Project Mercury: Forging the Eagles’ Path to 2031 with Core Values and Experienced Leadership

In my last installment of In Touch I spoke of Scott Lawrence’s Plan/Vision for the Eagles to make a RWC Quarter Final: Moonshot 2031.  It is worth repeating that Scott is the first Eagle’s HC to be transparent about a goal and his path to achieving it.  Again, he has always been a strategic thinker and planner.  Moonshot is no different.  It is broken into three distinct missions: Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo.  He has purposely tapped into the language of JFK’s very bold plan for the USA to put a man on the moon because this plan is equally bold and Project Mercury has already launched.

The first phase of the plan, Project Mercury, has four core components that Scott calls “Big Plays”: Right Tools, Right Values, Right People, Right Vision.  Each plays their own strategic role in building towards 2031.  The way I see it, Right Values and Right People are components that play heavily into building a roster to compete in 2031.  But, with RWC 2031 8 years away the roster in Project Mercury is about building the proper culture for that RWC campaign, not building the roster itself.  Thus, with 5 tests and one HP match in this phase, his core squad (people) was purpose built to establish the values that he wants in an Eagle.

Project Mercury was comprised of 4 full international “Caps” and a High Performance (HP) match:

• Romania 8/5/23
• Portugal 8/12/23
• Georgia 8/19/23
• Stade Toulouse (Non-Capped) 9/17/23
• Brazil 11/11/23
• Spain 11/18/23

Fans of the Eagles need to put selections for these matches into context of the purpose of Project Mercury.  Scott was laser focused on bringing in players to camp that embodied what it meant to be an Eagle.  In fact, he met with established Eagles and Eagle legends as a way to shape this image and define the values of an Eagle.  For him and this core leadership group, the age of a player did not matter.  He wanted players that embodied this image and set of values.  He did not need the best players.  He needed the right players. Additionally, he wanted to connect to the core pathway that the majority of the players would follow to be on the team… Major League Rugby.  As such, Scott not only attended as many matches as he could in 2023, but encouraged those that were American qualified to play for a domestic team in the MLR in 2024.  I don’t think that this was a hard and fast rule.  But, clearly the message was: If you don’t have a significantly better option, we would like to see you play domestically.  The only players selected in the 6 matches above who did not play in the MLR the next season (2024) were Ruben de Haas and David Aniu’u.  Paddy Ryan (Legion), Thomas Boni (Old Glory), Greg Peterson (Legion), Nick McCarty (Hounds), Vili Helu (Legion), and Joe Taufete’e (Sabercats) had all been playing abroad up  until the 2024 Season.  At which point, they joined the MLR team that has been identified.

There are plenty of philosophical hot takes on what direction Scott should have taken post RWC 2023 failure.  My aim here is not to critique his vision, it is simply to use the patterns up to this point to illuminate the path for his future selections in Projects Gemini and Apollo.

There are several labels I would like to use for my analysis:

• Notable Veterans – Players with 25 or more caps… Legends of the game.
• Notable New Caps – Players around 30 years old, but on debut during Mercury.
• Notable Young Caps – Players under the age of 25 earning their first cap in Project Mercury.  They are likely part of the 2027 and potentially 2031 player pools.
• Bubble Caps – Players are 25-30 years old that have under 15 caps, some may find their way into the 2027 Squad. 

In this first phase of Moonshot 2031, the most interesting and important group is the Notable New Caps.  Combined with the Veteran Caps, the New Caps were key selections in Project Mercury.  It is my assertion that while neither group is likely to make it to 2027, Scott needed them to establish and embody the Right Values – Love, Work, Energy. These values are the essence of what it means to wear the jersey.

When the 2023 training squad was announced, I asked myself:  Given the stakes of 2027, and by extension 2031, why would Scott blood new caps that are around 30 years old or older?  After I examined the list, the answer became clear.  This group is the embodiment of Right Values.  They will help develop the Young Caps to pick up the mantle at critical positions. I think the world of several guys that fit into this group: Luke White (32), Chris Mattina (31), Jake Turnbull (31), and Nick McCarthy (29).  There are other players in this group. But, I know each of those listed and they are all players that are great people in every sense.  More importantly though, they are players that LOVE the game.  They WORK hard.  And, they always show tremendous ENERGY every time they take to the pitch.  Who better do we want to establish the Eagle culture than guys like this?  While I would love for each to put the jersey on for another decade, the realities of their age work against them.

The Veteran Caps are another group that embody the Right Values.  I struggle to find Eagles in our 112 year history that standout more than Augspurger, Brakeley, Dolan, Mullen, Peterson, and Taufete’e.  They were the right leadership group to serve as model Eagles for the next generation during Project Mercury.  Again, I absolutely hate to see them go; but we know it is inevitable.  Yet, I find peace of mind knowing that their legacy will be felt in 2031.  We should expect to see this group phased out at various points in Project Gemini.  But, they are owed a Paul Emerick Salute for all they have done for the jersey.  It is in a better place because of them.

Both Veteran Caps and Notable New caps add value to this phase of Moonshot due to their rugby experience.  Young players coming into the squad need to experience success and a winning culture. Playing host to the world in 2031 has placed a lot of pressure on Scott and his staff.  There is probably not much of an appetite for the Eagles to experience a lot of losses in the run up to 2031. World Rugby, USA Rugby, and rugby fans will be watching closely. Thus, throughout Moonshot Scott must successfully strike a balance.  He must provide an opportunity for young players to accumulate international experiences all the while playing winning rugby.  Moonshot 2031 depends on it.

Rob Hammerschmidt "The Hammer" Dean of Students

I have always had a passion for sports having played football and wrestled at an early age. I did not find egg shaped ball until a young adult. I have been hooked ever since. After my playing days were over I was always searching for an outlet to connect with the game, not too long after I became a youth coach for my son’s team. I never thought that I would start a podcast or be involved in the professional game. The Rugby Rant started as a fun outlet but has become a labor of love. It has allowed me follow the game with some great mates… whom I never would have met without it. I also have the tremendous honor of working as the Chicago Hounds sideline reporter. 8 games a season I get to walk on the grass at Dawg Town and provide folks at home with a glimpse of what it is like to be there beside me.

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