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Statewide rugby racking up gains

Statewide rugby has emerged as one of America's leading means of promoting growth, with Alabama last week becoming the country's 28th youth and high school body.

The rapid spread of so-called state-based rugby organizations, up from a dozen in 2006, indicates the organizational model dovetails with the US school system. Most varsity sports are governed by statewide athletic conferences.

'Currently we have three [local area unions] operating within the state, and having one body to direct state administrators to has been key to progressing within the educational system.  It is already starting to open doors for us at the high school level as well,' Rugby Alabama head Brad Kilpatrick said in an email.

USARFU, mimicking Commonwealth standards, was founded by four territorial unions each comprising a number of local or sub-unions. These bodies often spilled across state lines, exacerbating the sporting community's confusion as to why a sports organization would be known as a 'union', a term Americans typically reserve for labor associations.

In the past decade, coaches and administrators have abandoned the approach in favor of governing bodies that are more recognizable to school leaders, parks and recreation officials, and so on. USARFU, which has been actively encouraging the formation of SBROs, is simultaneously pushing college teams to incorporate into conferences and also hopes to revamp the system for senior clubs. The latter initiative has been moving particularly slowly.

Birmingham, the state capital, is presently Alabama's center of of non-contact rugby. Mobile looks more promising for establishing the cotton state's first high school league. There Rugby Alabama is working with the Mobile Sports Authority as well as parochial schools, some of whom are encouraged by the proximity of established high school leagues in nearby Florida, with boasts a more established SBRO, and Louisiana.

Outsized youth 7s tourney paired with Eagle camp

One of America's largest-yet youth 7s tournament debuts tomorrow, in conjunction with an Eagles training camp.

The San Diego Olympic Youth Sevens tournament anticipates 50-odd teams, comprising 500-some athletes, competing in categories for under-8, -10, -12, and -14 year olds. Staged at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, southeast of San Diego, the schedule calls for more than 100 games from 9 am to 3 pm, as well as opportunities to visit with the 20-man USA 7s squad.

The first-year event highlights a pair of American rugby's more prominent trends: dramatic growth in younger age grades and youth teams organized by a generation of senior players giving back to the game. The San Diegans are also making hay of seven-a-side's admission to the Summer Olympics.

Local youth and high school ranks have been surging. Last season one team traveled more than 100 secondary schoolers to San Francisco for a 3-game slate. Over the past 4 years, the number of programs fielding teams down the under-8 level has grown to at least 8.

OMBAC, the tournament's co-organizer, has grown to more than 100 kids across 4 age grades, according to team officials.

'The key to the success in recent years is that rugby is a sport that can fit in with the kids' schedules. Our season runs between the end of football season and the beginning of the normal baseball / lacrosse season so it is a great way for kids to keep fit, build strength and skills during December, January, [and] February each year,' past OMBAC and USA flyhalf Jason McVeigh said in an email.

Such gains may be seen as evidence the senior outfit is not in terminal decline. The 2006 Super League champion, which claims more 15s titles than all but Aspen and the defunct Old Blues, last year suffered the indignity of forfeiting a league match and then withdrew from the competition it helped found, raising questions about its future.

OMBAC's tournament partner is the Coastal Dragons, a three-year-old, start-from-scratch youth club that counts 7s Eagle captain Matt Hawkins among its coaching ranks. Other participants are the San Diego Aztecs, San Diego Mustangs, Poway Spartans, San Marcos Penguins, Fallbrook Warriors, and San Clemente Gators.

Nearby, the 7s Eagles will be paring a 20-strong group down to the 12 squad members for the next 2 stages of the Sevens World Series, in Wellington, New Zealand, and Las Vegas.

Paul Emerick and PJ Komongnan have been recalled, while Justin Boyd returns from injury. Mile Pulu, a standout during the USA's quarterfinal run in Dubai, is out hurt.

'The camp’s theme is consistency and execution. We need to be consistently good. From day one we will be focused on continuity of play and strengthening our defense so we don’t have any lapses when we hit the field,' coach Al Caravelli said in a press release.

United States 7s Player Pool (January 2011)
James Aldridge (Notre Dame), Marco Barnard (undeclared), Gershon Blaise (undeclared), Mark Bokhoven (Denver Barbarians), Justin Boyd (Frisco Griffins), Miles Craigwell (NYAC), Paul Emerick (undeclared), Tai Enosa (Belmont Shore), Matt Hawkins (Belmont Shore), Colin Hawley (Sacramento), PJ Komongnan (NOVA), Tyler Leith (undeclared), Taylor Mokate (Oklahoma), Zach Pangelinan (OMBAC), Nuese Punimata (Old Puget Sound Beach), Alex Ross (OMBAC), Roland Suniula (undeclared), Shalom Suniula (Brisbane), Sione Taufa (undeclared), Zach Test (Loughborough Univ.)

Competing eligibility rules trouble youth teams

Teenage teams in states with multiple eligibility standards are running into scheduling and other problems.

As youth rugby has gathered momentum, USARFU has sanctioned under-19 and high school championships while devolving administrative responsibilities to fledgling state-based rugby organizations (SBROs). The lack of a national standard is a growing issue for coaches and local administrators.

'This USAR[FU] U19/HS eligibility issue is a hot topic with the majority of established SBROs wanting to see new rules aligned to the US HS eligibility standards,' one state official observed. 'It seems there is reluctance at the [national] youth committee level...'

'Each SBRO may determine eligibility requirements to best suit their development level and membership...' youth director and congressman Mark Griffin said in an email. 'There is not yet a consistent balance between single HS and clubs from state to state and thus USAR[FU] eligibility is only mandatory for the national champs and qualifying matches towards national champs.'

Competing guidelines sundered Rugby California, an SBRO that received USARFU subsidies but could not agree a unified approach, and is thrusting regions like Eastern Pennsylvania into sharp dilemmas. For example, Harrisburg-area teams wishing to stick to a conventional high school opponents would have to travel two hours east to Philadelphia, thereby precluding weekday matches, according to Jay Abom of Cumberland Valley High.

'Come playoff time, we compete in separate divisions (HS and U19 club),' Abom said. 'The HS teams have asked the U19 club teams to keep their non-HS players on the bench for the matches they play against us, but they feel the need to keep preparing their best 15 for the upcoming playoffs.'

In its strategic plan, USARFU espouses the sports education ('varsity') model for high school teams. But Boulder also sees U19 competition as a stepping stone to international U20 matches, and many believe the age-grade approach to be more inclusive.

Thus multiple standards also are becoming an issue in representative play. 'When we play all-star tournaments... our players often have to play against other territories ... stacked with college freshmen,' according to one correspondent whose state hews to a policy of mandatory school enrollment.

Whatever one's view, it is reasonable to expect Boulder to lead the way on standards, since it collects substantial dues from the teenage segment. More than 26,000 players registered in 2009, according to union figures.

Related: Eligibility questions for California school-age playoff

On the sports education model

Notwithstanding the notoriety of Ed Hagerty's 'Failure of Leadership', Rugby Magazine's most revealing article this month is an interview with Xavier and New York AC coach Mike Tolkin.

In 2010, the New York school captured its fourth national championship while 2009 graduate Seamus Kelly earned Collegiate All-American honors, standing out as perhaps the country's top freshman. (Separately, NYAC won the Super League title.) With Xavier dean of students Joe Sweeney sitting in, the interview is an excellent articulation of the sports education model for rugby's development.

Unfortunately, it doesn't appear to be online. A few notable quotes:

Asked what advice he would offer to a new program, Tolkin observed: 'Establish and maintain good relationships with the football coach, athletic director, administration, and parents. ... Work with them, make concessions [to fit into the school's system], and try to get your foot in the door to get a program started.'

Tolkin: 'We have great relationships with all the varsity coaches. [The football coaches] manage [rugby's] after-school strength and conditioning program in the spring.'

When asked what developments in the past 10 years have most improved Xavier rugby, dean Sweeney replied: 'Increased support by an administration that sees rugby as a signature aspect of Xavier High School, signified by their willingness to support our our separate rugby teams [i.e., varsity, JV, and freshmen XVs].

'Take care of the three most important people in your school: the principal, athletic director, and football coach,' he added. 'Work with them and show them how the rugby program will help the school and its other programs. Show them what you're going to do to take care of their players'.

Tolkin and Sweeney are bullish on their close ties with the football team, which is an excellent goal but obviously not universally achievable. I think it's equally important that the school helps the team with field permits in crowded New York City.

It is often observed that Commonwealth countries including Canada get direct government funding. School support, whether via private tuitions or (more likely) public taxes, is America's answer.

Under 20s hit by cash crunch

The Under-20 team's June tour and July training assembly were both scrapped due to funding shortfalls, according to a letter circulating among school-age coaches.

The note, written by U20 head coach Ray Lehner, provides more evidence that USARFU is effectively transferring revenue away from students, echoing intelligence that surfaced last year from the collegiate ranks.

The cash crunch appears to have come suddenly. On April 28, USARFU announced a 'summer development camp' for elite U20 and high school players projecting to the 2011 age-grade teams, over July 28-August 2 at the US Military Academy (i.e., Army) in West Point, New York. By July 10, Lehner disclosed cancellation to high school and college coaches.

Lehner, the Oxford University and 1999 World Cup prop, seeks to outline why the U20s' goal of aligning with the American academic calendar has been slowed. In a sensible policy change, USARFU is aiming to once again play representative matches in summertime, when students are available, rather than in late spring.

But his July missive lays out some stark math. 'Boys age[d] 15-19 years old pay approximately $500K in CIPP dues annually, of which that $62k allocation [spent on the U20 team during the 2009-10 season] represents approximately 12%. In other words, 88% of CIPP dues from 15-19 year old boys is being spent elsewhere'.

'Additionally USA Rugby receives approximately $1.3 million in IRB Grants annually for Development and High Performance. Our $62k allocation is less than 5% of the IRB amount.'

Lehner, appointed in June 2009, declined comment. 

The U20s, an IRB-driven classification that has no analog in American sports, have staged three assemblies over the past 14 months. In addition to Boulder's $62,000 expenditure, players themselves have contributed another $30,000, or nearly half of Boulder's total, including about $1,000 to purchase tickets to watch the senior Eagles compete in the Churchill Cup, which lost $750,000.

'We were originally scheduled to have a large, 50-player selection camp in late July, followed by a forwards camp in November, and a winter camp over the Christmas break, which would include a test match. [sic] Finally, in June 2011 we intend to host the Junior World Rugby Trophy in Denver', he wrote to the coaches. 

'... I was informed last week that our Men’s Under 20 selection camp scheduled for late July is going to be cancelled due to what was described as a budget shortfall. Sadly, this is the second time we have had to downsize our plans because of finance. In December, we were asked where we would like to tour in June of 2010 but then, like now, I was later informed due to a revised budget, it will not be possible and instead we would be competing in the Collegiate ITTs.'

'For the record, I offer these figures in the spirit of openness; they represent what I know about the age grade budget nothing more,' he concluded.

The 2009 Collegiate All-Americans also received short shrift from Boulder, when on short notice the students were essentially asked to pay much of their own way. The 2008 tour to New Zealand, however, joined by chief executive Nigel Melville and then Eagle coach Scott Johnson, was well funded.

USARFU's board has been widely criticized for discontinuing the longstanding practice of publishing the union's budget. As the lion's share of revenue often comes from player and team dues, the upshot is the member-supported organization has little understanding of where its money is being spent.

Congress, which is to be the membership's vantage point for board and operational activity, receives irregular financial updates.

HS yellow cards raise unique US issue

Yellow cards at last weekend's youth championships pointed up a policy question that is by and large novel to America.

Two of the better games, the Gonzaga-Jesulit high school semifinal and the Highland-United under-19 final, saw a player suspended for 10 minutes. The penalty, the same as in a conventional match, struck many as disproportionate since school-age playoff matches are 70 and sometimes just 50 minutes long.

Not a few youth leaders assert the sanction should be 6 minutes, just as yellow cards in 7s span 2 minutes in a 7-minute half.

As a safety measure, International Rugby Board regulations limit youth players to a maximum amount of minutes for any given day, but the governing body's policy isn't meant to address local circumstances, such as the US geography and economics that force playoffs to concentrate several matches in a two-day frame. Thus the IRB has advised USA Rugby that the union is on its own, according to people familiar with the matter.

No less than three USA Rugby committees discussed the matter earlier this spring. Two favored reducing the penalty. But status quo prevailed after the union's rugby committee noted that the penalty is modeled on long-term IRB studies concluding it typically takes 10 minutes for a team with a man advantage, in an otherwise evenly matched contest, to score a try. That is, the penalty is not proportionate to the game's duration.

The rugby committee additionally noted that when the pitch is shorter or narrower than normal, field measurements such as the 5-, 10- and 15-meter lines for scrums, lineouts, restarts, and penaltes are not prorated. (There are no standard rugby field dimensions, only minimums.) By analogy, neither should time be adjusted.

Still, if the American situation is unique, then leaning on overseas research is precarious in the sense that the game is dynamic (not least because the IRB itself frequently toys with the laws), and so the findings might become dated. Moreover, there is a question of legitimacy among the US playing community.

Any change would require USA Rugby to modify an established law, and so would have to be approved by the directors.

On the rise of Utah

Utah has often been seen as promising territory because of senior clubs featuring gifted Polynesian players, but the state's youth ranks are now far more important.

In the past six years, school teams have more than doubled while senior sides have decreased by 50 percent, according to a comparison of figures from Rugby Magazine and the Utah union web site. The Beehive state has spawned a 7th-8th graders competition and 13-team high school league, to go along with 6 college teams (supplemented by 2 Idaho schools).

If the Polynesian community has been rugby's inspiration, the school system has fueled growth. 

The narrow, 75-mile Ogden-Salt Lake-Provo corridor, one of America's denser urban areas, is home to scores of sports-minded secondary schools. Strongly associated with football, rugby is covered as sport in local newspapers and played before thousands in a Major League Soccer stadium. Thus there is ample incentive for more teams to form and challenge national collegiate elites Utah and BYU, and under-19 powers United and Highland. 

Utah is not a textbook example of schools-based rugby. At the youth level, composite sides rather than high school XVs are at the top of the heap. Highland High's web site considers rugby a club, not a sport.

But Highland's historical predominance has not prevented regional growth nor United's rise. Looking back over the past 20 years, it's hard to find similar examples regarding regionally dominant club teams, such as Charlotte or Life. This suggests that school-based resources are better able to surmount competitive obstacles that start-from-scratch clubs cannot.

As Utah is far closer to Colorado's mountain towns and even Denver than San Francisco or the Pacific Northwest, it is interesting to consider whether regional (territorial) realignment would stimulate further growth in America's mountain west.

United 22 Highland 17; Xavier 32 Gonzaga 10

(Salt Lake City) -- Reserve wing Brian Mehl scored a left-sideline try with 10 minutes left, propelling United to a 22-17 victory over archrival Highland and its first under-19 national championship.

Earlier Saturday, Xavier captured its fourth high school championship with a forceful 32-10 win over exhausted Gonzaga, which Friday lodged a memorable 17-15 semifinal upset of defending champ Jesuit.

Mehl's touchdown decided a game Highland tied just 4 minutes earlier, having erased a 17-0 halftime deficit. The comeback was the more remarkable for playing a man down after a 29th-minute yellow card, and enthralled a partisan crowd of 3,500, almost equally divided among the two local sides.

MVP center Jared Whippy tallied the U19 final's first 10 points on a converted try and penalty goal, while twin brother and midfield partner Joshua scored a converted try immediately after the 10-minute dismissal. United built its lead on superior midfield defense and counterattack.

But the yellow ironically sparked Highland, which drove to United's line and earned a pair of penalties as the first half wound down. Twice the defending champs ignored a chance at three points -- the second was admittedly wide -- and the latter tap move was held up by United's forwards, in what proved an important turnover.

In the second period, Highland, unsettled by a midfield injury, shifted its emphasis to forward play. Some 4 minutes after the restart the favorites scored an unconverted, shorthanded try by prop Moises Peraza. (The final comprised 35-minute halves.) 

Then a third-phase score by Joshua Anderson, which featured the speedy pursuit and crisp service of halfback Sean Harwood, and replacement kicker Sam Brookham slotted a difficult sideline conversion to bring the count to 17-12. Highland reserve George Heimuli's try levelled the contest.

United roared back, each of the Whippys assisting Mehl's clincher, a blow that promises to live on in an intensifying rivalry. In this year's last meeting, Highland had come from behind to win 18-17.

Not on Saturday. Highland played the final minutes deep in United's 25 and drew a straightaway penalty with 2 minutes to go; but trailing by 5, the 19-time champ was forced to play a lefthand lineout. As in the first half, United's forwards turned the ball over, this time to seal a victory to avenging the 2009 and 2008 national title matches.

In the evening's opening contest at Rio Tinto Stadium, Gonzaga dominated the first 15 minutes but scored only 1 unconverted try, too little to discourage the New Yorkers. Wing Christopher Mattina scored twice before half as Xavier rattled off 22 unanswered points.

Winning setpieces, rucks and, most notably, one-on-one tackles, Xavier dictated the game virtually through the end of the second half. Backrowers Brendan Murphy, Adam Duignan, and unofficial man-of-the-match Joseph Corrado were slowed but rarely stopped, Corrado's strength particularly evident as a ballcarrier.

Second-half tries by Duignan and able flyhalf John Gearity stretched the lead to 32-5 with 20 minutes to play, before play turned ragged.

Still, the Washington DC school staked a claim to joining the 'single school' elite, having split a pair of regular-season matches with its Eastern seaboard rival and also felled Jesuit. 

In Friday's tense semifinal, expert backline passing put wing Brian Leibold away for a late second-half try, converted from the sideline by Patrick Carter to topple the Sacramentans. As in the United-Highland match, a Gonzaga rallied a despite a yellow card, all the more crippling in a contest of 25-minute halves.

In London, Canada downed Al Caravelli's fresh-faced squad en route to the England 7s bowl title, but the Maple Leafs would need to reach this weekend's championship finals in Scotland to overtake the US. Sitting in 9th place, the Eagles appear likely to finish ahead of their North American rivals for the third consecutive season and retain 'core' status in the IRB's Sevens World Series.

United 22 Highland 17 (halftime: United 17-0)

United
Tries: Jared Whippy, Joshua Whippy, Brian Mehl
Conversions: Jared Whippy
Penalties: Jared Whippy 

Ezra Hirawani; Talen Barney (Brian Mehl), Joshua Whippy, Jared Whippy, Jeffery Ott (Kory Sumsion); Josh Webber, Luke Mocke; Shon Curtis, Steven Livingston, Dallan arnes, Hata Puriri (Matai Araujo), Armand Overstreet (atthew Cooley), Dan Hubert, Zane Mendenhall, Saepele Tautu.

Highland
Tries: Moises Peraza, Joshua Anderson, George Heimuli
Conversions: Sam Brookham

Dion Stevens; Joshua Anderson, Tana Afeaki, Eric Pauni, Ed Moli (Brigham Tukokino); An Other, An Other; Moises Peraza, Levi Card, Douglas Ferris, Sam Brookham, Kesni Tausinga (Matt Jensen), Aaron Hanson (George Heimuli), Arawa Elkington, John Kacinski

Referee: Jem McDowall (Northeast)

Xavier 32 Gonzaga 10 (halftime: Xavier 22-5)

Xavier
Tries: Chris Mattina (2), Cameron McFeely, John Gearity, Ed Sullivan
Conversions: Ed Sullivan (2)
Penalties: John Gearity

Ed Sullivan; Steven Ruta, Dominic DeFalco, Joe Wolfer (Charles Guiraud), Chris Matina; John Gearity, Chris Petri; Thomas Boule, Patrick Nilsen, Michael Potter (Martin Freda), Cameron McFeely (Patrick O'Grady), Patrick Coleman, Brendan Murphy, Dadam Duignan (Michael Gorman), Joseph Corrado

Gonzaga
Tries: Brian Leibold, Jack McAuliffe

Jack McAuliffe; Brian Leibold, John Davis, Sam LaPaille, Patrick Carter; Matias Cima, Brian Savercool; Daniel Collins, Ian Combs, Conor Squier, Dylan Jones (Michael O'Brien), John Treseler, Kevin Lee, Anthony Oliverio (Connor Whitcomb), Gabriel Free

Referee: Phil Griffiths (Northeast)
Attendance (combined): 3,500

Jesuit high school tournament on tap

Georgetown Prep and Gonzaga are co-hosting a tournament of Jesuit schools from around the country.

The pair of Washington DC preps will be joined this weekend by New York City's Xavier, McQuaid of Buffalo Rochester, Fairfield Prep of Connecticut, and Regis Jesuit of Denver. Both Xavier and Gonzaga reached 2009's national 'single school' semifinals.

Organizers pitched the idea based on annual 'sister school' competitions held by Georgetown Prep's basketball and lacrosse teams. The trigger for this year's launch is a new, on-campus rugby field.

As prep schools have made deep inroads with school athletic departments, they have begun to introduce common scholastic features to rugby. They also have grown predominant in the single-school category, with all four of last year's semifinalists being parochial teams.

Saturday's slate features a Super League match between PAC and Old Blue, while tournament concessions will be donated to a local Jesuit middle school. Georgetown Prep is looking to bolster ties with both the local senior club and the feeder school.

Separately, Wednesday night's Utah-BYU match attracted 4,100 fans, an enormous midweek crowd that demonstrates the drawing power of university brands. Halftime proceedings featured local high school teams. The Utes downed the defending champs 31-29.

The USA moved past Portugal 17-10 today in its first game at the Hong Kong 7s, meaning hopes of reaching the quarterfinals turn on tomorrow's Fiji match. 'We basically have to win all three games or beat Thailand by 80+ points to move on,' coach Al Caravelli said in a prepared statement.

Related: High school yearbook tells the story

United States domestic player pool, Easter 2010
Forwards: Chris Biller (San Francisco Golden Gate), Peter Dahl (Belmont Shore), Pat Danahy (Life University), Brian Doyle (New York AC), Hugh Galligan (Boston), Matt Hawkins (Belmont Shore), William Haydock (Boston), Brian Howard (Old Puget Sound Beach), Nic Johnson (Denver Barbarians), Daniel LaPrevotte (San Francisco Golden Gate), Brian Lemay (undeclared), Anthony Lewis (Omaha Goats), Samu Manoa (San Francisco Golden Gate), Vai Notoa (Hawaii), Shawn Pittman (Bayside), Anthony Purpura (Boston), Jacob Sprague (New York AC), Louis Stanfill (Olympic Club), Phil Thiel (Life University)
 
Backs: Cory Blair (Belmont Shore), Mark Bokhoven (Denver Barbarians), Nick Edwards (New York AC), Taivalu Enosa (Belmont Shore), Hunter Leyland (Texas A&M), Valenese Malifa (Belmont Shore), Benny Mateialona (Life University), Vito Qaqa (Brigham Young Univ.), Zach Pangelinan (OMBAC), Leonard Peters (Gentlemen of Aspen), Mike Petri (New York AC), Milemoti Pulu (San Francisco Golden Gate), Andrew Suniula (Chicago Griffins), Kevin Swiryn (Old Puget Sound Beach), Tommy Saunders (Kansas City Blues), Michael Tuia (Hawaii Rugby Club)

Eligibility questions for California school-age playoff

Fledgling Rugby California is struggling to agree eligibility rules for its school-age championship, a question that's also nationally contentious.

Northern California advocates conventional high school guidelines, while Southern California prefers an under-19 framework, RC's president indicated last week in an email sent to members. Organizers are further wrestling with the question of whether its State Cup championship should insist on 'single school' teams or allow multi-school sides.

With some 4,000 registered youth and high school players, a figure that represents 13 percent of USARFU's 2009 total even as it undercounts the number of active youngsters, RC's decisions could well influence American and regional policymaking. 

Boulder presently stages parallel national championships, a U19 competition and a mislabeled single-school tournament that permits up to 3 players from outside institutions. The national body has said it anticipates retaining the all-star championship as a pathway to its U20 international team, while the latter devolves to state bodies such as RC. But the approach is far from popular.

Meanwhile, RC's statewide charter is of interest to officials in the Northern California local union and Southern California territory, both part of the Pacific Coast until 1995. In the interim, the sport's expansion as well as streamlined communications technology (i.e., the Internet) has begun to surmount the vacuum that once existed between the Monterey-Fresno and San Luis Obispo-Bakersfield axes.

The 2010 State Cup, to be contested May 15 at San Francisco's Rocca Field, will split the difference by staging single-school boys and U19 girls title matches. The question, however, will likely predominate the organization's April 17-18 meeting in Santa Barbara. Underlining the gathering's importance, USARFU youth director Mark Griffin is scheduled to be on hand, RC announced.

The competing eligibility models essentially turn on the question of optimum growth prospects. U19 advocates believe in casting the widest possible net, asserting that communities which don't have a thick network of school teams minimize playing opportunities. Scholastic adherents not only say the school system provides superior resources but also claim that credible youth organizations must cater to adolescent teenagers and cannot accommodate school graduates.

USARFU itself has an economic interest. Half of RC's $40 yearly per player dues go to Boulder and half stay home, paying for some of RC's playoff event and participant expenses as well as administrative costs. RC manages player registration and shares its database with the national body.

Related:
National HS champs on the way out as 'single school' guidelines loosened
HS champs: dilution more worrying than elimination
Midwest schools scotch eligibility change