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PROVO — The BYU rugby team is one match away from its fifth-straight national championship, and the fourth-straight Varsity Cup title.
But standing in the Cougars’ way is long-time nemesis Cal, whom BYU could tie for second-most consecutive national titles all-time with a win Saturday in the Penn Mutual Varsity Cup final at South Field.
“It’s always an honor and a privilege to play against the best,” said BYU coach David Smyth, whose team held off the Bears 30-27 at Rio Tinto Stadium in 2015. “We know it’s going to be a battle.”
BYU wouldn’t have it any other way.
“Those are the games I like to play in,” flanker Arawa Elkington said. “The games where I know I have to give my all, or else we may not walk away with a win.”
Saturday will mark the 10th time BYU and Cal have met in a national championship game. The series has become the premier rivalry in collegiate rugby.
“It’s the top two programs in the country,” BYU’s Latanoa Pikula said. “You know going in no one else should be there but those who have earned it.
“Luckily again, it’s been us and Cal.”
BYU broke through for its first national title in 2009, against the 25-time champion Golden Bears.
“Watching BYU actually win the national championship made me happy,” center Tua Laei said, “because I knew I was going to com there one day, play rugby, and hopefully play Cal in a championship.”
The game will be broadcast live on NBC Sports Network, a rare opportunity to showcase the best of college rugby on a national stage. The sport that still sits outside the mainstream, has been rapidly growing in popularity in the United States — and even faster in Utah.
“I always say we are examples on the field,” Elkington said. “If rugby is to continue to grow in the United States, it needs to be seen by the youth and played by the youth.”
The game is scheduled to kick off at 2 p.m. MT in Provo.
