Jon Garbin Presents: Man of the Match Insider
This Week’s Guest: John Sullivan
After a disheartening loss to Binghamton, the Bonnies looked for a turnaround against the unbeaten Army Black Knights. Although the match ultimately resulted in a 15-15 draw, one surprising player stood out among the rest to take home the coveted Man of the Match; John Sullivan
(Photo on left): Sullivan bulls his way through the Army defense in the first half.
A sophomore accounting major out of Orchard Park, Sullivan stepped onto the scene at fullback with under a week of experience at the position. Following tours at 8-man and center, Sullivan was moved to fullback to provide speed and especially size to a back line that, while talented, lacked a one-cut runner to slice through defenses. John Sullivan did just that in the second half when he slid through the middle of the Army defense 35-meters from the try zone and avoided three more would-be tackles on the way to his first score of the season.
Sullivan was initially attracted to St. Bonaventure because of the excellent business school as well as the rugby team. Popular amongst the team, Sullivan can often be seen by the side of his best friend and high school classmate Evan Meister, as well as sporting particularly powerful bifocals. In his spare time, Sullivan enjoys partaking in cheeseburgers, catching up on his favorite shows on Netflix such as Doctor Who and Supernatural, as well as watching rugby on the TV or the Internet.
(Photo on Right): Teammates celebrate Sullivan’s second half try against Army.
Sullivan was humbled when he heard about his honors. “Winning the Man of the Match meant a ton to me, especially after coming off of our first loss of the season to Binghamton which our whole team and our coaches were disappointed about,” said Sullivan. “It was also awesome because I've played a lot of different positions, but this was my first time playing fullback and it was a lot of fun.”
In an effort to keep his momentum going forward, Sullivan plans to take each match one at a time and to continue to take advantage of his opportunities as they come. With six matches remaining, the Bonnies hope Sullivan continues to play as the tackle-breaking, try-scoring fullback he proved to be this week.