BYU: There was no question that the Cougars were the better team on Saturday against Cal. They didn't play a flawless game but they dictated the pace of play and essentially could do what they want. There may not be a deeper team in college rugby over the last few years than BYU. Kyle Sumsion showed once again that the has the makings to be a star.
St. Mary's & Life: Both schools have been the best teams in DI-A all season so it's no surprise that they will play for the title. The DI-A has had some close matches this postseason but most have been blowouts. Hopefully Saturday's match doesn't follow the latter and becomes a classic.
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Canada: File it under the sad but true category. U.S. fans need to cheer extra hard for Canada from now until the end of next season's IRB Sevens Series. The easiest road for the Eagles to qualify may hinge on whether Canada can finish in the top four, as they have done several times on the series this year including a second place finish in Glasgow. A giant gap is exposing itself between the two countries.
Zack Test: You have to feel for Zack Test. He continues to put in extremely strong performances while his team falters. To be clear, the losses aren't Test's fault. Anyone who watches him play can see him make intelligent decisions only to have his teammates react too slowly. Put him on a successful team and he would be a star on the series.
Seattle-OPSB: The club has been adding players, improving the quality of instruction, and generally been improving their organization in an effort to become the top club in the country. This Saturday they could check off another major hurdle if they beat the University of British Columbia and secure promotion to the BC Premier League. At this point the odds of victory are high.
UW: The Huskies played extremely well against Utah Valley in the DI-AA Varsity Cup final. They were extremely disciplined and organized. The win was a big building block for the program.
Losers
Eagles 7s: Yikes! At this point we are running out things to say when describing the Eagles season. After having a great stretch in Asia the team reverted back to its old ways and then some in Glasgow. Given their pool draw they should have made the Cup quarterfinals. Instead, they lost to Japan and Spain in going 0-5. If they have a similar tournament this summer changes will have to be made.
Varsity Cup DI-AA: This tournament turned out to be a hidden gem in terms of thrilling rugby. So why is it on the losers list? Simply, the tournament didn't get any exposure aside from articles on TIAR. The Varsity Cup website was bare aside from a few scores and the final match wasn't streamed. With the tournament having a heavy Utah flavor it was almost as if it was held just to get a few more fans in the seats.
Television Options: This weekend is set to be a great weekend of college rugby as several national champions are crowned. All matches will be streamed on USA Rugby TV. While USA Rugby TV is a good service for an online stream it doesn't have the same exposure as ESPN3 or other online outlets. No one can stumble upon the stream like they might if it was ESPN3. Rugby needs more opportunity to be accidentally discovered by casual sports fans.
Folau Niua & Carlin Isles: Hindsight is 20/20 but it seems like the wrong decision to not bring in at least one of Folau Niua or Carlin Isles for Glasgow. Niua especially could have been a major addition to the squad in the absence of Madison Hughes. You can see why head coach Matt Hawkins would want to go with the guys from the OTC but maybe it wasn't the right approach this time.