Badger Rugby History
Wisconsin Rugby Club
The Wisconsin Rugby Football Club was founded in 1962 by collegiate students, alumni, and Madison residents. This club proved to be one of the most successful teams in the midwest during the sixties and early seventies. 1969 was an especially good year when, in the 1969 Big Ten Championship match, the Wisconsin Rugby Club carried off the Big Ten title after upsetting Indiana University 9-6 in overtime. This ended IU's two year unbeaten streak. Highlights also included consecutive Tulane Mardi Gras Tournamnet Championships in '69 and '70, and a second place finish in the 1970 Big Ten Tournament. In 1971 the WRC beat long time rivals the Chicago Lions five times- once at home, once away, and in the finals of three tournaments. The WRC capped the 1971 season by becoming the first US Club side to tour Wales. The WRC won its final Big Ten Championship as a university entrant in 1974,
Wisconsin Rugby Football Club
In 1977 the present day University of Wisconsin RFC came into being- a team comprised entirely of UW undergrads. Under the guidance of long time Coach Stu Pippel, the UWRFC won 7 Wisconsin University Union championships. This Union also includes teams from Marquette University, UW-Milwaukee, UW-Eau Claire, UW-Platteville, UW-Lacrosse, UW-Stout and UW-Stevens Point. In 1992- Stu Pippel's final year as head coach- UW won the Midwest Cup and advanced to the National Collegiate Final Four. There UW was forced to contend with the three other regional winners- Cal Berkeley, Air Force, and Harvard. UW lost both games and finished fourth in the nation. Stu Pippel has since been replaced by Coach Skip Heffernan. In 1997, the club's 20th anniversary, Skip and the boys took a giant step forward in the journey to reestablish the UWRFC among the collegiate elite. The club finished 8-1, and by winning the Wisconsin Union, earned the right to represent the state of Wisconsin in the national playoffs. The ruggers won their first match against a tough Illinois team, but fell to eventual Midwest champion and Final Four participant Indiana University. More recently, UW has won the Milwaukee Cup three of the past five years and has won the New Orleans Mardi Gras tournament two years running. In 2004, the University of Wisconsin Rugby Club tallied a record of 9-2, advancing to the Midwest Final Four and losing to eventual champion Michigan.
