The top-ranked college rugby teams played like it this past weekend, with No. 2 Life handling Arkansas State a fairly humbling 54-3 defeat and No. 1 Saint Mary's beating BYU 37-29 in Provo, Utah.
Right now only one other college program is positioned to unseat these two as the best in the country (with apologies to a BYU team that has yet to show its best), and that would be Cal.
Saint Mary's, of course, is set to play Cal on April 7. Before then there's the matter of clinching the California Conference with a win over a tough and improving Cal Poly team this Saturday at home.
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The Gaels were impressive against BYU, having a slight advantage at the point of contact and, despite a few leaks on the perimeter, unleashing a fast attack that tested BYU through the second half. And notice also that on Friday, the Saint Mary's B-siders beat BYU's second side, which shows how strong the Gaels will be in the future, too.
"You've got to be thrilled at the result," SMC head coach Tim O'Brien said. "I know they were missing a large number of guys, and we were missing some guys. There's no asterisk next to the result. But there are some things we've got to focus on. BYU ran some plays—we knew they were coming, and we got sliced up anyway."
Saint Mary's kick coverage wasn't expert, either. But overall, the Gaels are playing fast and brutal. They are working hard off the ball. And they are in lock-step with each other.
"These are the games you want to play every week," O'Brien added. "I've got a lot of time for BYU and what they have in place and I think our guys feel the same."
For the Running Eagles, what has been a tough, tight rivalry with Arkansas State has gone heavily Life's way this year. Don't count the Red Wolves out in the coming years, but right now, with Duncan van Schalkwyk pulling the strings at flyhalf and a powerful pack led by Alex Maughan up front, Life has been pressed only once.
"We have to face Davenport on the road this weekend and we want to put in a good performance," Life head coach Colton Cariaga said. "There is a lot we can learn about ourselves week in and week out, so this one matters in terms of how we move forward as a team. We’re striving to build continuity among the personnel combinations we like and games are how you do that."
Can the Running Eagles be better? Always, said Cariaga.
"It boils down to execution and discipline," the former All-American said. "That’s what we can control and we can always be better at that."
That's a scary thought.