Athletics have always been a big part of senior Garrett Kass’s busy life. He is a double major in Sports Medicine and Mathematics. In addition, he leads the Pepperdine Rugby team to victories as the president of the team.
More impressively, Kass did not start playing rugby until his junior year at Pepperdine. He was able to quickly gain the necessary skills to become the President.
According to Kass, the main reason why he loves rugby is that “you get to run around with your friends, you get to tackle people.”
“It is a fun game, that includes a lot of strategy,” Kass said. “It is a lot more packed than football because it doesn’t stop. You play for 40 minutes in one half and then another 40 minutes. There are no downs. It is a game on a go.”
Kass recalls that sports have always come natural to him.
“I was always the athletic one and my brother was more into the creative stuff,” Kass said. “Sports have always been my thing.”
Kass’s athletic background consists primarily of baseball, the sport that he played for 15 years. He says his gym friends sparked his passion for rugby when they once “asked him to try out.” What happened next was that Kass listened to his friends and “fell in love with the game.”
The rugby club conducts elections at the end of every year in which they pick the leader of the group. Kass’s personal qualities, hard work and physical abilities were enough to get him nominated as one of the candidates, and eventually elected.
Even though it requires an extra time commitment, Kass says he likes the added responsibility.
“I enjoy running the club and organizing everything together,” Kass said.
This season hasn’t exactly been picture perfect, but Kass hasn’t given up on his team.
“Our season has been very rough,” Kass said. “We are not doing as well as we were in the past, primarily because of the injuries and some set backs. Last year we finished top eighth in the nation. Hopefully we are going to get our stuff together and get back to the position where we were before.”
The team was knocked out of this year’s playoffs. As a result, they are determined to begin training themselves in hopes of better future performances.
“We are planning on staying healthy, picking a few wins and enjoying the rest of the [post] season,” Kass said.
Kass’s drive and dedication runs in the family as he mentioned his father as his greatest inspiration.
“[My father] didn’t have much when he was growing up and he managed to get where he is today,” Kass said. “His hard work is what inspires me the most.”
Kass has high aspirations for his future and is determined to get into graduate school for biomedical engineering. Then he plans to become a professional in the field. He also hopes to maintain his athletic career.
“I will definitely be involved in sports, but I am not sure about rugby,” Kass said. “It depends on my physical form, and where I go to grad school, but I am planning on playing it on the side of my studies.”
With a packed schedule and an even busier future ahead of him, Kass explains why he places such high expectations on himself:
“I have been so blessed with what I have been given in life. It inspires me not to waste it. I believe that the more you have been given, the more you are expected to be. I feel like a lot has been expected of me since I have been given so much.”
