NCR D1 Rankings Week 1
NCR D1 Rankings Week 1
We open this season of our college rankings with our NCR D1 rankings.
It's a tough one at the top because several of our top-ranked teams from last year have undergone changes. Wheeling has graduated two truly special players in Aaron Juma, Chief Chipfumbo, and Michael Muleya. (Sorry, they're back for one more run so we'll see.) Joseph Iye might well be returning which would help, for sure. St. Bonaventure has had a coaching change. Notre Dame College has had a complete college change, with the program moving to Walsh University after NDC as an institution closed its doors.
Walsh University Adopts Notre Dame College's Rugby Teams from Goff Rugby Report on Vimeo.
Indiana has had some player turnover and it talking about a "rebuild."
So take it for what it's worth. We think the top 12 could all be shuffled around quite easily.
Thanks to Next Phase Rugby for supporting these rankings. Next Phase Rugby is how high school student-athletes connect with college rugby programs. Download the app at NextPhaseRugby.com
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| Rk. | 2023 Final | College Team | Conference | Notes |
| 1 | 2 | St. Bonaventure | Rugby East | Finalists in 2023 and 2021 (winning in 2021) |
| 2 | 1* | Walsh | Rugby East | *#1 ranking was for Notre Dame College. Walsh is essentially that team. But we'll see. |
| 3 | 3 | Brown | Liberty | Two straight Liberty championships. |
| 4 | 5 | Queens | Rugby East | Close with Kutztown as one of the top teams from the Rugby East. |
| 5 | 6 | Kutztown | Rugby East | Close with Queens as one of the top teams from the Rugby East. |
| 6 | 4 | Indiana | Big 10 | Say they're rebuilding, but still probably top NCR team out of Big 10. |
| 7 | 10 | Siena | Liberty | Potential Liberty winner. |
| 8 | 13 | Thomas More | Big Rivers | A bit of a guess as Big Rivers is wide open. |
| 9 | 9 | Belmont Abbey | Rugby East | Could easily move up. |
| 10 | 8 | Principia | Big Rivers | 2023 Big Rivers champs. Player turnover? |
| 11 | 17 | Dartmouth | Liberty | Could be poised to chase down Brown. |
| 12 | 15 | Southern Nazarene | Gateway | Big recruiting year. Could really make a big step. |
| 13 | 12 | Fairfield | Liberty | We'll see. |
| 14 | 14 | Fordham | Liberty | We'll see. |
| 15 | 19 | Iowa Central | Big Rivers | Another Big Rivers contender. |
| 16 | 7 | Wheeling | Big Rivers | Player turnover, with key leaders moving on, is why they drop down. |
| 17 | Unr | Notre Dame | Big 10 | Expect them to be more experienced, and stronger this year. |
| 18 | 11 | Iona | Liberty | Another wait-and-see from GRR. |
| 19 | 16 | Marian | Big Rivers | Another wait-and-see from GRR. |
| 20 | 20 | Michigan | Big 10 | Better than Notre Dame? Quite possibly. |
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