Beauchamp, Mills Join A&M Coaching Group
Beauchamp, Mills Join A&M Coaching Group
Texas A&M has filled most of its new coaching staff set to start this summer and into the fall.
The coaches named will replace James Lowrey, who is moving and announced this season will be his last. Lowrey is already working with new coaches to help the transition.
Texas A&M's Lowrey Moving On, Program Seeks Coaches
Assistant Coach (scrums) and Director of Rugby Johnny Smith announced to GRR that Luke Beauchamp will be the new Head Coach and Conor Mills will also join as backs/attack coach.
Mills is a former All American at A&M and played senior club rugby in Texas for the last eight years, including a three-season stint with the Houston SaberCats in Major League Rugby. He also played on several select sides. With the SaberCats Mills was Beauchamp’s, and teammate the two remain friends even as Beauchamp has moved to the Chicago Hounds MLR club.
Born in Queensland, Australia, Beauchamp played high-level rugby with the Brothers Rugby Union Club, a team he captained and won numerous awards with, played on the Queensland Reds Collegiate side and for Queensland Reds A before moving to the USA in 2019. He was named to the Brothers Club Team of the Decade for 2010-2019 and later captained the SaberCats 12 times. Importantly, he is married to a Texas A&M Aggie, Rhetta.
This will not be Beauchamp’s first experience in coaching, as he coached age-grade in Australia and in Houston, helped run the SaberCats Academy, and coached the Academy team.
“For me giving back and passing on all the knowledge that’s been passed on to me is what attracted me to coaching at A&M,” Beauchamp told GRR. “I love introducing people to the game. The most refreshing thing about coaching here in the US is you have guys who have never played and are instantly drawn to it and want to learn. In Australia there are college-age guys who feel like they know it all. Here I see guys new to the game who immediately fall in love with it and want to learn and play, and I love that.”
Married to an Aggie, Beauchamp said he is beginning to understand what a lifelong piece of a person’s identity that is.
“I have learned about that the more time we spent together,” Beauchamp explained. “I’ve been to many an Aggie football game and I think that the thing tat attracts me to it is that Aggies live and breathe being an Aggie. It’s always with you, and that feeling has rubbed off on me. I love everything that’s going on at College State, from how they’re supporting the rugby program to what an amazing school it is. It’s pretty special.”
For Mills, this is a bit of a homecoming. The Texan made a name for himself at A&M and relishes coming back.
“It’s kind of a dream position for me to handle the attack side of things at A&M,” Mills told GRR. “When Johnny approached me I saw it was the perfect opportunity. Things have wound down on my playing career and this was a chance for me to push myself professionally. Rugby’s given me so much so just being involved, and being involved with Luke, is great. We’re going to work on taking A&M to the next step and build on what James and everyone else has done. James has been awesome. We talk every week and he’s invited me to training.”
Support is ramping up behind the program and, as Smith said in an earlier report from GRR, he wants to make it so the coaches are coaching, and not dealing with a lot of paperwork.
“Both of these coaches have a great mix of leadership and rugby IQ,” said Smith, who added that Texas A&M Sport Clubs Director Keith Joseph and the Old Maroon Board members deserve much thanks for supporting the new direction for the program.
Texas A&M Rugby is still looking for one more part-time Asst. Coach that would primarily be focused on the Grey Team (essentially the 2nd side). Anyone interested can contact Johnny Smith at recruiting@aggierugby.com.
