Mudsharks finish season with loss to Ohio State

The Mudsharks, IU’s rugby team, lost their last game of the season Oct. 27 to Ohio State by a score of 39-12 to finish the year 9-3.\n“Basically (Ohio State) outsized us across the board by 10 to 15 pounds, but skill-wise, we were even. They just physically wore us down by the end,” said new head coach Tom Phillips\nDespite the outcome of their final game, Phillips is optimistic about the team’s future.\n“I put a new system in place for them, and now that they know it, I think they will do great,” he said. \nJust before beginning his first year as head coach, Phillips spent five months in Hawkes Bay, New Zealand, studying rugby with a former coach and attending professional-team practices.\n“One of the problems of rugby in Indiana – in the United States – is that people don’t grow up playing it,” Phillips said. “In New Zealand, training standards are much higher, more focused, so I get the deer-in-the-headlights look from the team sometimes.”\nHere, Phillips is changing the way the rugby team plays. \nInstead of an open game with players spread wide across the field, he is teaching the team to control the tempo of the game by moving in close and playing for territory.\n“I’m trying to teach them a control game that they can play week in and week out,” Phillips said. “I don’t care who they play against, as long as they play their own game.” \nPhillips’ coaching style also differs from that of the previous coach, Sarasopa Enari.\nActing captain Drew Hunt said he appreciates Phillips’ approach. \n“It’s nice having Tom, who’s an IU alum, coach the team,” he said. “He’s got a very different style of coaching.” \nJim Wilmot, a junior on the team, agreed. \n“Practices are more laid back,” he said. “He’s taking a lot of time to get to know us.”\nFreshman Charlie Clarke said the team has great cohesiveness. \n“The guys are really close,” he said. “The team’s like a frat.”\nAssistant coach Chuck Fultz said the alumni support makes the team’s success possible.\n“The alumni, especially Mark Cuban, have been really good about supporting the team,” Fultz said. \nCuban is the owner of the Dallas Mavericks basketball team and a recent competitor on the ABC television show “Dancing with the Stars.” \nPhillips’ current goal is incremental progress. In the future, he said, he wants IU to work on becoming the top team in the Midwest. \n“We’re currently rebuilding. We have a young team,” he said. “We’re starting three freshmen, but we have four of our five seniors returning to play next year.”