There exists a cult within CHS that is the product of a basketball-mad state and a school that harbors not only a large population, but also one that exhibits incredible creativity and passion. Simply put, intramural basketball at CHS is a living, breathing animal.

“I think it’s taken on a life of its own, in a sense that kids want to be a part of it. There are opportunities to showcase not only your skills on the court, but showcase your humor, your intellect, your creativity through social means. As long as it stays appropriate, I embrace it, and I enjoy it,” intramural sponsor Walter “Mike” Meyer said.

Currently, 33 teams participate in intramural basketball. However, “participate” does not really do intramurals justice. Several teams have their own Twitter accounts where they regularly post about everything from starting lineups, to player “signings,” to just traditional smack talk before a big game. There is even an “official” Carmel intramural basketball Twitter page, “Carmel Bball (Kinda),” that reports on all intramural activity, even going so far as to release team rankings, akin to the college football or college basketball polls. Other teams get their own jerseys, or have a jersey “code” so that their team is instantly recognizable on the court. With team names such as the legally sarcastic, “Title 9 106.41c,” an all-girls basketball team, to the factually astute “6Ft. And Under,” to the plain silly “Aquaberry Hurricanes,” there is an abundance of creativity on display. But excessive creativity does not mean that the league isn’t competitive.

“I think it gets so competitive. There are teams that have been hosting practices at LA Fitness trying to get ready for the season,” Matt Cooper, Aquaberry Hurricane player and junior, said, “I think that the fact they are making their own Twitter accounts and they have this following…it’s what the high school team does, it’s what the college teams do, it’s what the NFL teams do, and it’s what the NBA teams do. It’s so competitive, and they just want to amp their fans up or amp their players up to get ready for the game.”

The popularity doesn’t just extend to the players themselves, either. Every year the intramural basketball championship takes place on the varsity court in the Eric Clark Activity Center during SRT. Tickets are available for $1. Last year, 750 tickets were sold. In essence, one-fifth of the student population paid for a ticket to watch the best non-varsity basketball players in the school. Why would students outside the intramural basketball bubble care so much? Drew Seketa, intramural executive council member and junior, said the answer lies in relatability.

“These teams are much more connected to the student body than the typical varsity team. The people on the team are seen more as your typical students and people are able to see themselves in the players; they aren’t these varsity players that are so good and ‘untouchable,’” Seketa said. “And it also fosters a high level of competition because they are the best of the best who didn’t make the basketball team in a school of 5,000 kids, which means they are still very good.”

These athletes aren’t the stereotypical intramural basketball players. Generally, there are two dominant types of intramural basketball players, aside from the typical pick-up player. Some, as Meyer and Seketa both point out, are athletes who play fall or spring sports, such as football, soccer, or baseball, that are currently in an off-season and have time to play basketball. The other dominant type of athlete is the ex-basketball player, like Cooper. Cooper played high level travel basketball, then played at Carmel Middle School, and even made the freshman team at CHS, before ultimately being cut his sophomore year. This created a void that intramurals could naturally fill.

“It just kind of fills the void for some people, because with all those kids who play Pups, their entire lives going from elementary school to middle school to even high school, their winters are filled with basketball,” Cooper said. “Intramural gives you that school ball feeling or travel team feeling.”

Although current athletes and ex-basketball players take part, intramural basketball is for anyone. It’s just as competitive off the court and on social media as it is on the court. Intramural basketball at CHS is what the students want to make of it, and it’s that idea, the fun in playing with and against your classmates, that Meyer said he believes to be the heart of this beast.

Meyer said, “The memories that are built, I cannot emphasize enough. In my day, I couldn’t make the basketball team, but I played intramural basketball when I was in high school, and it’s still some of my fondest memories, and it’s the memories you really hold onto.”