While UTD is often recognized for its focus on research and academics, intramural sports have become one of the university’s biggest social outlets, giving students a chance to compete, meet new people and have a break between busy schedules through leagues ranging from basketball and soccer, to growing sports like pickleball and moon ball.
Organized through UREC, UTD’s intramural sports program includes basketball, soccer, volleyball, flag football and pickleball, with new, popular activities being added every year. Games and tournaments take place throughout the semester, bringing together students with different levels of experience in a more relaxed environment than varsity sports.
Sophia Caro, assistant director of competitive sports, said one of the most important aspects of intramurals is creating a welcoming environment for students.
“We want students to be able to come in and walk into our program and leave and say, ‘Okay, I had fun participating.’”
— Sophia Caro, assistant director of competitive sports
“I would definitely say that the overall atmosphere that we try to provide is just something that is fun and very beginner-friendly,” Caro said. “We want students to be able to come in and walk into our program and leave and say, ‘Okay, I had fun participating.’”
According to Caro, intramural sports are especially meaningful at UTD because they give students an opportunity to step away from academic stress while connecting with others across campus. She said the program helps create a more balanced college experience by encouraging students to engage more outside of academic organizations.
“It gives them an opportunity to kind of step away from some of the stress that sometimes academics can provide,” Caro said. “It also provides an opportunity for the students to have a little bit more of a social experience on campus as well, outside of their academics.”
While some students may join with previous experience in sports, others join to try something new. Caro said intramurals help participants discover interests they may not have otherwise, while creating lasting memories with friends and teammates.
Students can register for leagues and tournaments through IMLeagues, the platform UREC uses to organize schedules, teams and signups. Through the website and app, students can create teams, join existing teams or sign up as free agents to be placed onto rosters.
More information about registration and available sports can be found through the UTD Intramural Sports page and the IMLeagues platform.
While common intramurals include basketball, soccer, volleyball and flag football, pickleball has seen a growing popularity this year after transitioning from a single-day event into a full intramural league.
“We’ve had a lot of participants for that,” Caro said about pickleball. “I would say those are probably definitely some of our sports that are most popular in our intramural programming.”
This year, UREC also introduced a new sport called moon ball, a volleyball-style game played with a giant inflatable ball. Along with the competition, UTD Intramurals partnered with Comet Cupboard and Comet Closet to collect donations for students in need.
Participants donated canned food, clothing donations and money as entry fees for the competition. With the event drawing nearly 100 participants, over 95 pounds of clothing and hundreds of food donations were collected.
This all helped contribute to the goal of “essentially pouring back into UT Dallas through that event,” said Caro.
Beyond athletics, intramural sports also offer employment opportunities for students interested in officiating sports and event operations. According to Caro, students do not need any prior experience to apply because training is provided through UREC. Many officials and staff members managing games are UTD students themselves.
“A big part of our program is very much student-run,” Caro said. “That also provides an atmosphere where you feel like you belong, feel like you’re connected, because you’re just getting to see fellow UTD students not only participating in the program, but also running the program.”
Caro added that as long as students have “a passion for sports and a willingness to learn,” they could make great additions to the team.
As intramural sports continue to grow at UTD, the program is becoming one of the university’s largest opportunities for students to compete, socialize and become more involved on campus outside the classroom.
