Rugby club team rebuilds program

By Joe Doss-Antoun

In recent years, Santa Clara's rugby program has remained unknown around campus.

But the rugby team has a tradition that dates back to the early 1900s, when Santa Clara had one of the top squads in the nation. And after a series of not-so-successful seasons, the current rugby team has vowed to turn the program back into a formidable competitor in the Bay Area.

"One of the main problems in recent years is that we haven't had a coach who has been truly committed to the team," said club president Salman Shariat.

Therefore, the first step taken by the rugby program was to hire a new coach -- one that would be more committed to turning around the program.

With the help of Santa Clara rugby alumni, Chris Kron was hired as the new head coach. As a former player, Kron was a two-time all-American and a USA Eagle (a member of the national team).

In addition, Kron has brought along with him a few experienced assistants to help coach the team. The coaching staff includes Scott Rees, a 19-year rugby veteran; Richard Kelly, a former Santa Clara rugby player; Greg Morhmann, a former U-19 Eagle alternate; and Jordan Degen, a certified fitness trainer.

"The coaches we have now are night and day compared to the coach we had the past few years," said junior Scott Peterson, who has played rugby for six years.

In addition to bringing in a new set of coaches, there are 23 freshmen on the 48-man roster. For a sport which most people pick up in college, 23 freshmen means a lot of inexperience.

"This year was almost like a rebuilding year, just because we had a whole new set of coaches and so many young players who hadn't played rugby before," said Shariat.

Though most of the players that play for the team are new to the sport, the knowledge and experience that the coaches bring is invaluable to the team.

"Our team has gotten a lot better over the past year since we've gotten our new coaches," said Peterson. "You can definitely see there's a lot more potential for us to take league and potentially make the playoffs next season."

In order to make the playoffs, however, the team must get by such powerhouses as Santa Rosa and Humboldt.

"We've been getting closer and closer to beating those teams," said Peterson. "If we beat Santa Rosa and Humboldt, we'll be in the playoffs for sure."

Making the playoffs is one tradition Santa Clara's rugby team would like to reestablish. As far back as the early 1900s, Santa Clara's rugby team had experienced tremendous success. In 1916, Santa Clara was one of two teams in the nation to go undefeated on the year (Stanford being the other). That season, the team went 10-0 and outscored opponents by a total of 310-13. Later that season, the Broncos squared off with Stanford at Ewing Field in San Francisco for the match known as "The Big Game." The Broncos won 28-5.

However, in the following years, Santa Clara's rugby team lost a lot of its popularity as sports such as soccer and football gained notoriety.

It wasn't until the 1960s that a group of devoted rugby players started a club team on campus called the Santa Clara University Touring Side, or more commonly known as the SCUTS. The name is representative of the team traveling around California to compete against opposing schools.

As SCUTS, the rugby team beat local powerhouses St. Mary's and UC Berkeley en route to winning a Bay Area championship in the 1970s.

"There really is so much rugby tradition at Santa Clara that we want to try and restore," said Shariat.

Another aspect of the rugby world that attracts people to the sport is the whole culture that is intertwined with the game. Though the players essentially beat each other up for 80 minutes straight during a game, it is the exact opposite once the final whistle is blown.

As if never having competed against each other, the home team hosts a social the night after a game.

"It's a lot of fun hanging out with the team after the game," said junior Matt Saldivar. "We barbecue, talk some sports and sometimes sing rugby songs."

Freshman J.P. Goethals said, "It's a completely different culture. It's almost like a fraternity in itself. Even some of the alumni like to come up and talk to you about rugby because they used to be a part of that culture, and they've lived the life of a rugby player."

Having the support of the alumni is crucial to a program that is in the midst of a drastic turnaround.

"I believe there are two things you can't control when trying to turn a program around: alumni support and talent," said Shariat. "Thankfully for us, our alumni love the program, and we have a world of talent."

Contact Joe Doss-Antoun at (408) 551-1918 or jdossantoun@scu.edu.

Correction: The cutline incorrectly stated the date of the game pictured. It was April 10.