1. Seattle-OPSB: The boys from Seattle are stacked. Just think about their roster: Ben Gollings, Emosi Vucago, Mike Palefau, Miles Craigwell, and a whole host of players that are solid players. They looked good over the weekend at the Pacific Coast Championship and even came from behind to beat a tough San Francisco Golden Gate team.
2. Chicago Lions: Points deduction or not the Lions are on a roll and swept through the Midwest. Peter Tiberio is running on all cylinders and should be back in consideration for the Eagles. They have a tough group of nationals but will still be favorites to top the pool.
3. Belmont Shore: A win at their home tournament clinched the top spot in SoCal. It's been a fairly quiet season for the team but they also have a lot of talent and are very experienced at 7's. Look for them to once again challenge for a national title.
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4. San Francisco Golden Gate: They survived a scare against rival Olympic Club in the semi-finals over the weekend and then went down to Seattle-OPSB in the final but that shouldn't taint their abilities. Danny Barrett has to be a consideration for the national team and Mose Timoteo and Volney Rouse are experienced and talented.
5. WE Rugby: The team from the Woodlands fell short in Denver but managed to hold on and beat Kansas City to make it to nationals. Expect them to use a few warm-up tournaments to get some kinks out and get on the same page for nationals.
6. Old Aztecs: The San Diego team finished second last weekend and second in SoCal. Their reward? Being put in the same pool as Belmont Shore at nationals. It's a tough break for the team but one that could end up being their advantage.
7. Denver Barbarians: The needed everything to go right over the weekend to make it to nationals but that is exactly what happened. They are a group of hard working guys that just play rugby. It works.
8. Old Blue: Now qualified for nationals Old Blue can focus on beating Middlesex and claiming the top seed from the Northeast.
9. 1823: They beat the Milwaukee Barbarians on a tie-breaker to make it to nationals. Paul Holmes has done a great job of putting together and varied group of players and getting them to play good rugby.
10. Schuykill River: The Mid-Atlantic champions have a strong team that has flown under the radar this year.
Honorable Mention: Olympic Club, Kansas City Blues, OMBAC, Middlesex