Roman Legere said he learned a lot of important lessons competing for the Belmont High School rugby team and listed numerous themes in succession.
Champions do a little extra. Leave the jersey in a better place. Be a gentleman on and off the field. Sweep the sheds. The list goes on and on, but the lessons resonated both then and now.
“Belmont definitely created such a huge foundation to bring to other clubs,” Legere said.
Belmont High School Class of 2022, Legere and 2025 graduates James McGovern and Colin Green used their rugby foundation born in Belmont to help the University of Vermont capture the National Collegiate Rugby Division II National Championship in mid-December.
The Catamounts capped an undefeated season with a 71-5 trouncing of the University of Chicago at SaberCats Stadium in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1970, the team competes in the North Atlantic Rugby Conference under the larger National Collegiate Rugby governing body. Division II totals more than 100 teams across all of its conferences.
“It’s definitely a huge deal,” Legere said.
Legere was a member of Belmont’s 2022 state title team but did not play due to injury. McGovern and Green didn’t play much on the 2022 Marauders championship team either, but played key roles on the 2023 state title squad.
A 6-foot-2, 215-pound senior, Legere is in the eight-man position. Legere will graduate in May with a degree in business administration and a concentration in finance. He previously served as the rugby club’s president and treasurer and played in the New England Free Jacks Academy system. Legere’s next step is to get his master’s at Nichols College in Dudley. He’ll also play rugby there.
Legere didn’t go to UVM intending on playing rugby, but joined soon after enrolling and learning about classmate and Belmont native Erik Rosenmeier’s positive experience. Rosenmeier took the fall season off due to numerous other commitments and might come back for the spring season..
Green, a 5-foot-11,185-pound freshman fullback, is a biology major. McGovern is a 5-foot-9, 175-pound freshman scrum-half. The business administration major chose Vermont based on the school, not rugby, but a conversation with McGovern while working together as counselors at the Belmont Day School camp two summers ago piqued his interest.
“It definitely drew me in a lot more,” McGovern said. “The team culture seemed awesome and something I wanted to be part of.”
The team practiced at 6:45 a.m. in the fall. Unlike UVM’s NCAA Division I sports, none of the rugby players receive scholarships for their play. It’s all about passion.
“There’s no real incentive to play unless you love the game and the guys you’re playing with, that’s what brings the group so much closer together,” McGovern said. “It just made it more special that we don’t get the benefits of the NCAA sport.”
