Xavier Rugby Celebrates 50th Anniversary

Aug 2, 2024

Sometimes, when one door closes, another one opens.
 
When Xavier shut down its football program in December of 1973, members of the football team were left without a sport to play.
 
With football no longer an option, a group of enthusiastic students introduced rugby to Xavier’s campus as a club sport in the spring of 1974. Rugby was new to many students on campus. Word of the new sport spread through campus and Xavier rugby was born shortly thereafter.
 
“We just went around campus and recruited players,” said Jim Donlin (’77), one of the first members of Xavier’s rugby team. “A lot of guys were ex-football players and had never played before. And that’s how we got started.”
 
The rugby team found a coach, learned the sport and by the fall of 1974, Xavier club rugby played their first game in front of about 200 fans at Corcoran Stadium.
 
Rugby has had a presence on Xavier’s campus as a club sport ever since it was established in 1974. To mark the 50-year anniversary of the club’s founding, rugby alumni will host a weekend-long celebration of Xavier Rugby this fall.
 
Rugby 50th Anniversary Weekend includes a golf outing, happy hour, a rugby game and a dinner gala. All friends, family and former Xavier rugby players are invited to attend.
 
Donlin, who helped organize the weekend, said rugby alumni will also use the 50th anniversary celebration to raise money for an endowed award that will help perpetually support the rugby program.
 
Like other club sports on campus, operational costs for the rugby program are covered by club fees paid by players and donations from members of the Xavier Family. Xavier rugby relies on support from its alumni to help cover the costs of uniforms, travel and stipends for volunteers and coaches.The Rugby Team traveled to Ireland this year for the team's first overseas tour. It was a great means of team bonding while learning about the origins of the sport. It also exposed Xavier to possible overseas students coming to Cincinnati to continue their studies and play rugby.
 
Perhaps more than other sports, alumni from the rugby team – affectionally known as the ‘Old Boys’ – dedicate themselves to support current and future generations of players. Donlin said the strong connection between generations of Xavier rugby players is something that dates to the game’s origins in England.
 
“That’s the culture of the game,” Donlin said. “You stay connected with your club after you leave it. That’s something that our first coach instilled in us.”
 
Visit xavier.edu/giverugby to contribute to the rugby endowment fund.
 
Register for the Xavier Rugby 50th Anniversary Weekend.