Portal:1969 Spring Men/Memorable Events

Winning the Coors Cup and establishing a winning tradition

Gary Schmidt Played last May in the Colorado-Utah all star match

Rated #23 in the nation due to strong performances against BYU (#10) and Cal Berkeley (#3)

(From Dave Porter) As it is for many others, my experiences with rugby at the Academy became an integral part of my progressive development as a military officer. It was my good fortune to be assigned to Cadet Squadron 24 during my first two years at USAFA. I had played rugby in high school and relished the opportunity to play with our intramural team in the spring of my doolie year. Our 1968 Wing Championship Team provided the foundation of what was to become the Academy Rugby Club. The 24th Squadron culture was unique: it was as rebellious as it was rugged and defiantly individualistic. This fighter pilot spirit carried forward to the academy rugby club as well. This spirit was undoubtedly what made the club a favorite of BGen Olds much to the chagrin of other more traditional and conservative officers. An incident which illustrates this spirit well occurred during our participation in the 7s tournament sponsored by Coors in Spring 1969. The Academy had entered two teams, and, at the end of the day, we were to play each other for the Coors Cup. As I recall, it was the battered & weary senior team that suggested that we have a “boat race” (with each member of the team chugging a tankard of beer sequentially while sitting in an imaginary canoe) rather than actually play the final game of 7s for the championship mugs. Predictably, it was “no contest” and the senior team took home the first place mugs. Fortunately the 2nd place mugs were just as serviceable…

The spring break would have no stories to tell were it not for the truck mounted camper holding the only beer at BYU.