Mike Te'o

Last updated
Mike Te'o
Full nameMichael Paseka Te'o
Date of birth (1993-07-23) July 23, 1993 (age 31)
Place of birth Long Beach, California, U.S.
Height5 ft 8 in (173 cm)
Weight205 lb (93 kg)
School Long Beach Polytechnic High School
Rugby union career
Position(s) Wing, Fullback
Current team San Diego Legion
Senior career
YearsTeamApps(Points)
2016 San Diego Breakers 10 (30)
2018–2020 San Diego Legion 15 (40)
2020 London Scottish 0 (0)
2021–2022 Utah Warriors 23 (67)
2023– San Diego Legion 18 (30)
Correct as of 7 August 2023 [1]
International career
YearsTeamApps(Points)
2012–2013 United States U20 6 (15)
2016– United States 30 (80)
2016 USA Selects 3 (5)
Correct as of 10 July 2021
National sevens team
YearsTeamComps
2012–2017 United States 11
Correct as of 21 May 2017

Michael Paseka Te'o (born July 23, 1993) is an American professional rugby player who plays for the San Diego Legion of Major League Rugby (MLR). He also represents the America as a member of the United States national rugby union team.

Contents

He previously played for London Scottish in the RFU Championship England's second tier competition.

Te'o debuted for the U.S. at the 2016 Americas Rugby Championship, playing mostly at scrum-half, but also at fullback. [2]

Early career

As a youth, Te'o grew up in Long Beach, California. He played American football for the Long Beach Polytechnic football team in addition to rugby.

Te'o was a member of the United States national under-20 rugby union team that won the 2012 IRB Junior World Rugby Trophy.

Professional rugby career

Te'o has also played for the United States national rugby sevens team, debuting at the 2012 Gold Coast Sevens during the 2012-13 World Rugby Sevens Series. Te'o was later named as a non-traveling reserve for the U.S. sevens squad for the 2014 Australia Sevens. [3] Te'o played for the U.S. sevens team in the 2015 Pan American games. [4]

Before signing with the San Diego Breakers in the short-lived PRO Rugby, Te'o played for Belmont Shore in Long Beach, California in both 15s and sevens. With Belmont Shore he won the 2012 15s National Championship, the Club 7's National Championship, and was named 7's tournament MVP. [5] He has also played with the Taranaki Development program in New Zealand. [6]

Te’o signed with London Scottish ahead of the 2020–21 season, but never played a match as the season was suspended due to the pandemic. [7] [8] The Utah Warriors signed USA Mike Te’o for the 2021 Major League Rugby season. [9] Te'o was traded back to the San Diego Legion in September 2022 for the 2023 Major League Rugby season. [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mystic River Rugby Club</span> Rugby team

The Mystic River Rugby Club, sometimes called Boston Mystic, is a New England Rugby Football Union (NERFU) club, founded in 1974, located in Malden, Massachusetts, and Melrose, Massachusetts, who field teams in Division 1 American Rugby Premiership and Division 2 Rugby Union in the United States and are the current 2018 USA Rugby D1 National Champions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rugby union in the United States</span>

Rugby union in the United States is played at youth, high school, college, amateur, professional, and international levels and governed by USA Rugby. There were over 125,000 players registered with USA Rugby as of 2016. Over 2,500 rugby union clubs exist around the country, including those who are part of college rugby. Professional club competition has existed as Major League Rugby (MLR) since 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New York Athletic Club RFC</span> Rugby team

The New York Athletic Club Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team based in New York City that is affiliated with the New York Athletic Club.

Michael John "Mike" Friday has been the head coach of the United States national rugby sevens team since summer 2014. Friday succeeded the previous coach, Matt Hawkins, following the 2013–14 World Series. On 30 September 2024 USA Rugby announced that Friday would be replaced by Simon Amor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belmont Shore RFC</span> American rugby union team

Belmont Shore Rugby Club is an American rugby union team named after the Belmont Shore neighborhood of Long Beach, California, which has a tradition of amateur rugby.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Denver Barbarians RFC</span> Rugby union team based in Colorado, US

The Denver Barbarians Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team based in Denver, Colorado. The Denver Barbarians have won 4 national championships dating back to their first DI title in 1990. The club's second title came in 1999, during the height of the Rugby Super League, defeating Belmont Shore RFC 22-18. The Barbarians third title came in the 2018 DII National Championship, defeating the Detroit Tradesmen in an all-time thriller at Infinity Park, 39-38. The Barbarians added a fourth title with a 49-34 victory over a strong Boise United side in the 2023 DII National Championship in St Charles, Missouri.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kansas City Blues (rugby union)</span> Rugby team in Kansas, USA

The Kansas City Blues compete in the USA Rugby Division 1, the highest amateur level. They also field a Division 2 team that offers new and inexperienced players the opportunity to learn the game and advance to Division 1. During the summer, the Blues also feature one of the country’s most successful 7s programs. The Blues have been prominent regionally and nationally since their 1966 inception. They have a long history of success, with many tournament and league championships, including several National Championship and Final Four appearances. The club has produced many USA National Team players in both 15s and 7s, along with hosting dozens of National Team players from other countries.

The Southern California Rugby Football Union (SCRFU) is the Geographical Union (GU) governing body within USA Rugby that governs adult rugby union teams in Southern California, the Las Vegas metropolitan area, Arizona, and New Mexico. The SCRFU includes numerous men's and women's, leagues representing all levels of competitive play. College rugby is run by the college conferences and Youth Rugby is governed by Southern California Youth Rugby (SCYR). During the busiest part of the 15s seasons, southern California will have over 80 matches in a weekend. The current board of SCRFU is Geno Mazza (president), Patrick Rashidian, Kevin Holmquist (treasurer) and Bradley Davidson (secretary).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Diego Toreros</span> USDs intercollegiate sports teams

The San Diego Toreros are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of San Diego (USD). The Toreros compete in NCAA Division I (FCS) as a member of the West Coast Conference (WCC).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt Hawkins (rugby union)</span> Rugby player

Matthew Hawkins is a South African born, former American rugby union player and former coach of the United States sevens team.

Tommy Smith is a former rugby union player who represented the United States in 15s and 7s rugby before becoming the coach of the US sevens team in 1999. Smith played, captained, and coached the US National team and has been a member of the U.S. Rugby Hall of Fame since his 2017 induction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Palefau</span> Rugby player

Mike Palefau is an American rugby union player who plays center in 7s and wing in 15s. Palefau currently plays for the Utah Warriors having moved mid season from the Seattle Seawolves.

Alexander Magleby is the CEO of the professional rugby union team, The New England Free Jacks. He is a former professional rugby union coach, and former United States national team player and captain.

The USA Rugby Club 7s National Championship is the top annual American rugby sevens competition organized by USA Rugby. It involves the best sixteen men's and women's clubs in the United States.

Nate Augspurger is an American rugby union player from Minneapolis, Minnesota who plays scrum-half for the Chicago Hounds of Major League Rugby (MLR).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Diego Legion</span> Major League Rugby team in San Diego, California

The San Diego Legion are an American professional rugby union team based in San Diego, California, that competes in Major League Rugby (MLR). The team plays its home games at Torero Stadium. The Legion began play in the league's inaugural 2018 season.

Ryan Matyas is an American rugby union player who plays as a wing for the San Diego Legion of Major League Rugby (MLR) and for the United States national rugby union team.

Dylan Audsley is an American rugby union player who plays center and fullback for the San Diego Legion in Major League Rugby (MLR) and the United States men's national team.

Nicklas Swain Boyer is an American rugby union player who plays as a scrum-half for the San Diego Legion of Major League Rugby (MLR) and the United States men's national team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Diego State Aztecs rugby union</span> College rugby union club team

San Diego State Aztecs Rugby Club is the rugby union club that represents San Diego State University (SDSU). The men's team competes in Division 1-A in the California Conference and the women's team competes in Division II in the Pacific Desert Conference. The team plays its home games at ENS 700 Field.

References

  1. "Mike TE'O, Full back". ITS Rugby. Retrieved 8 August 2023.
  2. "More Changes As Eagles Face Chile", This Is American Rugby, February 19, 2016.
  3. "Hughes Leads Eagles 7s to Gold Coast", Goff Rugby Report, September 27, 2014.
  4. "Eagles Roster set for Pan Am Games", Rugby Today, Brett Anker, July 2, 2015.
  5. "BELMONT SHORE REPEATS 7s TITLE", USA Rugby, Jarrod Beckstrom, August 5, 2012.
  6. "20 Domestic Players to Benefit from PRO Rugby", Americas Rugby News, November 12, 2015.
  7. "Mike Te'o's season ends at London Scottish before it starts". therugbypaper. Retrieved 31 March 2020.
  8. "Mike Te'o joins London Scottish". London Scottish Rugby. 2020-03-12. Retrieved 2020-06-18.
  9. "Utah Warriors Signs Mike Te'o". djcoilrugby. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
  10. "Mikey Te'o Returns to San Diego in Utah Trade". Americas Rugby News. Retrieved September 14, 2022.