When Bob Causey, a football walk-on in the mid 1970s left the team, it was for a sport he found by chance. Causey, who was the top scorer on the 1976 LSU rugby championship team, attended an open rugby tryout while he was on the team. He is now coaching the squad, and looking for other students who are interested in the sport.
Because club sports are student organizations rather than teams officially associated with the University or the NCAA, they receive very little funding from the University.
The club sports at LSU have survived more than 30 years because of former players like Causey.
“The guys of my generation are willing to put back into rugby [as coaches], because we have time now,” Causey said. “If you like hitting and running and doing a hard type of game, rugby is really fun.”
Sports Club Coordinator Melvin Hill is responsible for helping clubs coordinate season schedules, travel arrangements and practice times at the Recreational Center and other locations on campus.
Since new facilities have opened on campus, it is easier for clubs to schedule practice and game times.
“I think a lot of people participate in club sports and intramurals to work out,” Hill said. “There is always that drive to stay in shape physically and mentally.”
The University has 26 club sports. Two of the most successful clubs are power lifting and rugby, which have had nationally recognized players.
Jeremy Comardelle founded the Powerlifting Club at LSU in 1999 with 10 members. The team has almost tripled its number since then.
“The team is growing because of quality coaches and lifters, we draw quality people here and now they will come to LSU to power lift,” Comardelle said.
Club President David Sharon has witnessed the growth of the club as well.
“There is a bigger response especially from people out of high school, because now there are just massive amounts of lifters coming out of high school, and they come to LSU asking if we had power lifting,” Sharon said.
The powerlifting team practices Tuesday and Thursday at the Rec from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. and Sunday at Fletcher’s House of Power. Most lifters have individual practice schedules in addition to the team practices.
Team members have to be full-time students, maintain a 2.0 GPA and pay club dues.
“We take a lot of people that have never done it before, especially in the fall, and by October or November, they are pros at it,” Sharon says. “We manufacture champions here quite often people that have never done it before and three years later they are talking about going to world meets. It is exciting to see that.”
The Power Lifting Club sent three lifters to Pretoria, South Africa last year for the World Junior Powerlifting Championships. Steven McLawchlin won the gold medal. The other two lifters were Sharon and Stefan Arnold. Arnold is currently serving in Iraq.
“It was exciting and an honor to win,” McLawchlin says. “It was one of the best times I have ever had.”
Vice President Daniel Credeur started lifting in high school, but did not take it seriously until college.
“Anybody can do it,” Credeur said. “I wasn’t really very strong when I started, but strength training helped and you get better at it.”
The Rugby Club is no stranger to success either. Since the club’s birth in 1970, the team has never had a losing season.
The club participates in the Texas Rugby Union (TRU) with Texas, Texas A&M, Rice, and Sam Houston State.
“The TRU raises the bar for play during the season that way when it comes to the playoffs we are more prepared to advance,” Assistant Coach Craig Gothreaux said.
Texas and Texas A&M regularly advance to the National Sweet 16 Tournament. To add to the difficulty of the schedule, LSU will play defending Division 2 champs Arkansas St. and a solid Division 1 squad in Middle Tennessee State.
Former LSU players Blake Arbor and Chris Sanford helped the Western All-Star Team win the Collegiate All-Star National Championship two years ago. Chris Sanford became the fifth All-American in Rugby Club of LSU history last year.
The Rugby Club will also be introducing new head coach Scott McLean, who captained the team in the 1980s.
“He has a really good rapport with alumni,” Gothreaux said. “I am starting to see a lot of alumni that have played in years past that are having kids play for LSU.”
More high school rugby teams are being formed in Louisiana, so more players will come to LSU with at least a basic understanding of the game. Louisiana schools that have rugby programs include Brother Martin, Jesuit, Arch Bishop Shaw, and Rummel.
“Because a lot of people don’t start playing rugby until college, they have to learn the rules of the game and then try to apply them,” Gothreaux said. “Now we have a feeder system in place to have players with more experience.”
“I came to LSU from Texas, and I didn’t really know anybody, Rugby Club President Mark Sweeny said. “The Rugby Club is a place that I feel accepted and it serves as an outlet for my competitive energy.”
Anyone who is interested in joining either of these clubs should contact David Sharon (Power Lifting) or Mark Sweeny (Rugby). The Power Lifting Club Web site is www.lsu.edu/student_organizations/powerliftingclub/. The Rugby Club Web site is www.lsurugby.com.
Contact Matt Vines at [email protected]