Drew
03-25-2008, 05:39 PM
Students At Utah State Play 'Drinking Game' With Root Beer Instead
LOGAN - Utah State University students are putting a new spin on an old game.
Beirut -- or beer pong -- is a favorite among college students. The objective is to bounce a pingpong ball from one end of a table into a cluster of cups at the other end. If the ball lands in a cup, the owner of that cup drinks its contents -- usually, beer.
That's where USU students take exception. On a dry campus with a heavily Mormon population, the Aggies play with root beer.
``People are pretty excited about the event,'' said coordinator Megan Darrington. ``We want to make this a tradition at USU.''
Campus Recreation Chairman Lance Brown elaborated on why he thinks the game, which students played Friday at the Taggart Student Center, has caught on.
``It's like people here want to look worldly, but they don't want to be worldly,'' he said. ``Living in a Mormon community, students want to push the edge a little.''
The event was sponsored by the school's student council and organized by the Associated Students of USU's athletics group. Organizers arranged a bracketed tournament competition, and teams of two with names like Sobriety and A&W came to play.
Even onlookers seemed to enjoy the contests.
``It's good for our student body to relax and help people experience something they normally wouldn't,'' said Lindsay Hall.
Winners took home T-shirts, gift cards and other prizes.
Brown said he doesn't see Beirut's popularity fading any time soon. The chances that USU's adaptation will make another appearance on campus are good, too.
``I've been around the country, and there are more mocktail parties in Utah than anywhere I've been,'' he said.
http://www.kutv.com/content/news/topnews/story.aspx?content_id=d7521600-7f40-4602-91b2-c1bcac65c86f
LOGAN - Utah State University students are putting a new spin on an old game.
Beirut -- or beer pong -- is a favorite among college students. The objective is to bounce a pingpong ball from one end of a table into a cluster of cups at the other end. If the ball lands in a cup, the owner of that cup drinks its contents -- usually, beer.
That's where USU students take exception. On a dry campus with a heavily Mormon population, the Aggies play with root beer.
``People are pretty excited about the event,'' said coordinator Megan Darrington. ``We want to make this a tradition at USU.''
Campus Recreation Chairman Lance Brown elaborated on why he thinks the game, which students played Friday at the Taggart Student Center, has caught on.
``It's like people here want to look worldly, but they don't want to be worldly,'' he said. ``Living in a Mormon community, students want to push the edge a little.''
The event was sponsored by the school's student council and organized by the Associated Students of USU's athletics group. Organizers arranged a bracketed tournament competition, and teams of two with names like Sobriety and A&W came to play.
Even onlookers seemed to enjoy the contests.
``It's good for our student body to relax and help people experience something they normally wouldn't,'' said Lindsay Hall.
Winners took home T-shirts, gift cards and other prizes.
Brown said he doesn't see Beirut's popularity fading any time soon. The chances that USU's adaptation will make another appearance on campus are good, too.
``I've been around the country, and there are more mocktail parties in Utah than anywhere I've been,'' he said.
http://www.kutv.com/content/news/topnews/story.aspx?content_id=d7521600-7f40-4602-91b2-c1bcac65c86f