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College Conferences: Who Is Going Where?

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College Conferences: Who Is Going Where?

David Barpal photo.

We're trying to figure out where everyone will play.

As this writer said in a Facebook Live Q&A this week, for many college players, what their umbrella organization turns out to be won't change too much. Small college teams will go on as before. Men's D2 college teams will, with one or two exceptions, go on as before. 

Also as we said, there remains a question about whether there will be problems for teams playing outside their specific umbrella organization. Our hope and expectation is that any concerns will be figured out. NCR says their insurance will travel with their teams and will cover their refs. If that's the case, then really the issues might come down to whether being a member of USA Rugby is the dealbreaker.

Right now, though, we just want to tell you what is happening right now, and a few little notes about what that means in terms of playoffs and some other things.

Organization Conferences That Were D1A 2019-2020 D1AA Women D1 Women D2 Men D2 Women Small/D3 Men Small
CRAA California, PAC, Mid-South, Red River, Rocky Mountain, Independents, Big 10*, Rugby East*   Big 10, Blue Ridges, Florida, Northeast, Pacific Desert, Pacific Mountain, Rocky Mountain, Texas, Independents        
Approx # of Teams 40   67        
               
NCR Liberty Chesapeake, MARC Midwest Great Waters, Upstate NY, Ohio Valley, Allegheny, Northern Lights, Illinois Great Lakes, Great MW, Cardinals, Gateway, MCRC, Southern, Allegheny, Northern Lights, Deep South, MARC, Tri-State, NEWCRC Allegheny, Carolinas, Capital, Cascades, Colonial Coast, East Penn, Great Waters, Illinois, Northern Lights, Ohio Valley, Pacific Desert, Prairie States, RNE, Texas, Tri-State, UPstate NY, Independents Cardinals, Chicago, Colonial Coast, Deep South, Dixie, Florida, Georgia, Gold Coast*, Great Lakes, Lonestar, Mid-America, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Minnesota, New England, Northern California*, NCRC, Potomac, Rocky Mountain, Southern, Three Rivers, Tri-State, Upsate NY, Wisconsin
Approx # of Teams 19 17 6 50 100 150 175
               
ACRA       Tri-State, NEWCRC      
Approx # of Teams       36      
               
NIRA     NCAA D1 NCAA D2   NCAA D3  
Approx # of Teams     8 7   8  
               
American College Rugby   MAC, Heart of America, NCRC, Lonestar, Gold Coast,* Pac West, Florida (See below)          
Approx # of Teams   50 (All speculative at this point)          
               
Unattached   SCRC, Ivy, Iowa Central   Capital, Carolinas, Cascade, Florida, Great Lakes, Lonestar, MAC, MARC, Rocky Mountain, Southern, West Coast, RNE, SoCal SCRC, Rocky Mountain, U. Notre Dame (?)    
Approx # of Teams   17   75 13    
               
  Approx # of Teams   *= May be a split of teams in this conference        
CRAA 107            
NCR 517            
ACRA 36            
NIRA 23            
American College Rugby 50      
Unattached 106            

DIA will have playoffs and bowl games in the fall and spring (maybe). NIRA, ACRA, and most of NCR will finish off 15s in the fall. The DIAA group, American College Rugby, will likely have playoffs or bowl games in the spring.We're still waiting on a few conferences to decide, and geography, as well as financial considerations, will have significant influence.