Issue date: 2/27/07 Section: News

Spencer Selvidge - THE BATTALION Senior second-row forward Josh Back evades a tackle during a game against Sam Houston State University Saturday afternoon. The Aggies went on to win the match, 80-0.

Look around campus for a diverse student organization, and you won't get much more diverse than Texas A&M's Rugby Football Club. With team members hailing from places like England, Uruguay and Botswana, the rugby teams are way ahead of the curve.

"Rugby is the world's second most popular sport, behind soccer," said men's head coach Craig Coates, an associate professor in entomology. "So it makes sense that we have people from all over the world come to A&M to play (rugby)."

Fans of U.S. football and soccer alike will notice many similarities to rugby, probably because of the way U.S. football was first played, which was much more like rugby than modern football.

"Basically, rugby is the same sort of premise as American football, but you can't throw the ball forward. You can only lateral it back or to the side, or you can kick it forward," said Josh Back, a senior kinesiology major from Whitby, England.

Those not familiar with rugby probably first notice that none of the players wear pads or heavy helmets, and yet they hit and tackle each other with quite a bit of force. Except for mouth guards and an optional cloth helmet, rugby players use experience to stay away from major injuries.

"You don't see many major knee injuries in rugby," Back said. "We get tons of guys who played football in high school who have torn ACLs and MCLs, but the worst I've seen in rugby is a broken nose."

The A&M rugby clubs are not varsity sports, so they are managed by the Department of Recreational Sports, and though they receive some financial support from the University, they don't get scholarships and have to raise money to travel.

The team has several scholarships made possible through donations, including a recent $25,000 endowment for scholarships, typically to allow out-of-state and international students to pay in-state tuition.

Many Aggies want fans to know that rugby isn't just a man's sport, and the women's team at A&M is eager to prove that.

"The rules and regulations of the game are exactly the same for men and women," said women's head coach Will Riddle. "The only real difference is the speed, but we make that up by being more aggressive."

Players from both teams say A&M rugby is more than just playing a game. Because most of them aren't on scholarship, and there isn't a professional league in the U.S., most Aggies say they play for the love of the game and the community that the team provides.

"My brother played rugby in high school and college, and when I got to A&M and met the team at open house, I figured I would try it. I came out and fell in love with the game," said Brea Hughes, the women's team captain.

Hughes, a senior nutritional sciences major, said she loves the team's camaraderie, that all of her teammates feel like sisters and that she consistently works to achieve team unity.

This weekend, the men's team beat Sam Houston State, 80-0, and the women's team played Texas State in a scrimmage, because the Bobcats couldn't field enough players for a full team.

Both teams are ranked in the top 25 and are working toward upcoming playoff berths.

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