History and Philosophy
The National Collegiate Boxing Association (NCBA) was formed in 1976 and is a group member of USA Boxing. The NCBA philosophy and rules provide a safe outlet for student boxers with little or no experience in the sport. The organization emphasizes the teaching of fundamental novice boxing skills while providing a safe, positive, and educational experience for student athletes. The NCBA encourages participation at the recreational, instructional, intramural, and competitive amateur boxing levels.
Recruiting and scholarships (based on boxing experience and ability) are prohibited in the NCBA. Mis-matches leading to injury were a factor that degraded college boxing and led to the NCAA dropping the sport, therefore the eligibility rules and ban on these types of scholarships are in place to prevent this.
Click on the image to see the 2023 Champions
The member clubs are founded, developed, and maintained by dedicated student athletes and coaches. Whether they come from programs that have been around since the 1920s or clubs just starting out, the student athletes and their clubs are the foundation of the NCBA. Only institutionally-recognized and USA Boxing registered clubs are allowed to participate; the NCBA is not for a single boxer at college, but for that college’s recognized and approved boxing club.
Benefits of the Sport
Boxing is a challenging sport. A student athlete must have dedication, focus, and time management skills to reach a peak level of physical and mental fitness to even enter the ring. In no other sport is courage and determination at such a premium. Most NCBA programs are staffed by volunteer coaches and student officers. This gives athletes a chance to develop discipline, leadership, communication, team-building, and budgeting skills while running conditioning practices and providing basic technique instruction.
Rules Summary
As a group member of USA Boxing, the NCBA follows amateur boxing rules with additional safety measures that include enforced eligibility rules, more weight classes, mandatory use of headgear, and pre-matching of bouts by weight and experience for single day events. College matches are three 2-minute rounds with 1-minute breaks in between. Boxers wear headgear and 12oz competition gloves during the match and are provided pre and post-bout examinations by a doctor. The rounds are judged on a 10 point system similar to professional boxing, but no additional points are given for knock downs or knockouts. Points are awarded based on the number of blows to target area, correct technique, tactical superiority, effective defense, etc. If a boxer appears injured or is not properly defending themselves, the referee will stop the action, issue a standing 8-count, and end the bout if necessary. If the referee or ringside doctor believes a head injury may have occurred, the athlete is immediately restricted from any contact activities for a specified number of days/weeks and requires clearance by a doctor before resuming those activities.
NCBA Rules
Events
NCBA clubs host dozens of home shows and other invitationals each season. These range from charity fundraisers to all day home invitationals. The season begins in August and ends in April. Regional tournaments are held in March, which give teams a chance to bring their whole club to compete in and out of bracket matches. The NCBA contests the following weight divisions in the regional tournament and national tournament and is always reviewing participation levels to determine whether to add or subtract from these: 112 (Women), 119, 125, 132, 139, 147, 156, 165, 175 (Men), 185 (Men), 195 (Men), Heavyweight (Men).
The top finishers in the regional tournament brackets advance to the national tournament in April where each weight division is contested in 8 person brackets. In addition to the individual titles, women’s and men’s team titles are awarded based on the following points system: 1 pt for each team participating, 1 pt per quarterfinal win, 3 pts per semifinal win, and 5 pts per championship win. Because of this points system, larger teams have an advantage for team scoring.
NCBA Teams by Region
The NCBA consists of three Regions which each host a Regional Championship that qualify boxers for the National Championships. The Region Chairperson is your first point of contact for questions. Each Region has its own Registration Officer. Please visit the Contacts page for info about your Region Chairperson and Registration Official.
East Region
Chairperson: Ray Barone, Ed.D
Registration: Vicki Adams
Lock Haven University
U.S. Military Academy
Penn State University
University of Massachusetts - Amherst
Trinity College
University of Connecticut
University of Hartford
U.S. Coast Guard Academy
Shippensburg
​
Recently Lapsed:
Norwich University
Midwest Region
Chairperson: Olivia (Liv) Meyer
Registration: Brandon Lial
Miami University (Ohio)
U.S. Naval Academy
Iowa State University
University of Cincinnati
West Virginia University
University of Iowa
Ohio State University
University of Wisconsin-Madison
​
Recently Lapsed:
Xavier University
The Citadel
West Region
Chairperson: Jon Zaul
Registration: Jessica Lopez
University of California, Berkeley
University of Southern California
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
University of California, Davis
San Jose State University
University of Washington
Boxing Club at Oregon State University
University of Utah
Boise State University
University of San Francisco
​
Recently Lapsed:
Boxing Club at UCLA
Washington State University
