Man your broomstick

The line between Harry Potter's world of magic and fantasy and our world (or as fans refer to it, the muggle world) has been blurred.  

And some Oklahoma State University students aren't complaining.

Drive by the quidditch field and you'll understand why. Seven muggles, members of the OSU Quidditch Association, gather weekly to run around on brooms and play the game.

If you thought quidditch was once a mere combination of football and various muggle sports reserved only for wizards, you thought wrong.

Seven players on two teams have one goal: to catch the golden snitch, which in the muggle version is an agile athlete dressed entirely in gold attire running around the field.

The field positions are beaters, keepers and seekers. Beaters throw make-shift bludgers (red dodgeballs) at players forcing them to drop the quaffle (a volleyball), the ball used to score points.

Keepers block the three, ringed goals that are planted in the ground. Seekers search for the golden snitch.

Except for the players running on foot with miniature brooms between their legs, everything is just like Harry's favorite pastime.

Following universities around the country, OSU added quidditch to its list of student groups in fall 2009 and has only grown since.

Dropping an air sport to the ground may be a strange concept, but some rules vary from the original.  

"[Quidditch] is a way for people who really enjoy the books to have a good time together," said sophomore Margaret Pogue.

Last year's team focused more on having fun, but this year it will play its first tournament in Wichita, Kan.

The team is recruiting so it's time to come out, closet Harry Potter fans.

The first meeting is tonight at 5:30 on Willis Field. Club meetings are at 4 p.m. at the Colvin Center.

Even if Potions class or Defense Against the Dark Arts is more your forte, don't be shy to try it out.

"Being bad at sports does not necessarily make you bad at quidditch," said Lindsey Campbell, a psychology junior.