September 18–20, 2026 · Loyola University Maryland
50
Years of Loyola Rugby
Fifty years ago, a group of Loyola men picked up a ball and started something that has shaped hundreds of lives. In September 2026 it came home — three days of golf, rugby, remembrance and brotherhood on Evergreen.
To everyone who travelled, played, gave, volunteered, or stood on the touchline at Lugano Field: thank you.
239
In the room at McGuire Hall
161
Alumni at the gala
120+
On the sideline Saturday
The photographs are up. Justin Chung shot the whole of Saturday — see the day in photographs. Send us yours and we will add them.
Five new members were inducted into the SLOB Rugby Hall of Fame on Saturday night at McGuire Hall — Derald Dudley, Greg Burkhardt, Charlie Eschmann, Jimmy Cahill, and Kyle Higgins. Only the third class in fifty years. Greg was inducted in memoriam, and his wife, Maria, accepted for him with a tribute to his memory that the room will not forget. Meet the Class of 2026.
The Programs
Both booklets from Saturday, in full — fifty years of club history in one, and a tribute to Loyola's first coach in the other.
Saturday, September 19
50th Anniversary Gala Program
The full 28-page program: the order of events, the Hall of Fame Class of 2026, fifty years of club history, every past president, and everyone whose giving made it possible.
Read the Gala Program (PDF)Saturday, September 19 · post-match
Loc Vetter Memorial Program
The program from the memorial to Dr. William Laughlin “Loc” Vetter, Loyola's first coach — his life, his years with the club, and the award that carries his name.
Read the Memorial Program (PDF)In Memoriam
Dr. William Laughlin “Loc” Vetter
May 19, 1950 – March 30, 2025
Loc served Loyola Rugby with distinction and was inducted into our Hall of Fame in recognition of the lasting mark he left on this program. On Saturday afternoon, after the match, the club gathered on Lugano Field to remember the man who took over in the fall of 1979 and coached Loyola rugby through 1983 — the program's first coach, and the name the MVP award has carried ever since.
Thank you to everyone who stood with his family that afternoon, and to every Loc Vetter MVP Award winner who came back to pay respects.
The Gala Programme
McGuire Hall worked through the programme in the brochure — the teams in, the welcome, two sessions of speakers, and fifty years to account for.
The Opening
Session One
Session Two
Presented by Rob Dickinson ’86
The Hall of Fame Plaque Presentations
The last item on the programme, and only the third class in fifty years.
The Day in Photographs
Saturday ran from an 8:30 AM kickoff to the last handshake at McGuire Hall. Justin Chung photographed all of it — 118 frames, in the order the day happened.
Tell us how we did
You Were There. What Did You Think?
After the 45th you told us what to fix, and this weekend was built on those answers. Same deal now — a few minutes of honesty shapes the next reunion and everything we do with the endowments.
Take the Feedback SurveyHere's to the Next Fifty
The weekend was the celebration. The endowments are the point — a scholarship fund, a coaching fund, and grandstands at Lugano Field, so that rugby at Loyola outlasts all of us.