Not too many teams get to test themselves for a National Championship with the right level of competition and intensity, but certainly that's been the case in Northern California.

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"Oh boy," said Jesuit of Sacramento head coach John Shorey. "This is a really tough league. There are no easy games because everybody's good. You look at Granite Bay, who are in the HS Club bracket, and they lost a couple of games but they've had to go through Danville and us. And Danville looks particularly good."

Jesuit is the defending Boys National Single-School Champion, having defeated Gonzaga 21-13 in the final. Those two teams have met up five times in a row, and it has always been close - Gonzaga won 7-6 in 2016. But both Gonzaga and Jesuit have lost at times - Jesuit lost to Danville 25-24 in the Northern California final May 5, and that's evidence that Northern California might get a sweep of the top two brackets.

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"In the Single-School bracket, it's anybody's year this year," said Shorey. "Everybody's solid and anybody could win."

Meanwhile, Danville, which is sending five players to Cal in the fall, rebounded form an early-season loss to SFGG to rise to the #1 FloRugby ranking for HS Clubs. Head coach David Liebowitz brings his team back to nationals with one thing on its mind.

"The team is excited for the opportunity, healthy, and practicing well," said Liebowitz. "I have been coaching most of these boys for five to six years, and their goal was always to have a shot at Nationals, so were looking forward to playing some of the top teams in the country."

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These two, along with Granite Bay, have been tested week-in, week-out against each other and with Lamorinda, CK McClartchy, and SFGG. But they aren't the only ones who have sought tough opposition. Gonzaga has played St. Edward, Fort Hunt, St. Ignatius, and Royal Irish this season. Head coach Peter Baggetta said he always tries to replicate the difficulties - especially testing the team's depth - of the national tournament.

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And don't forget that this could be the toughest Tier II ever. Every single team has either been to Nationals before, or is a major state championship contender. And every one could have been in the top tiers with a little bit more luck.