Perhaps the most mixed-up of the USA age-grade teams going to the Netherlands next week is the U20s.
Straddling the line between high school and college, the team has to be made into a unified whole using players of quite varied backgrounds and rugby experiences.
This year's team sports 28 players, of which only 12 are in a college program. Six are coming out of a high school season in the US, five are in school overseas, and five more are in overseas academies, MLR academies, or between rugby teams (one is on the University of Virginia football team as a walk-on).
But they are unified by the attraction of putting on a USA jersey and a common purpose.
"A lot of the guys were in the Winter Camp," said Tia'i Vavao, who built his rugby with the Eastside Lions and then moved on to Central Washington University. "Those guys are really good so I know I'm really excited for it. I am really looking forward to playing with Nic Hardrict II—he's my boy."