By Lara Charmaine Lagorra
Intramurals is one of Silliman University’s (SU) most anticipated events. Colleges gear up to give their all on the court, track, and field. Athletes stretch while crowds cheer for their favorites, old rivalries return, new ones form, and victors emerge.
While most teams go head-to-head for the trophy, some players on the other side of the court are not there to competitively win but to show up for their colleges and loosen up for the fun in the middle of the games’ intensity.
Departments such as the College of Mass Communication (CMC) and the College of Law (LAW) have often found themselves in the middle of the action. As part of the small college sector, their players are limited, sometimes even rotating with the same athletes across multiple courts. On the other hand, it has also been known that their presence brings a distinct energy that crowds have always looked forward to.
Last 2025, there was a popular demand for a basketball showdown between CMC and LAW to play against one another, and in the process of arranging the game, the College of Education (COE) was added to the lineup.
The game was historical—the SU gym was filled from entrance to exit with spectators from different departments, filling the venue with loud cheers and even more deafening laughter. It penetrated social media platforms, garnering thousands of views and reactions on video highlights of the chaotic basketball battle.
Due to a strong turnout and positive reception of last year’s exhibition game, a rematch was highly anticipated by those who had been hoping to see it happen again this year.
In the recently-concluded Intramurals, another basketball exhibition game was brought to the table, proposed by the SU Student Government (SUSG) Sports and Recreation Committee. The initiative was suggested by SU Athletics Department Director Dionesio Piñero, who requested to include an exhibition game to make the week-long event more exciting and fun.
The proposal was presented as an “inclusivity exhibition game”. This time, the same three colleges were invited to participate, but added to the roster was the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS).
To keep it short and engaging, a two-quarter format was planned out instead of the usual four. The said colleges were contacted to nominate basketball players who are willing to join, with an emphasis on encouraging gender-diverse participants to join.
It was expressed that the main purpose of the game was to add light and enjoyment for everyone as a fun, community-driven game similar to last year.
However, the timing of the announcement raised concerns among the invited colleges. The proposal was sent only a day before the scheduled game. There were no prior consultations or formal planning discussions, and the invited colleges had barely enough time to regroup.
This raised questions about whether the proposal was being targeted in another direction.
CMC Governor Luke Timothy Burbano shared his sentiments, saying that their college has long embraced humor, since post-pandemic, even taking pride in having started the tradition of making light of losses among smaller colleges during Intrams.
He shared that while they are always willing to bring laughter and embrace their playful spirit, they do not want that energy to confine them to the label of mere “comedic relief,” as it is not the entirety of who they are. Their athletes also compete with full seriousness in other sports, and those efforts deserve the same respect afforded to any other college.
“Claims such as ‘inclusivity exhibition game’ […] ‘Gender diverse players participated,’ together with the inclusion of bigger colleges, made it evident that this is seen as a spectacle rather than an opportunity to spread a message of inclusivity within the university,” Burbano stated.
He expressed that there was nothing wrong with the exhibition if proper consultation was done, but the way it was framed to them sent a wrong message about queer people in relation to sports.
“Tagging members of the LGBT community as comedic across all sports takes away from deeper conversations on inclusivity being made,” Burbano said.
To CMC, what makes their college stand out is their openness about not being the most skilled in basketball and playing simply for the enjoyment of the sport. Being queer comes naturally to them, which adds an extra layer of fun that draws the crowd to watch the games unfold.
The same dynamic applies to LAW, whose distinctive seriousness as future lawyers is reflected in their style of play, blending it with some court-side humor that shares a likeness with CMC.
When the exhibition game was proposed, LAW Vice Governor Matthew Yasi explained that their primary concern was the lack of preparation and how the request came at a timely cause when their athletes were exhausted from the games before it.
“The fact that it was for ‘inclusivity’ or ‘diversity’ felt strange to me, because as much as me and many of the LAW athletes support these things, making it the point or justification to hold a comedic exhibition match came to me as being inappropriate,” he said.
For many law students, Intrams serve as a break from their high-stress lives. Mathew said being labeled as “comedic relief” reflects that mindset—their main audience is themselves, not the rest of the student body.
“I was initially welcoming of the idea, but I had more pressing concerns with the scheduling and taking care of our players than with putting up a comedy show for the university. Had there been proper plans discussed with us prior, or that we were at least prompted by the idea a few days before, then maybe my answer then would have been different,” he remarked.
To Matthew, while comedy and laughter unite people, they must never suppress, oppress, or sideline marginalized community members. University Intramurals offers an ideal platform to boldly declare “we are here”—a message, especially for small colleges like theirs, that should never be compromised, regardless of the entertainment’s scale.
The Weekly Sillimanian has also reached out to COE regarding the proposed exhibition but have yet to respond as of writing.
After the colleges expressed their sentiments, the proposed exhibition was later cancelled.
Whether you’re a skilled player who knows the game or just there for the joy of participating, Intrams has always been a mix of intense and fun competition for all. While these colleges openly embrace humor, diversity, and the vibrant energy they bring, proper communication and initiative should have been met instead of unintentionally boxing them into caricatures.
This speaks to the line between laughing with a community and being laughed at. The issue was never about rejecting inclusivity, but about how easily it can be reframed when stripped of dialogue and consent.
What remains, then, is the question of whether representation was honored or may be reduced to an object of ridicule. And when that line is crossed, the applause fades faster than it takes for the whistle to blow from a foul punchline.
