On a hot and rainy Sunday evening in August 1969, rugby arrived in Tennessee. Dr. Geoffrey Berry and two other met in Centennial Park as the result of an advertisement in the local newspaper, which would prove to be the first meeting of the Nashville Rugby Football Club. Unfortunately, these three men were the only ones present.

Gradually, over the next few weeks, twenty bodies assembled as the Nashville Assassins. This group played its first match against Hunstville in October of 1969. Twelve matches were played during the first season and they proudly won two trophies. In May of 1970, the club took advantage of its Large membership of university students and reorganized into the Vanderbilt Rugby Football Club.

In 1974, Vanderbilt and the University of Georgia played in the Finals of The SEC Rugby Tournament. During the award ceremony, Chancellor Heard of Vanderbilt remarked, " I wonder how many of these players are students at the universities they represent? It looks like their ringers beat our ringers." Dr. Berry then informed us that it was time to form our own club. Joe Franklin, Jerry Conlin, Jude Lennahan, and Gino Marin met to form the current team: The Nashville Rugby Football Club (N.R.F.C). The inaugural team was known as the "Nashville Flames," after the team's only sponsor, the Nashville Gas Company.

The team has been coached by founding members and former players such as Joe Franklin, Jerry McLemore, Steve Williams, Jerry Conlin and Steve McClamroch. Mr. McLemore is now a highly rated and respected referee in the sport, Mr. Williams serves as Athletic Director at Father Ryan High School, and Mr. Franklin continues his roles as a coach for the Vanderbilt University Rugby team. The Nashville team is currently coached by Mark Williams.