In 1969, an undergrad named John Philipsborn was kicked off the lacrosse team and with the encouragement of the Bowdoin College President Roger Howell, cobbled together a small group of students and men from Portland, Maine, to learn about a sport that at the time was very foreign to most people at Bowdoin.

Gimbel recruited a group of players that formed the organization that exists today, including Geoff Rusack, Peter Bernard and Jes Staley,[1] former Barclays CEO.

During the mid-seventies era, and the club's knowledge of rugby was sustained by visiting professors and exchange students.

In 1985, a (well deserved) suspension rocked the team and Andy Palmer ‘88 and other players recruited Rick Scala to start coaching and providing supervision per the request of then Bowdoin Athletic Director Sid Watson—Scala's first season was the fall of 1986.

In 2022, the Bowdoin Men's Rugby Club led the nation in NCR Scholastic All-Americans, with 14 players receiving the honor.