Kaitlyn Cook
Freshman Aidan Skahan is making the tackle on the KU player with the rugby ball. KSUFR RFC was defeated by KU 26-47 on October 4th, 2025, at Lawrence Westwick Rugby Complex
Transitioning from high school to college, or transferring colleges, can make it difficult to find a place to fit in. However, many students find their ‘safe place’ by getting involved in something familiar or something that interests them.
With Kansas State’s wide variety of clubs and organizations on campus, there are multiple ways for a student to feel more included.
For sophomore Mason Van Allen, captain of the rugby club team at K-State, he knew he wanted to keep the rugby culture around him.
“I grew up around it,” Van Allen said. “I think this is year 13 for me of playing.”
Van Allen’s experience started when he was young, when he was among the first students in his class to participate in a youth league. Continuing his love for the sport, he played rugby at St. James Academy Catholic High School in Kansas City and has continued to play in college.
“There is some really good high school rugby that gets played in KC,” Van Allen said. “Then when I came to K-State, I knew I wanted to keep playing.”
By playing rugby at K-State, Van Allen isn’t just continuing his passion for the sport; he’s also following in his father’s footsteps.
“My dad played here at K-State in the late ‘90s,” Van Allen said. “Then, I just kind of played [rugby] as a kid and grew up around it.”
K-State rugby practices just once a week in the spring, but their fall season is more of a grind.
“We’ll practice two days a week in the fall on Mondays and Thursdays,” Van Allen said. “We compete just about every single weekend. We have a conference that’s made up of 12 teams.”
With the fall season wrapping up, the team is finishing up its conference tournaments. In the spring, practice is only every other week and is more tournament-focused. The Olympic version of rugby, known as sevens, is used in the spring events.
Tournaments for the team consist of traveling to different states, like Missouri, Texas and Nebraska, and club members take charge of planning and organizing in preparation for tournaments.
“We have a coach that does a lot, but most of it is player-focused.” Van Allen said. “He’ll kind of help with the scheduling and talking to people, but all the funding and day-to-day stuff, it’s all either myself or a few other guys that help out a lot.”
The rugby club is primarily run by students, while other K-State clubs are more advisor-led and have a specific structure.
One member of the team, senior Jack Colligan, makes sure the team connects both on and off the field. Colligan is the social chair of the team and has been playing rugby for a year and a half.
“I think a lot of stuff that I’m trying to do is push guys to come together,” Colligan said. “We do movie nights, we do film nights. Every Thursday, we tend to go to dinner after practice. Every once in a while, we cook all together, and it is super fun.”
Despite the emphasis on unity, each member is responsible for their own work ethic and goals.
“It is super nice, but it’s one of those things that you get out what you give in,” Colligan said. “If you give in your time, you’ll get those experiences, but you don’t have to. You can just come and play, and you can also come and do more.”
Anyone who wants to play or become more active on the K-State campus can find a welcoming environment with the rugby club.
“If you want a community where you miss playing a sport and want that family community, that’s something that is one of the big driving factors of our team,” Colligan said.