George Hurtis

George Hurtis began his time with the Club in 1978. As a freshman coming from rural North-West Wisconsin, he had experience on the gridiron and none on the pitch. Harry Benson lived in the next-door apartment and one day asked George if he wanted to join him in attending a rugby practice.  With just one practice George was hooked. He would play from 1978 through 1982 encompassing the initial years following the founding of the Club. He was always a leader in the forward pack, starting at loose forward eventually playing primarily 8-man. He took various leadership roles within the Club, although leadership titles changed hands frequently in the early years depending on the needs of the club.   He remembers being captain of the 1982 team that won the Wisconsin Collegiate Championship. He fondly recalls working with Bill Warner, Rich (Animal) Fromstein, and others recruiting new members at a table set up in front of the Red Gym during registration week.

Having played in the first era of the Club he was part of some of the infamous tours to Florida and Texas. He partook in the U-Haul trip back from Daytona Beach, Florida in 1980.  After depositing the derelict bus in a small town just outside of Daytona Beach, they spread their camping gear (and other necessities) about the back of the U-Haul and made the return trip to Madison.

During the early years, the Club played for a Wisconsin Rugby Union Collegiate Championship, with a north and south division. They played in the south and played a round robin schedule of the other southern division teams to determine a division champion before moving on to the final. At that point Wisconsin and UW-Stevens Point were the powerhouses in the state. Wisconsin had a team of all students and faculty post 1977, however, Point was still organized like the original team having players that were students and non-students. He recalls winning the Wisconsin Collegiate Championship against Stevens Point when they played at Pitchers Pub at the intersection of Park Street and the Beltline. Although the pitch does not exist anymore, it is the spot of some of the Clubs first titles, and painful losses to the WRC.

After school, George lived for a short time outside of Pittsburgh, playing with the Pittsburgh Rugby Club.  He then moved to Rochester, MN and played with a number of clubs in South-east Minnesota including the Faribault RFC and Rochester RFC.   Along the way, he returned to Madison to complete a graduate degree and played for WRC and the VOMITS in the 1990’s.

While George is not big on giving advice, he does leave some wise words for the current members. Everyone needs to tread their own path in life and rugby truly helps form the bonds that will take you on an interesting ride wherever you end up. Lifelong friends are a rare thing, and George is grateful that many of the people he played with at UW still call him and meet up at reunions and events. Coming from a rural area, the Club was the first place where he met people from every walk of life.  People from all over the country and even the world come to Madison to play rugby, and each person gives different

perspectives on the world. It is a unique melting pot that will propel you forward in life.

George encourages players to go find matches and play every opportunity you have. Not only do you increase your rugby ability each time you play whether that is for UW or someone else; rugby helps form a brotherhood that will allow you to start a conversation with people the world over. There is nothing like it, an instant brotherhood is formed through training and fighting in the mud, the blood, and the beer. Go have fun, life comes fast, enjoy it while you can, and form your connections.

Thank you, George, for being this month’s alumni corner, and thank you for your continued support of the club! !

by TJ Brugger