Courts lined for both tennis and pickleball are becoming increasingly popular, and college facilities are no exception.
We already know pickleball is skewing younger but current research indicates a strong interest at the collegiate level. And while the NCAA has yet to sanction the sport, the number of pickleball clubs at institutes of higher education is continuing to climb.
According to Pickleball Portal, the first intercollegiate pickleball tournament took place in 2017 between Southern Utah University and a school now known as Utah Tech University.
That was then. This is now. Today, USA Pickleball, the national governing body, has an entire page devoted to collegiate pickleball. The page includes a list of universities and colleges with clubs (and contact information), resources for students or administrators to start their own clubs, fact sheets about court dimensions and rules, upcoming tournaments and information on USA Pickleball’s grant program. USA Pickleball also has an official collegiate club membership, including easy solutions for insurance, club management and opportunities to play.
“While we are working right now to establish pickleball at the collegiate level, our efforts are mainly at the team/club level,” says Justin Maloof, chief operating officer of USA Pickleball. “We are looking at perhaps a collegiate division for this year's National Championships in Dallas. It certainly won't be recognized as an NCAA Championship at that point but it's at least a start. We have no timeline as to when pickleball will be recognized by the NCAA but with the continued growth of the sport, it could happen quicker than we think.”
The growth of pickleball at the college club level is eerily reminiscent of another sport that started there, on its way to becoming an absolute juggernaut in higher education: women’s beach volleyball. Prior to becoming an NCAA championship sport (and while it was making its meteoric rise through the NCAA’s Emerging Sports for Women program), beach volleyball competition was governed by the American Volleyball Coaches Association.
And while it remains to be seen whether the sport would try to make inroads as an Emerging Sport for Women, or whether it would include both men’s and women’s teams, one thing is certain: it is an incredibly popular sport, and is easy to add to college campuses, in both indoor and outdoor spaces. It is also incredibly social and presents an excellent opportunity for students to meet one another (and to stay fit).
Additionally, there is a U.S. Collegiate Pickleball Association, as well as a program through NIRSA, the student recreation organization, which recently announced a partnership with Dynamic University Pickleball Rating (DUPR), an accurate pickleball Global Rating System that is free for all players, professional tours and recreational players.
Athletic Business notes, “In 2022, DUPR successfully launched a Collegiate Pickleball National Championship tournament, which featured 16 co-rec teams vying for the National Champion title using the same unique team format that is used in Major League Pickleball.”
Pickleball grew during the pandemic, since it was one of the few active sports that allowed for social distancing. Now, with isolation in the rear-view, it is picking up even more players.
“We’re already hearing from NIRSA members from across the association who are excited for the chance to grow pickleball opportunities for students on campuses across North America,” Pam Watts, CAE, NIRSA Executive Director, told Athletic Business. “The combination of pickleball’s accessibility, its social and active nature, and the adaptability of the sport are all factors that have undoubtedly helped to feed pickleball’s rapid growth and popularity across all demographics, and college students are no exception.”
Hana Papaco, manager of recreational programs at USA Pickleball, said the indicators are all positive for college-sector growth.
“We have collegiate clubs adding their names to our registry almost every week now,” Papaco said to reporters at Best Colleges.
And, in fact, the sport has left its “senior citizen” image in the dust.
“That old stigma of pickleball not being cool is going away,” said Rob Barnes, co-CEO of equipment manufacturer Selkirk Sport.
And, Best Colleges noted, Utah Tech University plans to begin offering pickleball scholarships later this year.
“We don't have the fine details, but Utah Tech should be the first school to offer scholarships to pickleball players,” Dylan Ciampini, a first-year sports management major at the school, told Best Colleges. "We're about 80 percent sure it's going to happen.”
Ciampini, according to Best Colleges, is one of about 600 students in Utah Tech's pickleball club, the largest on campus, she said. In only a short time, Utah Tech has emerged as a pickleball powerhouse and entered last year's DUPR tournament as the top seed before losing in the finals to the University of North Carolina.
“We didn't get any money,” Ciampini lamented. “We got towels.”
But that certainly didn't dampen spirits. Word of the team's success spread quickly, and every Tuesday about 80-120 students show up to play at The Picklr, an indoor facility near campus.
“People are respecting it more as a Gen Z sport,” Ciampini said.
Jacob Smith, DUPR's college program coordinator, said he is aware of 100 colleges that have some form of pickleball on campus. Of those, about 20 offer it as an official club sport and not just a student organization.
Chris Evon, one of the event owners of the Minto US OPEN Pickleball Championships, at one point, said the growth was only in its infancy, calling it “the first inning of an extra-innings baseball game.”
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