ERugbyNews College Rugby Preseason Rankings: BYU at #2

About a week ago, the other heavyweight in US rugby news reporting, ERugbyNews, weighed in with their own "Top 25" college rugby picks.

In a slightly more generous move than that offered by American Rugby News, ERugbyNews slotted BYU at #2.







2009-2010 Preseason
ERugbyNews Men's DI College Top 25

1 California
2 BYU
3 San Diego State
4 Army
5 Penn State
6 St. Mary's
7 Arkansas State
8 LSU
9 Cal Poly
10 Utah
11 Navy
12 Central Washington
13 Wyoming
14 Colorado State
15 Kutztown
16 Air Force
17 Dartmouth
18 Minnesota
19 Notre Dame
20 Texas A&M
21 Arizona
22 Rutgers
23 UC Davis
24 Syracuse
25 UC Santa Barbara

While ERN's Alex Goff was quick to take credit for ranking BYU at #1 last season, nevertheless his rationale reveals a continuing hesitancy to get off the Cal cloud:

"Last season ERugbyNews had BYU at #1 for a large portion of the season, and saw the Cougars eke out a national championship. So they start at #1 this time around right? Well, no. Our take on the Top 25 for 2009-2010 is simply this: last year’s performance matters, but you also have to give us some feeling that you have the staying power to repeat this coming season.

"Cal has always had the consistency, and that’s the chief reason (along with an outstanding group of youngsters coming up) they are #1. BYU sits at #2 and San Diego State is #3. The Aztecs, we believe, will weather the loss of their head coach and continue to improve."

Well folks, at least Alex Goff had the guts to give BYU the #1 spot during last season... even if he retracted it during the National Championships. One point awarded to ERN.

That being said, however, I still question the reasoning behind placing BYU at #2 prior to the start of the season... Why wouldn't you put the reigning national champion at #1, even if only out of respect for their accomplishment? After all, speculation only goes so far before any games have been played... so why run and hide behind Cal's coattails at the start of every season regardless?

I know what the response is... believe me, I do. Cal's "consistency" earns them the favored spot every year, whether they have a plethora of returning starters or not. (And what of other teams' players?) Maybe it's just too easy to discount other teams in the face of Cal's obviously successful track record...

Now, enter BYU into the mix... have Our Boys at least been consistent in their tournament appearances? Have they been improving at all? Has the program progressively grown over the years? OF COURSE!!! And not only BYU, but look at up and coming programs just a step down, such as Arkansas State, San Diego State, Dartmouth, St. Mary's, and others. They're only growing hungrier each year...

Sure, BYU got to take their first bite (certainly not the last!) out of Cal this past time around, but in the near future, I'd rather wager that they won't be the lone dog in the pack for long... after all, it's college rugby we're talking about here!!!

Before I get too worked up, I want to switch tones by saying that, however questionable ERN's or ARN's rankings might seem, I'm secretly glad that BYU isn't at #1...

We really don't need it and actually don't want it. Cal can take the spotlight; they can have the "throne" all they want during the season. Why? Fuel for the fire, my friends, more fuel! We want to win! We want to be #1!!! And honestly, if BYU is already on top the whole season, then inevitably some of the feeling and perspective going into tournament time becomes more defensive in nature rather than offensive... bottom line, that's not BYU's style. We don't want an adrenaline drop anytime soon!

So, in the end, I suppose I should extend my thanks to Alex Goff and ERN. Second is the best anyway, right? Well, actually, that just might be true for Our Boys... Say what you will, but I'd much rather the BYU Rugby team be underestimated (e.g. BYU last season) than overestimated (e.g. Utah last season)!

Enough talk... it's time to get back to work. We need to show the nation that the BYU Rugby team is much more than consistent: they are actually expanding in depth, scope, and self expectation with every passing day. And that's an uphill road I prefer to stay on...

In the words of Winston Churchill, "Victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be; for without victory there is no survival."

And so shall the BYU Rugby team survive and thrive on!
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ARN College Rugby Preseason Rankings: BYU at #3

With many college rugby teams in the nation already slated to play a few preseason matches in the coming months, American Rugby News has 'gotten the jump' on the rest of the internet community by releasing its "Preseason Top 25", along with commentary supporting their picks.

Despite taking the National Championship this past season, the BYU Rugby team comes in with a #3 ranking behind Cal Berkeley and Arkansas State.

1 California
2 Arkansas State
3 BYU
4 Kutztown
5 St Mary’s
6 Army
7 LSU
8 San Diego State
9 Penn State
10 Arizona
11 Dartmouth
12 Cal Poly
13 Central Washington
14 Utah
15 Texas A&M
16 Florida
17 Navy
18 UC Davis
19 Virginia Tech
20 Colorado State
21 Rutgers
22 Sacramento State
23 Bowling Green
24 Washington State
25 Oklahoma

According to ARN's Brian Lowe, BYU's #1 finish last season was basically a fluke, not to be repeated any time soon:

"Right off the bat we don’t think BYU will repeat as national champions.

"Granted their run to the title last season was nothing short of spectacular, it’s just that we reckon much like in college football nowadays, it’s darn near impossible for most teams to repeat as champions.

"Sure, Cal has done it on a regular basis during the last couple of decades but they are the exception rather than the rule.

"In football parlance, BYU is probably akin to USC in that the Trojans won a national championship a few years ago and while they’re always in the mix they haven’t been able to get back to the promised land since.

"Cal is kind of like Florida, or perhaps it should be the other way around. The Golden Bears and Gators have been the most consistent in their respective sports in recent years, although Florida of course has been by no means as dominant as UC Berkeley."

While I have great respect for Brian Lowe, I must say that this college football analogy is less than functional... and not just because I despise USC and Florida!

First off, a "national champion" in college football isn't a title earned by eliminating the competition in a playoff system; rather, it is more of a gift granted by the deficient and self-serving BCS format.

For this reason, Cal receives even more respect for their accomplishments; no matter how much any of us dislikes Cal or wishes to downplay their program's achievements, no one can deny that they are the premier collegiate rugby team in America.

Florida, on the other hand, is the fluke in this whole equation if you ask me. Any team with a money-grubbing, Benedict Arnold of a coach isn't bound for lasting greatness... absolutely no comparison with the legendary Jack Clark. And Florida's so-called "Superman" quarterback will be a blip on the radar when all is said and done...

If you don't believe me, go back and watch the 2007 Capital One Bowl! The same team that was shamed and shunned by all for losing to Appalachian State in their season opener completely snubbed the highly-touted, "underrated" Gators! Florida couldn't buy their freedom, let alone a break, and so, as was appropriate, Lloyd Carr rode out into the sunset of Michigan glory!!!

Okay, okay, I know I'm getting carried away here... football season is just a tick away, and I'm getting the itch! But it stands that you can't compare a team with barely 3 national titles (Florida) with one that can claim 24 true titles (Cal); and conversely, you can't compare BYU to USC, who, ironically, holds claim to 11 national titles... seems like ARN should've switched up the analogy!

Enough college football talk, and no hard feelings toward Brian... after all, he's not a homegrown American anyway! So, back to college rugby. Although the football comparison fails, the real reasoning behind the rankings is about as sound as anyone could propose at this point. All we can take into consideration are teams' rosters: how many returning starters will be in the mix and how much experience the promoted secondary/newcomers will bring to the table.

All things considered, a #3 ranking is not bad... not bad at all. And although that ranking might drop throughout the fall season (if BYU again opts to not play any fall matches), let's just hope Our Boys can step up to the task once again to build upon the most amazing and legitimate National Title of any BYU sport ever!

Nothing is impossible... but the ball's in our court now. Great expectations, my friends... all eyes are on the BYU Men's Rugby team and rightfully so! Let's take the pressure and use it to our advantage, to exceed ourselves, to upend the competition once more!

Say it with me now... "BYU Rugby FOREVER!"

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BYU Rugby: #1 Team, #1 Coach

Well folks, the final rankings have been released for the '08-'09 season, and yep, you guessed it... BYU tops the charts. The only other occasions in which I can recall the BYU Rugby team as having a #1 ranking were earlier this year for a few weeks and for a couple weeks in 2006 (the first year that BYU made it to the final game). Both rankings were awarded by rugby analyst and critic, Alex Goff, whom I actually chided in a previous post for "jumping the gun" so to speak.

Now that hindsight can be claimed by all, however, we can toss aside all conjectures... and no one can deny the fact that BYU is the #1 team in the nation. Whether they will grow and develop into the #1 program still remains to be seen... but that's a conversation for another time.

2009 was (is still) our year, and so I say, "Let's relish it!"

Check out the final rankings as compiled by AmericanRugbyNews.com (ARN) and eRugbyNews.com (Alex Goff):

"Top 25: BYU best in the country"

"Final 2008-09 Men D1 Top 25"

And that's not all folks... BYU Rugby Head Coach, David Smyth, has been named the "2008/09 ARN College Coach of the Year," a well-deserved honor. Click the following link for Coach Smyth's words upon receiving this recognition:

"Smyth named college coach of the year"

Well... that's that. What do we do now? The BYU Rugby team is #1, and we have no higher recognition left for which to fight, no title claim to defend. We've got it now.

All that's left is to let the fact sink in...

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