BGSU Men's Rugby

09/10/2026

By Alex Goff of Goff Rugby Report

Photo: Rockaway and former SUNY Cortland rugby man George Johnson oversees the raising of Old Glory at Ground Zero ten years ago.

Johnson was one of hundreds of rugby-playing law enforcement and safety personnel who answered the call on 9/11. For the millions of New Yorkers, DC-residents, Bostonians and more, it was of course right there in front of you. That dust cloud didn’t settle for days. The holes in the skyline of New York are still there, as are, of course, the holes in peoples’ lives.

The rugby community felt the attacks of September 11, 2001 extremely hard. Rugby players were working in the World Trade Center, they were serving as police officers and firefighters. They were flying in airplanes. Many of these people became heroes. Some died.

I wonder still if I would have been as brave as those on Flight 93, or those who walked up the stairs at the World Trade Center to save others. I don’t know; I wasn’t there. All I know is many, including many rugby players, did step up for their fellow human beings, and did so with great bravery and selflessness. Still more rugby players volunteered to go overseas to root out and defeat the attackers and those who supported them. Many more rugby players have died serving our country since. I don’t think I have played a rugby game or been to a rugby practice that didn’t include active military, recent veterans, or the children of some. I coached a girls high school team that at one point had a third of its players with parents deployed, killed in action, or waiting to be deployed. And that’s no rarity I am sure.It's like that horrible day is always with us when we play this great game, because the ripples are still there.

So today is 9-11-26, twenty five years after Muslim extremist terrorists crashed two commercial planes into the World Trade Center Towers, crashed another into the Pentagon, and tried to attack the White House with a fourth (Flight 93) attack foiled by the heroic actions of the passengers, including rugby players Mark Bingham and my former University of Rochester teammate, Jeremy Glick.

Through the years we are brought back to that day. When NYAC won their first Super League title in 2005, wing Mike Lugano's thoughts were with his brother, Sean, dead four years earlier. When talented players graduate from college, often we don't see them anymore, because they are now on a ship, a desert road, or in an airplane, serving our country. Bingham’s death sparked a movement, the growth of gay (and proud of it) rugby teams, and an international gay rugby championship – his death, while a tragedy, did a huge amount to help gay men be comfortable in mainstream rugby, and to help everyone realize a gay man can be tough, brave, patriotic and manly.The ripples are still there.

We as a rugby community lost friends, teammates, former All Americans, and leaders, and then sent friends, teammates, All Americans and, above all, leaders, overseas to make sure it won’t happen again. Time to remember; time to kiss your wife and your kids, your mom and your brother. Time to tell your teammates you are grateful for them. Time to thank those who have risked their lives for us. And time also to remember that in the months following 9/11, people thought of rugby players as heroes.

In spring of 2002 the BGSU Rugby team boarded a flight to the National Championship and the flight attendants said “ladies and gentlemen, we have on this plane 30 rugby players; there will be no need to worry about our safety today.” Maybe hyperbole, but we've all seen the bravery of our teammates in action.

The list of rugby players who died in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Andrew Alameno - Mount St. Mary's RFC New York- World Trade Center, Mark Bingham - SF Fog RFC California - United Flight 93, Edward "Ted" Brennan 3rd - Holy Cross RFC New York – World Trade Center, Matt Burke - Xavier High School Rugby Club, New York - World Trade Center, Michael Cawley – SUNY Oswego – World Trade Center, Joe Dickey - Wisconsin Rugby Club, Wisconsin - World Trade Center., Bill Erwin – SUNY Plattsburgh and Saranac Lake RFC – World Trade Center, Tom Foley - Old Blue RFC, New York - Firefighter FDNY - World Trade Center, Linda George - Providence College Women's Rugby Club, Rhode Island - American Flight 11, Jeremy Glick - Former Capt. Univ. Of Rochester RFC, New York - United flight 93 James Greenleaf Jr. - Connecticut College RFC, Connecticut - World Trade Center, Charlie Heeran - Xavier High School Rugby Club, New York - World Trade Center, Tommy Knox - North Jersey RFC, New Jersey - World Trade Center, Ming -Hao Liu - Cheng-Kung Univ. RFC - Taiwan - World Trade Center., Mark Ludvigsen - New York Athletic Club RFC, New York - World Trade Center, Sean Lugano - New York Athletic Club RFC, New York - World Trade Center, Joseph McDonald - SUNY Albany RFC and Monmouth RFC, New Jersey - World Trade Center, Christopher Mello - Princeton Univ. RFC, New York - American Flight 11, Mike McCarthy - Lansdowne RFC, New York - World Trade Center, Terry McShane - Long Island RFC, New York - Firefighter FDNY - World Trade Center, Rob Peraza - St. Bonaventure Univ. RFC, New York - World Trade Center, Tim Reilly - White Plains RFC, New York - World Trade Center, Nick Rowe - Manhattan RFC, New York - World Trade Center, Mike Stewart - Old Blue RFC, New York - World Trade Center, Mike Taddonio - Siena College, New York - World Trade Center, Patrick Waters - Brockport State Doggies RFC, New York - Captain, FDNY - World Trade center, Brent Woodall - New York Athletic Club RFC, New York - World Trade Center.

09/08/2026

More photos..........

09/07/2026

The BGSU Rugby team opened up the season with a nice 35-21 victory over Indiana University. Scrum half Aidan Ditchman had two tries - both converted by center Lucas Hickernell. Center Hank Miller ran over a good portion of the Hoosier defense for a Hickernell converted try as did eight man Aiden Supers with a try converted by fullback Gabriel Casterot, Scrum half John Snuffer closed out the scoring with a try and another Casterot conversion.

09/05/2026

Check out BGSU Rugby's Club Profile on the Veo Live app

Watch the matches from clubs you follow

09/05/2026

The guys were out at BGSU’s Campus Fest on Tuesday looking for the next Gianpaolo Sferrella, Zach Szepiela and Evan Holderer…..

09/02/2026

BGSU Men's Rugby FALCONS & FAIRWAYS Classic on August 1st was a total success! We had over 100 alumni, friends and family that came out to play and support the team. Mother nature even behaved so we could get all the fun in! Thank you to all our sponsors, especially our large sponsors, Gary Fike and Palmetto Family Hearing Center, Kurt Sima with EPIC B**r Trips, Eric Nutter and Donley's Restoration Group, Weiler Financial, Vawter Financial, and Schwind Electric for coming out with their cherry picker to do the ball drop! We also want to thank all the local Bowling Green sponsors that showed their support and helped make the silent auction a win-win for everyone. We were able to give out 17 top-notch prizes, including a golf bag, some really amazing Specialty BG Rugby Decanter and glass sets, provided by Waddington Jewelers and rugby alumni, Ty Long, an axe throwing experince from Pete Karakis at TimberBeast and several Buckets of Goodies from businesses all over town.
We honored the 86 team, who were the trailblazers for the Men's Rugby Team as a dynasty of talent and hard work that has followed. Thank you to Chuck Tunnacliffe, Gus Saponari, Todd Haitz, Scott Huff, Jeff Weemhoff, Carl Vella, Dallas Black, Dan Martello, Scott Ault, Tony Konczak, Pat Wood and Rob Clark for accepting this honor and making the outing even more meaningful.
Congrats to our winning team - Tyler Householder, Eric Holbrook, Scott Mahler and Jeff Kromer and our second place team - Scott Huff, Carl Vella, Jeff Weemhoff and Dan Martello. We hope even more alumni can come out next year to stake their claim on the first place honor!
Thank you to Mark Crabiel for the idea and the support in getting it rolling, and to Marny for organizing the whole thing.
It was a great day to celebrate our team and how awesome our alumni family is and always has been. Thank you to everyone! We'll see you all next year! There's been talk about a special edition BGRFC rugby Hawaiian golf shirt being designed for just the occasion

09/02/2026

BGSU Men's Rugby FALCONS & FAIRWAYS Classic on August 1st was a total success! We had over 100 alumni, friends and family that came out to play and support the team. Mother nature even behaved so we could get all the fun in! Thank you to all our sponsors, especially our large sponsors, Gary Fike and Palmetto Family Hearing Center, Kurt Sima with EPIC B**r Trips, Eric Nutter and Donley's Restoration Group, Weiler Financial, Vawter Financial, and Schwind Electric for coming out with their cherry picker to do the ball drop! We also want to thank all the local Bowling Green sponsors that showed their support and helped make the silent auction a win-win for everyone. We were able to give out 17 top-notch prizes, including a golf bag, some really amazing Specialty BG Rugby Decanter and glass sets, provided by Waddington Jewelers and rugby alumni, Ty Long, an axe throwing experince from Pete Karakis at TimberBeast and several Buckets of Goodies from businesses all over town.
We honored the 86 team, who were the trailblazers for the Men's Rugby Team as a dynasty of talent and hard work that has followed. Thank you to Chuck Tunnacliffe, Gus Saponari, Todd Haitz, Scott Huff, Jeff Weemhoff, Carl Vella, Dallas Black, Dan Martello, Scott Ault, Tony Konczak, Pat Wood and Rob Clark for accepting this honor and making the outing even more meaningful.
Congrats to our winning team - Tyler Householder, Eric Holbrook, Scott Mahler and Jeff Kromer and our second place team - Scott Huff, Carl Vella, Jeff Weemhoff and Dan Martello. We hope even more alumni can come out next year to stake their claim on the first place honor!
Thank you to Mark Crabiel for the idea and the support in getting it rolling, and to Marny for organizing the whole thing.
It was a great day to celebrate our team and how awesome our alumni family is and always has been. Thank you to everyone! We'll see you all next year! There's been talk about a special edition BGRFC rugby Hawaiian golf shirt being designed for just the occasion.

08/28/2026

Gotta’ love parents that get special M&M’s for their kid’s graduation. Congratulations Griffin!

08/26/2026

PRESEASON POWER RANKINGS: IN MEN’S DI-AA, CAN ANYONE UNSEAT TENNESSEE? BY PAT CLIFTON

Until someone knocks them off their Rocky Top, the Tennessee Volunteers – undefeated national champs last year – are the team to beat. That challenger may well come from inside the Southeastern Collegiate Rugby Conference, which leads DIAA with three programs in the preseason rankings and has produced the last three national champions. All-Americans Brendan O’Neill and Roman Funkhouser have graduated, but five of Tennessee’s nine All-SCRC selections from last season are back, including Player of the Year finalist Nathan Rawls at ho**er. Flanker Niko Zaharias and lock Bailey Black also return to the Vol pack. The backline has plenty of talent in the cupboard, too, with scrumhalf Zach O’Reilly and fullback Vincent Keller back in orange. Tennessee won’t have to wait long to be tested, with a top-five, neutral-site clash with Louisville Sept. 4 in Hendersonville, TN.

Last year’s runner-up, Bowling Green, was decimated by graduation, with the front row, the second row and most of the back row moving on, along with both starting wings and All-American fullback Joey Apel. Luckily, the Falcons welcome back Player of the Year Phil Tracey for his final go-around. Scrumhalf Griffin Wilson is back, as is junior flyhalf Jake Capel. BGSU has a pair of promising incoming props in Michael Lebbie from Washington, D.C. and Julian Pringle from Altoona, PA, and Hank Miller is a talented incoming back rower from Pittsburgh. Returning ho**er Gino Carlo saw considerable time on the A-side last year, and he’ll take the role full-time. In the second row, Fletcher Luthman also saw some time last year and will become a starter, and newcomer Ricky Williams is expected to contribute quickly. A pair of Detroit Central Catholic grads, Drake Willard and Lee Krueger will fill spots at wing and center as BG did a lot of recruiting outside Ohio this year.

Texas A&M has endured significant turnover from last season, with head coach Tui Osborne moving on to coach the Fiji U20s and All-American scrumhalf Neal Menon transferring to Army. They do welcome a decorated new skipper in Jake Mizell. The native Texan has been head coach at his alma mater, Arkansas State, and an assistant at Iowa Central and Army. His brother, Zac, is the head coach at Penn State. All-American prop Jake Foster returns, and lock Joey Garcia looks poised for a big senior season under a set-piece focused coach. Jace Hernandez, the towering center, will be making the move to flyhalf this season, and big Dylan Dominey returns to the back row.

2023 and 2024 national champion Kentucky returns quite a bit of its roster from last fall, the Wildcats falling to rival Tennessee in the conference final. Both of their incredibly athletic All-American back rowers return, in Gage Curry and Everett Marett. The Wildcats open their campaign with a huge bout against top-10 DI program Marian at K***z Stadium in Indianapolis, the hometown of head coach Sam Enari. Louisville also returns a lot from last year’s squad, including All-American center JB Meier, Jack Eberle, who just spent a week at Rugbytown 7s with the All-Americans, and speedster Amarreon McCutcheon, who spent the summer playing 7s for the Chicago Lions. Incoming freshman Beckett Robinson is a USA U18 from Fort Hunt, VA. He played in the Old Glory DC Academy, and arrived on campus having spent the summer training in New Zealand.

Boston College graduated two All-Americans in Patrick McMahon and Bobby Voth, both of whom have ended up at DI Brown as grad transfers. But the cupboard is never bare at BC, where there’s a healthy pipeline of private-school prep talent. The Eagles open with a DI Fairfield Sept. 5, before welcoming Harvard to DIAA in their Liberty Conference opener the following week.

Virginia Tech is one of the largest club teams in the country, having to cut their roster to 75. They’re also fully student run – a recipe that saw the Hokies to back-to-back national titles in 2021 and 2022. Cooper Patterson is big-time returner, who will be needed as VT moves from the MARC to the Southern Conference, where they’ll be pitted against NC State, North Carolina, UNC-Charlotte and Virginia. The step up in competition should steel the Hokies well heading into the postseason.

Dennis Munter has taken over as the head coach in Baton Rouge, where LSU looks like a contender for the SCRC title. Last year, the Tigers went 3-1-1 in league play, tying the then two-time defending national champs in Kentucky. The lone loss came by 10 points to Tennessee. The Bayou Bengals had the eventual national champions on the ropes with a two-score lead late in the second half. That, plus an ambitious spring XVs campaign, and the expected return of all-conference ho**er Evan Couillard and all-SCRC backs Tyler Anclade and Tim McGoldrick, mean LSU won’t be sneaking up on anyone this fall.

West Chester also has a new coach, with Bjorn Haglid leaving and Ehren Murphy coming in. The Golden Rams return speedster Dio Ruiz from their defending MARC championship squad, providing some needed continuity. WCU already has a preseason scrimmage with DI Kutztown in the books, which should have them well prepared for their conference opener Sept. 12 against Temple.

New conference, new coach, and a whole lot to look forward to for the Kansas Jayhawks. With longtime assistant Jason Williams taking over as head coach, the Jayhawks are the favorite to win the newly-minted Great Plains Conference, a league full of historic rivals. Fullback Jonah Dolphino is a quick, heady playmaker, scrumhalf Owen Cichello brings loads of experience and a steady hand, and Jordan Sexton, who can line up in the back row or back line, is a big, aggressive unit.

08/25/2026

2026 pre-season rankings: