San Diego State Aztecs rugby club is the

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

club of

San Diego State University San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. It fields both men's and women's teams, the men compete in Division 1-A in the California conference and the women play in the Pacific Desert conference of Division II. The Aztec men's team won the US National Collegiate Rugby Championship in

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...

Teams

Men's team

Since the inception of the club in 1958, men's rugby has been both a popular and successful sport on campus at SDSU, so much so that Aztec alumni went on to set-up the rugby team of Old Mission Beach Athletic Club (OMBAC) in 1966 and also to found San Diego Old Aztecs RFC in 1978. In addition to the 1987 National Championship, the Aztecs have won numerous SCRFU Collegiate Conference titles to progress to the national playoffs, including 1996, 2007, 2008 (quarterfinalists), 2009 (semifinalists), 2010 (quarterfinalists) and 2012 (semifinalists). San Diego State men's teams have also excelled at the '' short-form'' of the game; finishing second at the 2010

Collegiate Rugby Championship The Collegiate Rugby Championship (CRC) is an annual college rugby sevens tournament. The CRC is the highest profile college rugby sevens competition in the United States, with the tournament broadcast live on NBC from 2010–2017, on ESPN News an ...

(broadcast live on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

) and qualifying to play in the

USA Rugby Sevens Collegiate National Championships The USA Rugby Sevens Collegiate National Championships is an annual competition among the top college rugby teams in the country to decide a national champion in rugby sevens. USA Rugby organized the championship to capitalize on the surge in pop ...

in 2011 (quarterfinalists), 2012 and 2015 (quarterfinalists).

Women's team

Women first represented San Diego State at rugby in 1975 and, like the men, had an astonishingly successful introduction, finishing the season second in the nation after losing the inaugural Women's Collegiate National Championship to the University of Colorado. The team played successfully for eleven seasons, even going on an undefeated four-match tour of

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

in 1981. In 1986 the Aztecs combined with a local club team the Rio Grande Surfers. The Surfers, now known as the

San Diego Surfers The San Diego Surfers Women's Rugby Club is a women's rugby union club based in San Diego, California. They were founded in 1975 as an amateur club and have been members of the Women's Premier League Rugby The USA Rugby Women's Premier League (W ...

, play in the Women's Premier League, the highest level of

women's rugby Women's rugby union is a full contact team sport based on running with the ball in hand. The same laws are used in men's rugby union with the same sized pitch and same equipment. Rugby was originally a men's sport, and women's rugby has become p ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The Aztec women's team has recently been re-established on campus and they were progressing through the 2020 season until it was cut-short by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

Club history

Founding and inaugural season

The first record of anyone having an interest in playing

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...

San Diego State College San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...

(as it was then) is an advertisement in the school newspaper,

The Daily Aztec ''The Daily Aztec'' is a not-for-profit, independent student newspaper serving San Diego State University (SDSU) and the surrounding College Area in San Diego, California. ''The Daily Aztec'' publishes on a regular basis when the university is ...

, at the end of the

fall Autumn, also known as fall in American English and Canadian English, is one of the four temperate seasons on Earth. Outside the tropics, autumn marks the transition from summer to winter, in September (Northern Hemisphere) or March ( Southe ...

semester of 1957 asking for ''Men interested in forming a rugby team'' to attend a meeting. More than 45 people turned up so a season schedule was put together along with a timetable of practices to be held over the winter break and Mr. Fred Quiett of the university's Engineering Department agreed to become the club's first faculty representative. The team played its first competitive matches in the

spring Spring(s) may refer to: Common uses * Spring (season) Spring, also known as springtime, is one of the four temperate seasons, succeeding winter and preceding summer. There are various technical definitions of spring, but local usage of ...

semester at the

Southern California Rugby Football Union The Southern California Rugby Football Union (SCRFU) is the Geographical Union (GU) governing body within USA Rugby that governs adult rugby union teams in Southern California, the Las Vegas metropolitan area, Arizona, and New Mexico. The SCRFU in ...

Carnival in Santa Ana on Sunday February 9, 1958, defeating Pomona-Claremont 8–0 and losing to the Pepperdine College

Waves Waves most often refers to: *Waves, oscillations accompanied by a transfer of energy that travel through space or mass. * Wind waves, surface waves that occur on the free surface of bodies of water. Waves may also refer to: Music * Waves (ban ...

3–8. The first of seven league matches that season was played against

El Centro El Centro (Spanish for "The Center") is a city and county seat of Imperial County, California, United States. El Centro is the largest city in the Imperial Valley, the east anchor of the Southern California Border Region, and the core urban are ...

on Saturday February 15, the Aztecs won 15–0. Their next match was their first at

home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or many humans, and sometimes various companion animals. It is a fully or semi sheltered space and can have both interior and exterior aspects to it. H ...

, it was played in the Aztec Bowl (now the site of the

Viejas Arena Viejas Arena (formerly Cox Arena) is the home stadium of the San Diego State Aztecs men's and women's basketball teams. It is located on the San Diego State University (SDSU) campus in San Diego, California. Viejas Arena opened in July 1997 an ...

) against

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

and was won by the Aztecs 20–14. Winning ways continued that first '' Cinderella season'' with a further three victories before suffering their first league defeat to Eagle Rock Athletic Club. This set-up their final match with

Santa Ana College Santa Ana College is a public community college in Santa Ana, California. History In 1915, Santa Ana Junior College opened its doors to 25 students as a department of Santa Ana High School. It was the second community college founded in Orange ...

on the next weekend as a championship decider, the Aztecs won the match and thus they also clinched the league in their inaugural season. Four of the team were named on the Southern California All star team (Bob Johnston, Ernie Trumper, Jim Hansen and Ian Richardson), two to the All-star second team (Bob Shank and Jim Hastings) and one honorable-mention (Ray Fackrell).

National championship

The Aztecs won the US National Men's Collegiate Rugby Championship in

, overcoming

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...

rugby club Rugby football is the collective name for the team sports of rugby union and rugby league. Canadian football and, to a lesser extent, American football were once considered forms of rugby football, but are seldom now referred to as such. The ...

22–6 in the semifinals and beating the

United States Air Force Academy The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in El Paso County, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and Uni ...

10–9 in the final. The 1987 men's rugby team was inducted into the

Aztec Hall of Fame The San Diego State Aztecs are the athletic teams that represent San Diego State University (SDSU). San Diego State currently sponsors six men's and eleven women's sports at the varsity level. The Aztecs compete in NCAA Division I ( FBS for fo ...

in 2005.

Notable alumni

International fifteens players

Alumni of San Diego State who have played

international International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

* Sean Allen * Scott Bracken * Derrick Broussard * Dan Dorsey * Ante Drazina *

Dennis Gonzalez Dennis or Denis is a first or last name from the Greco-Roman name Dionysius, via one of the Christian saints named Dionysius. The name came from Dionysus, the Greek god of ecstatic states, particularly those produced by wine, which is someti ...

* Chris Harju *

Duncan Kelm Duncan George Kelm (born March 6, 1988) is a former USA Rugby national team member, World Rugby Sevens Series competitor, and United States Olympic Training Center resident. As a prop and hooker, he played for the USA Rugby Men's Sevens team fro ...

* Chris Lippert * Craig Levine * Chris O'Brien * Mike Saunders * Brian Vizard * Scott Yungling

Professional fifteens players

Alumni of San Diego State who have played

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skil ...

* Derrick Broussard * Gil Covey * Dan Dorsey * Nico Gilli (SDSU 2018–2021) * Kalei Konrad * Nick Lupian * Austin Switzer * Ryan Walls

International sevens players

Alumni of San Diego State who have played

rugby sevens * Derrick Broussard *

* Mike Saunders ––

US Rugby Hall of Fame The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

inductee 2018 * Stephen Tomasin –– All-American (7s and 15s),

Bronze medalist A bronze medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of bronze awarded to the third-place finisher of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The outright winner receive ...

2015 Pan American Games Fifteen or 15 may refer to: *15 (number), the natural number following 14 and preceding 16 *one of the years 15 BC, AD 15, 1915, 2015 Music *Fifteen (band), a punk rock band Albums * ''15'' (Buckcherry album), 2005 * ''15'' (Ani Lorak alb ...

and participant at the 2018 Rugby World Cup Sevens * Brian Vizard ––

inductee 2016

Professional sevens players

* Stephen Tomasin –– One of the first players ever signed by Premier Rugby Sevens (PR7s) in 2021

Collegiate All-Americans and Junior Internationals

Students and alumni of San Diego State who have been awarded All-American honors for rugby, played for the US Junior All Americans ( U20s), the US Collegiate All Americans ( U23s) or who have played international rugby at a junior level for another nation.

Rugby coaches and administrators

Alumni of San Diego State who have become coaches and/or administrators of rugby at the highest level * Nic Benson –– Deputy Commissioner

Major League Rugby Major League Rugby (MLR or USMLR) is a professional rugby union competition and the top-level championship for clubs in North America. In the 2022 season it was contested by thirteen teams: twelve from the United States and one from Canada. Off ...

* Reldon “Bing” Dawson ––

inductee 2018 ** Played rugby and football at San Diego State University graduating in 1967 ** Began his coaching career under

Don Coryell Donald David Coryell (October 17, 1924 – July 1, 2010) was an American football coach, who coached in the National Football League (NFL) first with the St. Louis Cardinals from 1973 to 1977 and then the San Diego Chargers from 1978 to 1986. W ...

and

John Madden John Earl Madden (April 10, 1936 – December 28, 2021) was an American football coach and sports commentator in the National Football League (NFL). He served as the head coach of the Oakland Raiders from 1969 to 1978, who he led to eight pla ...

as a Graduate Assistant at SDSU ** Coached OMBAC for 20 years creating a rugby powerhouse *** US 7's Club Champions 1985, 1995, 2000, 2001, 2002, and 2006 *** US 15's Champions 1988, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1994, and 1996 *** Rugby Super League Champions 2006 ** more than 70 OMBAC players coached by Dawson between 1985 and 2006 represented the U.S. in 7's or 15's ** He also coached Southern California Griffins, the Pacific Coast Grizzlies and the U.S. Eagles National Teams * Cornel Muller –– Operations and Production Manager at

* Giovanni Vaglietti –– Executive Director, USA Youth and High School Rugby (the sanctioned body for all Youth & High School Rugby across the country) ** Born and raised in South Africa, Vaglietti came to San Diego State University on an athletic scholarship ** He worked in San Diego State University’s Athletic Department ** He also worked at the

Australian Open The Australian Open is a tennis tournament held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia. The tournament is the first of the four Grand Slam tennis events held each year, preceding the French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Th ...

, the BNP Paribas Open and

ClubCorp ClubCorp is a privately held American corporation based in Dallas and is the largest owner and operator of private golf and country clubs in the country. It owns or operates more than 200 golf and country clubs and business, sports and alumni ...

** Previously CEO of Southern California Youth Rugby *

Bob Watkins Robert Cecil Watkins (born March 12, 1948) is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major Lea ...

––

inductee 2015 ** played rugby for San Diego State University, Old Mission Beach Athletic Club and the Southern California XV. ** Founding Director of U.S.A. Rugby Football Union (Director 1975-1991, President 1983-1987 & 1989-1991) ** Managed U.S. Eagles versus Canada, U.S.S.R., South Africa, New Zealand, England, Wales and Hong Kong ** Past President of the Pacific Coast and Southern California Rugby Football Unions ** Chairman of the U.S. Rugby Super League and U.S. Rugby Foundation.

Notable coaches

Former coaches of San Diego State Aztec rugby who have played and/or coached

and/or

rugby * Scott Bracken ** player ** head coach * Steve Gray ** player and captain, ** player, captain and assistant coach ** assistant coach **

inductee 2016, Gray coached the Aztecs to the National Championship in 1987. * Matt Hawkins –– SDSU Assistant and later Head Coach 2008 - 2010 ** player ** player and head coach *

Dan Payne Daniel Payne (born August 4, 1972) is a Canadian actor best known for playing the role of John in the television series '' Alice, I Think''. Career In his early 20s, Payne was a professional volleyball player. After his retirement, he was convin ...

** player (2007) and assistant coach (

2011 Rugby World Cup The 2011 Rugby World Cup was the seventh Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. The International Rugby Board (IRB) selected New Zealand as the host country in preference to Japan and South Af ...

) ** head coach 2009 **

USA Rugby USA Rugby (officially the United States of America Rugby Football Union, Ltd.) is the national governing body for the sport of rugby union in the United States. Its role is to achieve and maintain “high levels of quality in all aspects of rugb ...

Chief Executive Officer 2016 **

General Manager of High Performance 2021 ** Coached the Aztecs 2006–2009 *

Matt Sherman Matt Sherman (born October 29, 1978 in San Francisco, California) is a former American rugby union fly-half and current coach of the Army men's rugby team at the United States Military Academy. His ‘21/‘22 Army West Point squad won the D1A Nat ...

** player and assistant coach ** head coach ** Sherman spent two seasons as San Diego State's head coach, leading the Aztecs to the Final Four in 2009 and the National quarterfinals a year later. *

Zack Test Zachary "Zack" Test (born October 13, 1989) is a retired American rugby union player who played for the United States national rugby sevens team. With 143 career tries in the World Rugby Sevens Series, Test led all U.S. players in tries scored un ...

** player ** Pan American Games bronze medallist ** player **

San Diego Legion The San Diego Legion is an American professional rugby union team based in San Diego, California. The team was founded in 2017 and competes in Major League Rugby. Home field The team plays at Snapdragon Stadium, which is located on the campus o ...

assistant coach (2017-2020) and co-head coach (2020–)

References

External links

* {{College Rugby in California University and college rugby union clubs in the United States Women's rugby union teams in the United States Rugby union teams in California Rugby union teams in San Diego Rugby clubs established in 1958 Sports organizations established in 1958 1958 establishments in the United States 1958 establishments in California Women's sports in California