The BG rugby team will be in action again this weekend, as it host the returning Western Michigan Broncos.

The Falcons are looking to send a strong message to the Broncos this weekend. The two teams faced each other this past weekend in the Sevens Tournament, and BG came away with the win 21-5.

This regular season opening weekend will start a new universe in college rugby. It will be a different atmosphere because of the conference realignment that took place this past summer.

The Broncos bring in a squad coached by Mark Allen, and will be looking for revenge and its first win of the regular season.

Western Michigan has never won against the Falcons since it started playing in 1991, but according to Director of Rugby and Former Head Coach, Roger Mazzarella, this game could be its best shot at taking the victory.

“The Broncos have a combination of a couple shifty backs intermixed with a couple of bruisers,” Mazzarella said. “We are still sorting out the two most important positions in the backfield, scrum half and fly half.”

Senior Mike Brown feels like this will set the pace for the rest of the season.

“This is our first Mid-American Conference game, and we are trying to use this game as a stepping stone for the rest of the season,” Brown said. “We expect a big result on Saturday.”

Western Michigan has worked hard all summer preparing for this new alignment schedule. They have been taking it seriously and have high expectations for this season.

The Falcons are confident going into Saturday, but they know what they have to do to win this game. The team is already off to a good start, as they hold a 8-2-1 record.

The national rankings were made public this week, and BG holds the No. 20 slot, according to Rugby Magazine.

“It was disappointed to see us at 20,” Mazzarella said. “I feel as the season goes on, you will see us climb the rankings.”

The anticipated match-up will take place at College Park at 1 p.m.