It started in 1967 as a friendly tug-of-war match over the East Lagoon during NIU’s Spring Fest. Any group or organization could participate, and the biggest obstacle was attempting to keep a strong grip on a wet, slippery rope.

Now, however, Tugs is nothing short of an all-out war.

What used to be a fun game now is a serious sport. Thirty-seven years ago, tuggers simply would stand on either side of a rope and pull. Today, tugging starts with participants lying in trenches and escalates into a series of strategic moves.

Over the years, teams have developed more efficient methods for seizing the rope from the other team, with the biggest improvement occurring in 1982 when tuggers began using trenches. The gradual transition from flat ground to small indentations in the soil gave tuggers more leverage.

Tugs also shifted away from a come-as-you-are event as competition intensified. Tuggers began preparing in advance, and now teams have heavy training regimens that begin two months prior to the event. With more complexity to the sport also comes more frequent and more serious injuries. Tuggers commonly break ribs, slip discs and have permanent scarring from rope burns.

Mike Leonard, a fourth-year tugger for Sigma Pi, said Tugs injuries can surface over long periods of time.

“I’ll probably find out my worst injuries from Tugs in about ten years when I can’t walk,” he said.

Over time, tuggers have tried various methods to ease the pain, including taking large amounts of aspirin or taping towels to their sides and arms to minimize rope burns.

In addition to changes in tactics, Tugs has seen other changes over the years. In 1976, Tugs became the turning point for Pi Kappa Alpha. That year, the Pikes’ membership was at an all-time low, with fewer than 15 members in the house.

The Pikes won Tugs that year, and subsequently, pledge numbers spiked, and the house population doubled in size. The influence of Tugs in the reestablishment of the Pikes became known as the “Charge of the Light Brigade,” and Tugs has been important to the Pikes ever since.

“It’s been the cornerstone of our house for the past 33 years, and it will continue to be a tradition until our house falls down,” said Brent Renken, a third-year tugger for the Pikes and Northern Star advertising manager.

Tugs changed dramatically in the early 1980s when the university stopped allowing Tugs to be held on campus because of liability concerns. The Pikes then began to sponsor Tugs, and the wet rope no longer posed a problem because the matches weren’t conducted over the East Lagoon.

The Pikes turned Tugs over to Sigma Phi Epsilon shortly after because of their history of winning the event. Since then, Sigma Phi Epsilon has hosted Tugs as a philanthropy fundraiser, earning thousands of dollars each year for charity.

This year, Tugs will undergo another change. Weigh-ins for teams will be conducted each day of the event instead of only on Monday, which was the procedure in previous years. The rules for Tugs state that each team must average a maximum of 195 pounds per person. It has been speculated that during past Tugs, teams have bulked their members beyond the weight limit after Monday’s weigh-in to obtain an additional advantage over the other teams. This year’s measure has been implemented to prevent that.