Harvard University

Anthony Purpura enters his second season as an assistant coach for the 2017 spring season.

Purpura had an immediate impact on the Crimson program, helping guide Harvard to the 2016 Ivy League 7s Championship title and a 2016 Ivy League 15s Championship appearance. Purpura then helped Harvard repeat as 7s Ivy champions, going 19-5 in the spring and taking down Dartmouth, 10-5, in the title game. 

Purpura’s formal coaching experience began at Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, where he served as an assistant coach for two seasons.

Purpura began playing rugby his freshman year at the University of Maine. Throughout his four years with the Black Bears, Purpura led the team to a 17-2-1 record and was instrumental to the team’s qualification for the USA Rugby College Playoffs in 2008.

Following his four-year tenure at Maine, Purpura traveled to New Zealand in 2009 to accelerate his knowledge of the sport, and gain experience in the international arena. In New Zealand, he initially played for Ashburton Celtic Club, before being invited to play with the Mid Canterbury Rugby Union.

A native of Lawrence, Massachusetts, Purpura has played primarily with the Boston Rugby Club. Outside of Boston, he played briefly for the Old Mission Beach Athletic Club in San Diego, California, and the Calgary Hornets in Alberta, Canada.  Purpura made his national team debut with the USA Eagles in 2010 in the Churchill Cup, and has since represented the United States in two America Rugby Championships as well as the Autumn International series.