“This is for my #$^&$#%% club heads, you feel me?” – Missy Elliot

The best and most accomplished sports team associated with the University of Illinois happens to be one of the least known. Illinois men’s volleyball, or IMVB, continues to fly under the radar, well, because volleyball is a “girls'” sport, or so said a lady on the airplane back from Dallas on Sunday morning when 20-odd six-footers wearing IMVB clothes scanned the Southwest flight for spare seats.

Admittedly, men’s volleyball is, like hockey, a club sport here in Champaign. Actually, it is a club sport at most universities because of the perfect storm of its sparse yet devoted following, Title IX and the relative anonymity of the men’s game. Men’s volleyball is a truly great sport – one that few ever have the chance to appreciate, and the Illinois club is a truly great program. In fact, stating that IMVB is the best club in the nation would not be a stretch.

While clubs in California and elsewhere in the Midwest have coaches and easy access to practice and tournament space not only at their colleges but also in local convention centers, the Illinois team works closely with the school to maximize its use of scant resources, all without a separate coach or club organizer. Each team member pays dues and works various fundraising events to help pay for the exorbitant cost of travel. Teams cram too many guys into too little space at tournaments that are too far away. Through it all, Illinois wins.

Really, how good are the three teams that compose IMVB? The Blue team finished second this year, preceded by six straight third-place finishes, while the Orange team ended the season at third, preceded by a third and two second-place finishes. The Illinois White team, the one the national organizing body foolishly does not let attend the national championships, regularly beats other schools’ only team, finished third in its conference and wins tournaments. Incidentally, the Blue team carried a 35-match winning streak into the national tournament this past weekend – and extended it to 43, going to decisive third games only six times during the streak.

The records and accomplishments, though, pale in comparison to the quality of people who compose the club. Every student organization likes to boast that it has the highest-caliber Illini, but as someone who has been active on campus for six years, I will testify that the IMVB Fighting Illini for the 2007-08 season are among the finest men I have ever had the pleasure to know. Those 44 guys and their families make significant monetary, temporal and academic sacrifices to play a game they love and few others appreciate.

In 2008-09, the teams should be even stronger, and I hope the UI student body will take advantage of the rare occasions when they play in Champaign. Men’s volleyball is a thing of beauty, and those who have never seen it played properly, as the IMVB teams do, should watch the Olympic matches on television this summer before coming out to support the Illini next year.

A significant factor in IMVB’s success is that the state of Illinois is one of very few to have a developed boys high school volleyball program. That infratstructure, combined with a developed out-of-school club organization, has made Illinois the second-strongest state for men’s volleyball. Ultimately, though, the club owes its unparalleled success to, and duly thanks, the 44 students listed below, their families, their friends and significant others, their alumni, Ed Morford, Kristin Duitsman, the University’s RSO/SORF system and the club’s good friends, Dewey and Linda Jones.

Congratulations, everyone, on a fantastic season.

Michael Ashida, Kyle Bettenhausen, Doug Burchett, Timmy Carioscio, Kevin Carroll, Mike Cleary, Patrick Condron, Jim Covert, Emmett Culligan, Kevin Deeke, Joe Doughney, Sam Eisenberg, Dan Fey, Henry Gottlieb, Stephan Hanowsky, John Holmstrom, Trey Horvath, Matt Janas, David Joyce, Miles Kilgallon, Mike Konrad, Kevin Martinez, Karl Miller, Matt Morris, Steve Mui, Brendan Ori, Brandon Owen, Craig Podalak, Tom Root, Kurt Royer. Tim Ruberry. Josh Scaletta, Brian Shea, Robert Shintani, Eric Sipos, Steve Tasch, Mark Tkaczuk, Joe Toth, Chris Walstra, Sam Wheeler, Pat Whelan, Randal Zhou and Ben Zintak

Lee is a senior in mechanical engineering and the outgoing president of Illinois men’s volleyball. He specifically thanks Doug Burchett, Pat Condron and Miles Kilgallon for making this year the greatest ever.