How Rugby Changed My Life

By: Andrew Isbell

 Motlow Buzz reporter

            I have always played a sport of some kind from baseball to football and in between. I didn’t find my real passion until rugby came into my life. 

Sports in My Life

            Earlier in life, basketball was my passion (or so I thought). I was on my grade school team and played in a summer league as well. Of course as most young kids think, I thought I was going to go pro because I was a decent player. Baseball just simply wasn’t my thing. I played for only a year and was absolutely terrible, so I had to drop that really quick. Then high school came, and as any kid who is interested in sports, I had to play high school football. I was obsessed with football early in high school and couldn’t think of anything else, but there was always one constant in my life that started in middle school and lasted the entirety of high school.

            I started playing rugby in seventh grade at Siegel Middle School, and it wasn’t anything special to me until high school. My sophomore year of high school, I quit football because I honestly wasn’t any good and knew I wasn’t going to play, but I saw and had many people who told me I was going to be a well-rounded rugby player at the time. So I turned all of my focus toward the sport. It turns out that it was the best decision of my life.

            Rugby broke me out of my very shy lifestyle and helped me branch out. I gained a new confidence because of how well our team was playing. It’s crazy how if a group of people are all helping each other to succeed on the field, brings you confidence. It’s great knowing off the field you that have at least 20 guys having your back at all times. I also started to get in the best shape of my life. By my senior year in high school, I was the strongest and most fit I had ever been.

            My senior year we were playing our rival Oakland high school. Oakland had beaten us the previous year to win the state championship. We went into the game the most prepared and intense I had ever seen a team at the time. We played a very well-rounded game, and I scored in the second half to solidify our win. I felt a sort of redemption after that game, and that paved our way to the state championship for a third straight year.

Now in college, I continue to play rugby for Middle Tennessee State University and have a close group of friends that even off the field hold me true. At Motlow, I along with two others are playing with MTSU, and we all see quality playing time. One of the game’s biggest aspects is the comradery that comes with it. I will have friends for the rest of my life because of rugby, and I am forever thankful.

The Game of Rugby

            Now if you don’t know the game of rugby at all, it is very entertaining and action-packed. Unlike football, the players have no pads or helmets but make the same tackles. Instead of passing forward, you must pass lateral or backwards. Also, you can kick at any point of the game.

Every person on the field plays both offense and defense during this entire 80-minute game consisting of two, 40-minute halves. A “try” is similar to a touchdown in football except that you must touch the ball to the ground. It is worth five points, and the conversion kick or points after try is worth two points. Field goals, penalty kicks, and drop goals (practically all the same) are worth three points.

There are 15 players on the field from both teams, eight in the forward pack, a “scrumhalf” and six in the back line. The game also consists of scrums, which are similar to the line of scrimmage in football. Lineouts which are similar to the throw in at a soccer game. And rucks, which are similar to nothing, which makes the game unique. A “ruck” is when the ball carrier gets tackled to the ground and he must release the ball back towards his team. Then his teammates will rush over him to protect possession of the ball until the scrumhalf can pass it out.

Learn More

            Visit www.mtrugby.com to learn more about how to get involved at MTSU and come out to a practice or two to see all the hard work we put in and the fun we have doing it. You can also learn more about the game and see how the USA national team is doing at www.usarugby.org.