Reason No. 1 – Everybody plays both sides of the field
Rugby is a two-way game similar to basketball. All players are forced to play on the attack and on defense. Football is lacking that back and forth game. Rarely will football players play both sides of the ball.
Wouldn’t it be great if in a game Idaho State quarterback Kevin Yost got sacked by Weber State’s linebacker Luke King and then on the ensuing possession Yost could return the favor by blindsiding King when the Wildcats took over on offense? Imagine the level of trash talking that would ensue if offensive and defensive linemen got to switch sides after each possession.
Everybody runs, everybody hits and everybody gets hit.
“There are no red jerseys in practice,” said Craig Smikel, who plays prop for the ISU Rugby team.
Reason No. 2 – Everybody gets the ball
Not only does everyone play both sides of the field but everybody gets the ball. In football, rarely do teams make their offensive lineman eligible wide receiver and when they do it’s about the most exciting thing in football.
ISU’s offensive lineman Mark Clampitt has already shown a knack for the getting the ball, recovering two fumbles for the Bengals in just two games this season. But what if he could always be an eligible receiver on every play for the Bengals and then could take a shovel pass from center John van Vliet? How would this not make the game more exciting?
Reason No. 3 – Rugby is a faster sport
In ISU’s football game against Black Hills State on Saturday, Sept. 8, the Bengals ran 100 plays in three hours. That works out to be one play every 108 seconds. Usain Bolt could run the 100m 11 times in the amount of time it takes for a football play to get over.
According to a “Wall Street Journal” study, the average amount of time the ball is in play on the field during an NFL game is about 11 minutes.
Rugby is 80 minutes of non-stop play.
“Rugby is better than football because it’s 80 minutes of full running and contact,” said Andrew Cowie, who plays prop for the ISU Rugby team. “There are no pauses in between plays, we don’t play for seven seconds and then stop.”
Ethan Steno, who plays flanker for the team said, “Rugby is better than football because it’s 80 minutes of all the most fun stuff you get in football. It’s running, it’s those miracle plays at the end of the game for 80 minutes where you just toss the ball,” said Steno. “It’s running and hitting, it’s live action all the time.”
Reason No. 4 – The rugby team wins
The rugby team won the 2012 Pacific Northwest Rugby Football Union championship in March this year. The rugby team has been one of the most successful sport clubs on ISU’s campus.
Although the Rugby teams’ track record is better, co-captain Tayler Elizondo said both teams work very hard to represent the university and compete for Idaho State as a whole, not for recognition on campus.
Personally, I am going to stay out of this one, because as far as whom I wouldn’t want to get into a fight with between a football player or a rugby player, it’s a tie.
Reason No. 5 – No pads, no problems
“We are not pad dependent, we are shoulder dependent,” said Casey Axelson, who plays lock for the team. “Everything that we have rests on our shoulders. We don’t wear helmets; we wear slight padding so our ears don’t get ripped off. We get hit in the face and smile and give them a shake in the hand, smack on the butt and keep playing. We don’t stop.”
“It’s fast-paced, hard-hitting action. It’s like soccer and MMA rolled into one,” said Steno.