DeKALB – Months of preparation filled with late-night, rope-tugging practices have led to this moment. 

On Monday, the Interfraternity Council will begin hosting the Men’s 2024 IFC Tugs tournament in the heart of the Greek Row neighborhood at 912 Edgebrook Drive.

A popular tradition at NIU dating back to the post-war era, “Tugs” is an annual spring competition with a twist unique to the school. Rather than a traditional tug-of-war held on a flat surface, NIU’s version of tugs features a series of two-foot-by-two-foot trenches that tuggers use to gain leverage on the rope.

Tugs is also a philanthropy event, with proceeds going to an organization chosen by the IFC. Proceeds from this year’s tournament will be donated to Tails Humane Society, DeKalb’s local animal shelter.

Competition begins at 4:30 p.m. Monday with a play-in round between eighth-seeded Tau Kappa Epsilon and ninth-seeded Phi Kappa Sigma. Then, third-seeded Phi Kappa Psi will take on sixth-seeded Sigma Alpha Epsilon in the 6 p.m. match before second-seeded Phi Sigma Kappa and seventh-seeded Phi Kappa Theta face off at 7:30 p.m. to close out the first day of action.

Tournament play resumes at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday with fourth-seeded Alpha Sigma Phi going up against fifth-seeded Delta Chi. Two-time defending champion and top-seeded Sigma Nu will begin its quest for a three-peat at 6 p.m. Tuesday when they face the winner of Monday’s play-in round. 

The 2024 IFC Men’s Tugs Championship will be held at 3 p.m. Saturday, pitting the winners of Thursday’s semi-finals against one another. 

Tickets are available for purchase on Eventbrite. Tickets for each day from Monday through Friday are $10 each, while tickets for Saturday’s championship matches are $20. A week-long pass is also available for $30. 

The Northern Star will offer livestreams of each match, beginning with Wednesday’s losers bracket semi-finals, on its YouTube channel, @NIUNorthernStar.