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Post by thesenator on Apr 27, 2016 17:42:47 GMT -5
great article in today's oth on the rise of rugby at bonas under clarence picard...
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Post by sneakers on Apr 28, 2016 6:24:39 GMT -5
www.oleantimesherald.com/sports/butler-bona-rugby-is-thriving-under-picard/article_821b8d76-0c38-11e6-ab49-6372eec16069.html?mode=jqmInteresting article. It got one thing wrong. The team is undefeated in the Spring. 20-0 in sevens and 4-0 in fifteens. This season Bonas has soundly beaten universities that dwarf us in size such as: University of Michigan Virginia Tech University of Maryland West Virginia (twice) University of Buffalo Xavier Kent State Old Dominion St. Joe's U Penn The team has qualified for the division IAA (the highest level in college) National Championship tournament being held the last week in May. Check out a game if you have the opportunity. It's a fun sport to watch (and to play)! Sevens rugby is a new Olympic sport for 2016. It will get decent coverage as rugby is the second biggest participatory sport in the world, after soccer. A member of the NE Patriots is trying out for the U.S. Olympic team so it is getting a lot of press in Boston already.
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Post by derhut on Apr 28, 2016 7:34:29 GMT -5
sneakers - where is the tourney being held ?
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pbd76
Junior Member
Posts: 378
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Post by pbd76 on Apr 28, 2016 11:12:09 GMT -5
sneakers - where is the tourney being held ? If this page I found is correct, looks like Bowling Green and St. Marys |
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Post by sneakers on Apr 28, 2016 12:41:21 GMT -5
sneakers - where is the tourney being held ? Nationals are being held in Cary, North Carolina (located in the "research triangle" of Raleigh, Durham, Chappel Hill), May 27-29 at the 10,000 seat WakeMed Soccer Park. The matches will be streamed live on USARugbyTV.com I believe they will be carried on one of the cable sports networks as well. More info to come. 24 teams will be invited to compete for the Devision 1 championship. In order to get invited a team needs to win a qualifying men's tournament in the spring. SBU actually won three of these tournaments already (so do we get to send three teams?) More info on this web site: usacollege7s.com/ |
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Post by Saulius Dumbliauskas on Apr 28, 2016 13:12:28 GMT -5
This is a great opportunity for the school to be on the forefront of a sport that may join the sponsored NCAA ranks in the future.
However, since the NCAA only cares about money, and Rugby would compete with Football, I don't see it being a NCAA recognized sport any time soon.
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Post by sneakers on Apr 28, 2016 14:07:37 GMT -5
The NCAA actually recognizes women's rugby as an "emerging sport", but not men's rugby at the present. (Probably driven mostly by Title IX more than by football conflicts, but who knows) This is similiar to how the NCAA treats rowing, which is a recognized sport for women, but not for men. (oddly that is also true for bowling). However, that fact doesn't stop many universities from having a varsity men's crew team and the national championships are run by a private organization that is not the NCAA (and probably more fairly run). Men's rowing is a very well founded sport in many major universities even though it is outside the NCAA perview.
The nice thing about not being under the NCAA umbrella is that the team can recruit high school students as they want, with out all the rules assocaited with recruiting for an NCAA sport. SBU men's rugby team actively recruits student athletes to play rugby, and has brought in between a dozen and 20 high school rugby players in each entering freshman class for several years now. Rugby is a sport that Bonas has a big edge in recruiting since we play in the top leaugue in the country and we have a tradition of success (not to mention a well organized team that has lots of alumni support).
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Post by elitetaylor33 on Apr 28, 2016 15:19:50 GMT -5
We had this conversation in another thread a few weeks ago, and its great to see it being brought back up!.. And regarding recruiting like Sneakers above said, Bona's has done a unbelievable job, considering that Kutztown is right down the road in PA, is a state school, and a perennial powerhouse. Then theres PSU right smack right there in the middle too.. So being able bring in the talent that Clarence has, is really special.. If you come down to Philly, right outside in the suburbs, there are camps (just like you'll find in a lot of places), being held for HS kids to get looked at by College Coaches and Programs. And when they initially get there, these guys are asked to write down what school are you trying to go too, and play for? And just a couple years ago, 39 out of 40 would say PSU or Kutztown, without hesitating.. But now St. Bonaventure is getting a lot more recognition down here, just like they are up and down the Northeast Coast.. Just another testament to what Coaching Staff, and Alumni, have been able to do!.. Having the 7's Championships being held in Philly, and drawing record crowds of 24,000 last yr was something really amazing. All the while being broadcasted on NBC Sports.. And with all due respect, D1-A is the highest level of competition, which the Bonnie's are in, with their Conference (the East) being the toughest..
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Post by wgt on Apr 28, 2016 18:01:57 GMT -5
A few weeks ago I was doing a College Fair at New Rochelle HS & several students were asking about Bona Rugby which surprised me. Their interest was created by two NRHS grads playing for the Bonnies. I emailed them with info on the team the next day. I'll add this info in another email to them. thesenator...Thanks for posting this.
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Post by thesenator on Apr 29, 2016 6:33:55 GMT -5
A few weeks ago I was doing a College Fair at New Rochelle HS & several students were asking about Bona Rugby which surprised me. Their interest was created by two NRHS grads playing for the Bonnies. I emailed them with info on the team the next day. I'll add this info in another email to them. thesenator...Thanks for posting this. you're welcome, wgt...and thank you for representing bonas at college fairs and passing along info to prospective students about bonas...it's your efforts and the efforts of others like you that will help bonas increase its enrollment and be there for future bonnies for years to come (God willing)... |
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Post by thesenator on Apr 29, 2016 6:40:59 GMT -5
This is a great opportunity for the school to be on the forefront of a sport that may join the sponsored NCAA ranks in the future. However, since the NCAA only cares about money, and Rugby would compete with Football, I don't see it being a NCAA recognized sport any time soon. this is a great opportunity for bonas...in addition to our d1 team, i wonder if there is a club rugby program at bonas that kids who like the sport but don't feel they are good enough to play at the d1 level can be a part of...i'm all in with any idea that can use rugby (or any other sport for that matter) that can increase interest/enrollment for bonas... |
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Post by sneakers on Apr 29, 2016 11:06:13 GMT -5
In addition to fielding the nationally ranked top team, the SBU rugby team also fields a "B" team and even a "C" team (depending on numbers). Those function like a JV team. They all practice together, but the "B" and "C" teams are matched against the "B" and "C" teams of our opponents, so that competition is fair and talent can be developed. This allows the rugby team can carry large numbers of kids (60+). In fact, it is the largest team on campus. Some players may always play at the lower level because the may not be good enough for the "A" team, but many players get great exprience on the lower level teams, get stronger and faster and move to the "A" team over time.
BTW, last year the team recruited 20 players as Freshmen. 75% of them had never heard of St. Bonas before they got a call from our coach (so they would not have applied to Bonas if they hadn't been approached by our coaching staff). Many of these players come from the catholic high schools in the NYC area, Buffalo, Cleveland, etc. (our traditional base). Being recruited to play a sport is a huge incentive to attend that college whether it is a high profile sport or a nitch (but growing) sport.
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Post by 123Rob on Apr 29, 2016 12:35:06 GMT -5
While there is no doubt that rugby is a "niche" sport at this point keep a few things in mind.
1.) it is growing rapidly. More and more HS and youth teams are springing up. Bona is very well represented in the coaching ranks of these teams.
2.) those that play, or have played are extremely loyal to the sport. Bona plays at about the highest level possible with as mentioned, B and C squads for those less experienced
3.) Xavier and St. anthonys in NYC area, McQuaid and Canisius in WNY and a couple of Catholic HS in Cleveland all have established and powerful rugby programs, playing right into our wheelhouse
As previously mentioned, the leadership of Bona rugby; the past and growing success of the program; the program's current league and stature all put us in excellent position to make SBU a destination for high schoolers interested in rugby.
Hopefully, other successful groups at Bonaventure- ROTC and BonaResponds, among others leap to mind- can use rugby as a model for attracting future Bonnies. Having a built in activity of interest and a set of potential new friends can only help enrollment and retention numbers while creating happy students (and parents) ready to spread the word about how wonderful Bona's is. All our admissions counselors (and probably SHARE volunteers) should be well versed in the successes of these programs.
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Post by sbu79 on Apr 29, 2016 12:40:02 GMT -5
Does the rugby team benefit from BAF funds?
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Post by fjs64 on Apr 29, 2016 13:32:01 GMT -5
Does the rugby team benefit from BAF funds? In the "designation list" for where the funds go, Rugby is not listed, but there is a categorg called other......I would imagine that you can financially help the team. Clarence Picard is not only the coach, but has a leadership role (Director of Annual Giving) in the Annual Giving area, so contacting him would be useful. |
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