GRR: College Men
Blake White's departure from Arkansas State and move to University of Memphis was a bit of a surprise, but perhaps the additional surprise was that one wasn't naturally going to follow the other.
COVID shutdowns and conference hiatuses are being turned into lemonade around the country, and one noticeable example is at Baylor University.
A recent Red River Conference winner (they took home the title in 2017), the Bears had a bit of a weird partial season this year, and are taking the quiet time to return to prominence.
Baylor University has six new commits on campus now as the Bears look to bolster their depth this year.
Andrew Cayasso is a 6-3, 200 flanker who has represented the Cayman Islands U19s at 7s and 15s, and is being fast-tracked as a possible full international for Cayman. He comes in as a freshman and will be a huge (literally) addition to the back row.
In a major move in college rugby, the University of Memphis has signed former Arkansas State University Head Coach Blake White to be the Tigers' new Head Coach.
White was named Head Coach for Arkansas State in August of 2017 on an interim basis before being made the long-term head guy. He lead the Red Wolves for three seasons before stepping down this summer.
Iowa Central CC defeated Iowa State 40-12 in one of the very, very few college rugby games slated for this fall.
The two teams had met in a scrimmage at the end of August (won by ICCC 23-14), and have continued to stay careful with their COVID-19 protocols, and thus were able to meet in Fort Dodge, Iowa, for the rematch.