Josh Whippy

Joshua Whippy (born October 30, 1990) is a rugby union player who plays for the Utah Warriors and the United States men's national team. Whippy previously played for the USA Selects.

Josh Whippy

Full name	Joshua Whippy
Date of birth	October 30, 1990
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight	220 lb (100 kg)
School	Church College of New Zealand
University	Brigham Young University
Rugby union career
Position(s) Wing Amateur team(s) Years Team Apps (Points) 2010 2017 United Rugby Club Utah Selects () Senior career Years Team Apps (Points) 2018–present Utah Warriors 0 0 Correct as of September 28, 2018 National team(s) Years Team Apps (Points) 2017 2017–present USA Selects United States 2 4 5 5 Correct as of September 28, 2018
College football career
BYU Cougars – No. 36
Position	Running back
Career history
College	Brigham Young University (2014)
Personal information
Height	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight	220 lb (100 kg)

Early life

Josh Whippy was born on October 30, 1990[1] and grew up in Fiji.[2] Whippy moved to New Zealand to attend Rangitoto College and Church College, where he played both basketball and rugby.[2] In 2010 he played for Utah's United Rugby Club,[2] scoring a try in United's under-19 national championship victory.[3] Whippy then attended Brigham Young University (BYU), where he began playing for the school's rugby team.[2] After an injury ended his freshman season of rugby early, Whippy spent two years as a Mormon missionary.[2] Upon returning to BYU for his sophomore year, Whippy joined the university's football team.[4][5] Whippy played as a running back and wore number 36 for the Cougars.[5] Whippy also continued to play rugby at BYU, winning multiple national championships.[2] He was also named to the USA Men's Collegiate All-Americans (MCAAs) team in 2014[6] and 2015[7] and received an Honorable Mention selection for the MCAAs in 2017.[8] Whippy has also played for the Utah Selects, winning two consecutive club 7s national championships in 2016 and 2017.[2][9]

Club career

Prior to the start of its inaugural 2018 season, it was announced that Whippy would join the roster for the Utah Warriors of Major League Rugby.[10] In the Warriors' final preseason exhibition against Alberta's Prairie Wolf Pack, Whippy suffered a compound fracture of his lower left leg[11][12] and missed the rest of the season.[13]

International career

USA Selects

In September 2017, it was announced that Whippy had been selected for the USA Selects roster for the 2017 Americas Pacific Challenge.[14] Daly made his debut with the USA Selects on October 11, 2017, starting at left wing and scoring a try, in the Selects' 49–36 victory over Uruguay.[15]

USA Eagles

In October 2017, it was announced that Whippy had been selected for the USA Eagles roster for their end-of-year tests.[16] However, Whippy did not make an appearance with the Eagles at that time.[10] Whippy made his debut with the Eagles on February 10, 2018, appearing as a substitute, in the Eagles' 29–10 victory over Canada in the 2018 Americas Rugby Championship (ARC).[17] Whippy scored his first try for the Eagles on March 3, 2018, appearing as a substitute, in the Eagles' 61–19 victory over Uruguay in the ARC.[18]

Personal life

Josh Whippy has a twin brother named Jared who also plays rugby.[10] The two have played together for United Rugby Club,[3] at BYU,[19] with the Utah Selects,[20] and for the Utah Warriors.[12] Josh got married in December of 2016 and had a daughter in January of 2018.

References

1. "Josh Whippy". USA Rugby. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
2. "Whippy, Joshua". Utah Warriors. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
3. Jewkes, Wade (May 23, 2010). "High school rugby: United tops Highland for rugby title". Deseret News. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
4. Drew, Jay (August 5, 2014). "BYU practice report: Bronco eases up a bit after Monday's marathon". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
5. Pyne, Brett (November 29, 2014). "BYU vs. Cal Notes" (PDF). BYUCougars.com. BYU Cougars. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
6. Wise, Chad (July 18, 2014). "Men's 2013-14 Collegiate All-Americans Named". USA Rugby. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
7. "USA Rugby Men's Collegiate All Americans Named". Goff Rugby Report. Goff Communications. July 31, 2015. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
8. Goff, Alex (July 22, 2017). "USA Rugby Names All Americans". Goff Rugby Report. Goff Communications. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
9. Anker, Brett (August 13, 2017). "Utah Selects Claim Second Consecutive Sevens Title". Rugby Today. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
10. "Josh Whippy signs for Utah Warriors". Americas Rugby News. December 16, 2017. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
11. "Utah's first win comes at a Cost". Americas Rugby News. April 21, 2018. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
12. Lloyd, Jared (April 21, 2018). "Ex-BYU rugby stars Josh and Jared Whippy go through highs and lows in Utah Warriors first exhibition win". Daily Herald. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
13. Donaldson, Amy (June 29, 2018). "Former Highland football player thought trying out for Utah's new rugby team sounded fun, now leads league in try scoring". Deseret News. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
14. Coil, Doug (September 20, 2017). "USA Rugby Selects Squad: Americas Pacific Challenge". djcoilrugby. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
15. "USA defeat Uruguay in back-and-forth thriller". Americas Rugby News. October 11, 2017. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
16. "Eagles named for November tests". Americas Rugby News. October 25, 2017. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
17. "Americas Rugby Championship - Sacramento, 10 February 2018, 15:00 local, 23:00 GMT". espn.co.uk. ESPN. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
18. "Americas Rugby Championship - Montevideo, 3 March 2018, 15:30 local, 18:30 GMT". espn.co.uk. ESPN. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
19. Goff, Alex (June 23, 2017). "Rugby Utah Names Strong Roster For Denver 7s". FloRugby. FloSports. Retrieved September 28, 2018.
20. Racule, William (June 23, 2017). "Rugby Utah Select 7s on the Hunt for Back-to-Back National Championships". Rugby Utah. Retrieved October 1, 2018.