Written by: Steven Quinn

Q&A w/ Jon Murtaugh

            In an interview with Jon Murtaugh, director of operations for the VSU Rugby Club, we discussed everything related to VSU rugby.

When was the rugby club born?

“We started back in 2010. There were about six to eight of us who went out to the front lawn to play, and after about two months we started to take thing seriously and decided to get organized,” Murtaugh said.

Why is the club not a varsity sport?

“As far as the varsity level goes across the nation, rugby is not recognized as a varsity sport, but there are still competitions at pretty much every level such as D-I, D-II,” Murtaugh said.

What do you think of the popularity regardless of varsity status?

“We consistently have 75 to 100 fans at every game, and (they) show support through making t-shirts, signs and even cooking the team’s meals,” Murtaugh said.

What do you think of the university’s support?

“They help us out enough but not like other schools. We get more support by going out and finding sponsors, but they gave us a field to practice on, and (they) help advertise.”

How far has the club come since 2010?

“We are definitely one of the top teams in the state. We just recently beat UGA 39-3. We have come a really long way,” Murtaugh said.

The team isn’t playing backyard football teams; the club has been victorious against schools such as University of Florida, Florida State, North Carolina, Auburn, and Georgia Southern.

The team is always looking for recruits, and people interested in joining can visit their one of their practices held directly next to the business center on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. For updates and schedules, visit pitcher.com/valdostastaterugby.