College Premier League almost a certainty
Roar Guru By Working Class Rugger, 8 Jul 2010 Working Class Rugger is a Roar Guru
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Rugby’s evolution in the United States is set to continue with the finalisation of the competing Schools in next autumn’s (spring in the US) inaugural Division One College Premier League.
Within the American Rugby community, the need for this League is apparent.
College sports are the foundation stone behind any successful sport, and finally with a particularly forceful shunt by the Colleges, US Rugby will be putting forth a product that could, and should, carry American Rugby well into its future.
The traditional powerhouses will feature heavily, with the Pacific Coast conference appearing to be easily the most overall competitive. The Western Conference looks like another strong competition, with the likes of BYU, Utah and Arizona all competing.
While some have missed out, the formula has the potential to significantly raise the games profile within the US and possibly further into the Americas.
Recently Rugby has begun to witness unprecedented interest in the game by major broadcasters. None more so than NBC and their new digital channel, NBC Universal.
Universal will be a dedicated sports channel, much like OneHD in Australia, and within a year have the same reach as its mother channel. This interest is largely thanks to the IRB’s tireless work which achieved the games re-admission into the Olympic fold.
NBC has begun to take small but promising interest in the game.
First, with the pleasingly successful College Sevens Invitational, and further with their commitment to broadcast both next year’s and 2015’s RWC.
Again, this is thanks largely to the IRB.
But certainly, this is a momentum US Rugby can build on.
Developing a higher quality and greatly more visible competition will attract new athletes to the game at a younger age, which will hopefully address issues that currently plague the national team.
Baby steps but in the right direction none the less.
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July 8th 2010 @ 5:23am
therealalekid said | July 8th 2010 @ 5:23am | Report comment
It was the success of NBC showing collegiate rugby (it got twice the ratings of pro Lacrosse, a sport many thought the USA Rugby should model themselves on) that the broadcaster decided to show every live match in the next Rugby World cup and a highlights show in the evening. Fantastic exposure for the sport.
Another positive is that a lot of the collegiate players are pretty good and quite a few could make it professionally in Europe I believe, Colin Hawley of Berkely has already been capped by the US. Many of them have great raw athletic talent.
A while back i posted about a player called Seamus Kelly who just missed out on a football schoalrship by a fraction (even got some press in a lot of US Newspapers expressing surprise he missed out). However, as he was already playing rugby as well he accepted a scholarship by Berkely and is doing very well by all accounts.
One of the key aims of the new league must be to increase the level of colleges offering scholarships, Berkely dominate because they can offer athletes scholarships, if in the future Penn, BYU and Utah also offered scholarships the standard of American rugby would rise immensely.
July 8th 2010 @ 8:46am
Working Class Rugger said | July 8th 2010 @ 8:46am | Report comment
Therealalekid
In the unedited version of my article I touched briefly on the issues of costs and sponsorship. You may not be aware that currently roughly around 75% of all funding for College Rugby falls directly on the player’s shoulders. One of the primary goals of the League is to attract sponsorship and/or potential investors so these costs will no longer be the responsibility of the player’s. This will in turn free up finances that could be used to upgrade programs aswell as begin to fund scholarship programs.
They are adapting a very egalitiarian approach to the any monies recieved sponsorship wise. All 32 teams will recieve an equal share regardless of standing.So for a smaller school of the likes of Claremont who’ll be competing in the Pacific Conference this is potentially an godsend.
I linked NBC and more importantly NBC Universal to this Championship as now USARugby effectively has an in when it comes to a major broadcaster. They will be further served if they get the team behind the brokering of the recent College Sevens Invitational to do the talking.
July 8th 2010 @ 8:27am
kovana said | July 8th 2010 @ 8:27am | Report comment
This is some great news…..
Shucks just imagining what happens if america starts pouring the money and talent into rugby.. Shudder.. ..In a good way..
July 8th 2010 @ 11:51pm
klestical said | July 8th 2010 @ 11:51pm | Report comment
HIGHLIGHTS OF THIS WERE JUST PUT ON YOU TUBE…
get on you tube and they have just uploaded parts 1-10 of the ‘Collegiate Champsionship’…there are some pretty decent players
Definate players to watch:
Utah: Thretton Palamo, Don Pati
Bowling Green (Ohio): Rocco Mauer
Ohio State: Nate Ebner
July 8th 2010 @ 8:34am
True Tah said | July 8th 2010 @ 8:34am | Report comment
This is fantastic news, great that the US is focusing on the grassroots of the game. Trying to take on a monster like the NFL head on as a professional sport will never work.
July 8th 2010 @ 12:41pm
Dan said | July 8th 2010 @ 12:41pm | Report comment
you do realise that if they can capture even 1% of the american market, that will make the game a similar size or possibly even bigger there (at least at a grass roots level) than here? the difference in scale is mind boggling… if you can capture 10% of the population you’re pushing 30 million people…
July 8th 2010 @ 8:54am
Bay35Pablo said | July 8th 2010 @ 8:54am | Report comment
Comments by Ruggamrtix USA suggest each team there spends tens of thousands on travel each year, some of which is reimbursed by the Super League. However, it is essentially amateur. I have never been able to understand why they can’t get at least a semi pro comp going, when apparently they can set up a rugby league comp, and there is talk of a semi-pro Aussie Rules comp coming. But then you need the TV revenue to get wages, and you need a good product to get TV coverage, which means you need pro players – vicious cycle.
I have heard talk they have included some “name” colleges who have little or weak rugby programs, and some “unknown” but strong rugby colleges missed out. Who were they?
I also understand almost no colleges offer rugby scholarships, which means they often get the cast offs who can’t get other sports scolarships. if they can get rugby scholarships, they will start to steal some of the talent that would otherwise go to gridiron etc.
July 8th 2010 @ 9:38am
Working Class Rugger said | July 8th 2010 @ 9:38am | Report comment
Bay
The simple answer regarding any significiant semi-pro league seems to be governance. Or the lack there of it. The SUper League is a particluar turbulent organsiation. A matter of weeks in many where reading its last rites as a club competition only for its final to be praised as a great success. Personally, I think the Super League isn’t viable. A smaller and more streamlined one team, one city Championship would better serve the growth of the game as the next level beyond the CPL. as it stands its insufficient.
Not to worried about the Pro or Semi Pro League and AFL Comps they have been muted. Something I have repeatedly tried to get across to those who are gun-ho behing these concepts it that without getting a real College and grassroots system in place you will never draw fansd, sponsors or player’s.
Regarding the CPL. Some of the big guns have opted out and some smaller Colleges have taken their opportunity. However, the number’s are small without around 25 of the top 30 schools choosing to compete with the door beging left open for those who didn’t to join in the future. Its still not 100% confirmed but all the top line schools will be there with only a few not choosing to enter.
Oh, while most schools don’t offer scholarships but both Cal and BYU do. Which explains thier dominance.
July 8th 2010 @ 8:55am
Working Class Rugger said | July 8th 2010 @ 8:55am | Report comment
True Tah
In 1999 the then board of USARugby put for an prospectus regarding their vision for the future of the game. One of its major selling points was a Pro League. It sounded lovely on papaer but without a solid base was unrealistic to say the least and to be completely honest much hadn’t actually changed.
Yes, USARugby has in the last 5 or so years really begun to push the organic growth of High School and junior Rugby but an awful lot of this development has to do with hard working Rugby people on the ground getting competition up and running. California, Washington State, Texas and Florida are great examples of this. While they have recieved USARugby support much of the progress ( and in Florida, Texas and Washington its been very impressive, California aswell but its beeen the hotbed since the games establishment in the States).
Where was I, its taken the ambitious movements in their most important sector College Rugby tpo really kick them into gear. It wouldn’t surprise me to see this League rapidly expand to accomodate more schools aswell and establish at the very least a 2nd Division in reasonable time. They have finally begun to understand that the future of Rugby isn’t in the Super League but the Colleges and onlt once they have a successful and strong college setup can they dream of doing anything on a professional level.
July 8th 2010 @ 9:15am
True Tah said | July 8th 2010 @ 9:15am | Report comment
Would love to be around when guys with the same abilities as Lawrence Taylor, Barry Sanders, Brian Urlacher, Reggie White represent the US Eagles, although I doubt it will be in my lifetime.
Hopefully a lot of promising young American players will get opportunities to play professionally in Europe, NZ, South Africa, Japan, but it really needs a strong national domestic league to get these guys in.
July 8th 2010 @ 9:15am
therealalekid said | July 8th 2010 @ 9:15am | Report comment
“In the unedited version of my article I touched briefly on the issues of costs and sponsorship. You may not be aware that currently roughly around 75% of all funding for College Rugby falls directly on the player’s shoulders”
No I wasn’t aware although not surprised. I did know that USA Rugby employed someone to target financing the college game, with his main intention focusing on sponsorship from Alumni.
I’m pretty sure that Berkely are the only college that offers schoalrship, which is funded by the alumni assoc. Other colleges are keen, but I think there is an issue over women participation believe or not ‘Title something or another’.
One of the reasons why USA Rugby are pushing high school rugby (it is or was the fastest growing high school sport in the USA) is that they are hoping that with an increase of numbers will eventuate in a demand for a demand in colleges offering scholarships.
July 8th 2010 @ 9:43am
Working Class Rugger said | July 8th 2010 @ 9:43am | Report comment
True Tah & therealalekid
The hope is that the league will provide budding High School Rugby player’s another option for College. As I have said above not only will any financial benefit go to help fund these programs but will go a long way to establish proper athletic schoalrships which will in turn encourage more High School athletes to look at Rugby as a viable College option.
July 8th 2010 @ 10:42am
Gary Russell-Sharam said | July 8th 2010 @ 10:42am | Report comment
Are you suggesting that the Eagle might land some day soon. I would vervently hope that this enterprise gets off the ground as this would lead to players coming into the national team and making The Eagles the competitive team that they should be. As said in other roars it probably wont happen in my lifetime I’m mid sixties but it may happen soon I look forward to this with great expectation, after all it was only in the late seventies and early eighties that America started to show an interest in Rugby. They have come a good way since then and I wish them every success.
July 8th 2010 @ 10:57am
Matt said | July 8th 2010 @ 10:57am | Report comment
The Superleague has a kind of travel fund equalisation program (I listen to the Ruggamatrix USA, and international, Podcasts too WCR. It’s always a great listen). Basically all teams lodge the costs of their travel into and everyone pays an equal amount in to a kitty. The team with the lowest costs therefore subsidise the teams with the highest costs.
For the Superleague there is the issue of only have 14 or so teams spread across the width and length of such a large country. So to play a decent opponent you have to travel. If you wanted to reduce travel by playing more locally based opponents then you reduce the level of intensity of the competition. So it’s a trade off there.
USA Rugby, by most accounts, has done a pretty good job. But then the college side of things has always argued for more autonomy and say in how they run their own comps (kinda like Sydney grade rugby by the sounds of things?). And now that they Colleges have been given that autonomy they’re virtually running away with it.
If a viable semi-pro college system can be setup then it would go along way to developing the talent pool for the US game. USA Rugby can then continue to target organic growth for the grass roots and push to get a rugby ball in the hands of US kids at a younger age.
Interestingly there were comments following the Collegiate Rugby 7′s that one of the coaches was walking down the street after the Cal vs Utah final and there were young kids out on the street arguing over who was in each team (Cal or Utah). He said it just stopped him in his tracks hearing and seeing American kids talking rugby prompted only be what they saw on TV.
You can also watch live coverage of the US high school finals on Ustream and the level of play and athlete quality of the top teams is pretty good. But the big issue is that most kids pick up a rugby ball for the first time at college. If college scholarships can be offered and the grass roots grown then more kids will start playing the game at high school level.
If you look at the player particpation numbers for the US it is the opposite distribution compated to nations like NZ. Where NZ has a pyramid system of a lot of kids playing the sport younger and tapering off towards the senior level, the US has 50% of it’s players in the senior bracket tapering off rapidly the younger you go. If they can build that base then the average skill level of player at the top end will steadily increase also. With the World Cup on terrestrial TV, as well the College Sevens, there’ll be more exposure for kids to give the game a go.
Aside from that there seems to be an urge, from Eddie O’Sullivan down, to adopt the Argentina approach to the pro game. That is to try and get as many overseas contracts as possible for US players to get them into professional environments for no cost to USA Rugby. Already you have a lot more guys with top level pro contracts:
Todd Clever (Suntory – Japan)
Chris Wyles (Saracens – England)
Taku Ngwenya (Biaritz – France)
Paul Emerick (Overmach Parma – Italy)
John Van Der Giessen (Albi – France)
Matekitonga Moeakiola (Albi – France)
Mike McDonald (Leeds – England)
Not to mention guys like Louis Stanfill (Canberra Royals) and Mike Hercus (Gordon) is Australia and Scott Lavalla in Ireland (Ulster Development team) who are developing their game abroad. And all but Hercus and Mike McDonald are young and on the way upwards.
July 8th 2010 @ 11:19am
Working Class Rugger said | July 8th 2010 @ 11:19am | Report comment
Matt
The CPL is now a sanctioned USARugby Championship. Alot of the final organisation is from what I understand falls directly upon their College Director Todd Bell. Though the College’s still have alot of say in its development. Which is a good thing.
I agree that some sort of viable semi-pro league is needed in the near future in the USA. But I don’t believe the current Super League is the championship to deliver it. At least not in its current format. They should have input but not total autonomy. I’m an fan of the rationalisation of the Super League into a 10 team 1 city, 1 team format under the name of the Rugby Football League. Intsead of say New York having both Athletic and Old Blue both teams would pool player’s and resources to form a new New York organisation. Same for Boston Irish and Wolfhounds and so on. This will be needed more so than ever when the first group of Rugby athletes begin to emerge from the CPL.
July 8th 2010 @ 11:04am
Working Class Rugger said | July 8th 2010 @ 11:04am | Report comment
Gary Russell-Sharam
I’m not declaring the the arrival of the Eagles are an international force in the next five or so years. But if the CPL which is all but a certainty is a success then Rugby in the USA will come on in leaps and bounds in the next decade or so. Another major objective of this league will to to get College Athletic Directors to take the game serious on a Collegiate level. When you consider the College 7s returned strong figures in relation to a previously established sport in Lacrosse when going head to head if USARugby can use USA 7sLLC to broker some sort of TV deal. Support for the game will certainly move forward at a healthy rate when you consider 800,000+ is a good base to start from. Those involved are only looking for a ‘game of the week’ for the pool stages and the finals to be broadcast. Quite realistic.