What do you get when you mix a football-style passing attack with a plastic disc?
Oregon Ultimate.
The seven-on-seven, non-contact display of disc-passing ability is a popular game among Oregon students. So popular, in fact, that it has led to considerable success at the club level. With its calculated aerial assault, different defenses and high energy level, the Oregon men’s Ultimate team has worked its way into the No. 3 spot in the national rankings.
“It’s definitely a pretty popular sport,” club coordinator and sophomore Ben Parrell said. “People just like to toss (a disc) around.”
A rough explanation of the object behind Ultimate is this: Athletes attempt to score goals by passing a disc from teammate to teammate until someone catches it in the endzone. While on the attack, the offensive team must keep the disc off the ground at all times. If the disc touches the ground, the defense immediately takes over possession with no down-time in between.
Once a player has the disc, he is allowed a pivot foot but can’t take any extra steps. Shuffling of the feet leads to a traveling call and a change in possession. The game is over when a team, depending on the tournament, reaches 13 or 15 goals. If a team does not reach the winning goal total within the time limit (between 90 minutes and two hours), the new winning total becomes two goals higher than the score of the team with the lead.
Since contact is outlawed, playing defense proves to be the most difficult aspect of the game. Teams use both zone and man defenses in an attempt to obscure an opponent’s passing lane as best they can.
“Stopping another team’s precise, calculated offense is extremely difficult,” senior and coach Ben Wiggins said. “Especially against the type of athletes we’re playing.”
The Ducks need all the practice they can get, as they compete in the toughest region in the country. The Northwest region holds nine of the top 20 spots in the national rankings, including the top pair of Stanford and California.
“We’re coming out of the hardest region,” Wiggins said. “We need big, fast and strong athletes.”
The Ducks won the first major tournament of the year, defeating California in the finals of the President’s Day tournament in San Diego. In three tournaments since, Oregon was crowned champion and was bounced twice in the quarterfinals and once in the finals, losing to North Carolina State in the Ultimax tournament. While most would consider this four-tournament stretch a success, the Ducks will accept nothing but the best.
“We’re not real happy with how we’ve done,” Parrell said. “Both quarterfinal losses were disappointing.”

Unlike most other competitive sports, Ultimate relies on sportsmanship and honor, as there are no game officials. Players make their own calls and are governed by a “Spirit of the Game” policy. Though having no game officials leaves the opportunity to cheat wide open, players usually follow the rules.
“We don’t have the culture of, ‘Let’s see what I can get away with,’” Parrell said.
When playoff time comes around, games are monitored by neutral observers who are the deciding factor when a call is disputed.
“We pride ourselves on enforcing spirit within our own team.” Wiggins said.
The Ducks will compete in the sectional tournament this weekend in Corvallis. After that, it’s on to Vancouver, B.C., for the Northwest regional tournament on May 3 and 4. If the Ducks can win their region, they will get one of 16 bids to the national tournament held in Austin, Texas, during Memorial Day weekend.
As May 23 approaches, the Ducks will look to make all the plyometrics, weight training and pool exercises in the off-season pay off by bringing home a national title.
“We’re one of the top three teams in the country,” Wiggins said. “If we make it out of our region, we’ll be highly favored to win the national title.”