Harry Potter's Quidditch magically appears at NU
Youths with brooms, volleyballs get odd looks, but enjoy game
Harry Potter's sport of choice, Quidditch, is taking flight at Northwestern University.
The game, which traditionally features wizards flying around on brooms, has been adapted into an earthbound college sport, known as Muggle Quidditch.
(Tom Cruze/Sun-Times)
"There's actually an Intercollegiate Quidditch Association that organizes teams across the country," said Marc Bourgeois, a sophomore who's trying to put together an NU Quidditch team. "It started at Middlebury College in Vermont and has really caught on."
If all goes according to plan, the coed NU Quidditch squad will have school funding, matching uniforms -- including purple capes -- and compete against other schools in the spring.
But for now, Bourgeois is covering the basics. "We're gathering equipment and organizing meetings and practices and all that. We should start having pickup games in the next two weeks or so."
Bourgeois, who does most of his recruiting on Facebook, has about 20 students who want to play. Many are still learning the game, which "looks kind of like a mixture between ultimate Frisbee and dodgeball."
Here's brief look at the game: Each player needs a broom. One hand must be kept on the broom between your legs at all times as players run around trying to throw a slightly deflated volleyball, known as the "quaffle," past a goalie and into one of three goals, which are essentially Hula Hoops attached to PVC piping -- all this while trying to avoid being hit by rubber kick balls, or "bludgers."
"It's also a contact sport, so it gets pretty intense. You can't tackle somebody, but you can hip check and run into people while trying to steal the quaffle," said Bourgeois, who added that players wear cleats -- and mouth guards and athletic supporters are recommended.
"Short of flying, this is as close to the Harry Potter version as we could get," Bourgeois said.
Players, who gather at a grassy field on the north end of NU's Evanston campus, have drawn curious looks.
"So far people have thought it's really funny and have been laughing at us a little bit," Bourgeois said. "But it's a fun game. The people who are in college now are really the ones who grew up in the prime time of Harry Potter."