By Dylan Bradley and Selby Lopez/reporters
Barefoot is not the traditional way to play flag football, but on the second day of the NE intramural flag football competition Nov. 14, that’s exactly what happened.
In the second game of the day, Taha Elzaim chose to play barefoot and scored two touchdowns and assisted in another eight points, leading Team Two to a 36-28 win.
“This is just an everyday thing for me. I run faster barefoot,” he said. “When I was a kid, I used to always play football barefoot, so it doesn’t really hurt my feet.”
DFW Elite won the first game, 30-14, against the Raiders. Jordan Hornbuckle, team captain of DFW Elite, made the first two touchdowns.
“If we win today, we’re 2-0. I feel like Mike Evans out here,” said Hornbuckle, referring to the Texas A&M wide receiver.
The final game played was the only game with female players, who score double points. Though both teams had two female players, the Trailblazers leveraged this against Team Five, winning 36-12.
The NE Campus flag football tournament began Nov. 13 with a series of blowouts and injuries.
In the first matchup, Team 2 didn’t have any trouble defeating Team 6, 36-13.
Team 6 player Tyler Sparkman sustained a cut above his eye from his glasses after he got hit in the game.
“If people want to play football and wear glasses, they need to be careful or wear safety glasses,” Sparkman said.
In the next matchup, DFW Elite defeated Team 1, 36-19. In the second half, Team 1 almost made a run after Adaw Gwath scored a touchdown, which was worth 12 points because she is a woman. Her score closed the gap to 28-19. However, DFW Elite held Team 1 scoreless for the rest of the game to preserve the victory.
In Game 3, the Trail Blazers won handily over the Raiders, 38-12, in the quickest matchup of the day. The Trail Blazers sped through the Raider defense.
The final matchup between Team 3 and Team 5 was a defensive game. Both teams were held to a scoreless first half. The second half opened with Kentrail Burley defending a pass and landing hard on both legs, resulting in the second injury of the day. Burley stayed on the field for a while before he was escorted to the sidelines.
“I got cramps in both legs,” said Burley, who won the NE Madden NFL video game tournament last month.
After Burley’s departure, Team 5 defeated Team 3, 13-0.
The cold weather played a role in the game as many passes were dropped and some players could hardly feel their hands.
“I feel like I’m getting frostbite,” Elzaim said.
The competition continues Nov. 20.
