GLENDALE, Colo. – In a big step for collegiate rugby, College Rugby Association of America (CRAA) today announced that American College Rugby (ACR) and American College Rugby Association (ACRA) will join CRAA in the fall of 2022.
This brings the majority of USA Rugby-member collegiate competitions under one high performance organization. (This is not taking into account NCR, which is not considered a USA Rugby-member org., handles a huge majority of small-college and men's DII, and almost certainly works with more conferences and players overall.)
This past collegiate school year college rugby was essentially divided among six governance situations: CRAA, NCR, ACR, ACRA, NIRA (women's NCAA teams), and independents (covers a few conferences that opted not to get in bed with anyone for now). This merger cuts that number down to four. NIRA will always be separate, while the independents may well join a larger group. But ACRA and ACR joining with CRAA puts much of women's DII college and most of the West US under the CRAA umbrella.
Competitions, divisional structure, and postseason events will be the first order of business for CRAA and the USA Rugby College Council as represented teams now look forward to elevated Spring and Fall championship events and experiences. The 2022 CRAA Fall Classic is slated to return to Charlotte, NC the weekend of December 3-4, while the CRAA Spring Championship will return to Houston, Texas on May 6, 2023.
"We are thrilled to join forces with ACR and ACRA to create a USA Rugby sanctioned collegiate competition focused on growing high performance programs," said College Rugby Association of America President, Paul Keeler, "This is a pivotal time for collegiate rugby in the United States, with two Rugby World Cups on the horizon and the need for a united approach to developing the game."
