Aric Gilliland begins his fifth season as the head man for the Men's and Women's Varsity Rugby teams. Gilliand has already led both Rugby programs to success, highlighted by the Women's three consecutive Lone Star Conference titles in 2023, 2024, and 2025. The Crimson Storm women also made their first program appearance in the Collegiate Rugby National Championship in 2024.
Gilliland is a 2002 graduate of Southern Nazarene University where he was a member of the Crimson Storm football team for three years while earning a human relations degree focused in communications and human science. After graduation, he played rugby for the Oklahoma City Crusaders XV's and OKC Blue Dolphins 7's.
He also served as a youth pastor for 12 years before accepting a teaching and coaching position at Yukon Public Schools in 2012. For six years, he taught U.S. History while being the rugby coach for the Millers.
Before stops at Putnam City Schools in 2018, Mustang Schools and Epic Virtual Charter Schools in 2019, Gilliland found his way back to SNU where he was an Assistant Football Coach, leading the running backs and receivers, in 2020 for one season.
In 2014, Gilliland founded Yukon High School Rugby Club (now known as F5 Rugby), where he's served as the Director of Rugby for the past seven years. In 2015, he was named the Vice President of Rugby Oklahoma in Tulsa, where he served on the chair competition committee before being elected President in 2020.
Gilliland is a native of Yukon where he lives with his wife Rheannon, and their seven children: Bayli, Ella, Hudson, Evie-Layne, Archie, Winnie, and Avonlea.
Interested rugby recruits are encouraged to reach out to coach Gilliland at 405-615-3220, by email at agilliland@mail.snu.edu, or by Twitter @CoachAric_G
