Will Shaw has already broken the mold once. When the native of Sevenoaks, England signed with N.C. State to play tennis, his nationality alone cemented his status as one of the more unique student-athletes around campus.

However, after his four years of eligibility were finished for the Wolfpack, Shaw made an even greater leap — one that not many tennis players make. He signed up for the rugby team.

“It doesn’t really mix too well, I know, rugby and tennis,” Shaw said.

“After I finished tennis, I just wanted something to do, something to keep me in shape. Be part of a team you know, life gets boring if you can’t compete at something — rugby is a good game, it has a lot of camaraderie.”

Shaw said while tennis and rugby may differ, his experience as a tennis player helped prepare him for rugby.

“Obviously, tennis isn’t a contact sport and rugby is probably the biggest contact sport,” Shaw said.

“In that respect they’re totally different, but I am in decent shape from being a tennis player, and you got to be quick to be a tennis player just like you got to be quick to play in the back as a rugby player.”

Shaw will have the opportunity to participate in many events, including several tournaments this summer.

State’s first event will be this weekend in Greensboro. While the team will face in-state rivals North Carolina, Appalachian State and East Carolina, it is the amateur men’s teams that compete who may be State’s biggest competition.

Senior Matt Garcia, an executive officer for the rugby club team, said the teams with more experience and more age are the ones they are most worried about.

“A lot of them are in better shape than us,” Garcia said. “Those are the teams that we can get our butts handed to us against.”

While rugby is generally played with 15-person teams, the summer tournaments are played with just seven players to a side. Shaw said the smaller numbers create a more wide-open game which results in more offense.

The summer season is much more limited than the fall and spring, Garcia said, but it is still important as a tool for keeping the team sharp and in shape.

“It definitely gets us in shape,” Garcia said. “If it weren’t for this, most of us would just be sticking to work and school. This way, we get to stay in shape and run around. We all want to play. It’s something that keeps us going.”

Garcia, an All-State wing for the Pack, stressed how significant Shaw is to this year’s rugby squad.

“We were kind of S-O-L until we found a fly half in Will here,” Garcia said. “Luckily he came along.”

According to Garcia, the fly half acts as the quarterback for the team, a position which Garcia said Shaw fits the mold.

And it’s a sport where Shaw should easily be able to fit in. According to Eric Olsen, a graduate student in crop science and plant breeding, while rugby warrants its reputation as a physical sport, the camaraderie between teammates and even other teams is a big part of the game.

“The aggression just steps up a notch when you’re out there,” Olsen said. “There is that social aspect of it as well. You’re going to kill them on the field, but you’re going to have a beer with them two hours later. There is no better sport.”