry fee and forfeiture fee may be required for some sports.
Teams should keep their same name throughout the year in order to be eligible for Intramural Championship.
- Team Managers and Their Responsibilities
Each team must have a team manager who is elected or appointed as the spokesperson for the team. The person shall act as the liaison between the team and the Campus Recreation Services Program. Matters affecting the team are communicated to the team manager who in turn is responsible for informing their team members.
Duties include:
a. Attend all meetings and turn in a team entry form.
b. Know and enforce all eligibility rules governing sports participation and submit a roster of all players’ names, phone numbers, and social security numbers on the official entry form.
c. Stay in contact with the Coordinator of Intramurals to receive information on upcoming events, schedule changes, postponements, and rescheduled games.
d. Print clearly on all score sheets the names of the players participating in each game and assist the head official in obtaining correct names when lineup changes are being made.
e. Be responsible for having teams aware of schedule and assembled at least 10 minutes before game time.
f. Submit forfeiture fee and/or entry fee when appropriate.
g. Be familiar with the rules of each sport. Copies of the rules can be picked up in the Intramural Office or from the Campus Recreation Services Web Site.
h. Notify the Coordinator of Campus Recreation Services immediately of any conflicts with game schedules.
i. Make every effort to ensure that individuals representing his/her team, players and spectators, play and act accordingly to the rules and spirit of the game, and conduct themselves in a sportsmanlike manner.
j. Act as a spokesperson to officials and administrators concerning all disputes. Experience has proven that the most successful teams are the ones with effective and active managers.
k. Being responsible for checking out and returning Smith University Center equipment. Campus Recreation Services is not responsible for supplying necessary equipment for intramural play.
- Playoff Schedules
All playoff schedules will be posted on the Campus Recreation Services Board in the University Center and the Campus Recreation Services Web Site at the completion of the regular season. All playoff tournaments will be single elimination play unless stated otherwise.
- Forfeits
Teams that are not able to begin playing at the established game time with a full team must forfeit. Each team is responsible for arriving at the playing area and ready to play at least 15 minutes before game time. This includes having all players signed-in and roster completed. If a team or contestant fails to be ready at the time the contest is scheduled, the intramural supervisor in charge may declare the contest forfeited by the team. The team receiving the win must fulfill the requirement for a legal team and has no option to play the other team should they show up late. Teams who forfeit two games for any reason will be dropped from the league.
- Postponements
Contests may be postponed by the consent of the Coordinator of Campus Recreation Services. Request for postponement must be filed 48 hours prior to the scheduled time of the contest. No tournaments or meetings may be postponed. The team desiring the postponements must contact its opponents and request agreement on postponement of the contest. If the opponent does not agree, the game originally scheduled time remains in effect. If the opponent agrees to postpone the contest, the team desiring the postponement will obtain a postponement request form from the Intramural Office. The team initiating postponement will suggest available dates/times for rescheduling the contests and secures its opponent’s agreement for one of these periods. If no agreement can be reached, the team requesting postponement will receive a loss for that contest. Once a scheduled game has been rescheduled, it will not be changed. Decisions pertaining to weather-related postponements will be made after 1:00 p.m. of the day in question. Call the Intramural Office at (843) 661-1186 for information about playing times and possible cancellations.
- Intramural Point Program
The Intramural Point system is used to determine an all-campus team, fraternity team and sorority team champion, an independent team champion in both men and women divisions and a co-ed team champion.
The FMU point system is divided into major and minor sports categories. The major sports are ones that are listed as leagues, and minor sports are always categorized as tournament or meets. In all major events first place finish is worth 10 points; second, 6; third, 4; fourth, 2. In all minor events a first place finish is worth 5 points; second, 3; third, 2; fourth, 1. In the event two or more teams tie for the same place in the final standings, the point for that place and the place that they would have occupied (if not ties) are added together and divided by the number of teams you tied. For example, if two teams tie for second in a minor event, the second place points (3), and the third place points (2) are added together and divided by 2 for the total points to be given by each item. In this case, the points awarded would be 2.5 to each team.
If an organization has more than one team in a sport, they can only receive points for the highest finishing team. The second place team can take away another team by placing higher in the standings.
Official point standings will be kept by the Coordinator of Campus Recreation Services and will be posted periodically on the bulletin board in the University Center and on the Campus Recreation Services Web Site.
- Sportsmanship
Part of the philosophy of the Campus Recreation Services Program is that sportsmanship is an integral part of the conduct of every contest. The rules of fair play and sportsmanship must adhere to closely all Campus Recreation Services events. A good sport is expected to be fair, courteous, positive, and accepts results gracefully. All individuals and teams participating will be expected to comply with the spirit, as well as the letter of the rules that govern all competitive situations. In order to encourage proper conduct during contests, officials, supervisors, and administrative personnel will make decisions whether to warn, penalize, or eject persons or teams displaying poor sportsmanship. Instances of poor sportsmanship will be dealt with severely and quickly.
The team captain is the only person allowed to talk with officials in a polite and courteous manner. Participants, who have been ejected from a contest, will have an automatic one-game suspension from play and cannot participate until he/she meets with the Coordinator of Campus Recreation Services. The Coordinator of Campus Recreation Services may choose to enforce stricter consequences for flagrant misconduct and repeat offenders. Any disagreement about consequences handed down by the Coordinator of Campus Recreation Services that the participant does not agree with can be addressed to with the Dean of Students. Teams are responsible for the actions of their spectators as well as their players and will be liable for any unsportsmanlike conduct on their part.
The Intramural Sports Program expects all participants to conduct themselves in a sportsmanlike manner. In order to be eligible for the playoffs, a team must average a sportsmanship score of (4) throughout the regular season. During playoffs, a score of at least (4) will guarantee advancement for the winning team. A winning team with a sportsmanship rating of 0-3 will be reviewed by the Intramural Staff to determine if they advance. Following the game, officials evaluate and issue sportsmanship points to all teams. The breakdown of points is as follows:
Points Description
· 5 (Normal Game): Questioning an official on rule interpretation only.
· 4 (Some Static): Some question of judgment or repeated complaints.
· 3 (Difficulty): Repeated question of judgment. Unsportsmanlike call in soccer, softball, volleyball, flag football or a technical foul in basketball.
· 2 (Harassment): Multiple unsportsmanlike calls, technical (not on the same participant) or spectators’ harassment of the officials.
· 1 (Ejection): Any ejection, whatever the cause.
· 0 (Forfeit or Fighting): Includes threatening an employee. If involved in a fight, your team could be removed from the league for the remainder of the season.
Violations of university policy may be referred to the FMU Dean of Students Office for official university action.
- Protests
When a disagreement arises between players or between a player and an official concerning rules or interpretation of the rules, or should a violation of the eligibility rules be discovered, a protest must be made by the team captain. He/she must state that “I protest the game because…” to the game official. Argument is not considered to be a protest. Such protests, except those concerning eligibility, must be made at the time the dispute arises and before play resumes to the game official. Protests must follow this procedure if further consideration is desired. All protests, including eligibility protests, must be filed by 5:00 p.m. on the day following the contest. Most protests can be settled on the field, thereby avoiding possible replay. Protests made in competition on Friday, Saturday or Sunday must be filed in the Intramural office by 5:00 p.m. on the following Monday.
If an agreement is not agreed upon by the protesting team after the Coordinator’s decision, further consideration may be obtained by filing a written protest by 5:00 p.m. on the day following the contest.
If the last play of the game is to be protested, the protest must be levied in the same time frame that would have normally been allowed between plays.
If a protest is sustained, play will be resumed at the most appropriate time and place when the protest was levied.
If filing eligibility protests, not more than two (2) individuals can be named in each eligibility protest.
During playoffs, eligibility challenges must be submitted prior to the next scheduled round involving the team.
In cases of disagreement between individuals in matches without officials, a rematch will be scheduled and an official be assigned by the Intramural Office.
IMPORTANT: No protests will be considered involving a question of judgment on the part of an official.
- First Aid, Accidents and Risks
The Campus Recreation Service Program of Francis Marion University cannot assume responsibility for any injury incurred during practice or participation in any one of the scheduled activities beyond the coverage extended to all students. Any student that participate with a physical condition or health status that will be detrimental to his/her health is ineligible to play unless written permission is obtained from the University Student Health Service and given to the Coordinator of Campus Recreation Services. It is the student’s responsibility to obtain written permission to participate in intramural sports. It is recommended that all participants have medical examinations before participating in any recreation activity. It is further recommended that the participant have medical insurance for his/her protection.
All forms of exercise pose some risk, especially for those with physical problems. Each individual must be aware of the risks associated with participation and monitor each activity to be safe and healthy. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends persons consult a physician before beginning any exercise program.
Blood Policy
If an intramural participant is bleeding, he/she will be removed from the contest immediately. If an intramural participant has blood on his/her clothing, he/she will be removed from the contest upon detection. The blood may or may not be his/her own blood. A participant who has someone else’s blood on their clothing will be removed from the contest. The participant is ineligible to re-enter the contest until the clothing with blood has been removed.
Before any participant re-enters the contest, all bleeding must be stopped and any open wound or laceration be covered. It is the suggestion of the Intramural staff that each player bring an extra pair of shorts and t-shirt. If clothing with blood cannot be replaced, the individual will not be allowed to participate.
- Intramural Sports Alcohol Policy
Campus Recreation Services is committed to the health and safety of all individuals who enjoy participating in our activities and services. The University has established clearpolicies and guidelines on the use of alcohol which applies to participants and spectators. The policy is supported and enforced at all intramural and recreational events. Any participant who is identified as being under the influence of alcoholic beverages will not be permitted to participate. This will ensure the safety of the individual and each person’s safety and enjoyment. Specific guidelines for legal consumption of alcohol are presented in the Student Handbook. All established rules and regulations concerning alcohol at any off-campus intramural events must be adhered to.
- Student Employment Opportunities
The Intramural and Recreational Sports Program is always in need of quality student officials. Student officials are an integral component of a well-rounded, successful program. Clinics will be offered to those who are interested in becoming employed by the program. If you are interested in becoming an official, referee, or any other position of employment offered through the Campus Recreation Services Program, you may call us at 661-1186 or stop by the Intramural Office in the University Center.
- Professional Discretion
The Coordinator of Campus Recreation Services will use professional discretion when necessary to make exceptions to these policies and guidelines.
