The Rienow 7 Raptors didn’t fall flat on its face during its Residence Hall flag-football championship victory over Dub Setters, but team member Austin Waket is known for just that.

“He just falls on the floor a lot for no reason,” sophomore Sean Schoephorster said. “It will happen randomly, he’ll just wipe out. He also likes to hit all the buttons on the elevator.”

Waket has a the reputation of being the jokester of the team, both on and off the field.

“He’s our tight end, and we passed him the ball one time,” sophomore Drew Matzen said. “Then, he ran toward the sideline, and as a guy was about to tackle him, he just whipped the ball backwards, but there was no one there to lateral it to. It was definitely the funniest moment. If something goes wrong in the game, you blame it on him.”

Luckily for Waket, there were several Rienow 7 Raptors who have some previous football experience.

The squad’s quarterback, running back, wide receiver, and safety all played those positions in high school, making for an athletic and more experienced team.

That was lucky for Matzen and Schoephorster, both of whom transferred from Northern Iowa their freshman years. The team’s captain and cocaptain, respectively, started a flag-football team at their old school that was not so successful as the Iowa version.

“We were really bad,” Schoephorster said. “We won our first game, and then got really cocky. Then, we never won again.”

The pair from Clinton have known each other since fifth grade, a big reason they roomed together at both UNI and Iowa. Schoephorster claims that Matzen talked him into the move.

“UNI is a much tighter campus,” Schoephorster said. “And here the classes are different. They’re structured around the three or four tests you take for the year. Plus, I actually liked the food better at UNI, too.”

While Burge and Hillcrest may not be up to par for some team members, their fellow students certainly are.

“Even though most of us just met this year, we’re still pretty close,” Matzen said. “We plan on staying friends, and continuing the flag-football team in the men’s open league.”

The team’s name might have to change, though.

While ideas haven’t quite formulated yet, the squad chose this year’s name based on a little UI history.

During a dorm meeting, team members learned that years ago Rienow Hall’s mascot used to be a raptor. The name stuck — along with the squad’s ferocious play.

“We had enough guys to have an offensive and defensive team, and only one guy [Kyle Pape] would usually have to play both sides of the ball,” Matzen said. “The whole defense gelled together, and communication was always good.”

When team members aren’t dominating on the Hawkeye Recreation fields, they take their skills to a different venue.

“A lot of us guys are big Madden players,” Schoephorster said. “Playing people online gets pretty intense. There’s a lot of smack-talk back and forth, but we usually end up winning.”