Impressive spring for USU Rugby

USU Rugby has been a club team for Utah State Campus Recreation for more than two decades, and the team this season is determined to elevate the Aggies to new heights.

The club participates in the Rocky Mountain Division of the Division I-A Rugby League, which is the highest level of collegiate rugby in the United States.

The team plays in both the fall and spring. In the fall, the team typically plays with 15 players and the games are 80 minutes. The spring primarily consists of a different type of rugby: sevens. Sevens is practically the same game as Fifteens, except there are only seven players for each team and the games are 14 minutes.

Typically, Fifteens consist of just one game while sevens typically play multiple games, like a tournament.

The fall campaign for the rugby team was not its best, recording just one win. But, due to an influx of new players and transfers, the spring season has looked promising.

The Aggies began their season with a tournament, facing off against Weber State University, Idaho State Univesity and the USU B-team.

USU trounced the Bengals, Wildcats and the Aggie B-team by 21-0, 39-5 and 48-5, respectively. Aggie center Timothy Piper led the Aggies with eight tries during the tournament.

“We blew out all the competition that we played, and as soon as that happened, we knew it would be a good season,” captain Cooper Nelson said when asked about the team’s performance in the tournament.

Nelson was voted as the team’s captain at the beginning of the season, and he plays scrum-half for USU. The scrum-half’s responsibilities are similar to that of a football quarterback, where they are supposed to direct everyone and make sure everything is going to plan. 

Nelson, who started playing rugby as a fifth-grader in Georgia, is incredibly proud of the team’s camaraderie. 

“We win together, we make mistakes together, and I think as a team, we own that right now,” Nelson said. 

USU had another opportunity to showcase their skills at a sevens tournament in Colorado.

USU went head-to-head against nationally-ranked teams during the fixtures. The challenge in front of the Aggies was monstrous, but they were up for it.

After upending a weak Northern Colorado squad, USU moved on to play the Rams of Colorado State. The Aggies blindsided No. 17 CSU and won 38-7.

The playoffs for the tournament began with the Aggies thrashing Colorado Mesa 43-0. This win reserved the Aggies a spot in the semi-finals versus Colorado State, a team they had just handled. USU beat CSU 33-22 and cruised into the championship game.

The Aggies fell short against No. 24 Air Force in the championship, but the effort proved USU was a capable program. 

With Nelson captaining the team, expect many more successful seasons for the Utah State Rugby program.

But like every sport, Rugby requires many different contributors to succeed. 

In addition to Nelson, Josh Morrill, Mike Woolley and Jackson Pabst, among others, have helped the Aggies turn the program around this season. 

Morrill is from West Jordan and plays the prop position for the Aggies. Growing up in a Polynesian community, Morrill had always been surrounded by the sport but never played until arriving in Logan.

In Rugby, a scrum is a restart of play following a stoppage. It involves members of the two teams binding together and pushing against each other until one side wins the ball. Morrill, being a prop, leads USU in the scrums and is the head man.

Morrill was a part of the fall team that mustered just one win but says that the team this time around feels much different. 

“The chemistry is so much different. We hang out. We like each other,” Morrill said. “We feel like it’s more of a team thing rather than just a bunch of individuals trying to figure out a sport.”

Woolley has also played an integral role in helping the Aggies improve from last season. He plays flanker for USU, which directs the scrum and ensures it stays straight. He also helps support the faster players on the team so that they can score. 

Woolley’s eyes are set on the national qualifiers, an event that will take place towards the end of the season.

“We’re excited to go there and hopefully qualify for nationals,” Woolley said.

Woolley was also a member of the fall team but noted the significant differences that the program has undergone over the past couple of years.

“The last couple of years since I started playing, USU’s rugby program has grown substantially in the culture, the number of guys and the quality of players,” Woolley said.

The sentiment Woolley shared could not be more accurate. In the early 2000s, the USU Rugby Club struggled to gather enough players to form a team. Now, the club has attracted so many athletes that there is an A-team and a B-team. 

Pabst, another key USU contributor, hails from Meridian, Idaho. He has been playing Rugby since his sophomore year of high school. 

Pabst has switched positions throughout his playing career, but for the Aggies, he plays fly-half.

Similar to a scrum-half, the fly-half can be compared to a football quarterback. Typically, the scrum-half is the leader of the forwards while the fly-half leads the backs.

Pabst has been a vital member and leader of the team. Without his leadership, the team would not be able to fend off opponents. 

A great showing of Pabst’s leadership came when USU took on Wyoming. The Aggies cruised past the Cowboys and won 39-12. Pabst said it was his favorite moment of the season.

“In the second half, we came together and were able to put up a big score against them which was a lot of fun,” Pabst said.

Pabst said he cherishes the opportunity to wear the Aggie jersey.

“Being able to represent a college is a lot, but I am very grateful to be able to do it,” he said.