Question: On the morning of April 12, 1961, he was a total unknown. By the afternoon of that day, he was arguably the most famous man in the world. For 10 points, name this man designated a hero of the Soviet Union for surviving the world’s first space flight.
If you answered Yuri Gagarin, you might be qualified for College Bowl, a group of students who thrive on academic competition, the “varsity sport of the mind,” the College Bowl Web site states.
College Bowl is an international competition in which college student representatives showcase their broad-based knowledge, said faculty adviser and accounting professor Tim Louwers.
“The students who are attracted to this have a real interest in learning, a real interest in knowledge,” Louwers said. “They are not necessarily interested in trivia, but in learning.”
Draper Johnson, a general studies senior, said he and other College Bowl participants have a different idea.
“We just like to kick ass,” Johnson said.
In its first year of existence, the team placed second in the regional tournament, beating the likes of Texas Tech and Southwest Texas State and losing to perennial powerhouse University of Arkansas on the final question.
Louwers said he was impressed by the team’s academic prowess.
Every year, the Union sponsors a College Bowl tournament for LSU students and the winning team goes on to the regional tournament. This year, they placed everyone with the highest scores on one team to form an “all-star” team, said Staci Pepitone, assistant director of the LSU Union.
By taking the all-stars, the students had a better all-around team, Pepitone said. The schools that consistently win have a coach that consistently prepares.
Louwers got involved in a roundabout way. He and other faculty played trivia at Damon’s, and they were consistently being beaten by the College Bowl team at Michigan.
College Bowl members are learning about where competitions are held and hope that the new commitment to maintaining their competitive team will bring in new members.
This commitment begins in earnest April 1, the registration deadline for the April 4 College Bowl tournament held at the Union.
“It’s a good time to recruit for next year,” said Chris Lin, a chemistry senior.
Pepitone agreed, saying it was sort of a “warm-up.”
With three of the five main members graduating this semester, Lin said they need people with a variety of background and knowledge.
Louwers said they especially need students with backgrounds in pop culture, history and literature.
The Union tournament will arrange teams in groups of four, but Pepitone and Louwers said any individual student, faculty or staff member can register. Those individuals will be placed on a team.
Those interested in participating in the April 4 tournament should e-mail Tim Louwers at [email protected] before April 1.