Capture the flag: CU flag-football tourney underway beneath Buffs' practice bubble

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BOULDER, Colo. -

It's flag football -- but not the way anybody who's played intramurals at the University of Colorado in the past has seen before.

During this first session of CU's spring intramurals season, the flag-football tournament is being held indoors -- beneath the Buffs' heated practice bubble, which sits adjacent to the outdoor football practice field and just down the hill from Folsom Field.

"The bubble was pretty awesome," junior Robin Loomis said after playing the league's first week of games last Sunday.

This is the first time a full intramural flag-football league has played in the bubble since the facility was erected in the fall of 2007.

"It's a great environment and the kids love playing in it," CU intramurals director Annie Mulvany said.

Mulvany said the league operates like CU's outdoor football leagues -- three weeks of round-robin play on Sunday afternoons, followed by an elimination playoff, which takes place on March 1.

The league already has met its capacity, with 12 men's teams and four co-ed teams competing in three divisions (men's competitive and recreational, and co-ed recreational).

Under the bubble

Take a step inside the facility and, after your ears have popped from the pressure change, you're immediately impressed with the scale.

A full 100-yard football field, with roughly 20 feet of sideline around each side of the gridiron, sits under the dome, and fans roar near the entrance to keep the bubble from flattening.

Loomis and his teammates on Team Mammogram have played flag football regularly since coming to CU, and while he said they enjoyed their first-week win in the league, they now know to dress for the indoor field.

"It was definitely hotter than expected," Loomis said of playing in the bubble. "It was a pretty cold day and we all dressed in our long-sleeve shirts, so we now know not to."

Weather was a consideration when aiming to run a league indoors, Mulvany said; while the weather has been kind enough in years past to allow for an outdoor league, winter in Boulder can turn on a dime.

"We could (have an outdoor league), but we'd be banking on if we had good weather or not," Mulvany said. "It's totally dependent on the weather."

For the outdoor seasons (including the second session that runs through late October and November in the fall semester) there are dates built in to account for weather-related rescheduling -- but playing indoors prevents the need for that.

That's something junior Bryan Gustafson appreciates.

"Like when we (played) second session last semester, we had to cancel a few games because of the weather," said Gustafson, a member of team The Coat. "With a dome you don't have to worry about that."

'It felt cool'

Beyond avoiding weather hassles, just playing inside is impressive.

"It felt cool having the one field all to your game, not being surrounded by other games," Loomis said. "The turf was a lot nicer than the turf over by Kittredge."

While the facility is not an exclusive location for the CU football team -- athletic facilities director John Krueger said all of the varsity sports, club rugby, lacrosse and soccer, as well as campus' the ROTC program have made use of the dome -- the rental cost for the practice bubble is higher than the other outdoor fields, which Mulvany said will keep its use slightly exclusive.

"I wish we could offer more activities in there," Mulvany said. "We try to keep our fees at a minimal so students can afford to play, and with the bubble, it'd be an additional fee."