David Katz, who plays for the New York Rugby Club and is also a New York State trooper, rescued a man trying to jump off the Tappan Zee Bridge Tuesday, November 20, 2012.

Katz, who has been a trooper for 13 years, told the Westchester Journal News that his rugby skills came into play as the delusional man tried to jump off the bridge.

"I'm a rugby player, so I basically just tackled him as if I was playing rugby," said Katz. "I think he was caught off guard."

Reports say the man was in a delusional state and thought he was being chased by the FBI and CIA.

Katz, 39, was called in as backup on the incident, and when he arrived the man, who weighed about 240 pounds, say reports, was straddling the 6-foot tall railing on the side of the bridge. After he got his second leg over, Katz charged.

"I had to make the decision at that point to take action, as he was pretty intent on going over," the trooper said. "I didn't really want him to see me coming. So I ran toward him, jumped up to the top of the guardrail and tackled him. Then we both went down to the ground."

The would-be jumper told Katz he was sorry; Katz just told the man he was not there to hurt him.

Katz has pulled several jumpers from the water in his career, some alive, some not. This is the first time he has been able to stop a jumper on the bridge.

"It's a positive experience," he said. "But I was just fulfilling my duties as a state trooper.

(Source, Westchester Journal News)

MINNETONKA, Minn.  -  Rugby Athletic has officially announced the hire of Sara Wright as its Director of Communication and Development.

Prior to her appointment, Wright had served as the Community Relations Coordinator for Clay County, Mo., the Public Information Officer for the City of Leavenworth, Kan., Director of Communications and Public Relations for USA Rugby and Director of Communications and Media Relations for USA Shooting.

Wright will oversee communications for Rugby Athletic, managing content for the company’s website, blog and social media pages, as well as working as the marketing and development director, handling design, promotions and various partnerships for the company moving forward.

Wright has a B.A. in Mass Communications from Winona State University (Minn.) and has been playing rugby for more than 10 years, starting as a freshman at WSU.

Wright, along with her husband and their one-year-old daughter, will be relocating from Kansas City, Mo., to the Twin Cities area this fall. Over the past decade, both Sara and her husband, Mike, have enjoyed playing and serving various administrative roles for local rugby clubs near where they’ve lived.

“This is a great opportunity to reemerge myself, professionally, in a sport I love,” Wright says. “Rugby Athletic has become a leader among domestic rugby apparel companies. They have all the pieces in place for a very bright future and I am passionate about the work they have been doing for clubs on and off the field. I’m excited to get started and lend my expertise as they continue to make their mark on the rugby community.”

Former Gonzaga High School rugby star and standout Stanford safety Johnson Bademosi is making a name for himself as a special teams stud with the Cleveland Browns. The rookie signed with Cleveland after being undrafted this spring. Bademosi has recorded 10 tackles for the Browns this season. Here's a more thorough report on Bademosi's rookie campaign.

Are European clubs blackmailing players, and specifically Pacific Islander players, into not playing for their country? It's an interesting question, and one coach says it happens.

This article mentions former SFGG star Samu Manoa's having not played for the Eagles in the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Manoa is not playing for the Eagles during the November tour, either. Full article here.