David J. Olender / Photo Editor

Combining unique aspects from the sports of soccer, football and wrestling, the San Diego State rugby team is gaining momentum and notoriety as a team to be reckoned with.

Currently ranked fifth in the nation among college rugby teams, SDSU is poised to better its successes from last season.

“Last year we won our league and finished ranked fifth in the country, which is where we are ranked now,” head coach Dan Payne said. “These guys have put in a lot of work in order to develop into one of the top programs in the country.”

The Aztec rugby team competes in the Southern California Premier League, which is made up of teams from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, UCLA, University of Arizona, UC Santa Barbara and, of course, SDSU.

According to Payne, the Aztecs have qualified for the national championships the last two years in a row and have made it to the round of eight.

Two years ago, SDSU’s only loss was to the eventual national champion. Last year, the second place team was the only squad to down the Aztecs.

“Our next goal is to make it to the final four,” Payne said.

With a solid base of assistant coaches, including Matt Sherman who, along with Payne, represented the U.S. in professional rugby, coupled with the 80 active players divided into three tiers of division play, SDSU has the strength in numbers to accomplish its goal of reaching the finals.

“We are looking to just continue to get better all the time,” Payne said.

Talented and determined players have been the building blocks for Aztec rugby’s success: players such as team captain Jamie Purcell, who guides the team with an air of optimistic leadership.

“Winning games, having that camaraderie with your teammates and being on the field together,” the junior scrum half-cited as the foundation for the team’s accomplishments.

“Everyone that comes out for this sport stays because they love it. We’ve got a great base as far as the coaches.”

After a weekend road trip to Santa Barbara, SDSU will head to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo on March 21 to take on its biggest rival in hopes of advancing to the finals.

“(I have) no predictions,” Payne said of the deal-breaker game. “I just hope for a good performance.”

If the Aztecs find success against Cal Poly, they will be making the trek to Berkeley in order to qualify for the final four competition.

“We go to Berkeley for the sweet 16 and we need to win both games there. Then, go to Stanford the next week to play in the final four there. That is our final goal,” Purcell said.

As the team heads into its final three games on the road to the final four, Purcell and the entire SDSU team will work hard to win games and forget about the pressure of its national ranking.

“We don’t think about (our national ranking),” Purcell said. “Our coach tells us not to think about it when we play, to not worry about the rankings.”

Despite the team’s accomplishments and current roster of talented players, Aztec rugby is constantly scouting for ways to reach new heights.

“We are always looking for athletes, always looking for players,” Payne said.
“More competition and more athletes builds a better team and until we get to the final four and beyond … we are always building our program. There’s value in numbers.”