Rugby originated in England where it found a niche as a “barbaric game played by gentlemen” at universities in the 19th century. From there it was exported to most parts of the world where it has maintained various levels of popularity. These days the game is most prominent in Europe and former British Empire territories. In North America changes to older versions of the game eventually led to distinct sports that evolved into modern US and Canadian rules “gridiron” football. By the early 20th century the newer game was the more popular sport in North America, but there is still a passionate fan base for the older game. Like most larger universities, Oregon has both men’s and women’s teams. The men compete in CRAA D-1AA level as part of the Northwest Conference, while the Women are CRAA D-1 in the Pacific-Mountain Region.
Competitive college rugby in the US has two distinct formats: 15s and 7s. The biggest difference is the number of players each team has on the pitch during play, it is right in the name and 7s competition is played on a smaller pitch as a result. While the basic mechanics remain the same, the different spacing leads to fundamentally different tactics for each version.
Football fans who watch a game will see how the modern sport took elements of the older game and evolved them. After scoring at “try” (by crossing the opposing goal line) the ball is kicked through the uprights to convert extra points and after being tackled ball carriers have to “snap” (actually roll in rugby) the ball backwards between their legs to a team mate. Forward passes are strictly forbidden, but lateral and backwards passes are used to maneuver the ball about the pitch. Kicking the ball downfield is allowed, but usually only done if the possessing team has been backed into a corner and is being pushed backwards (hence the origin of the punt). Beyond these commonalities the two games have diverged so greatly any football fan would be wise to brush up on the basics before watching a game to follow the action.
Women’s 2025-2026 Rugby Season
The “Dirty Ducks” played five matches over the course of the season, two in November and then three in February. The (15s) season opened in the fall with a pair of tough losses at home in Eugene: 24-0 to Oregon State and 41-12 to Western Washington. Oregon used their time off well and came back ready to rally in the winter. In their first road trip of the season the Dirty Ducks took down Gonzaga 31-20. Later that same month Oregon hosted Central Washington and played the Wildcats to a 26-26 tie. The Dirty Ducks had only one more chance to get to .500 on the season, and there was no better opponent to do it against than washington. Oregon went to Seattle a week after the CWU game and the Dirty Ducks dragged the mutts through the mud.
The ladies didn’t qualify for any post-season play in the 15s format. They did participate in 7s tournaments at Boise State in March and finished second at the Western Washington 7s event in April. It was a season any passionate club would call a success, and the Dirty Ducks will be back next year to avenge themselves against the Beavers and keep the Huskies in their place.
Men’s 2025-2026 Rugby Season
The Oregon men have the misfortune to be in the same league as a Western Washington club that is one of the best funded and most popular in the region (possibly because the Vikings dropped football for financial reasons many years ago). The conference teams played a round-robin home-and-home schedule with Western finishing undefeated at 8-0, while the Ducks placed second at 5-3. Oregon lost both matches to the Vikings and split the series (winning in Eugene) with Central Washington while sweeping the Beavers and the Huskies. Western went onto the D-1AA playoffs and won a national championship over Iowa State.
Competition moved onto 7s in the month of April. Oregon’s seven swept the Palouse Invitational dispatching washington, Boise State, Idaho State, Central Washington, and Oregon State. Next up was a change in scenery, as the 7s lineup left regional competition behind to participate in the Big Ten 7s tournament in Indianapolis. Against some of the same programs the football team now competes with, the men’s rugby 7s squad went 2-2. On the first day of competition they beat Illinois 24-19 and Purdue 43-7. Jet lag must have set in as on day two the Ducks dropped their games against Michigan and Notre Dame by scores of 19-12 and 21-5, respectively.
Less than a week later Oregon swept their regional qualifying opponents to earn a trip to Iowa City for the 7s national championship. The team played three matches in their first day of competition, taking down Iowa State 35-24, Wyoming 31-19, and Nebraska 33-10. A team that, in 15s, hadn’t even qualified for the playoffs had put itself in position to challenge for a national championship. To do so, they would have to get the best of some familiar opponents. In the semi-final on Sunday May 10 the Ducks held off ISU a second time 26-21. With that, the team was one win away from a national title. But as the saying goes: “If you want to be the man, you have to beat the man.” What other “man” could possibly be standing in Oregon’s way but Western Washington? The Vikings looked to sweep the D-1AA men’s titles.
Oregon wasn’t having it. In Spring the team had taken the influence of many prominent Polynesian players in the sport to heart and adopted “ohana” as their motto. The Vikings had the superstars that had carried them in 15s play, but Oregon had the heart and teamwork to dominate 28-5. The 7s trophy was coming to Eugene.
