Ultimate in 10 Simple Rules

by Steve Courlang and Neal Dambra

1. The Field: A rectangular shape with end zones at each end. A regulation field is 70 yards by 40 yards, with end zones 25 yards deep.
    

2. Initiate Play: Each point begins with both teams lining up on the front of their respective end zone line. The defense throws ("pulls") the disc to the offense. A regulation game has seven players per team.
    

3. Scoring: Each time the offense completes a pass in the defense's end zone, the offense scores a point. Play is initiated after each score.
    

4. Movement of the Disc: The disc may be advanced in any direction by completing a pass to a teammate. Players may not run with the disc. The person with the disc ("thrower") has ten seconds to throw the disc. The defender guarding the thrower ("marker") counts out the stall count.
    

5. Change of Possession: When a pass is not completed (e.g. out of bounds, drop, block, interception, stalled), the defense immediately takes possession of the disc and becomes the offense.
    

6. Substitutions: Players not in the game may replace players in the game after a score and during an injury timeout.
    

7. Non-contact: No physical contact is allowed between players. Picks and screens are also prohibited. A foul occurs when contact is made.
    

8. Fouls: When a player initiates contact on another player a foul occurs. When a foul disrupts possession, the play resumes as if the possession was retained. If the player committing the foul disagrees with the foul call, the play is redone.
    

9. Self-Officiating: Players are responsible for their own foul and line calls. Players resolve their own disputes.
    

10. Spirit of the Game: Ultimate stresses sportsmanship and fair play. Competitive play is encouraged, but never at the expense of respect between players, adherence to the rules, and the basic joy of play.

Spirit of the Game

From USA Ultimate’s website

A truly unique and defining element of ultimate, Spirit of the Game places the responsibility of fair play solely on the athletes themselves by requiring each player to know the rules and make their own calls, without the help of a neutral official. These underlying principles reinforce mutual respect and trust between opponents; communication and conflict resolution skills; and self confidence – both on and off the field of play.

USA Ultimate’s Spirit of the Game Page

Drills & Skills

RiseUP: A massive bank of diagrammed and filmed drills and strategies for ultimate frisbee from the basics of throwing to the most complicated elite level skills. RiseUP was created by Mario O’Brien, a world champion ultimate player and middle school teacher. Some paid and some free content.

DiscNW Virtual Coaching Series: Live virtual clinics with instruction about a variety of topics from throwing form (with EMSU’s own Ella Hansen) to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in ultimate.

USA Ultimate Youth Resources: An excellent selection of resources on learning the basics of youth ultimate from our national governing body.

YouthUltimate.Net: An excellent free online resource with drills, games, and more. A general focus on youth ultimate and the basics of the game.

Ultiworld (Tuesday Tips): Ultiworld is a great way to engage with the world of ultimate, and they offer a weekly series focusing on small drills and ways to improve as a player.

Ultimate Frisbee Highlights

Games to Watch

Ultivids: A database of most filmed full ultimate games that exist public on the internet, you can search and sort by team, division, year, and more.

YouTube: There are tons of exciting highlight videos across YouTube, including former EVU coaches Morgan Caldwell, Jesse Shofner, and so many more. Nathan Kolakovic makes great videos, and you can search by team or individual player (try Portland Schwa & Portland Rhino Slam!)