“Above all else I am passionate about the game of rugby and particularly the values of teamwork, sportsmanship, and camaraderie that it develops. I value team success as well as individual player development and have a long history of playing and coaching rugby in both South Africa and the US. After my high school playing days I coached all age levels at Pretoria Boys High School in South Africa from 1992 to 1999.

After moving to the US I coached high school rugby at the Kent Crusaders Rugby Club outside Seattle and helped take them to two national high school tournaments. In 2007 I took over as head coach at the University of Arkansas Rugby Club and have guided them from Division 2 to Division 1-AA and next year to Division 1-A as part of the Red River Conference.

We have great talent and commitment at the U of A, and I am confident that with the addition of a talented freshman class next year we can immediately compete for a national Division 1-A title.”

Assistant Coach Frans Schimper, since 2013

Coach Frans comes from a decorated rugby background in Bloemfontein, South Africa where he played as a boy through varsity at Grey College, the premier South African school side rugby team. 15 graduates of this prestigious program have gone on to play for the South African national team, known as the Springboks. Frans temporarily gave up his rugby career to run on a track scholarship at LSU in Baton Rouge. He then transferred to and competed as a part perennial track and field powerhouse, University of Arkansas. Frans joined the Arkansas Rugby coaching staff in 2013.