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Georgia
The Rugby Radar
A ball's eye view from the scrum.
Issue 2 / Vol. 2026 / May 5
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Free. Every Tuesday evening. Every club, every level, every age across Georgia.
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The Georgia rugby pipeline is producing. Two GA youth alums earn US Rugby Foundation scholarships at two different universities. The state's college rugby is producing too: Logan Ballinger is a Rudy Scholz finalist.
Two of the nine 2025-2026 US Rugby Foundation collegiate scholarship recipients came up through Georgia rugby, by way of two completely different pathways. Logan Ballinger of Life University was one of four finalists for the Rudy Scholz Award, the top honor in US collegiate men's rugby. Add summer 7s ignition across the state, an inaugural youth 7s on the calendar, and the Chicago Nationals weekend coming up May 15 to 17, and the state has more in motion than it has had in years.
Below: the scholars, the finalist, the inaugural Hotlanta YOUTH 7s on June 13, summer 7s firing up at every level, the Chicago Nationals preview with two GA-based sides in the picture, and a column from a certain Author about a fireman who drove five hundred miles for a friendly.
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🏆 Lead Story
TWO GEORGIA SIDES AT CHICAGO NATIONALS, SAME WEEKEND
For the first time in recent memory, two Georgia rugby programs play in the same USA Club Rugby National Championships weekend, on the same field, two days apart. Mark your calendars and your YouTube tabs.
Friday May 15, 4:00 PM Central: Life University Women face Northern Virginia in the NCR Women's Club D1 semifinal. This is the senior club side, not the college bracket. Life enters as the defending 2026 CRAA D1 XVs national champions AND the 2026 CRAA Premier 7s national champions. Two titles in one spring. Their XVs season closed 18-0.
Saturday May 16, 2:00 PM Central: Atlanta Old White MD2 face Kansas City in the Men's D2 semifinal. Old White are the defending 2025 D2 national champions and arrived in Chicago by way of a 69-0 final at Gulf Coast Super Regionals. Back-to-back titles in their division have been rare in recent decades.
Sunday May 17: Two finals, back to back. Men's D2 at noon Central. Women's D1 at one PM Central. Both with Georgia teams in the picture if Friday and Saturday go their way.
Venue: Chicago Blaze Rugby Complex, 13011 West Smith Road, Lemont IL. Stream: USA Club Rugby YouTube channel, free, all games, broadcast by Next Level Rugby. Tickets onsite: thirty dollars weekend, sixteen dollars day, ten dollars parking.
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📣 Quick Hits
THE WEEK ACROSS GEORGIA
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NAI 7s registration closes TODAY, Tuesday May 5. National 7s tournament, U17 and U19 boys and girls, plus a Best of the West bracket. June 4-6 in Salt Lake City at Real Salt Lake's ZBRA stadium. If your travel side is going, this is your last day to lock it in. nai7s.com
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Two GA youth alums on the 2025-2026 US Rugby Foundation scholarship class. Landon Lockhart-Keener (two-year Rebels Rugby captain, now at University of Kentucky) and Max Horn (Atlanta Youth Rugby, Galloway School Varsity Golden Eagles captain, headed to Kutztown University) are two of nine national recipients. Two pathways, two universities, one state. Full class →
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Logan Ballinger (Life University) was a finalist for the Rudy Scholz Award. The Rudy is the top honor in US collegiate men's rugby. Solomon Williams of Cal won it. Logan made the final four. The gala lands June 13 in Seattle. A Marietta-based program with a player in that conversation is news worth saying out loud.
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Two no-pressure ways to be on a rugby field this season. Rebels Rugby starts weekly, non-contact Touch Tuesdays beginning Tuesday May 12, running through the spring and summer. Free of charge. All ages and abilities welcome. No experience needed. The point is to keep players active, learning, and connected to the club. Exiles RFC, whose adult touch program runs year-round, opens their Summer Touch for kids ages 5-14 on Tuesday May 26 at Innovation Academy, Alpharetta. Free, through July.
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Hotlanta YOUTH 7s lands June 13. Inaugural edition. Eight invited teams in two pools of four at 1035 Fairburn Rd SW, Atlanta. USA Rugby sanctioned, athletic trainer on site, check-in at 8 AM. Tournament director: Chris Byerly. The first time the Hotlanta umbrella has carried a youth bracket. atlantarugby.com/hotlantahighschool7s
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Savannah Shamrocks are back-to-back GRU Division 3 men's champions. 2025 and 2026. Final this spring went 30-25 over Charleston Outlaws. The summer 7s window is next, the Shamrocks travel well, and the South Georgia rugby story keeps writing itself.
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L1 Referee Course at Life University May 23. Eighty-five dollars, full day. Georgia Youth Rugby reimburses certified referees. Every club in the state needs more refs. (If you have a strong opinion about offside, this is the structured way to express it.)
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🎓 College Corner
GA COLLEGES THIS WEEK
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Lead
LIFE U WOMEN: COLLEGE DOUBLE DONE, CLUB SIDE TO CHICAGO
Life University Women run two programs side by side: a college side (current students competing in CRAA) and a senior club side (graduates plus current players who need more reps than the college XVs roster offers). Both made noise this spring.
College XVs: 2026 CRAA Division I national champions. The April 11 final ran 40-14 over BYU when weather stopped play, and CRAA awarded the title at stoppage. The XVs season closed 18-0.
College 7s: 2026 CRAA Premier 7s national champions. Two weeks after the XVs title, 17-12 over Lindenwood at Kuntz Stadium in Indianapolis. XVs and 7s national titles in one spring. Almost no women's college program in the country pulls that off.
Senior club: heading to Chicago for the NCR Women's Club D1 semifinal Friday May 15 at 4 PM Central versus Northern Virginia. Marietta's quietest dynasty is having its loudest spring.
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Honors
LIFE U FLANKER A RUDY SCHOLZ FINALIST
Logan Ballinger of Life University was one of four finalists for the 2026 Rudy Scholz Award, the top honor in US collegiate men's rugby. Solomon Williams of California won it. The award gala lands June 13 at the Washington Athletic Club in Seattle. A Marietta-based player in the final four is the kind of detail that says GA college rugby is operating at the very top of the country.
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Pathway
TWO GEORGIA YOUTH ALUMS, TWO UNIVERSITIES, ONE SCHOLARSHIP CLASS
The US Rugby Foundation announced its 2025-2026 collegiate scholarship recipients. Two of the nine came up through Georgia rugby, by way of two completely different pathways.
Landon Lockhart-Keener earned the Terry O'Reilly Memorial Scholarship. He played scrum-half in the Rebels Rugby program in middle school and captained for two years. Three NAI 7s tournaments, certified rugby referee. Now at the University of Kentucky, Lewis Honors College, Finance with a Data Analytics minor.
Max Horn earned the Richard A. Donelli Scholarship. He walked into an Atlanta Youth Rugby open day in 7th grade and never left, captaining the Varsity Golden Eagle team at The Galloway School in his senior year. Eagle Impact Rugby Academy travel to British Columbia, Italy, and Amsterdam. USA South Panthers. Headed to Kutztown University to study psychology.
Two of nine national recipients. Two pathways. Same state. The Radar exists to notice that.
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LIFE U MEN: D1A SEASON CLOSES, NAVY TAKES THE TITLE
The seventh consecutive D1A semifinal appearance is the long view. The Annapolis loss to Navy still sits. Cal Bears repeated as D1A national champions over Navy at the CRAA championships in Indianapolis May 1-4. Off-season starts with momentum and unfinished business.
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UGA, TECH, KSU, UNG, GCSU: SUMMER 7S BUILD
UGA Men closed the spring on a thank-you post April 20. Georgia Tech Women linked with Atlanta Harlequins for joint training April 26, the kind of college-club bridge worth watching. KSU Women carry Buzz Bowl 7s hardware into the offseason. UNG Women hold momentum off Ruck Stock Silver. GCSU Bobcats women set the template for clean match-recap content. The 15s college season is closed. Summer 7s is next.
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🏉 Adult Club Updates
ACROSS THE STATE
OLD WHITE MD2: 69-0 IN GULF COAST, NOW CHICAGO
Atlanta Old White MD2 took the Gulf Coast Super Regional final 69-0 over Houston United on April 26. That sentence is the whole story. The defending 2025 D2 national champions face Kansas City in the Men's D2 semifinal Saturday May 16 at 2 PM Central in Lemont, Illinois. Win and they play for back-to-back national titles Sunday at noon Central, a feat rarely achieved in their division in recent decades.
Watch live, free, on the USA Club Rugby YouTube channel. Or look for the lineup announcement first. Either way: Atlanta is going to Chicago, and the rest of Georgia rugby is going with them.
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Beyond the pitch
HIGH COUNTRY BOIL: A FULL CLUB WEEKEND
High Country Women turned their season-end weekend into something closer to a summer camp. The High Country Boil packed a full retreat into a single weekend, white water rafting, arts and crafts, the connective tissue clubs say they want and rarely build. Peach Pitch comes May 30, where they host. The Boil is part of why the team that hosts it is the team that wins it.
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Beyond the pitch
EXILES RFC: $608.91 RAISED, MATCHING CHALLENGE NOW LIVE
Exiles RFC's wildfire response is now in matching territory. The club raised $608.91 supporting ongoing wildfire relief for displaced animals and shelters. This morning, a member of the Exiles community stepped up and challenged ten others to match the gift, dollar for dollar. Donations are being matched right now. The challenge is on.
Six hundred and nine dollars from a small senior club. Not a number designed to impress. A number that says we showed up. Now ten more people are being asked to do the same. Their summer touch program for kids ages 5-14 also opens May 26 at Innovation Academy.
Match the gift →
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SAVANNAH SHAMROCKS: BACK-TO-BACK GRU D3 CHAMPS
Savannah Shamrocks are 2025 AND 2026 GRU Division 3 men's champions. The 2026 final ran 30-25 over Charleston Outlaws. The Shamrocks travel well, host the St. Patrick's Day Rugby Tournament every March at Daffin Park, and just keep adding to the South Georgia rugby story. Summer 7s is next. Watch the coast.
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SUMMER 7S IS UNMISTAKABLY ON
Atlanta Renegades start 7s training Wednesday May 6. Cumberland Cryptids are ramping up. Bloodfest 7s divisions are filling waitlists. Athens Eagles, Macon Love, Augusta Furies, Atlanta 2.0 Selects, Atlanta Premier, everyone is in 7s mode. Peach Pitch May 30. Hotlanta YOUTH 7s June 13. Hotlanta 7s July 25. Plan accordingly.
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🏆 Tournament Watch
WHAT'S COMING
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Closes TODAY, Tuesday May 5 • nai7s.com
NAI 7S REGISTRATION CLOSES TODAY
National 7s tournament. U17 and U19 boys and girls, plus a Best of the West bracket. Tournament is June 4-6 at Real Salt Lake's ZBRA stadium in Salt Lake City. All-Star and top travel teams welcome. Last day to register.
Register: NAI 7s →
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May 15-17 • Chicago Blaze Rugby Complex, Lemont IL • Free Stream
USA CLUB RUGBY XVS NATIONALS
National championship weekend. Two GA-based sides are in the bracket. Streamed free on the USA Club Rugby YouTube channel via Next Level Rugby. Tickets onsite: thirty dollars weekend, sixteen dollars day. Fixture times in the College Corner and Adult Club sections below.
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May 30 • Lithonia, GA
PEACH PITCH 7S
Billed as the largest women's-plus 7s in the South. Hosted by High Country Women's RFC at the Southeast Athletic Complex, 5845 Hillvale Rd, Lithonia. Premier Sponsor: Allison Smith Co. 2026 registration is open. Watch @peachpitchrugby7s for divisions and brackets.
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June 13 • 1035 Fairburn Rd SW, Atlanta • INAUGURAL
HOTLANTA YOUTH 7S
First edition. Eight invited teams in two pools of four. USA Rugby sanctioned. Athletic trainer on-site. Check-in at 8 AM. Tournament director: Chris Byerly. Atlanta Old White's youth arm has built the marquee Hotlanta umbrella its first dedicated youth bracket.
Hotlanta YOUTH 7s →
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July 25 • Atlanta
HOTLANTA 7S
Atlanta's biggest 7s tournament. Standing divisions: HS, College, Men's Social, Women's Social. USA Rugby sanctioned. Athletic trainer on-site. CIPP required for all players. Night social at The Battery Atlanta. Registration is open.
Hotlanta 7s →
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May 21-23 • Elkhart, IN
BOYS HS NATIONALS
24 teams across Club and Single-School brackets. If a Georgia HS side is in, we want to know. Tip line is open.
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💬 Whispers from the Touchline
Lady Trydown
The anonymous dispatch on Georgia rugby. All rumor, all hearsay, all in good fun.
Dearest Reader,
This Author has spent the week in receipt of a story so improbable that, were it submitted as fiction, it would be returned with a polite note about pacing.
A North Atlanta senior club rose before dawn last Saturday, drove five hundred miles round-trip across a state line, and played a single friendly match. The reason? A new teammate, this Author is reliably informed, a local firefighter, was taking the field for his very first match of rugby ever. An entire club gave up a Saturday so one man could play one game. Reader, this is what the sport actually is. Unus ex nobis.
Elsewhere, a certain Marietta women's institution is once again packing its bags for a national semifinal, where it intends to add yet another item to a trophy collection one might charitably describe as overflowing. This Author has noted, with no small interest, that the surprise expressed in certain quarters when this program wins national hardware has, by now, taken on the quality of theatre. Do try to look astonished, Dear Reader. They've earned the courtesy.
A particularly enthusiastic touchline parent was overheard providing detailed positional advice to the referee on a recent Saturday. The advice was unsolicited. The referee was patient. This Author would gently suggest, to all such parents, that the L1 Referee course is eighty-five dollars, runs at Life University on May 23rd, and offers a structured way to express one's many strong opinions about offside. Failing that, there is always the High Country Boil, where one may shout into a river instead of at a child in stripes.
On the matter of a certain old-school gentleman who is forever explaining, to anyone seated within earshot, that everything wrong with the modern game can be traced to its having moved beyond the club: USA Rugby has erred. The collegiate establishment has erred. Anyone who is not the club has, fundamentally, erred. One does admire the consistency. One has also, by now, memorized the speech and may safely set it to music.
A final whisper, sent in by a Reader of immaculate taste: a free YouTube broadcast of certain GA sides at Chicago Nationals on the May 15 weekend means watch parties shall erupt in living rooms across the state. This Author looks forward, with no small anticipation, to the inevitable arrival of three former players who "just happened to be in the neighborhood," the coach who will narrate every phase of play with reference to a system no one has heard of, and at least one parent asking, with great sincerity, "wait, this isn't football?" Pour something nice. Be loud at home. Be polite in the comments.
Until next week. Mind the lineout, mind the touchline, and mind the volume.
xo, Lady Trydown
Need to get something off your chest? Whisper it to Lady Trydown: Email Lady Trydown • @LadyTrydown on Instagram. All sources remain anonymous. Obviously.
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🎓 Train Up
GET CERTIFIED
Every club needs more refs. Every club needs more coaches. GA Youth Rugby reimburses certification costs for active referees and coaches. Register through your USA Rugby Learning Center via Rugby Xplorer.
| 3 WEEKSMay 23 • L1 Referee • Life University • $85 |
| Jun 25 • L1 Coach • Atlanta • $125 |
| Jul 23 • L1 Coach • Atlanta • $125 |
| Jul 23-24 • L2 Coach (2-day) • Atlanta |
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🏉 New to Rugby?
FIND A YOUTH CLUB
Boys, girls, all ages. Every club below welcomes beginners. No experience needed.
Featured Club Listing
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Rebels Rugby Youth GA
Every kid belongs on the pitch.
U6–U18 coed • Greater Roswell, GA
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Touch Tuesdays — Starts May 12. Free drop-in, 7–8pm at Roswell Area Park. All ages, all abilities. Runs through July 4. Details at rebelsrugbyga.com.
ISO Coaches — 2026-27 Season. USA Rugby certification supported. Email info@rebelsrugbyga.com.
Summer Camp 2026 — Registration Open. Register here.
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Want your club featured here? Get in touch for special charter season rates while available.
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🎓 Heading to College?
FIND A COLLEGE TEAM
Georgia colleges with active rugby. Men's, women's, both. Most are club-level and welcome beginners. If your kid is heading to one of these schools, the rugby team is a way in.
| Life University • Marietta • Men D1, Women D1, Club • 2026 CRAA D1 XVs and Premier 7s national champions (women) liferunningeagles.com |
| University of Georgia • Athens • Men's club (SCRC), Women's club ugarugby.com |
| Georgia Tech • Atlanta • Men D2 (SCRC), Women's |
| Kennesaw State • Kennesaw • Men's, Women's |
| University of North Georgia • Dahlonega • Men's Nighthawks, Women's |
| Georgia College & State University • Milledgeville • Men's Bobcats, Women's |
| Valdosta State • Valdosta • Men's club |
| Georgia Southern University • Statesboro • Women's club active |
| Morehouse College • Atlanta • HBCU men's club |
| A college we missed? Tip the Radar → |
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🏉 Still Playing After 18?
FIND AN ADULT CLUB
Men's and women's clubs across the state. Whether you played in college, played as a kid, or never touched a ball, there's a squad for you.
| Atlanta Old White RFC • Atlanta • Men D2/D3, Women, 7s • Mon & Wed 7-9pm at Hurt Road Park, Austell atlantarugby.com |
| Atlanta Harlequins Women's RFC • Atlanta • Women's D1 • Only D1 women's team in the Southeast |
| Atlanta Renegades RFC • Atlanta • Men's |
| Gwinnett Lions RFC • Lilburn • Men, Women |
| Exiles RFC • Alpharetta • Senior men's |
| Atlanta Bucks RFC • Atlanta • Men's inclusive club |
| High Country RFC • North Georgia • Men's D3, Women |
| Savannah Shamrocks RFC • Savannah • Men's, Women's • Back-to-back GRU D3 champs |
| Macon Love RFC • Macon • GRU member |
| Atlanta Touch Rugby • Piedmont Park • Weekly all-welcome touch @atltouchrugby |
| Full GRU member club list: georgiarugby.org/clubs |
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First TRY Discount
PUT YOUR CLUB ON THE RADAR
A standout card all your own. Logo, website, schedule link, socials. In front of every rugby family in Georgia, every Tuesday.
$100 through Dec 31, 2026. First come, first served.
Claim Your Spot →
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📅 Mark Your Calendars
DATES THAT MATTER
| May 5 (TODAY) • NAI 7s Registration Closes • nai7s.com |
| May 12 • Rebels Touch Tuesdays Begin • Weekly non-contact, all ages, free |
| May 15, 4 PM CT • Life U Women vs Northern Virginia • NCR Women's Club D1 semifinal, Chicago Nationals |
| May 16, 2 PM CT • Atlanta Old White vs Kansas City • Men's Club D2 semifinal, Chicago Nationals |
| May 17, 12 + 1 PM CT • MD2 Final + WD1 Final • Chicago Nationals |
| May 21-23 • Boys HS Nationals • Elkhart, IN |
| May 23 • L1 Ref Course • Life University |
| May 26 • Exiles Summer Touch (ages 5-14) Opens • Innovation Academy, Alpharetta |
| May 30 • Peach Pitch 7s • Lithonia, GA |
| Jun 4-6 • NAI 7s • Salt Lake City |
| Jun 13 • Hotlanta YOUTH 7s (inaugural) • 1035 Fairburn Rd SW, Atlanta |
| Jun 13 • Rudy Scholz Award Gala • Seattle (Logan Ballinger, Life U, finalist) |
| Jun 25 • L1 Coach Course • Atlanta |
| Jul 23 • L1 Coach Course • Atlanta |
| Jul 23-24 • L2 Coach Course • Atlanta |
| Jul 25 • Hotlanta 7s • Atlanta |
| Dec 7-8 • Greer Christmas 7s • Greer, SC (HS) |
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One More Thing
Don't miss next Tuesday's issue
Free. Every Tuesday evening. Every club, every level, every age across Georgia.
SUBSCRIBE →
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GOT A TIP? HOSTING AN EVENT?
Send us your events, corrections, news, and tips. Tournament results, club updates, coaching announcements, alumni news. If it's rugby in Georgia, we want to hear it.
Email the Radar →
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