Conference Roundup: Where We Stand at Midseason

Gearing up for the American Collegiate Rugby Championships Bowl Series in Charlotte, N.C., there’s a lot of tight competition in college conferences around the country. The performance of top teams in each league will determine who gets an official invite to the elite series at the Rugby Athletic Center in North Carolina’s Queen City on Nov. 21-22.

If the season ended today, 16 teams from eight conferences plus independents would meet in Charlotte as per the following breakdown of invitations. Invitations will be based on conference performance as well as strength of schedule.

Mid American Conference — 1 Invite

In the Mid-American Conference, Miami University of Ohio and Bowling Green stand at the top of their divisions at 3-0 and 4-0, respectively. Bowling Green takes on 3-1 Western Michigan on Oct. 18; the Falcons can expect significant competition from the Broncos, who have won 3 straight.

Miami is in a dead heat with the University of Dayton for the top spot in the South Division. Both are 4-0 with 16 points, the RedHawks eking out an advantage in the “Points For” column.

Keystone Rugby Conference— 2 Invites

The Keystone Rugby Conference includes St. Joes, currently 4-0 with conference wins over Pitt, West Chester and Rutgers. Also strong contenders are WVU and Pitt, both with victories over Millersville and Shippensburg.

Big tests coming up are St. Joes vs Temple (2-1) on Oct. 18 and Pitt vs. WVU on Oct. 18.

Empire Rugby Conference — 1 Invite

Sitting at the top of Empire is Stony Brook (5-0), who beat USMMA-King’s Point last weekend in what was a battle of the undefeateds. Only Fordham (0-4) stands in the way of a perfect fall for the Seawolves.

Rugby East Conference — 3 Invites

Among the Rugby East elites stands #3 nationally-ranked Kutztown at 3-0, #5-ranked Army (3-0), #6 Penn State (2-1) and #12 Wheeling Jesuit. Iona (1-3) is stronger than their record suggests, having lost to Army in a closely-contested game at West Point 26-19.

St. Bonaventure began their fall with a lopsided victory over Syracuse before consecutive losses to three top-ranked conference rivals.

Big upcoming matches include PSU vs Kutztown on Oct. 18 and Army vs. Kutztown on Oct. 25.

Atlantic Coast Rugby League — 2 Invites

Conference powerhouses Clemson and Maryland stand at the top of the rankings in the ACRL. The two teams do battle for supremacy on Nov. 8th at Clemson. The Tigers may want to cast a wary eye on Virginia Tech, who they play this weekend, as the Hokies’ strong defense kept it close against Maryland in a hard-fought 15-5 loss earlier this month.

USMMA-King Point's Junior Jones takes it downfield during a game against Colgate.

East Coast Rugby Conference — 2 Invites

Perennial powerhouse American International College (5-0) stands alone at the top of ECRC standings this fall. In 15s play last fall, AIC went 7-1 and finished second to Middlebury in the conference. At 3-1, Middlebury can boast wins over Connecticut, Northeastern and Albany but have yet to test their mettle against Boston College (3-1) and AIC. Massachusetts handed Middlebury their loss; the Minutemen stand at 2-2 after losing last week to AIC.

Southeastern Collegiate Rugby Conference — 2 Invites

The SCRC Champion will square off against the ACRL champ in Charlotte. Mississippi State, Tennessee and South Carolina currently stand undefeated at 3-0. The Gamecocks play Tennessee on Nov. 8.

Southwest Collegiate Rugby Conference — 2 Invites

In the SWRC, North Texas is undefeated, including victories this fall over Texas A&M and Rice. 2011 state collegiate champion Texas State has looked good in wins over Stephen F. Austin and Houston, though was vanquished by A&M 31-3. The Aggies hope to capitalize on their momentum as they play Houston on Friday.

Independent —1 Invite

The most prominent unaffiliated collegiate rugby squad is Life, ranked #2 in the nation. The Running Eagles have chalked up victories this fall against Lindenwood and Florida Select as they pursue an elite training program for undergraduate and graduate players.

About the ACRC Bowl Series

High-level collegiate rugby competition comes to Charlotte, N.C. Nov. 21-22, 2014 with the inaugural American Collegiate Rugby Championships Bowl Series. This series of matches in traditional bowl format brings the very best college rugby teams from around the country to Charlotte’s Rugby Athletic Center, a sports and events venue located just three miles from downtown.

The ACRC Bowl Series will feature eight championship bowl games over three days. The tournament is managed by URugby, a division of Sevens Sports LLC, a sports event management and marketing company specializing in creating great experiences around the sport of rugby.

Competition gets underway under the lights Friday evening Nov. 21, and heats up Saturday as the best college teams in the nation take to the pitch to compete for hardware and glory.