FRISCO, Texas – Major League Rugby, the premier professional rugby league in North America, announced the results of the 2025 MLR College Draft on Thursday.
The first round of the draft was broadcast on ESPNU, with the final two rounds announced on the league’s social media channels. The 2025 College Draft order was determined by regular season standings and playoff performance, and each round consisted of eight to nine picks.
Round 1
1 (1) Anthem RC – William Sherman, Lock, University of California, Los Angeles
2 (2) Anthem RC – Campbell Robb, Hooker, Central Washington University
3 (3) Seattle Seawolves – Tiai Vavao, Flanker, Central Washington University
4 (4) Old Glory DC – Connor Devos, Prop, Lindenwood University
5 (5) California Legion – Oscar Treacy, Wing, Central Washington University
6 (6) Chicago Hounds – Elias Garza, Prop, Life University
7 (7) Utah Warriors – Jacob Ince, Center, University of Guelph
8 (8) California Legion – Ieremia Ieremia, Flanker, University of California, Berkeley
9 (9) New England Free Jacks – Adam Chadwick, Hooker, Life University
By the Numbers
Of the 26 players drafted, 17 were forwards and nine were backs. Reflecting the depth of the front row, eight props and hookers were selected, and the next most-common position was loose forward with seven.
CRAA (almost exclusively D1A) accounted for 17 picks, plus one player (Keeling Coyle) who played in NCR and then finished up with CRAA South Florida. NCR accounted for five picks, plus Coyle, and Canada accounted for three.
Eight of the first nine picked were D1A, reflecting the fact that, for the most part, D1A players play more 15s games in-season, and more games overall. This is especially important for tight five players, and five tight five players were selected in the first round.