Men’s Collegiate Clubs, Center Stage in Florida

Becky Murdy
Assistant, Media Relations and Publications
Phone: (719) 228-6800
Email: becky.murdy@usav.org

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (March 25, 2011) – Four men’s collegiate club teams took center stage in the middle of 180 girls’ junior clubs at the first Florida Collegiate Volleyball League (FCVL) men’s college club tournament. In the midst the 25-court jigsaw puzzle of the 2011 Cloverleaf Tournament held in Fort Lauderdale, stood a featured court for Florida State University (FSU), The University of Florida (UF), Florida International University (FIU) and Miami-Dade College to compete.

At the tournament’s peak, up to 400 spectators trickled from surrounding courts to satisfy their curiosity as the hype of the men’s collegiate club tournament grew. The third-place and championship matches accelerated the crowd with music, play-by-play and roster announcements. An oversized yellow FCVL beach tent was added, filled with speakers that transformed the arena into an atmosphere that mirrored a NCAA Division l college tournament.  

Why the emphasis on men’s collegiate club volleyball in Florida? Warner University is the only college that offers a men’s volleyball program at the varsity level. The lack of collegiate volleyball in the state leaves high school volleyball players without a Florida-based college to play for. Instead of watching talent go to waste, the FCVL chose to create opportunities for these players, thus initiating men’s collegiate club teams in its region.  

“We, as a region, decided to step up,” Florida Region Executive Director and President Steve Bishop said. “We wanted to give high school boys a chance to continue playing volleyball in college.”

The FCVL is in its first year running as part of the National Collegiate Volleyball Federation (NCVF), a non-profit corporation of volunteer collegiate club volleyball programs across the United States. Florida Region Volleyball saw the Cloverleaf Tournament as an opportunity to promote men’s volleyball with the hopes that the tournament-style would catch on in other regions.

The FCVL Men’s College Club Tournament was held in conjunction with the 2011 Cloverleaf Tournament March 19-20 in Fort Lauderdale. Palm Beach Juniors hosted the two-day, 10-division girls’ junior tournament in the Broward County Convention Center.

Bishop and the entire work force behind FCVL received exceptional feedback from the spectators and players. The comments after the tournament were unanimous and positive, leaving fans hungry for more and players eager to compete in future tournaments.

Photo: Courtesy FCVL The University of Florida Gators won the first FCVL Men's Collegiate Club Tournament.  Winning the first, but not last, FCVL Collegiate Club Tournament were Florida Gators, who outplayed FIU in the final match. The energy that the men brought to the court resonated in the six-person-deep bleachers positioned on both sides of the court.

“This will happen again,” said Bishop about the tournament’s future. “It will have to wait until next season because indoor volleyball is almost complete with the NCVF Championships in a few weeks, but we will definitely be having more of these”.

The 2011 NCVF Championships will be held April 7-9 in Houston. The NCVF has attracted a record, 336 teams slated to compete in nine divisions: five for the men and four for the women. The growth within the NCVF and the continual support that regions have established are prime examples of an increase in popularity of collegiate club volleyball and men’s volleyball in particular. For more information about the championships, click here.

The atmosphere was electric as the guys continued to put on a show for the crowd. Parents came and went as their kids had down-time on courts. Coaches and athletes would drift over when they weren’t competing, and fans of volleyball took their seats to watch the men battle.

“The guys felt like rock stars,” Bishop said. “At the end of the tournament the girls were running up to talk to the college players and to get pictures taken with them.”

Onlookers were not the only people excited in the convention center. Players were overjoyed by the attention from the crowd and soaked in the opportunity that they would not have had a year ago.

“I got amazing feedback from players,” Bishop said. “They said that it was the best tournament that they had ever played in.”

The promotion of boys’ club volleyball and men’s collegiate club volleyball is not limited to inside the perimeter of Florida, it spans across the nation. Club presidents, like Bishop, along with players, parents and coaches are striving to enhance the popularity of these programs.   

“I hope that other men’s collegiate club teams and regional offices will recognize the potential that we have witnessed,” Bishop said. “This event was a great way to highlight boy’s and men’s volleyball and I hope it continues across the U.S.” 

A year's worth of work went into making the men’s program within the NCVL strong and sustainable. Bishop admits that there were rough moments in creating the foundation, but doubts were erased after the success of the first tournament.

“After the tournament, I had a half-dozen to a dozen people come up to me and ask if we were ever going to do this again. Who were the teams playing? Since when does Florida have collegiate volleyball for men? Why isn’t this done more often? All of these questions were out of pure excitement from what they had witnessed.”

Word about the men’s collegiate club teams’ appearances came by word-of-mouth from FCVL to local high school and club volleyball coaches. Announcements were posted online and through the established Cloverleaf Tournament. In addition to the personal marketing strategies made by Bishop and his team, promotional tactics were also tested.

“Two boys’ high school teams showed up in their uniforms,” Bishop said. “We offered free admission to teams who came to support in their jerseys.”

Photo: Courtesy FCVL The FCVL has been established for 29 years. Florida Region of USA Volleyball has been around for 29 years, supporting boys’ and girls’ junior indoor and outdoor volleyball and adult indoor and outdoor volleyball. With the first season housing a men’s division, the region has begun to feel more comfortable with where the future and success of the club can be.

“It is all about creating awareness and a buzz in the community,” Bishop said. “I had some parents and spectators come up to me after the event and express that they didn’t even know there were men’s collegiate club volleyball teams.”

For more information about Florida Region Volleyball, click here.  

Tags: college, college volleyball, FCVL, Florida, Florida Region, Men's Collegiate Club Volleyball