Rutgers University Takes the Title

 

This year, twenty-four men’s teams from schools all over the Northeast competed for the championship. In the end, Team Knights (Rutgers University) left Ithaca on Sunday with the crown. Led by Tournament MVP, Joe Osvai, this high-powered offense dominated the playoffs on their way to the championship. Although they struggled a bit in pool-play, Team Knights stepped-up in the playoffs, outscoring their opponents by a combined 122-59 in four games. All-Tournament Team selections Vinay Wunnava and Chris Murphy made solid contributions throughout the tournament on the ground and in through the air as they methodically picked-apart their opponents’ defenses.

 

The top seed in the playoffs, Ghost Face Killaz (Springfield College) cruised through pool-play and won some really close games in the playoffs but eventually fell to Rutgers, 34-26 in the championship game. TKE (St. John’s) and Setters (Pace) also looked good as they advanced to the semi-finals. Three teams from Cornell (LDSSA, Eric Rozell, and Tau Epsilon Phi) represented our Intramural Sports program with competitive play and outstanding sportsmanship.

 

The level of officiating in the tournament was equally impressive from start to finish. Twenty-nine students from thirteen different schools worked 42 games in the typical Upstate New York weather. In true Ivy League fashion, each official received feedback from and attended education sessions with some of the most noted flag football officiating experts in the country. At the end of the tournament, the top four performers were chosen by a committee of ten evaluators and they each received an automatic bid to work at the NIRSA National Flag Football Tournament at the University of South Florida. Kevin Kronyak (University of Maryland), Ed Dean (Rowan University), RJ Canning (Rowan University), and Jason Cochran (Rutgers University) will travel to Tampa Bay, FL next month to work at the national tournament and try to earn the coveted title, “All-American Official”.