Non-conference games of rankings importance, conference games of conference importance, and maybe a few also-rans mark this week in DI men's college rugby.
Top of the rankings, #2 BYU plays at #3 St. Mary's, and #12 Utah is at #5 Cal, while #7 Davenport visits #1 Life. That's an impressive list of matchups.
The Utah at Cal game is also pretty much the PAC Conference decider. Meanwhile in the California Conference, everyone's chasing St. Mary's Cal Poly v Santa Clara could well decide who is 2nd.
In the West DIA, snow has forced the postponement of both matches.
But in the Pacfic West, it's mostly top teams against teams hoping to move up. Nevada are favored over Santa Cruz, Davis over Fresno State, Stanford over San Jose State, and Sac State over San Francisco.
In the Gold Coast there is one key match, as Cal State Long Beach can basically secure its path to 1st place with a win over San Diego.
We already previewed the Arkansas v Oklahoma State game in the Heart of America (see link below). Arkansas has an excellent shot at winning the conference, but Mizzou lurks later on.
In the SIRC, Central Florida can put themselves in excellent position to win the South with a win over their main rivals, FIU. In addition, a victory should get them ranked.
It's all to play for in the NCRC, with four playoff spots available for five teams - UW, WSU, UO, WWU, and Boise State - who have very good shots at getting them. For Boise State, at 1-2, beating Oregon isn't the end of the line, but it would really help them if they did win. WWU has to beat Eastern Washington to feel good about their chances. It's the Apple Cup of Rugby in Seattle when Washington host WSU. At 2-3 the Cougars need to get a win on the road to be at the playoff table.
This week's DI Men College games:
(GRR ranking in parentheses)
| BYU (#2) | at | St. Mary's (#3) | Non-Conference | Story |
| Utah (#12) | at | Cal (#4) | PAC Conference | Story |
| UCLA (#14) | at | Arizona (#39) | PAC Conference | Story |
| San Diego State (#43) | at | UC Santa Barbara | California Conf. | |
| Cal Poly (#41) | at | Santa Clara | California Conf. | |
| Davenport (#7) | at | Life (#1) | Mid-South | Story |
| New Mexico | at | Air Force (#13) | West DIA | Ppd. Snow |
| Colorado State (#28) | at | Wyoming | West DIA | Ppd. Snow |
| UC Santa Cruz | at | Nevada | Pacific West | |
| UC Davis (#38) | at | Fresno State | Pacific West | |
| San Jose State | at | Stanford | Pacific West | |
| SFSU | at | Sacramento State | Pacific West | |
| UCSD | at | CSU Fullerton | Gold Coast | |
| USD | at | CSULB (#39) | Gold Coast | |
| USC | at | SBCC | Gold Coast | |
| Arkansas | at | Oklahoma State | Heart of America | Story |
| Washington State | at | Washington (#44) | NCRC | |
| Boise State | at | Oregon (#42) | NCRC | |
| Eastern Washington | at | Western Washington | NCRC | |
| LSU | at | Texas A&M (#18) | Non-Conference | |
| Florida International | at | Central Florida | SIRC | |
| Florida State | at | Florida Atlantic | SIRC | |
| Middle Tennessee State | at | Memphis | SIRC | |
| Georgia Southern | at | Georgia Tech | SIRC |
