The MagnUM Saga

Chapter 1: In the Beginning

Once upon a time there was a town called Ann Arbor. A little later came the University of Michigan. Eventually someone made a Frisbee, we started calling it a disc to avoid copyright infringement and Ben Rosenbloom’s hippy friend Caleb Lynas created Ultimate.

And it was good. But then questions came to those who first saw these immaculate bill boards—glistening in the sun. What is this Ultimate? What is this MagnUM thing? Man, college is going to be awesome, right? How hot are these women in English 125? How can I keep playing sports in college? Do I have time? Is any of the dorm food actually edible? Do I have to graduate? The latter two questions will remain unanswered, but the ones regarding Ultimate, MagnUM, and English 125 will be explained below.

Chapter 2: Ultimate Frisbee

Ultimate is the perfect accompaniment to any athlete’s college lifestyle. It’s great exercise, and is “guaranteed to be the most fun you have ever had (Bozicevich 235).” Basically, it’s a fast-paced, intense, and ridiculously fun combination of football, soccer, and basketball where two teams of seven attempt to advance the disc up the field (roughly the same size as a football field) in hopes of catching the disc in the “end zone.” Amidst this generalization, zone defenses, offensive sets, lots of running, 60 yard hammers (a type of throw where the disc flies upside-down), and laying out (diving) for every disc constitute ultimate. Don’t believe real ultimate is different from what you played in gym class? Check out some of these clips for further explanation. Or, better still, come to a practice or clinic (see the calendar for times and locations) to experience it for yourself.

Chapter 3: MagnUM

We are an intensely competitive and extremely athletic intercollegiate men’s team that plays the sport of ultimate frisbee. Since there is no varsity ultimate yet, we are a University of Michigan club sport and the highest level of ultimate at U of M. We regularly travel around the county (in a typical year we go to Georgia twice, Missouri, North Carolina, Louisiana, Florida for spring break, Texas, and several other exotic locales) to compete against the best teams from all over the nation. The team has been officially recognized by the UM Department of Recreational Sports since the late 1970s. Our college team is open to registered students (grad or undergrad) who have been playing in official college or club series ultimate tournaments for less than five full years. If you have no idea what the college and club series are, then you’re definitely eligible. For info on the team for the 2007-2008 school year, e-mail us.

For information on other ultimate happening around Ann Arbor, including the women’s college team, various club teams, pickup games, and summer league, check out the Michigan Ultimate homepage.

Chapter 4: A Tradition of Excellence

In the past ten years, MagnUM has won four regional titles and placed in the top ten in the nation eight times. The team’s commitment to playing great ultimate has stretched across generations, and the current players plan to carry on that tradition.

Chapter 5: (The) Ultimate Experience (is it necessary?)

Experience with the sport of ultimate is not necessary to try-out for or make the team. In fact, well over half of the current players had no previous ultimate experience before making the team. We’ll teach you the rules, plays, strategies, how to throw, and the fastest way to drink liquids from discs. The only thing you need to be is athletic.

Chapter 6: Time Commitment

This issue worries many prospective players and few current ones. The bottom line is that being on the team takes time, but it is WAY more than worth it. Many players have found that being on the team actually helps them stay more organized and on top of their school work. The team consists of students from all sorts of academic concentrations (english, economics, engineering, architecture, urban planning, etc) and levels (undergrads, masters students, and PhD candidates). We practice twice a week and travel to 2-3 tournaments in the fall. In the winter we practice 3 times per week indoors (we get access to the football team’s practice field) and travel to 3-5 tournaments. Once spring comes we really kick it into gear as it is playoff time, known as the “College Series.” We practice approximately 4 times per week and do team distance runs, throwing sessions, and track workouts. With all that said, school still always comes first. Classes and tests take precedence over all things ultimate.

Chapter 7: The Benefits

This could be endless, but here is a brief list:

  • Continue playing competitive sports at a high level.
  • Learn a new sport that you will (guaranteed) love.
  • Meet a whole new group of cool guys.
  • Get to travel all over the country. It’s pretty awesome to head to Texas or Georgia for a weekend when it’s -5 degrees in Ann Arbor.
  • Stay in/Get in great shape.
  • Take the most ridiculously fun Spring Break trips ever. period.
  • Be able to chill out on the Diag (or the beach) and look sweet throwing 70-yard flicks while talking on your cell phone and waving to all your honeys.
  • Kickin’ theme parties.
  • Access to older dudes for class, professor, and program recommendations.
  • Be part of the long history of great teams and great times.

Chapter 8: Monetary Musings

We’re all college students and short on cash so we do whatever we can as a team to raise funds and reduce costs for tournaments. Dues are under $50 per semester and the tournaments we drive to generally cost less than $40 for the whole weekend (vehicles, gas, hotel, and tourney fee). The University gives us some money, the use of their vans, and practice space which helps a ton. Beyond that we raise money by selling discs, hosting an outdoor tournament in the fall and an indoor one in the winter, cleaning up Crisler Arena after basketball games, and whatever else we can come up with.

Chapter 9: First Year Player Award (READ THIS!)

This Fall, for the third time ever, MagnUM will be awarding $1,000 to the Rookie who shows the most athleticism, commitment to the team, ability to learn ultimate, and spirit for the game. All first year players are eligible for the award.

Chapter 10: Clinics and Tryouts

We hold two free clinics in September to introduce interested players to the sport and the the team. Tryouts are held throughout the first two months of school. For locations, times, and maps check out the calendar page.

Chapter 11: Preparation

Many incoming players ask what they can do to best prepare for tryouts. Our coaches respond, “Run, throw, run some more, and play ultimate if you can.” More specifically, run long distances (3-5 miles) to build endurance, do sprint workouts to build speed, practice 5-20 yard throws, and join a summer league or play in tournaments over the summer. These are only suggestions, so don’t worry if you aren’t able to throw yet or can’t get out and play, we’d still love to have you come try out.

Chapter 12: Other Answers

As promised: College (especially at U of M) will be awesome and English 125 girls are hot (or so I’m told, pity me for being an engineer).

Chapter 13: Conclusions

We think you’ll really enjoy playing ultimate. Come out and give it a try. If all this has not been enough to convince you, I offer up this mathematical proof:

  • By overall world agreement and dictatorial decree, Ultimate = Awesome
  • By the fact that you’ve read this far, You = Awesome
  • Therefore, by the Transitive Property, Ultimate = You

See you at the fields!