Scholarship Adventures Vol. I
The first week
Welcome back!
Hello, one and all, and welcome back to The Breakside. It’s been a long couple of months since we’ve spoken. During that time, I visited my girlfriend in Germany, saw the Tour de France on the Champs-Élysées, packed up my life, drove through Shenandoah National Park, visited Luray Caverns, spent a weekend at summer camp with my parents, helped move my girlfriend into Brown, got COVID, and driven to Grand Rapids Michigan, home of Davenport University. It’s been a busy couple of months. And now that I am feeling a little moved in and settled, I think I owe you all some writing. Especially considering I promised some sneak peeks into what life is like in the only scholarship program in the country seeking to support a university-level open and women’s team.
Disclaimer
I will try to recruit you if you have eligibility left. Okay, that’s all. Just be warned :)
Halfway through a Jenga game
It's a little strange to be here writing this. I am in the middle of the most significant transition of my life since starting undergrad. All the while, I am trying to work, coach youth ultimate, play with my teammates and stay on top of all the paperwork, schoolwork, and other commitments that come with increased support. All to say, I am juggling a lot right now. But I don’t feel too overwhelmed…yet. I feel like a Jenga tower halfway through the game, though.
Facts of life
And my stuff has nothing on the craziness of starting a brand new Ultimate program at the scholarship/varsity-like commitment level. There have been some things that have gone well so far and some that haven't. First, the bad:
Assistant coaching budget cut this year
Women’s div team recruitment lags behind open div
Lots of international talent is having visa issues
A lot of them are handlers LMAO
We are starting way later than a lot of schools
Living in a new place is weird tbh
I was not mentally prepared to do school
I am really broke
The good/new/exciting:
I’ve never been on a team with meaningful enforceable consequences due to a lack of buy-in until now
Everyone is driven and excited
Dedicated athletic trainer
No issues getting field space
Weekly games are upcoming on Mondays, with live streams!
It felt nice to be able to walk onto a field and impress people with my play and be in a wholly supportive environment like that.
The university is really taking this seriously. I’ve had so many forms to fill out, a handful of meetings with the athletic department staff, concussion baseline testing, and a physical, all in about four days.
I am excited about some perks: all travel taken care of, all travel expenses taken care of, athletic trainer and gym access, access to personal trainers, and a whole lot of free swag. Also, there’s going to be Davenport Ultimate gear sold in the campus store, which feels so crazy to me.
This team is athletic
My roommate situation is super fun so far.
Jessica Creamer said she’d do an interview with me for The Breakside!
My mind is abuzz with the Tweeting possibilities
Next Steps
The bottom line is that there will never be another season like this in the sport's history. This is the first time a university has thrown its support behind a complete Ultimate program in this way. (Sorry OC, no women’s program, no love yet). Additionally (I may be mistaken; please correct me if so), there was some Ultimate at OC before the scholarship program. It is my understanding that there has never been Ultimate at Davenport. Building a team culture and identity from scratch is daunting, even more so when considering the resources going into this and the standard OC set with their success. But at the same time, that’s what makes it unique. I’ve played this sport for almost half my life now. And if there’s one thing I am elite at, it’s having an elite sense of what not to do when building an Ultimate team. Maybe some good to-dos, too. I’m so excited to be in a position to help set this program on its way and to help shape the experience that every athlete that comes after will have.
More practically, we had our first official team “practice” today! Technically, it wasn’t mandatory, as we scheduled it a bit late, but the turnout was good, and it was a lot of fun! Every time I play, I feel more energized and excited about what this team can do and what this program could mean for the sport. We have a little party at our coach’s house this weekend with both teams to get to know each other and have some fun, and then I think it’s officially off to the races next week! Additionally, my apartment has some older players and represents both teams, so we hope to throw a bonding event/mixer together at some point. I promise to keep you all updated. Our first tournament is soon, too. We will be at Windy City Invite at the end of the month. So, if you’ll be in the Chicago area, say hi!
Final Thoughts
This is an incredible privilege. Never in my life did I think earning a scholarship would become an attainable goal for Ultimate players, let alone that I would have the opportunity to help blaze that trail. I hope to give you all an inside look at the program and everything we get up to this year to help spread awareness and transparency about what this offer entails, should you be interested. PS: Graduating seniors or incoming first-year students, hit me up, and I’ll sell you on where this team is going. I think this is special and would be an excellent program for you to be a part of. xo ;)
About The Breakside
This newsletter aims to tackle what I see as a gap in the present coverage of Ultimate as a sport. I hope this newsletter will provide an outlet for important yet overlooked people and stories to receive the coverage and perspectives they deserve.
About the Author
My name is Noam Gumerman (he/him), and I am a first-year master’s student on an athletic scholarship at Davenport University in Grand Rapids, MI. I am from Chapel Hill, NC, and studied Journalism and American Studies at Brandeis University as an undergrad. I was one of the captains of Brandeis TRON, the open division team. My claim to fame within the Ultimate community is running the @being_ulti account during the week of the 2022 WUCC tournament. I currently write for ClutchPoints Sports. Check me out here. Contact me for discussions, feedback, story suggestions, and more on Twitter at @noamgum or via email at ngumerman@brandeis.edu.