The Try Times

This was another exciting weekend in college rugby. The score lines this last weekend solidified standings for some teams and raised questions about others. Here are some notable matchups from last weekend. Cal handled UCLA 66-12. Central Washington fell to Trinity Western in a low scoring match, 10-14. Cal Poly demolished Santa Clara 78-21. Finally, Grand Canyon beat Utah 50-5 in Phoenix.  A few quick thoughts about those matches.  Central vs. Trinity Western: First the Central Washington match. This was a surprising loss to me as Central has beaten Trinity Western sizably in past seasons. According to the Trinity Western website, Saturday marked the first win ever for Trinity Western over CWU.  There was a lot of kicking in the first ten minutes of the match. Trinity Western was able to find grass on most of their kicks, but their kick chase really wasn't strong which gave the Wildcats time to string together some nice counter attacks. However, Central threw away some g...

Welcome to the spring season of college rugby! This is a bit of an awkward time in college rugby because not all teams are playing games yet due to weather. Things are in full swing on the west coast so I thought I'd drop a rankings to start things off. Here's my explanation of my rankings and a preview of some exciting matches this spring.  St. Mary's and Cal are back in action which means some teams get bumped down and the California powerhouse move up. Lindenwood stays at number one but has not played a match yet this spring. The Lions will play Ark State, Life, and Central. All of those will be solid games. It's fun to see the Lions take on western opponents like Central and BYU in the fall. BYU vs. Lindenwood was easily the most riveting match of the fall. I'd love for them to continue the trend and perhaps take on St. Mary's or Cal in future seasons. Arkansas State boasts one of the more ambitious schedules in D1A. They will get a crack at Lindenwood and L...

 D1A Rankings What an exciting weekend in D1A rugby. Lindenwood pulled off a comeback win in a tight match with BYU. Arkansas State looked to be in top form as they trounced a respectable Davenport team. Navy took on their rival, Army, and stole a win with a penalty kick at the death. Indiana won the BIG 10 championship in a convincing fashion over Michigan State.  Here are some notable statistics from the fall season. Arkansas let the top 25 offensively, scoring 66.6 points per game on average. They've looked very sharp this fall and have put up some impressive score lines, especially their 38-8 win over Davenport. With head coach Dominic Shaw in just his third year with the program, I would say that Arkansas State is a program on the rise. If they can carry their momentum into the spring, they could be very dangerous. The worst scoring team in the top 25 is Army. They only scored an average of 18.6 points per game, although they did slide up in the rankings after going toe t...

 Lindenwood vs BYU Recap On Friday, Lindenwood University and Brigham Young University squared off in one of the most riveting matches of the 2023 Fall season. BYU held off their opposition for 70-plus minutes only to fall victim to the powerful set piece of LU. As I predicted, Lindenwood tested BYU early by putting the ball to boot. Although the Lions were solid in the aerial game, their set piece was really the bright spot. For BYU, Friday's match was a day full of missed opportunities. The Cougars drew blood first with pick and go try from flanker Lilo Clark. Fullback Taysan Hammer slotted the conversion to put the Cougars up 7-0. BYU really dominated the first half in terms of territory and time of possession. Lindenwood tried to put them under pressure with kicks, but Taysan Hammer had nearly a flawless performance under the high ball. As predicted, BYU kept the ball in hand most of the first half and ground through the phases. BYU really could've been up one or two more s...

 Try Times Game of the Week: #2 Lindenwood vs #3 BYU I could not be more excited for this absolutely massive matchup between the #2 and #3 ranked teams in the nation. This is, without a doubt, the biggest game of the fall season. Although it doesn't carry any conference implications, whoever comes out on top will get a serious boost to their confidence moving into the spring and impact the rankings moving forward.  A quick peek at their respective fall campaigns, the Lindenwood Lions are 10-0 to my count. Their biggest win of the fall came last week against Davenport. They average a respectable 46.7 points per game. The Lions allow their opponents to score only 7.9 points per game on average. Their low points per game link to their style of play in my opinion. The Lions like to put the ball to the boot and wait for their opponents to make mistakes. It's a strategy you really can't argue with when Lindenwood keeps winning, and after watching the World Cup Final. It's a v...

What an exciting matchup between Davenport and Lindenwood! This game was a thriller from the first kickoff to the final whistle. Coming into the matchup Lindenwood sat at #2 and Davenport at #8 in the Try Times D1A Rankings. Lindenwood had won nine games with no losses. On the other side, Davenport had notched four of their own wins. Statistically, Lindenwood was averaging 50 points a game and Davenport was averaging 39. Both sides hold their opponents to under 10 points on average.  Based on previous matches and season averages, I wasn't expecting a very high-scoring game between the two. Both teams, but especially Lindenwood, decided to invest in the aerial game. There were countless kicks between the two teams. Most of the kicks were not 50-22 attempts or positional kicks, rather Lindenwood looked to put Davenport under pressure with cloud-scraping kicks and a relentless chase. This method dared Davenport to make a mistake and ended up paying off for the Lions. With the ball in ...

 D1A Rankings: Ark State Cracks the Top 10, Top 3 Matchup On Friday Arkansas State Beats TAM 81-0 It's been two weeks and we've seen some exciting matchups across D1A rugby. Air Force and Davenport both nearly pulled off upsets, edging Army and Lindenwood respectively. BYU clinched the Rocky Mountain Conference on Saturday with another 90-point game against CU. BYU's prolific attack now leads the top 25 in points per game with 76. Ark State is hot and still right on their heels with 74 points per game. I think Ark State could be dangerous this year. They've been nothing but consistent on both sides of the ball. For that reason, they sneak into the top 10.  Davenport and Lindenwood squared off in a captivating match this last Saturday. Lindenwood beat Davenport by a slim four-point margin. If a few calls had gone differently, it might've been Davenport's game. Saturday proved that the Lions are mortal and beatable. The aerial game is such a huge part of their gam...