This week is a relatively small, but hugely important one for the rankings.
Finally we get to see Saint Mary's take on Grand Canyon. That game will decide the California Conference, but for the underdog 'Lopes, a strong showing will be critical in the rankings chase for a playoff spot.
Saint Mary's has been mixing up its lineup just about every week, which serves to keep future opponents guessing, but it more about the fact the Gaels are a) very deep and b) trying to rest some players so they're not overworked by playoff time.
San Diego State continues to have to win to think playoffs, and Santa Clara is the next one—same goes for UC Davis.
There are four games that are really tough to call this week. Navy at Arkansas State on Sunday could go either way. Army at Lindenwood, likewise. The two service academies haven't played a lot this calendar year, so the hosting Red Wolves and Lions probably are favored, but you never know.
BYU at Arizona could actually serve as a bit of a coming out party for Arizona. BYU is probably favored thanks to history, but it's no guarantee.
And Cal at UBC is the return leg of the two-game series. Cal leads by two points, but led 24-5 before letting UBC come back last time. So which Cal team will it be in Vancouver?
D1A Games And Picks
| D1A Ranking in Parentheses | |||
| Saint Mary's (3) | at | Grand Canyon (20) | Saint Mary's by 15 |
| Santa Clara | at | San Diego State | SD State by 11 |
| UC Davis | at | UC Santa Barbara | UC Davis by 20 |
| UCLA (19) | at | Arizona State | UCLA by 13 |
| Navy (9) | at | Arkansas State (5) | Arkansas State by 5 |
| Army (4) | at | Lindenwood (6) | Army by 6 |
| BYU (8) | at | Arizona (10) | BYU by 12 |
| Cal (2) | at | UBC | UBC by 7 |
By the way, D1A released a bracket if the playoffs started tomorrow. In it, Cal would be the #1 seed in the West (despite the fact that FloRugby votes Saint Mary's above the Bears), and would face Grand Canyon.
Arizona would play Central Washington, BYU would play Utah Valley, and Saint Mary's would take on UCLA.
In the East, it would be Live vs Navy, Oklahoma vs Arkansas State, Wisconsin vs Lindenwood, and Army vs Penn State.
But expect those matchups to change. And by the way, the actual D1A playoff bracket will be unveiled 1pm CT March 31 LIVE on FloRugby.