Aggie Rugby Player Profile - Chris Frazier

The acrobatic Chris Frazier

Texas A&M Rugby team president Chris Frazier is the subject of this week's Aggie rugby player profile.  Chris has been an integral part of Aggie rugby over the past two years as both a player and officer. He has gained a reputation as a fierce defensive player, but also has fanastic speed and poses a major threat to the opposition on offense.  Chris's efforts on the sevens pitch have played a large role in the team's success this fall.  However, what really defines Chris's play is his "high-flying" acrobatics while scoring tries, avoiding tackles, or making tackles - it is difficult to find a picture of Chris with his feet on the ground!

Height:  6'1"

Weight:  200 lbs

Position:  Flanker/#8 (15s) - Prop (7s)

Major:  Petroleum Engineering

 

Chris is from Baytown, Texas and graduated from Barbers Hill High School.  His high school did not have rugby, so Chris learned the game after he arrived at A&M.  However, he proved to be a quick study earning 20 Caps for the Aggies during his two years with the squad.    His play was electric last year in an extremely tough D1-A competition which earned him the 2011-12 Aggie Rugby Defensive Player of the Year Award.  He continues to grow as a player and has been sensational during the sevens campaign - scoring a hat-trick in a semi-final match of the ARC championships.  The coaching staff feels that Chris is one of the best loose-forwards they have ever worked with and fully expect a spectacular spring season from him.

 

As president of the team, Chris demonstrates an amazing work-ethic, leadership skills, and accountability in all things.  The team has been well-served under his leadership and he provides an excellent example for the younger players aspiring to officer positions.

 

Chris possesses an amazing charm and easy-going personality which makes him popular with everyone he meets.  Chris is an outdoorsman and enjoys fishing and kayaking in his leisure time.  He plans to pursue a career as a petroleum engineer upon graduation.

 

What does Aggie Rugby Mean to You? 

"Aggie Rugby is a commitment to bettering one's self and the team."

Aggies Name National Championship Squad

The Aggies named their squad for the upcoming USA Collegiate 7s National Championships last night.  The squad consists of a group of players who have seen an extensive amount of game play this fall and have had an opportunity to build a team chemistry.  It is a mix of both veteran (many are going to their second straight National Championship) and younger players and if they play to their full potential it should be a very exciting tournament for the Aggies.  Congratulations to the following players -

 

National Championship Squad

Amsler, Danny

Tyler Gessner breaks through for a score against Sam Houston

Deao, John

Diaz, Andres

Durke, Aaron

Frazier, Chris

Gessner, Tyler

Guillen, Brian

Hawkins, Raymond

Jacobson, Lukas

Larsen, Rob

McMath, Andrew

Mills, Conor (C)

Smiley, J.D.

Starks, Dylan

Theodore, Matt

Oh What a Season!

Congratulations go our to our JV squad for a brilliant sevens season!!  They closed out this past weekend's ARC Grand Final with their third championship in a row.  The only reason they did not win four in a row is due to the fact that teams were split at the ARC North tournament, and even then both JV squads made the semi-finals and barely lost (one in overtime and one by 5).  Their accomplishments stand even taller when one considers they did not have the same lineup throughout the season and were missing two key starters for the finals weekend.  All of these players have extremely bright sevens futures with Aggie Rugby and we look foward toward their continued success.  In addition, many of these guys are projected to be varsity starters at 15s, so this was an excellent way for them to work on skills and fitness in match conditions.

 

Perhaps the most impressive factor of the JV squad's most recent success is the fashion in which they dominated the competition.  In the three ARC competitions, the Aggies outscored their opponents 354 to 76.  They averaged 29.5 ppg and gave up only 6.3 ppg.  They are operated both the defensive and offensive systems extremely efficiently and demonstrated mastery of both against stiff competition.

 

John Deao captained the JV 7s squad to another championship

Last weekend saw the Aggies begin the tournament with a 43-0 smashing of Baylor.  They dominated the match from start to finish, with prop Josh Fojtik having a monster game (3 tries).  A&M followed-up with a 29-0 victory over Sam Houston State - John Deao was unstoppable, scoring two tries and physcially dominating the opposition defensively.  The Aggies faced arch-rival UT in the semi-final match.  Scrumhalf Rob Larsen led the way with another hat-trick and the Aggies stomped the Longhorns 36-7.  The final was also a one-sided affair as the Aggies beat Texas Tech 31-7.  Fojtik had two more tries (six tries on the day), capping off a brilliant tournament.  With the victory, the Aggies claimed their third straight JV title and put an exclamation point on the end of their sevens season!

 

Dylan Starks had an amazing championship weekend after being moved for his usual center position to flyhalf for the injured Tyler Lunsford.  He ran the offense with the efficiency of a veteran while scoring a number of spectacular tries throughout the tournament.

 

The ARC 7s Series championship was determined by combined points and the JV squad was a major factor in the Aggies securing the first-ever trophy.  Kudos go out to this fine group of players who demonstrated all fall a committment to Aggie Rugby and a burning desire to come home champions! 

 

JV Roster for ARC Grand Finals

Prop - Jason Fojtik

Hooker - Chris Semler

Prop - John Deao (C)

Scrumhalf - Rob Larsen

Flyhalf -Dylan Starks

Center - Grayson Dowlearn

Wing - Kaleb Cornitius

R - Philip Hanson

R - Trigun Soni

R - David Saparitio

R - Robbie Chilton

Aggies Move up in National Rankings

In the newest national collegiate rankings released by RugbyMag (11/14/12), the Aggies moved up a spot to #8.  This is the highest ranking the Aggies have ever attained in 7s.  Yesterday's ranking will most likely be the last until the National Championships.

 

Chris Frazier beating the Tech defense

1. (1) Life
2. (2) Cal
3. (4) Central Washington
4. (8) San Diego State – Won California 7s
5. (10) Dartmouth – Won Ivy 7s
6. (3) St. Mary’s – 3rd at California 7s
7. (17) Cal Poly – 2^nd at California 7s
8. (9) Texas A&M – Won ARC Dallas
9. (5) Air Force
10. (6) BYU
11. (7) Arkansas State
12. (Unr.) Wisconsin – Won Big Ten 7s
13. (11) Penn State – Second at Big Ten 7s
14. (12) Delaware
15. (13) Kutztown
16. (14) Virginia Tech
17. (15) Utah
18. (16) Davenport
19. (18) UCLA
20. (19) Virginia
21. (20) Navy
22. (21) Arizona State
23. (22) Western Washington
24. (24) Colorado State
25. (25) Oklahoma – Third at ARC-Dallas

Aggie Rugby Player Profile - Andres Diaz

We are introducing a new feature on the the Aggie Rugby site called player profiles.  The profiles are designed to introduce fans to the Aggie Rugby family and let them know who our players really are...  Todays profile features 5th year senior Andres Diaz.

Andres Diaz and family

Height - 5'11"

Weight - 195

Position - hooker

Major - Agricultural Economics

 

Andres is a 2008 graduate of St. Thomas High School in Houston, Tx.  He was a prolific player while at STH earning All-Greater Houston and All-State honors while there.  His hard-work and style of play earned him a spot on the USA U-18 National team, with which he toured England in 2007.  He played on a state-runner up (2007), state championship (2008), two Western RFU championship (07-08), and two National Championship (07-08) qualifer teams while in high school.  Andres recieved St. Thomas's highest rugby honor when he was inducted into their rugby Hall of Fame in 2010.

 

Andres has played for the Aggies for five years and has 48 15s caps (appearances in a varsity match), and 33 7s caps while at TAMU.  While at A&M Andres has been named to the Texas Collegiate All-Stars and the Western Collegiate All-Stars.  He was named to two U-20 USA National teams, traveling to Nairobi, Kenya in 2008 (the 2009 team did not travel to Moscow).  Andres was named the Texas A&M Rookie of the Year in 2008.  He was a member of the Western Collegiate Championship and "Sweet Sixteen" team in 2009. 

 

Andres is known for his ability as a fierce defender, and his mastery at the breakdown.  He has been among the team's leading tacklers throughout his career with the Aggies.  This quality has been extremely evident throughout this fall's sevens season.  Andres has been an amazing steward of the Aggie Rugby traditions and a real servant of the team throughout his career in College Station.

 

When asked about his plans for after graduation Andres replied, "I want to become an official Crossfit Athlete and eventually open my own Crossfit gym."  In his leisure time Andres enjoys doing Crossfit and fishing. 

 

What does Aggie Rugby mean to you?

"It means being a selfless teammate - sacrificing yourself for the greater good of the team.  Always having your teammates back throughout any hardships you may encounter."

ARC 7s Championship JV Pictures

Follow the link below to access our JV pictures from last Saturdays ARC 7s Grand Final.

 http://photobucket.com/TAMURFCJV7sARCFinale-111012

Thoughts on ARC 7s

The final leg of the ARC 7s Series was completed on Saturday and I thought it would be a good opportunity to look back at the experience.  The Allied Rugby Conference was initially created as a 15s conference, with no intention of having a 7s competition.  However, after examing the burgeoning popularity of the sevens game it was decided to include a sevens series in the fall.  Considering the short amount of lead-time and some huge logistical mountains to climb, the league did an outstanding job.  By their own admission, it was not perfect, but the flaws were small and easily correctable.  The events were enjoyable, well-run, and most importantly, the competition was stiff.  It was the perfect atmosphere for getting the Aggies ready for a run at the national championship.  The most appealing aspect of the competition was the series format.  Rather than one tournament, we had three which gave our players a great deal of playing time in a match competitive format.  The inclusion of the JV squads was also a great idea, which will pay big dividends for not only the Aggies, but the rest of the league as well.  Kudos to the ARC for a successful fall sevens season!

 

Andres Diaz and his high-flying act were big against Tech

The Aggies did a fantastic job throughout the series and managed to win all three events, which is a massive achievement.   The Aggies scored a combined 412 points over the three tournaments, averaging 31.69 points per game.  During that same stretch they gave up a combined total of 110 points for 8.46 points per game.  This might have been even lower had we played better defense in the first tournament.  If the SEC tournament is added to the numbers, we scored a combined 574 total points for a 31.88 average per match.    TAMU gave up only 22 points at the SEC tournament for a combined total of 132 and 7.3 points per game average.  This is very impressive stuff, but considering the level of competition, it as outstanding and speaks volumes about the committment of the players to our defense.  We finished the regular fall 7s season with an 18-1 record on varsity with four tournament wins and the overall ARC 7s Series Championship.

 

We played some very tough competition throughout the fall.  ARC rivals Oklahoma, Texas Tech, and Texas gave us some very stiff challenges.  In addition, Colorado State, Auburn, and Georgia were all extremely athletic and tough teams to beat.  It is clear for anyone watching that the level of collegiate sevens competition has risen to a new high in the United States.  This makes the accomplishments of the Aggies this fall even more impressive and all that sweeter.

 

The Aggies were able to accomplish so much through hard-work, teamwork, and dedication to the team.  They bought into the system the coaching staff has implemented and approach every match like it was the national championship.  Their dedication to teamwork and teammates is the core to Aggie success so far this season.  The Aggies are proud and grateful for having won the inaugural ARC 7s Series and for having the opportunity to play in it.  We look forward to having the opportunity to play in the National Championship and are excited about our chances!