Tiger Rugby Family and Friends,
First, I’d like to thank Dr. Cole, the Board of Directors along with the current player leadership group, for putting their trust in me while giving me the freedom to help grow the program.
Currently, we have around 15-25 players. Having spent the last three years as head coach of a national contending program at the D1 level it was a relief to hear our leadership group express their intent to become National Champions and how this would require more work and commitment from everyone. In that meeting, we concluded that adding two morning fitness sessions a week was a good start. I have already seen great skill development and rugby IQ increasing seemingly at each session. I am encouraged by this groups effort and enjoyment of the game but even more so their care and commitment to each other as young men.
In our leadership meeting, these young men came up with three words that will guide us this season. These three words are what we want to hang our hat on and look to as a guide for our thoughts and actions.
-Champions-In everything we do, we will do it to the best of our ability.
-Gentlemen- We will be regarded as upstanding young men on and off the pitch.
-Servant Leaders- We will put others first and always find the courage to be the example.
I truly believe there is unlimited potential here if we can get the right people aligned and supporting the club to help sustain the growth needed to get this program to the top. Locally we have several youth and high school clubs competing, led by great coaches. I have several connections to some of the best High School programs all over the world and know that with all that Memphis has to offer I can get them here if we can get enough financial help to ease their costs. Having these players will make an immediate impact on our team but this will more so have a lasting impact on our program through cultural diversity and our local talent playing alongside more experienced players. As you may know, we are constantly seeking help to cut costs and improve our program in a variety of ways. Some items include; travel, hotel, jerseys, practice kit, practice equipment, film equipment and software, meals, team fees and the list goes on. From my experience, collegiate rugby in the USA is still very much an arms race, and the programs that can raise the most money to get these items will have a much greater chance at reaching their goals.
We have a wonderful opportunity to immediately impact our boys. We have purchased 19 custom lockers for the starting lineup, three staff lockers and even one for the referee to be put in our locker room at Memorial Field. These will be numbered 1 through 15 for game day use. We are looking for donors that would like to sponsor the naming rights. The cost will be $1,000/year for 5 years or you can pay all at once. The sponsorship will last 10 years or with an increased amount you can permanently name a locker. ACT FAST as there are only 19 spots available, in years past these have sold out in less than 48 hours. Perhaps you’d like to name a locker in someone’s memory, have your name above the jersey you wore yourself or even your company’s name. These lockers will be movable should we ever be moved to a new locker room.
We have several ways of contributing towards our program, please feel free to email me at Bwhiterugby@gmail.com if you’re interested in helping out.
I’m excited to see you all at our matches this spring!
Go Tigers Go,
Blake White
Head Coach
Memphis Tigers Rugby