BOULDER, Colo. – Several Men’s Division I conferences still have sevens tournaments to hold, with each determining a team within the conference eligible for the May 23-24 USA Rugby College 7s National Championships. One deep and talented conference that is worth keeping an eye on is the Southeastern Collegiate Rugby Conference. The SCRC is using a series of three tournament stops over four weeks to qualify eight conference members into the April 18 SCRC 7s Championship in Knoxville, Tenn. Each of the three tournaments leading up to the SCRC Championship are open competitions, allowing any college team interested to compete. However, only SCRC teams have participated in the March 21 and 28 events in Gainesville, Fla., and Tuscaloosa, Ala., respectively. The third and final ‘open’ sevens tournament will take place April 11 in Tupelo, Miss. After the completion of the third leg in Tupelo, the top eight teams in the SCRC 7s points table will move on to compete for a Conference Championship in Knoxville. After two SCRC sevens series events, South Carolina and Tennessee have shown extremely well. In both events, the two Southeastern powers have met in the Cup Finals, with South Carolina winning, 26-21, in the Final of round one and the Gamecocks claiming first with a 29-17 win over Tennessee March 28. Alabama, who reached the SCRC 15s Championship game in the fall, has made the Cup Semifinals in each of the competitions’ first two series stops. Unfortunately for the Crimson Tide, the SCRC runner-up in 15s was held scoreless in each Cup consolation match, placing Alabama fourth in both Gainesville and Tuscaloosa. Two other sides that could make a run at the SCRC 7s Championship are Florida and Louisiana State. The Gators made the Cup Semifinals and eventually placed third in the series’ opening round, but took a step back when they finished third a week later. LSU, who missed out on the fall 15s due to a suspension, didn’t compete in the Gainesville leg, but left Tuscaloosa third-place finishers. Another strong performance by the Tigers April 11 should move the squad in the top eight of the conference, making them eligible for the April 18 Championship tournament and a real threat to the likes of South Carolina and Tennessee. After two stops, the bottom half of the SCRC 7s Series standings are very tight, and should create some tough-fought knock-out rounds in the final ‘open’ tournament as teams vie for a top-eight spot within the conference pecking order. Southeastern Collegiate Rugby Conference 7s Standings: 1) South Carolina (30) 2) Tennessee (28) 3) Alabama (24) 4) Florida (23) 5) Auburn (19) 6) Mississippi State (19) 7) Vanderbilt (18) 8) Georgia (17) 9) LSU (13) 10) Ole Miss (7)