UWG Wolves Club Baseball is student-run, and best described as a junior varsity baseball team at the university level. The NCBA is an alternative league to the NCAA with different rules and restrictions.
The UWG Club Baseball has faced many challenges in gaining accreditation with the NCBA, but is continuing to fight battles at home. Officially, the UWG Club Baseball team is competing with their university for identity. The Wolves have discussed with their founder, Jason Smith, a UWG senior, about adopting the Braves as their official mascot.
“I agreed with changing the name to ‘UWG Braves Club Baseball’ to avoid confusion on campus,” said Smith. “We have received a ton of support for the name change. I don’t see why it would be a problem, since the NCBA has no title IX restrictions.”
The team currently wears the same blue and white UWG logo as used by the university’s athletic department.
Smith began as an umpire for intramural softball at the UWG, and has gained experience as an umpire for local high school baseball. During this time, Smith has discovered talented athletes and wanted to develop a place for students to continue their love of baseball. As a founder of the Z-6 Sports Club on campus, Smith was familiar with the process of developing an organization at UWG.
To receive official accreditation, the Wolves first needed to be recognized as a student organization through the Center for Student Involvement on campus. With a signature from the University Recreations (UREC), and CSI, the Wolves were able to start their year-long accreditation process. The Wolves received a grant from UREC to cover the registration fees for the NCBA. In June 2014, the Wolves were named an official baseball club of the NCBA.
Student athletes provide the majority of the funding for the UWG Wolves Baseball Club. Equipment and uniforms are paid for by the player’s registration fee. As the players seek sponsorship from local businesses, they run into hurdles. Unfortunately, local businesses that already sponsor the university’s varsity baseball team are less likely to sponsor UWG Wolves Baseball Club due to a conflict of interest. Today, the team is left with used equipment and no field to call home.
The Wolves play against big name schools like The University of Alabama and Georgia Tech.
Next week, the UWG Wolves Club Baseball will compete against University of South Carolina- Union on the intermural field at UWG. This game, along with the 23 others that the Wolves play in one season, is not featured on the university’s website, but you can stay updated at: http://www.uwgbaseballclub.com or follow them on Facebook at Wolves Club Baseball at UWG and Twitter @UWGClubBaseball.
Comments
You may also like
-
Student Represents UWG at State Capitol
-
Cinema Therapy: Exploring Psychology and Film with Dr. Gupta and Dr. Umminger
-
Dr. Kelly and his New Podcast “Off The Cuff”
-
Sexaul Assault Awareness Month Brings Title IX Resources to Light on Campus
-
Wolves Don’t Waste: Club President Timothy Vanjohnson Jr. Discusses the Fight Against Food Inequality at UWG
Hats off to these student players & for Jason Smith, who has fought to build an alternative baseball team for those who are willing to work hard & invest their time in a sport that they want to participate in. Their persistence has given them & will give future young men the opportunity to have a positive experience & focus in sports while in college. Congratulations to Mr. Smith & his team.
Congratulations to Jason Smith and all the others for all of their hard work for getting this whole organization off the ground and into reality so that students that have a love and talent to play baseball get the opportunity to play at the college level. Mr. Smith has demonstrated his ability to leap over every hurdle thrown his way to make this a reality, exactly the kind of skills we want to see in our students.
Good luck to Mr. Smith and all the students that have gotten involved in this admirable endeavor. I hope any support their club needs will find the community as well as the University responding in kind. Again Congratulations to Jason Smith and his team.