Wendy 
We will be celebrating the Hall of Fame, a year-long celebration of individuals whose lives or careers are inextricably woven into the fabric of our history on Saturday, August 26.
Nominations are being accepted and should be submitted using the instructions found here.
We’re ecstatic to announce that Olympian and Houston SaberCat star Danny Barrett will be the guest speaker at this year’s banquet. With a little under two weeks until we celebrate our 2022 nominees, Distinguished Service Awards and the 2001 Woodlands DII National Champions, Danny’s addition couldn’t come at a better time.
Grab your tickets and we’ll see you there!
A legendary women’s national team player, a former Texas Rugby Union president, and a Dallas Harlequins stalwart comprise the TRU Hall of Fame Class of 2022 that will be inducted at the Union’s annual banquet in Houston, August 27.
Meredith Ottens of the Austin Valkyries earned 30 caps and represented her country at three World Cups. She captained both the Western and Midwest USA All Star teams, and captained the Austin Valkyries for seven years after having previously done so for her club in Minnesota. She served Austin as a coach, including head coach, for a decade. She was named national Forward Of The Year by Goff on Rugby in 2003, and was named tighthead prop of the decade by Rugby Magazine for the 2000s. Other career highlights include coaching a high school girls team, and conducting clinics at all age levels across the country.
Gerry Acuna is one of five excellent rugby playing brothers, but he earned his HOF chops as President of the Texas Rugby Union, leading it through four challenging years while also serving on the Board of the Western USA Rugby Union. He started with Corpus Christi RFC while still in HS and became a leader of the Austin Huns before and after attending UT. Gerry is an original member of the Huns Hall of Fame and led the effort to host the 1996 USA Rugby National D-I and D-II National Championships, the first in Texas.
Besides having been an excellent player, Keith Engelbrecht is well regarded as a founder of the USA Super League, the first true cross country elite club competition that was the forerunner of the professional leagues that followed. He was a fixture on the Dallas Harlequins First XV for a decade, often serving as the game day captain during a run that saw the club win ten TRU Championships. Keith also was also a TRU All Star player, winning six Western USA titles. Administratively, he served as President of the Quins, TRU Treasurer, and as a Board Member of the USA Rugby Foundation. He is the brother of Michael Engelbrecht, a 2019 Hall of Fame inductee.
The awards dinner will also recognize The Woodlands RFC 2001 National D-II Championship side as this year’s Honor Team. An exciting new addition to the program will be the presentation of the first ever Hall of Fame Meritorious Service Awards in the Club, Collegiate and High School/Youth categories. The highlight of this portion of the program will be the naming of the inaugural recipient of the Alan Sharpley Memorial Award. Sharpley, a Texas rugby icon and a member of the first Hall of Fame Class in 2016, passed away in 2021.
The Hall of Fame Class of 2022 will be inducted at the TRU HOF and Awards Banquet on August 27 at the Doubletree-Greenway Hotel in Houston in conjunction with the annual TRU Summit conference.
Reserve your hotel room for the weekend and purchase banquet tickets here: https://www.texasrugbyunionhof.com/2022-hof-celebration/.
The hotel room block is available a first come, first reserve basis and bookings must be made by August 12.
Please also note that ticket sales will close August 22.
The annual Hall of Fame Banquet will take place this year in Houston, TX at the Hilton Hotel Houston – Greenway Plaza [MAP] on August 27. We will begin the evening with a social hour at 6:00PM, seating begins at 7:00PM and we will close the event at 11:00PM.
Guest Speaker
The guest speaker for the night is TBC.
Banquet Tickets
The TRU is excited to welcome everyone to the celebration and encourage you to get your tickets early! Tickets can be purchased online for $100 per person. Tickets are available until August 22.
Hotel Block
We have put together a block of rooms at a discounted rate, you must reserve by August 12.
If you have any questions or concerns about the Hall of Fame event, please contact HOFadmin@texasrugbyunion.com.
We will be celebrating the Hall of Fame, a year-long celebration of individuals whose lives or careers are inextricably woven into the fabric of our history on Saturday, August 27.
Nominations are being accepted and should be submitted using the instructions found here. Nominations are due by May 15.
Nominations for the Texas Rugby Hall of Fame Class of 2022 are now being accepted through May 19 29. Please fill out the nomination form and return as directed. Return the form only to the designated e-mail address. Do not send nominations to an individual.
Successful candidates will substantially meet some or all of the following criteria.
Note: Candidates for whom achievement can be shown in multiple criteria will have the best chance of election. Candidates who check only one or two boxes should have outstanding credentials in those particular areas.
This is a TEXAS Hall of Fame and it is important to understand that while many worthy candidates have been incomparable leaders — even legends with a single club — successful candidates will be those who have a record of achievement at the state and higher levels. Clubs are encouraged to form their own Hall of Fame — as many have – to make sure all those deserving of recognition are honored. Please note that multiple nominations (several people nominating the same candidate) will not be accepted. In the event dual nominations are received, we will either put the nominators in touch with each other so they can submit a single nomination, or the most complete submission will be sent to voters. Submitting multiple nominations will not enhance chances for election.
When drafting the nomination, it will be helpful if you address several questions so that voters will have a complete picture of the candidate. These include:
Have you included the name of clubs played for and years of service and offices held in the club(s)?
Have you listed offices held at the state and other levels, or special recognition given to your nominee by a state organization and other levels of rugby? This would include other awards and honors in addition to positions of leadership.
If you are nominating primarily based on playing credentials, have you included select sides he/she was selected to, or highlighted other playing honors at the state, regional or national level? Similarly, if you are nominating a coach, referee, trainer, supporter, etc., have you included particularly noteworthy contributions to Texas rugby or the sport overall at higher levels?
In general, have you demonstrated that your candidate has made a significant contribution to Texas rugby, not just a particular club, or that he/she has achieved prominence on a broader stage while representing Texas?
The narrative section or the nomination form is your chance to fully explain to the voters why your candidate should be elected and should be more than just a few sentences.
We urge everyone considering a nomination to review these two example nominations.
We are here to help. If you have any questions about the selection process or submitting a nomination, contact Paul Mabry. If you need guidance on what to include in your narrative, either he can help or arrange for a HOF representative to reach out to you with assistance.
Thanks for your participation.
The safety and wellbeing of all attendees is the TRU’s number one priority. Since the event will be hosting over 200 individuals who are elderly, possibly immunocompromised and children unable to be vaccinated, all attendees will be required to provide proof of full vaccination or a negative COVID test prior to the event.
Proof of full vaccination or a negative COVID test should be sent to admin@texasrugbyunion.com no later than noon on Friday, November 5. Please note that the negative COVID test must not be administered prior to Tuesday, November 2. Be mindful that receiving test results can take several days, we urge you to schedule an appointment for testing to save time and confirm test availability prior to our event.
Mark your calendars! After missing out on a 2020 event, the TRU is excited to announce the annual Hall of Fame Banquet. The TRU will induct the Classes of 2020 and 2021. The guest speaker for the night will be Jillion Potter, captain of the 2016 USA Women’s Olympic 7s team. The TRU is excited to welcome everyone to the celebration and encourage you to get your tickets early! Tickets can be purchased online for $75 per person or $650 per table. Tickets are available until Monday, October 25, 2021!
The banquet will be held at the Courtyard by Marriott Pflugerville Conference Center on Saturday, November 6th. We will begin the evening with a social hour at 6:00PM, seating begins at 7:00PM and we will close the event at 11:00PM. There is a discounted room block available until October 8th. Please reserve your room early.
If you have any questions or concerns about the Hall of Fame event, please contact HOFadmin@texasrugbyunion.com.