Dawson Archer discovered his first ultimate Frisbee club more than seven years ago at the Alabama School of Math and Science.
He also discovered its tongue-in-cheek rival, the anti-ultimate Frisbee club, which focused more on tackling the opposing players than it did on throwing the Frisbee.
“Whenever I was doing my research on the school, I saw there was an ultimate Frisbee club and an anti-ultimate Frisbee club, and apparently they played games against each other,” Archer told The Dispatch on Monday. “I thought that was just hilarious. I got into it, played against the seven or eight linebackers down in Mobile County. It was not ultimate Frisbee. It was just people hitting each other.”
The experience, albeit somewhat painful, helped Archer realize his love for the sport. From ASMS, Archer returned to his high school in Birmingham and joined an ultimate Frisbee team. Later on, he played for Mississippi State University’s men’s team, Dark Horse, eventually serving as president and captain.
Now, as operations coordinator and event manager for Lowndes County Recreation, and as founder and board president for the Golden Triangle Ultimate Frisbee Club, Archer is working to grow the sport locally for players of all ages.
“It’s really such an amazing sport because it provides that team atmosphere and a camaraderie that’s unlike anything I’ve ever played,” Archer said. “I played baseball for 10 years growing up, but this sport has just drawn me in a way that’s just truly special. … I think the ceiling for the sport is limitless, and the floor is so low that anybody can just pick up a Frisbee and get out there and play.”
Archer described the sport as a mashup of soccer, basketball and football. The offense and defense, each composed of seven players, form lines on opposite sides of a 110-yard field, which includes 70 yards of playing length and a pair of 20-yard end zones. Once the defense delivers the Frisbee downfield, the offense must make a series of passes to their guarded teammates en route to the opposite end zone.
Once the Frisbee is caught, the player must stop his progress and pass the Frisbee. If the Frisbee hits the ground or is intercepted, it’s a turnover.
Archer established the Golden Triangle Ultimate Frisbee Club in March 2024 with about 15 players. That year, the group hosted its first tournament, Midas’ Entanglement, at Roger Short Soccer Complex and traveled to compete in Arkansas and Alabama.
This year, the club launched Prism, its competitive branch. While the team hasn’t yet reached regionals, Archer said the priority is simply giving players opportunities to get on the field.
“We don’t really have the people to be able to outlast some of these teams, and especially in the club, there are so few teams that are able to move on to the next round that just being there is a great experience for us,” he said. “…. For me, it has been more important … just to provide opportunities to play because that has been what has been lacking.”
Mississippi is what Archer calls a “Frisbee desert,” with only four ultimate teams, far fewer than states like North Carolina, which Archer described as a major hub.
“It certainly looks a whole lot different than whenever you have a million people living in your city and cast a little bit wider net and different opportunities,” he added. “But, I mean, we’re still so fresh in the scene. … This is such a new opportunity to be able to work in Mississippi effectively.”
Archer took over as the Southeast regional director last year and became Mississippi’s state representative for USA Ultimate earlier this year. In both roles, he’s working to expand access to the sport and boost awareness across the state.
Looking ahead
Golden Triangle Ultimate has hosted its home tournament at the end of July for the past two years. Recently, the organization took over hosting duties for MSU’s home tournaments, which were previously played in Tupelo.
But hosting tournaments hasn’t always been easy.
“We’ve had things go wrong,” he said. “… I’ve had sub 15-degree cold. I’ve had plus 100-degree heat, rain, wind, snow, everything, at every level. We’ve managed. We’ve gotten through. We’ve had success, but we’ve gone through probably the most difficult road path possible to get there.”
Earlier this month, the organization hosted its first collegiate event, the Magnolia Classic, which doubled as the first women’s tournament since 2019 for MSU’s women’s team, the Night Mares. In February, Golden Triangle will host the state’s first USAU-santiconed women’s tournament with a cash prize.
“There aren’t any women’s teams in Mississippi, outside of (MSU’s) women’s team,” he said. “It’s just hard to keep people that are in state and convince them to go compete. … There just hasn’t been that level of interest at this point. We’re hoping to foster that and grow that a little bit more.”
Along with garnering more interest and opportunities for women to play, Archer is also focused on youth engagement. He partners with Vibrant Church in Columbus to host weekly pick-up games at Roger Short Soccer Complex, and he recently received a USAU grant to purchase cones, Frisbees and rule booklets for the Boys and Girls Club of Columbus.
Archer hopes to launch a Golden Triangle youth team someday, though funding and bandwidth for the goal are major obstacles.
“It’s trying to find the funding and the people passionate about doing it,” he said. “I would love to get something like that started here, where you’re getting people who’ve never heard of the sport interested and involved younger, so that they’re going to be able to play long term and connect with the community that clearly cares about them.”
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You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 34 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
