Our Story

20 Years of excellence

Founded in 1998, the Furman Rugby Program has developed into one of the nation’s top small-college programs.

Over two decades the men’s program has amassed a 205-70-1 record in 15s. The team has collected three small college national championships and finished runner up twice. Other accolades include Division II national finalist, five south championships and two Southern Rugby Conference Championships.

The team was founded by John Roberts, who worked in advancing roles in Furman’s Office of Communications from 1996 to 2017, and Marc Roberts, Class of ’98. At the time, Marc was playing rugby for the Greenville Griffins, a local men’s team. John Roberts was a prominent member of the club. In 1997, Marc asked John if he would consider coaching a team if he were able to collect enough prospects.

The first practice was in fall 1997 with about 25 students participating. Later, Danielle Snoddy ’00 asked John Roberts if he would also coach a women’s team. Within a month, two teams and one club were formed. During those early years, Coach Roberts relied on the help of several of his former teammates and rugby friends to help coach and mentor the young players. Some of those included Roger LeCroy, Mark Sullivan, Joe Young, Jason Potter, and Mike and Rich Cobb.

The men’s team inaugural season concluded with a remarkable 8-1 record and ended in a conference championship game at Elon. During the next few years, both teams continued to put together winning seasons and became known throughout the South for their spirited, well-drilled played and aggressive hitting. The Paladins often had smaller teams, but prevailed through technique and attention to detail.

In 2003, the Furman men’s team arrived on the national scene. That year, several talented athletes joined the men’s team. Mike Morgan (now the coach at Duke University) also joined the coaching staff. The Paladins collected their first small college national championship in Raleigh with a victory over Stonehill College. The next year, the Paladins bested Central Connecticut State to capture the program’s second national title in Philadelphia. The next year in Greenville, the Paladins turned the trick for the third year in a row, defeating Duke University in Paladin Stadium.

The Paladins returned to the small college national championship games in 2007 and 2008 but lost heartbreakingly close games to Bentley and Plymouth State. A highlight for both the men and women came at the 2007 Rugby South Championships when both the men and women advanced to Sunday’s Championship games.

In 2009, college rugby was restructured. Furman moved up to Division II and joined the Southern Rugby Conference, which was founded by Coach Roberts and Citadel Coach Bill Bell. The smallest program in the Conference, the Paladins slowly moved up the conference until a breaking through in 2013 and wresting the Southern Conference Championship from longtime rival UNC-Wilmington. With teams that included Coastal Carolina, UNC-Charlotte and Appalachian State, the Southern Conference grew to be one of the very best Division II conferences in the United States. Since that conference title in 2013, Furman has finished first or second in both 15s and 7s.

In 2016, the Paladins made an epic run at the Div. II national title, handing three-time national champion Minnesota-Duluth their first loss in four years in the semi-final before losing a close contest to University of Wisconsin – Whitewater. 

Initiatives

On-field accomplishments aside, the Furman program is best known for growing the sport in the Southeast. With help from alumni, rugby parents and friends, the program gathered commitments for some $250,000 in 2008. The funds were used to complete a marvelous rugby complex adjacent to Paladin Stadium and Timmons Arena. The area included stadium seating, electricity, a scoreboard, regulation goal posts, storage and an immaculately maintained Bermuda sod pitch. In 2009, the Furman University Board of Trustees voted to name the facility John Roberts Field to honor the long-time coach.

During a time when most rugby was played on second-rate fields, Furman’s facility was prized. In sharing fashion, the Furman program opened the facility to high school and men’s games at very little or no cost. For years Furman hosted the Rugby South Championships and in 2010 hosted the high school national championships. The program, and Coach Roberts in particular, always took great pride in hosting these tournaments in an organized and personal fashion.

That reputation helped Furman land USA Rugby’s Collegiate Fall Championship Series in 2013, a crowning achievement.  That first event went so well, that USA returned each year through 2017. Through the years, dozens of men’s and women’s college programs have competed in national and regional events at Roberts Field. Rugby websites are festooned with images of teams hoisting championship trophies in front of the scoreboard at Roberts Field.

In 2006, the program launched the Furman Rugby Camp, which has attracted hundreds of high school players from the across the nation. Coaches from Clemson, Tennessee and Arkansas State have participated at the camp, which has extended scholarships to economically disadvantaged students.

the future

In 2018, Roberts stepped down as coach to pursue a professional opportunity. Coach Mike Miller, who played rugby at Sam Houston State, Greenville and Charlotte, assumed head coach duties. Coach Miller had joined the team in 2014 as head backs coach. Coach Miller will continue to guide the program forward with big goals for the future.