Mississippi State’s club rugby team will open its 35th season at home against in-state rival Ole Miss on Saturday.
Rugby may be an unfamiliar sport to students at State, but the team has been a part of MSU since 1978. The team continues to grow every year.
Adidas, the World Cup Rugby Shop and the Southeastern Collegiate Rugby Conference sponsor the club.
The SCRC is a division I-AA conference that hosts 11 of 14 SEC teams. Arkansas has partial membership with the conference, and Texas A&M and Missouri’s affiliations with the league are to be decided, since they are new to the conference.
The SCRC is split into two divisions, west and east. The west consists of Alabama, Auburn, LSU, Ole Miss and MSU. The east consists of Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, South Carolina, Tennessee and Vanderbilt.
The players compete year-round, and the sport has two variations: the winter/spring season is the 15 World Cup version (15s) and the summer/fall season is the Olympics (7s).
Last season, during the Olympics, MSU placed first in the social bracket of the Red Fish 7’s held in Baton Rouge. The Club also finished second in the Mississippi State Games held in Meridian, falling to the Jackson Dutch Barons in the championship.
MSU was 2-4 last season in conference play with wins over Ole Miss and Auburn.
Second-year head coach Renaldo Arroyo said the team has made great progress, and he is looking forward to this season.
“The guys have worked extremely hard since last season,” Arroyo said. “If we finish in the top four of our division, we will have a chance at a national ranking.”
Junior fly-half and team captain Omar McClendon said with the improvements the team has made, he believes the team will make it into the SCRC championships.
“We really have a solid backline,” McClendon said. “I think Khalid Wallace will really stand out with his speed and reaction time.”
The forward position is one of the stronger positions for the Bulldogs and will be a key to their success. Arroyo said he is expecting great leadership and work ethic from junior forward and captain David Dickerson.
Dickerson said if his team builds off the momentum from last season, the Dogs will have a great chance to win.
“I expect us to build on our success from last year and win the SCRC West,” Dickerson said.
Sophomore scrum half Joe Pongetti said he is expecting to be a leader and key player for his team this season.
“I want to lead the team in tries (touchdowns) and assist on many others,” Pongetti said. “I want MSU to be one of the top two teams in the conference.”
The Bulldogs must finish in the top four of their conference to be ranked nationally and improve their chances of winning a national championship.
All home games will be played at 1 p.m. at the intramural fields by the vet school.