St. Thomas sophomore Kyle Johnson could be playing rugby for Yale University right now, but instead, he chose St. Thomas.
Yale’s environment wasn’t right for him, he said, and he felt St. Thomas could offer him a more fitting education — a feeling he still supports today.
Johnson started playing varsity rugby at Mound Westonka High School in just sixth grade, and he became a captain of the team his sophomore year of high school. He also played on elite and state rugby teams that allowed him to play in tournaments around the country — tournaments that recruiters from big-name universities go to watch.
“We’d be in Pennsylvania, Colorado and California in big tournaments around the nation,” Johnson said. “A lot of colleges and U.S. National Rugby sponsors will go out and watch the tournaments.”
Though Johnson received interest from different state colleges, one school’s interest in particular stood out: He received a letter from Yale University explaining the school was interested in him playing on their rugby team after high school.
After receiving the letter, Johnson reached out to the university and was soon having breakfast with the head and assistant coaches of Yale’s rugby team. After talking about the culture of Yale and the logistics of the rugby team with the coaches, Johnson toured the campus and rugby field.
It’s a chance most rugby student-athlete’s couldn’t say no to, but Johnson decided it wasn’t the opportunity for him.
“Anything rugby-related sounded good to me, but the school and the surrounding town was a big deterrent,” Johnson said. “I didn’t like the atmosphere of the school. I felt really out of place.”
Even Johnson’s grandfather attended Yale during World War II, but Johnson said after a high school career of high standards, he wasn’t looking for a full commitment to an Ivy League college and a Division I sport.
“It was a lot of pressure,” Johnson said. “I was always being put to a standard. I was directed toward just succeeding in every activity I did and getting as good of grades as I could, constantly.”
Johnson also wanted to stay within Minnesota for college, leading him to look into St. Thomas. St. Thomas appealed to Johnson because he would be able to play rugby and football in an academic atmosphere that he felt comfortable in. In hindsight, Johnson is happy with his college decision.
“In my opinion, it was the best place I could go to for my education within the state,” Johnson said. “It was a much better fit for me.”
Last year, Johnson was a fullback on the football team and played as an inside center for the spring rugby season. This year, he plays on the rugby team year-round – a team he has become very close to.
First-year student Noah Wingerd is playing rugby for the first time this year, but he has already grown to love the sport and the team. He said Johnson’s experience and passion for the game makes him a key factor on the team.
“Kyle is very passionate about the game, which carries onto the field a lot. He inspires others on the team to do well as well,” Wingerd said. “He really likes to go hard and give 110 percent pretty much every play.”
Johnson is thankful for the friends and opportunities St. Thomas has brought him. He plans to continue playing the sport he loves throughout the rest of his time at St. Thomas.
“It’s a great experience,” Johnson said. “There is no sport like it.”
Kassie Vivant can be reached at viva0001@stthomas.edu
This article is misleading as it implies that Johnson was offered admission to Yale, when in fact, there’s no such statement, only that Johnson was recruited by Yale (Ivy League recruiting is always contingent upon admissions, especially so for a club sport like rugby). It’s a nice feather for UST’s cap, but I’d wager Tommie Media has stretched the truth just a little here.
Lumen Veritatis: Perhaps the author of this article should have been more explicit. The student in question applied to many universities and the author could have detailed how each application fared. A chronology – broken down by month, day, or maybe even minute – would have been nice. As far as his application to Yale is concerned, I’ll forego the minutiae and just get to the point. He was accepted at Yale and could have played rugby as a club sport. He decided to matriculate and play rugby at St. Thomas instead.