OGDC Adds American Winger Harley Wheeler

By Alistair Kirsch-Poole
Dec 1, 2025 - 11:30am

Old Glory DC has announced the addition of winger Harley Wheeler. The 28-year-old American joins from the NOLA Gold, who pulled out of the league earlier in the off-season.

Born in California but raised in Tennessee, he started playing rugby in high school and continued playing at Life University in college. The team went to four straight DIA finals while he was on it, three of which they won. He earned All-American first team honors twice, and also won the Rudy Scholz award, the top honor for an individual player in college rugby. In 2018 he played for the Collegiate All-American team against Glendale.

After graduating he joined Rugby ATL, playing in 4 of the team's 5 matches in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. In 2021 he left the team to try pursuing a spot on the USA 7s team in the lead up to the Olympics. He played in two matches for the Eagles, but did not make the Olympic team.

He returned to MLR for the 2022 season, joining the NOLA Gold. He was quickly a big part of the team, playing in 15 matches, 13 of them starts, for 1,033 minutes on the pitch in 2022. However, his playing time has tailed off, with a reduction to 9 starts in 12 matches in 2023, 5 starts in 8 matches in 2024, and just 4 starts in 5 matches in 2025.

Where he fits into the roster at Old Glory will be interesting to see. Perry Humphreys is the only confirmed returner and will likely play the role of the experienced leader for the wings. Should John Rizzo return, he would seem to be poised to seize the other starting spot, but would certainly face a challenge from the experience and talent of Wheeler. There may also be other signings that could come in at wing, as well as challenges from players like Max Schumacher who will be trying to get playing time wherever they can.