This week the Air Force Academy and the University of Arizona have nonconference rivalry matches to look forward to. Air Force hosts Navy Friday afternoon, while Arizona State will visit Sitton Field on the U of A campus to tangle with the Wildcats.
While both matches are considered traditional games and both D1A teams face opponents worthy of their undivided attention, the two rivalries are also quite different. For the Air Force Academy, in rugby and in all sports, competitions against fellow military academies equates to the biggest stage of sport for these young men and women. “Whenever we play another military academy in any sport it’s huge,” explained Air Force Head Coach Joe Muehlbauer. “But especially in rugby, with Navy and Army both having really good programs, getting a win is a big deal for us.” Additional pride has enhanced the rivalry in the form of the Shea Cup, which now titles the match as well as the trophy for the victors. The Cup is named after Kevin Shea, a former Air Force Academy rugby player who eventually switched commissions to the Marine Corps and went on to play for Navy’s active military rugby team. Tragically, Shea was killed while stationed in Iraq, but his memory and unique relationship with both the Air Force and Navy rugby programs lives on. Air Force currently holds the Shea Cup after beating Navy in Colorado Spings, Colo., two years ago. Last fall, the match was canceled due to the government shutdown. Air Force knows they have a considerable challenge ahead of them if they want to retain the Shea Cup. “It’s going to be a tough game for us,” said Muehlbauer. “Navy is always big and well coached. [Navy Head Coach] Mike Flanagan is a buddy of mine, and he and his entire staff are really good coaches.” Unlike some rivalries, these two military academies have the utmost respect for one another. The admiration for their opposition will be apparent once the final whistle blows Friday. “As much as you want to tear them apart and physically dominate them during the match, after the match the guys know they are more alike than different,” Muehlbauer said. “So, there is always a big get-together after the match. We eat together and share stories and experiences. It’s a lot of fun.” In the desert, Arizona and Arizona State’s rivalry has been built on geography and an athletic feud dating back to the late 1800s when the two institutions’ football teams began playing each other. The long-standing Pac-10, and now Pac-12, rivalry has translated to the rugby pitch. “It’s a great rivalry,” exclaimed Arizona Head Coach Sean Duffy. “Arizona State has a great program in both sevens and 15s. It’s really exciting to have a team this good right in our backyard.” Duffy and his staff have decided to put extra emphasis on building a sevens unit this fall, with a number of players training strictly for sevens while they prepare for three fall tournaments. So, Arizona will be without a number of key players during Saturday’s match against Arizona State – players who will be available when the two teams play again in February. Even though Saturday’s match is designated as a friendly, Duffy is convinced this weekend’s encounter will not be very polite. “A lot of guys on our side have friends on the other team, but I don’t think they’ll be friends for 80 minutes on Saturday,” said Duffy. Last season, the Wildcats defeated the Sun Devils, 51-38, in an emotional afternoon which coincided with the grand opening of Sitton Field, the on-campus rugby facility named after legendary Arizona Head Coach Dave Sitton. The West was one of two D1A conferences to expand this season with the addition of New Mexico into the fold. Another key difference this season for the West is the split in their conference schedule between the fall and spring semesters. In recent history, the West has played the entirety of its league competition in the spring, whereas this season each team will play head-to-head once in both the fall and spring.
Last season witnessed the West send three teams – Colorado, Colorado State and Wyoming – into the D1A Playoffs, with Colorado reaching its second consecutive National Quarterfinal. This year, there is no reason to believe the West does not have the talent to match last year’s number of three playoff teams. Air Force Academy Longtime Air Force Head Coach Joe Muehlbauer was proud of his Zoomies’ effort last season, but he knows Air Force lost too many winnable matches. This season, Muehlbauer believes he has the pieces in place to overturn the misfortunes of last year and get back to the playoffs. For the Cadets of Colorado Springs, they’ll need to replace All-American Jack Bristol before they can even think about improving on last season’s results. Luckily, it looks as though number eight Garrett Jameson is ready to take on the leadership role that Bristol carried so firmly. Jameson is a rugged defender and excellent ball carrier to match. Teams familiar with Air Force know a physically-punishing 80 minutes can be expected, and this season will be no different with props Taylor Cooksey and James Hanley leading the tight five. Both Cooksey and Hanley run upwards of six-foot-four and 260 pounds and enjoy contact at the breakdown. A common misconception around the Air Force program is that they lack the speed and athleticism of some other D1A teams – they don’t. This season, Victor Woo has taken over the scrum half duties. Woo has been a mainstay on Air Force’s sevens side, but is now ready to make an impact for the first XV. Adding to Air Force’s speed and athleticism is Zach White’s return from injury. The full back has been chomping at the bit to get back on the pitch, and already made his presence felt with two tries in Air Force’s 61-14 win over New Mexico. Always looking to push the limits of its players, Air Force has scheduled some very stiff competition around its West Conference matches including matches against Army, Navy, and San Diego State. Even with monumental rivals Army and Navy looming, the Zoomies’ coaching staff knows there will not be any pushovers out of the West. “I think the West has really improved,” said Muehlbauer. “I think we’ve improved, but so has Colorado State. Wyoming and Colorado are always tough, and New Mexico will be all right once they get their feet underneath them. I think we have an extremely difficult conference out here.” University of Colorado The reigning West champions used a high-powered offense to take them all the way to Marietta, Ga., where the Buffs fell to Life University in the National Quarterfinals. However, Colorado was a senior-laden team last season and lost key backline players and All-Americans Sean Kilfoyle and Brian Waneless. The new-look Buffs are much younger, and will rely on their muscle in the pack rather than a long list of dynamic backs that bolstered last year’s roster. “After our first week we know we have a lot of work to do to get back to where we were last season,” admitted Head Coach Jim Snyder. “There are a lot of good teams in our conference, so it will be a challenge to navigate through this fall schedule.” The “first week” that Snyder is referring to included an embarrassing 57-0 loss to Colorado State. The Buffs were missing a number of starters, but the scoreline suggests Colorado has more to do than simply get healthy to be competitive. Helping the Buffalos get back to being a West contender will be hooker Gavin Moscone and back-rower Connor Kissler, each of whom are coming off of stellar freshman seasons. After the graduation of several steady backline players and early injuries keeping halfbacks Jay Brown and Rhys Watkins off of the pitch, there has been a massive shift in the backline. After contributing from the wings last season, Jake Shomer, Piere Poupeau, and Cory Ketai move inside to fly half, center, and scrum half, respectively. Snyder is also counting on newcomers to the Boulder campus Zach Niro and Kip Nilson to make immediate impacts. Niro is a flanker with an extremely high work rate, while Nilson is a dangerous backline runner who participated in the high-school Stars and Stripes Camp over the summer. Colorado State University Qualifying for the D1A Playoffs has become the norm for Colorado State, but the Rams believe they have the players and structures in place to raise expectations in Fort Collins, Colo., and get beyond the opening round of the playoffs. “To be honest, we feel we can go a lot further than that,” said Colorado State Backs Coach Ryan Walker. “But no one is getting too far ahead of themselves, and we are taking it one game at a time.” With the return of Junior All-American and rising start Ben Pinkleman, one can’t blame Colorado State for thinking big this season. Pinkleman took a hiatus from college last spring to play for the Denver Barbarians and has already asserted himself onto Men’s Eagles Head Coach Mike Tolkin’s radar. Now back with the Rams, Pinkleman is one of the best players in college rugby and will be patrolling the park from his openside flanker position. Joining Pinkleman in the back row is Evan Giest at number eight. Giest is a big body, and along with Pinkleman will be making things difficult for opposing teams at the breakdown. Although Colorado State lost All-American prop Stephen Karas to graduation, the Rams return three front-rowers who all possess valuable playing time for Colorado State’s first XV in Jaron Beerlire, Jackson Brockway, and Eric Hamilton. In the backs, Joe Sullivan has been a consistent performer since transferring from Arkansas State, and Luke Engelhaupt is a danger-man in the 13 jersey. The back three for the Rams is young but talented, with freshmen Liam Wynne and Jack Connor already making themselves quite comfortable running with the first XV. Last week Colorado State made noise by blowing out Colorado, 57-0. The two bitter rivals are known for competing against one another in nail-biting fashion, making the decisive shutout so shocking. The result may have, in part, something to do with the Rams hosting an elite camp with the help of Canterbury Rugby Football Union and led by Super Rugby’s Crusaders Assistant Coach Tabai Matson. “The players loved it,” proclaimed Walker. “Our entire A-side attended the camp and a few of our B-side players attended as well. I think it was really eye-opening for the guys. A lot of them have intentions of taking their rugby to the next level, so for them to be coached by a guy who currently coaches 13 All Blacks and one of the best professional sides in the world was a great learning experience.” Colorado State is excited about the prospect of continuing and expanded the elite camp for both players and coaches as a yearly tradition. But for the here and now, the Rams have their sights on a West Championship. University of New Mexico The players on the New Mexico rugby team made their intentions loud and clear last year that they wanted back in the West Conference and to play at the highest level of college rugby. Now, after strengthening their numbers and doing everything asked of them administratively, they’ve earned the right to play in one of the better conferences in the country. “The players worked their tails off to do everything on and off the field to get back into the West Conference and into D1A,” said Lobos Head Coach Michael Hardy. Still, it remains uncertain how New Mexico will perform now that they are back in the West. “The expectation right now is to play competitive games,” said Hardy. “These teams we are playing are some of the top-rated teams in the nation. So, to be competitive with them is our goal until we can build on our numbers and skill level.” Giving the Lobos an opportunity to stay competitive this fall will be explosive winger Dasante Browne and inside center Joe Krigbaum. Hardy has also received early contributions from a number freshman who just wrapped up stellar high school careers. University of Wyoming Coming off of a season that earned the Cowboys a place in D1A’s Playoffs, there is reason for optimism in Laramie, Wyo. Sure, Wyoming is not much more experienced than last year’s team after graduating some key forwards and scrum half Alex Knowles, but the team does return players who have won tough matches in their careers and are a bit more athletic this season. “Overall we are incredibly inexperienced, but really excited to play,” said Head Coach David Finoff. The experience begins with captain Derek Aggerman, who takes over the ‘C’ while the Cowboys await the return of last year’s captain Ben Pacheco who is still recovering from a ruptured patellar tendon. Wyoming will also need a group of sophomores to progress rather rapidly in halfback Connor Rezzonico and props Michael Lewis and Sam Jacobs. Behind Lewis and Jacobs is second-rower Scott Ericsson, while Jose Campos and Timothy Mendoza must be disruptive loose-forwards for the Cowboys. Bobby Watkins, who has spent time in the centers, is slotted as one of Wyoming’s wingers. He has the athleticism and reps under his belt to make big plays. Coach Finoff is also excited about what his transfer from Canada, Jonathan Arndt, can do to help the team. Laramie is never an easy place to play for opposing teams, so if the Cowboys can steal a couple of matches on the road they will have as good a shot as any to win the West. Predicted Finish:
Article by Alex Goff | Originally published at erugbynews Stillwater, Okla. – The West LAU College All Star Tournament was held November 4 to 8 at the home of Oklahoma State University, with Eastern Rockies taking the title after a dramatic scramble to make up points differential.
Rich Cortez led a team made up of players from Air Force, Wyoming, Colorado, and Northern Colorado. Because of not having time to train together, ERRFU was expected to be rusty in their opening game, and that's exactly what happened. During a half rife with ERRFU handling errors, Ozark took full advantage and put up four tries in a 26-5 first half. Ozark scored again to make it 33-5, and then ERRFU launched a dramatic comeback, scoring 31 points. Ozark, however, scored that critical last try to win 38-36. Ozark faced Rio Grande in the next game, and used a mostly second side in that contest as Rio Grande won 40-16. Suddenly, Eastern Rockies were back in it, and needed to win by 26 to advance to the final. Down 7-5 at the half, Eastern Rockies again poured it on in the second period, scoring 36 and winning 41-12 – a difference of 29. In the other pool, Missouri RFU withdrew, leaving Heart of America and Texas to play a single match. Heart narrowly prevailed over a much bigger Texas squad 21-19, but critically they lost Truman State flyhalf and All American Sean Foley to injury. Led by the brilliant play of Air Force flyhalf John Feely, ERRFU then defeated Heart of America in the final 50-15. The game was tight for much of the first half before the fitter ERRFU side pulled away. Ryan Dombreck and Mark Burley each scored two tries, while fellow Air Force Zoomie John Lockhard added one. Wyoming's Cory Sittner also added two tries, while Dan Murphy (Colorado) and Cory Lambert (Northern Colorado) also scored. Heart of America's points came from tries by Kevin Jones of Truman State (two) and Phil Connealy of Kansas State. In the consolation match Texas defeated Rio Grande 32-6. Cortez voiced pride in a team that didn't get discouraged. "Credit goes to the kids who were committed not give up, made sure of their communication with each other, and constantly covered each others mistakes," the coach said. Alec Klinghoffer did well in running the event, which was blessed with excellent weather. |
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