So much is going on in this weekend in college rugby.

BYU is touring Arizona and plays Grand Canyon on Thursday night and the UA Wildcats on Saturday.

Both GCU and Arizona are coming off good wins. Arizona's over Utah in Las Vegas was quite comprehensive.

(Photo Linda Brothers Broadgauge Media)

The chase for placements in the California Conference continues with a very solid Cal Poly playing a very solid UC Santa Cruz. 

"We identified some work-ons following the Dennis Storer Classic," said UCSC Head Coach Jeremy Sanford. "Winning the race to the gain line and getting comfortable playing against much stiffer defensive pressure were a big focus."

They beat UC Davis two weeks ago and then Sacramento State in a non-league game.

"We really struggled to go forward at the Storer Classic so it was great to see our guys playing from shape and creating some line breaks in the face of a tough Aggies defense," Sanford said about UC Davis.

Their forwards have embraced the suck a little better, with Oliver Winkler becoming a force and Jackson Zabierek scoring as usual. Scrumhalf Martin Gutierrez is very good on defense and runs the attack.

"I think the biggest difference about this squad is belief. They really believe they belong at this level," said Sanford. "The results from the last few seasons and more importantly this fall and the DSC support that conclusion. We know there will be a learning curve with this competition, but we are thrilled to be a part of it." 

Central Washington, a team we have ranked #3, visits Saint Mary's, a team we have ranked #4. The reason we have CWU ranked ahead of SMC is because CWU beat UBC and SMC did not. But face-to-face is better. We have Grand Canyon ranked behind BYU, but by one spot. That game will be a big challenge for the 'Lopes, and the comparison for Arizona might change where both of those teams are ranked.

And then we've got Arkansas State vs Life as the Mid-South restarts. Dominic Shaw is now the coach of Arkansas State, which has had several coaching changes over the last several years.

Shaw has been working on bringing in more local players (local for Arkansas means North Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas and points in between). 

"We have boys who have good character and work hard," Shaw told GRR. The team has a feeling of starting fresh, to a certain extent, as they have a new coach. Shaw, whose background is in strength and conditioning and also in analysis, has served in those roles all over the world. The key for him, he said, and for the players, is not to be a closed book.

UCLA is at Cal and this will be a sterner test than Cal has had in recent weeks. 

We're keeping a close eye on a very intriguing Red River with Texas at Oklahoma (there's a tower on the campus of UT that lights up Orange only if Texas football wins or if a UT person wins a Nobel prize ... seriously. But if UT rugby beats Oklahoma, shouldn't that count?) 

DIAA

Sam Houston had a bit of a thriller last week in which tries from Drake Torno, Matthew Alvarez, and Jaxon Stokley put them up 19-7 only to see Texas State score 15 points to retake the lead. Two tries either side of halftime from Etienne Tenie put them back in command, sort of, and then the two teams traded tries. SHSU entered the final five minutes up 41-32 only to see Texas State score once more. 

Wow ... they held on, but barely. SHSU hosts Rice this week. Texas State gets a league bye. 

Florida State at FIU is almost a must-win for both teams. Florida can clamp a tighter hold on 2nd with a win at FAU. 

In the Gold Coast University of San Diego plays a very tough Mira Costa College side.

This weekend marks the opening weekend of the California Conference DIAA tier. It's the first runout for a multi-tiered conference system in CRAA, with Fresno State at Chico State probably the highlight matchup.