Boxing

INTRO 

The National Collegiate Boxing Association (NCBA) is the senior college boxing governing body in the United States. The NCBA provides student athletes an opportunity to box at the recreational, intramural, and competitive levels.

Participation

• Eligibility limited to those entering college with 10 bouts or less.
• Must be a member of a registered college boxing club.
• Most clubs welcome recreational members.

Competition

• Pre-matched bouts (by weight and experience) throughout the year.
• Regional Tournaments in March
• National Championship in April

Recruiting and scholarships (based on boxing experience and ability) are prohibited in the NCBA. Mis-matches leading to injury were a factor that degraded college boxing and led to the NCAA dropping the sport before, therefore the eligibility rules and ban on these types of scholarships are in place to prevent this.

The member clubs are founded, developed, and maintained by dedicated student athletes and coaches. Whether they come from programs that have been around since the 1920s or clubs just starting out, the student athletes and their clubs are the foundation of the NCBA. Only institutionally-recognized and USA Boxing registered clubs are allowed to participate; the NCBA is not for a single boxer at college, but for that college’s recognized and approved boxing club.

Rules Summary

As a group member of USA Boxing, the NCBA follows amateur boxing rules with additional safety measures that include enforced eligibility rules, more weight classes, mandatory use of headgear, and pre-matching of bouts by weight and experience for single day events.  College matches are three 2-minute rounds with 1-minute breaks in between. Boxers wear headgear and 12oz competition gloves during the match and are provided pre and post-bout examinations by a doctor. The rounds are judged on a 10-point system similar to professional boxing, but no additional points are given for knock downs or knockouts. Points are awarded based on the number of blows to target area, correct technique, tactical superiority, effective defense, etc. If a boxer appears injured or is not properly defending themselves, the referee will stop the action, issue a standing 8-count, and end the bout if necessary.  If the referee or ringside doctor believes a head injury may have occurred, the athlete is immediately restricted from any contact activities for a specified number of days/weeks and requires clearance by a doctor before resuming those activities.

Events

NCBA clubs host dozens of home shows and other invitationals each season. These range from charity fundraisers to all day home invitationals. The season begins in August and ends in April. Regional tournaments are held in March, which give teams a chance to bring their whole club to compete in and out of bracket matches. The NCBA contests the following weight divisions in the regional tournament and national tournament and is always reviewing participation levels to determine whether to add or subtract from these: (weight in pounds) 112, 119, 125, 132, 139, 147, 156, 165, 175, 185, 195, Heavyweight.

The top finishers in the regional tournament brackets advance to the national tournament in April where each weight division is contested in 8 person brackets. In addition to the individual titles, women’s and men’s team titles are awarded based on the following points system: 1 pt for each team participating, 1 pt per quarterfinal win, 3 pts per semifinal win, and 5 pts per championship win. Because of this points system, larger teams have an advantage for team scoring.