The nominations for the University of Tennessee Rugby Captain’s Circle Class of 2023 are now open on the Volunteer Rugby Foundation website. www.volunteerrugby.com/nomination

Nominations will remain open until August 12th at midnight.

Nominees will be announced during the 2022 UT Old Boys Weekend on August 26th – 28th. The Class of 2023 will be inducted at the 2023 Volunteer Rugby Gala and Awards Banquet in April.

To recap the nomination process for the Captain’s Circle:

1. Nominees must have finished their playing careers at least five years prior to nomination;
2. Factors to consider in nominating someone to the Captain’s Circle include:
   1. on-field performance while at UT and afterwards;
   2. commitment to UT Rugby in an administrative capacity while at UT and afterwards;
   3. support of UT Rugby after finishing career; and (d) involvement in their local community reflecting the values of UT Rugby.
3. Nominations for the Captain’s Circle remain open for five years; if a nominee is not voted in during that time, he will need to be nominated again during the 6th year from the original nomination.**
   
   If you wish to support an existing nominee – please submit a nomination. The amount of support for these existing nominees one of the best ways for the Captain’s Circle Committee to assess their nominations.

**As the Captain’s Circle continues to evolve…we will continue to make what we believe are beneficial changes to the process to ensure fairness for all. This 5-year nomination window is new and an attempt to do that.

Currently open nominations for the second year are:
Bill Peterson
Chris Finch
Art Reynolds
Jason Barnes
Brett Jones
Benji Goff

PLEASE NOTE: when placing a nomination, please include as much information about your nominee as possible. Make sure to add any relevant playing accomplishments / accolades / awards you are aware of…but also give detailed information about the nominee as to how they made their team / teammates better, how they led on- and off-the-field, and how they have continued to contribute to UT Rugby and their own communities at large. The Captain’s Circle Committee relies on this detailed information to make the best choices possible during the voting process.

All nominations are considered by the Captain’s Circle Committee, and then a final list is compiled largely based on the quality of nomination information provided by the nominator. When the final list is compiled, the Committee votes on each of the finalists, and those who receive the top 75% of the vote are then inducted into the Captain’s Circle.

So, get to nominating! And, to repeat: if you want to echo your support for one of the currently-nominated players above, make sure to send in your nomination with detailed reasons for why they should be selected in the Class of 2023. Remember – nominations run through August 12th at midnight.