The University of Louisiana Lafayette has been a dominate force in deep south rugby for the past couple of years. Part of the reason is fifth year senior Rudi Spurlock and his physical play.
Spurlock first got the ball in his hands his freshman year at UL when a friend encouraged him to give rugby a shot. “I started playing rugby my freshman year of college when I was approached by my friend who had just joined the team. I missed football a lot, so I decided to check it out. I enjoy learning new sports, so I was definitely up for the challenge that rugby offered. I quickly fell in love with rugby,” explained the General Studies major.
Originally playing lock, Spurlock has recently made the change to 8-man and has found the perfect fit on the pitch. He continued, ” I started out playing lock. Needless to say, I learned the physicality of the game rather quickly. I played lock for 4 seasons and just this past year I switched to 8-man. Since making the switch, I’ve fallen in love even more with rugby. I feel that at the 8-man position I am able to use more of my ball handling skills. I really enjoy being more involved in our set plays, and 8-man allows me that opportunity.”
With so many great experiences with Ragin Cajun rugby, his favorite moment comes form a Sweet 16 experience in the national playoffs. “My favorite memory playing for UL would either be the time our team got the opportunity to play the #1 team in the country, University of Minnesota-Duluth, in the sweet 16 tournament. Even though we got our butts handed to us, it was still a blast getting to play on the national stage and play such a great team like UMD,” said Spurlock.
Through his career at UL, the Minden, Louisiana native, has accomplished some impressive feats and is incredibly blessed to have experienced them. As his final year at UL winds down, he is excited to see what the future holds.
“Throughout my career, I have been apart of 3 conference championship teams, gotten to play in the sweet 16, and appeared on the Deep South rugby all-star team. Needless to say, I have been very blessed throughout my rugby career and have made the best memories that I can cherish my whole life. I just thank God for the abilities and opportunities he has given me throughout my time playing this great game. With this being my final semester to play for UL, i will enjoy every minute I have left playing with my team. I will miss it dearly, but I’m excited for what the future has to offer me in the Men’s league circuit,” he explained.