American tighthead prop Ben Tarr played in Major League Rugby between 2018-2020. He represented the NOLA Gold for his entire MLR career.

Born in Indianapolis, IN, Ben Tarr grew up there before heading to Australia to attend Southport boarding school in Queensland, Australia. Following his time at Southport School he joined the Southern Districts (Souths) in 2014 in Australia’s Shute Shield competition. That same year he represented the USA U20s at the IRB Junior World Rugby Trophy and performed so well that he was selected for the USA Selects side that played in the 2014 Americas Rugby Championship. Tarr’s meteoric rise continued, and he found himself including in the full USA Eagles squad for their Autumn internationals where he earned his debut as Eagle #459, coming on as a reserve against Romania in 8th November, 2014.

Tarr signed with the Denver Stampede for the lone season of PRO Rugby in 2016, and earned 9 appearances en route to the first (and only) PRO Rugby title before the competition ceased operations before the 2017 season. Although he missed out on the 2015 Rugby World Cup with a knee injury, Tarr continued to be a regular in the USA squad. His 11th and final international cap coming against Canada on 1st July, 2017. When PRO Rugby’s spiritual successor, Major League Rugby, came along in 2018, Ben Tarr signed with the NOLA Gold who he would represent for 3 seasons between 2018-2020.

Tarr would earn 21 appearances for the NOLA Gold, starting 16 times and scoring his lone try in his debut season in 2018 before suffering a career threatening neck injury in April of that year. He returned in 2019 however and enjoyed a stand-out year despite another injury, starting all of NOLA’s first 9 games of the season and setting career highs in both metres gained (86) and tackles made (60). Tarr would appear in 4 of NOLA’s 5 games to start the 2020 season before  it was cancelled due to COVID-19, and wouldn’t return to MLR for a 4th season in 2021.