DU Rugby was founded in the fall of 1968 by Doug Shipp who wished to share the many joys of the sport with others at the University after his experiences with the sport in Canada and California. He interested friends and fellow students to join the club and began developing rugby at the University. To assist with the development of the club, Doug purchased jerseys for all of the members and asked each member to pay for the jersey during the course of the season to develop funds for the club.

The club initially competed against a variety of college and men's sides in the Eastern Rockies area including the Denver Barbarians, Aspen Gentlemen, Colorado University and others. Rugby developed well with students showing great interest and Pioneer Rugby was able to field a "B" side which was nicknamed the Frogs. 'Pioneer Rugby' called Hilltop Football Stadium on the University of Denver its home field during the early years with crowds of 400-500 people watching the sport and supporting the team.

DU Rugby is a proud member of National Collegiate Rugby (NCR), competing in the High Peaks Conference. The current league consists of Colorado College, Regis University, Colorado School of Mines, New Mexico Tech and the University of Northern Colorado.

DU Rugby plays in the university colors of 'Crimson and Gold'. Over the years, DU Rugby has counted on the support of its associate group known as the DU Rugby Alumni Association. This group has assisted with the administrative role of the club, marketing and fundraising, and recruiting new players to the club.

DU Rugby continues to grow from its rich history and with the continued development of the University the club has been able to make the Diane Wendt Sports Fields with a dedicated rugby field its home. In the fall 2006, the club hosted its homecoming game to a crowd of 1,000 in which it qualified for the conference playoffs for the first time in 9 years. Since that time, the club has qualified to two final fours (2013, 2014), won the Pacific West Championship twice (2013, 2014) and the Cowboy Cup five times (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018).

In 2018/19 season the club has added 7s rugby, and in its first season the 'Pioneers' have qualified for the national championship on 1st & 2nd June, by winning the NSCRO 7s qualifier in Vegas on Feb 2019. In 2024 earned another birth to Nationals and attended the CRC7s finishing top 12 in the Nation.

The University of Denver RFC would like to extend its thanks to all our support throughout the years, to the old boys and family who made donations and made the road trips with us and to our sponsors in particular the University of Denver and its Division of Athletics and Recreation.

Best wishes to all at the club and congratulations on another history making season.