Rugby Riot Ranking System: How It Works

Haven’t seen the rankings yet? You can find them here.

Ok rugby fan, our first order of business is to address this question:

“What exactly is this rankings system for, and why do you keep calling it a ‘system’ instead of just your rankings?”

Glad you asked.

And that’s the gist of it.

Will we ever share our opinions on the best teams in the country?

Absolutely—you’ll find them in the newsletter (which you should subscribe to). But you won’t find that in this system. This is meant to be an objective look at high school rugby performance across the USA. We hope you enjoy it and find it useful!

If you’re satisfied with that answer, feel free to go about your day! But if you absolutely must know more about how it all works, then follow along below. 👇

Key Terms to Know

Before we dive in, here are the key terms that make up the rankings system:

• C Value: The C Value is a constant that corresponds to a rank, so any team’s C Value can go up or down depending on where they are ranked any given week. The higher the ranking, the higher the C-Value. The purpose of the C Value is to represent the absolute strength of a team.

• K Value: The K Value is a multiplier awarded to a team’s overall game score (game result, offensive score and defensive score) based on the relative difference between their respective C Values. So a low ranked team (with a correspondingly low C Value), playing a higher ranked team (with a higher C Value) will receive a bigger bonus to their overall game score than if they played a team with a similar or weaker C Value. The purpose of the K Value is to reward teams that seek out tougher opponents to play against by giving their game score a ‘boost’, to reflect the higher level of competition.

• Offense Bonus: Extra points awarded based on how many points your team scores, capped to avoid blowouts from skewing the rankings.

• Defense Bonus: Extra points awarded for keeping your opponent under 20 points. We actually reward defense at a slightly higher rate than offense. Strong defense matters!

• Strength of Schedule: Teams playing tougher opponents are rewarded more than teams with easier schedules. This is handled naturally with the C Values and subsequent K Values.

• Upset Boost: A significant ranking boost for beating a much higher-ranked team.

How Rankings Are Calculated

1. Starting Points

Every team starts the season with 2000 points, no exceptions.

2. Game Results: Gaining and Losing Points

Every game contributes to your team’s ranking. Here’s how:

• Win or Lose: Winning contributes 50 points to the calculation, while losing contributes 5 points. These values are part of the formula that determines how much each team’s ranking changes.

• Offense Bonus: Score more points, and you’ll earn a bonus—up to a cap. For example, scoring 49 points against a tough opponent adds more to your ranking.

• Defense Bonus: Hold your opponent under 20 points, and you’ll get a defensive boost.

• Strength of Schedule: Playing a higher-ranked team is worth more, win or lose. Beating a much lower-ranked team won’t move the needle as much.

• Upset Boost: Beating a much higher-ranked opponent results in a significant boost to your ranking. This happens naturally through the C values and K values, which reflect the difficulty of the win.

3. C Values and K Values: In Action

Your team’s result (and C value) determines how much your ranking can change:

• Higher-ranked teams (with higher C values) see bigger swings in their rankings after games, especially if they lose to a lower ranked team (lower C Value) team.

• Lower-ranked teams (with lower C values) see more gradual changes, unless they upset a higher ranked (higher C Value) team.

The K Value, determined by each team’s C Value, becomes the multiplier for each team’s total points (Offensive points, defensive points, victory points etc.)

• Then, we determine the delta, or difference between each team’s total points. This DELTA is then added to the winning team’s points and deducted from the losing team’s points.

That’s how your team’s points climb or fall, thus placing your team in the rankings according to your points total.

4. Blowouts Are Balanced

Winning big is great, but the rankings system ensures that blowouts don’t give unfair rewards. Beating a team 50-0 doesn’t earn you significantly more points than winning 25-0.

Basically, we don’t want a team running away with it simply because they have an easier schedule. i.e. Thrashing a lesser team 110-0 does NOT mean that you deserve to be ranked above the Gonzagas and Charlotte Cardinals of the world.

5. Forfeits

If a team forfeits:

• The non-forfeiting team gains 50 points, and the forfeiting team loses 50 points.

• Forfeits also reset win streaks.

• If the game is rescheduled we will apply the normal game formula and reset the forfeit points.

6. Win Streaks & Badges

• Win Streaks: Win three or more games in a row, and your team gets a “🔥Win Streak” badge.

• State Champs: 🏆 Teams that win their state title will carry this badge until the end of the year.

• The 👋 Symbol gets applied to every team’s first game, welcoming them to the rankings.

7. Bonus for State Playoffs and Nationals

State Title and Nationals winners will get a bonus awarded. These bonus points then get reset at the end of the rugby season (August), putting every team back at 2000 points.

• State Title = 100 points

• Nationals Title = 120 points

8. Everyone is invited!

Any varsity team in the country can be included—just make sure your coach/team manager submits your scores! This ensures every team, no matter where they’re starting from, has a shot at climbing the rankings.

9. Historical Success Rewarded

While everyone goes back to 2000 points after the season, the top 50 teams will be rewarded by retaining their C Value heading into next season. That way, teams that play really well get recognition for past success while still giving every team a shot at climbing to the top.

10. Active/Inactive Teams

You’ll notice that we split the rankings into Active Teams and Inactive Teams. That’s just so you can see the rankings based on who is actually playing. When a team plays their first game of the year, they will automatically start with 2000 points and be added to the Active Teams.

For team’s whose seasons end early (looking at you NC), we will keep those teams in the Active category until everyone is done playing.

FAQ: Your Questions, Answered

Q: Is this for Single School teams or Club Teams?
A: Both! We have put Club and Single School into one ranking system. There’s enough cross-play in the spring season to warrant this, and we believe there needs to be one place to monitor performance at the high school level.

Q: Can a team gain points when they lose?
A: No, losing always results in a point deduction. However, bonuses for strong offensive or defensive performances can reduce the impact.

Q: How do strength of schedule and upsets affect rankings?
A: Beating a higher-ranked team earns more points, and upsets (wins against much higher-ranked opponents) result in a boost because of how C values and K values are calculated. Strength of schedule is handled naturally through the C Values.

Q: Why don’t blowouts count for more points?
A: Winning 50-0 doesn’t mean you’re twice as good as winning 25-0. We cap blowout bonuses to keep rankings fair and balanced. Let’s say you’re part of a league with a lot of new teams. Just because you may score a boat load of points doesn’t necessarily reflect where your team sits in comparison to the best teams in the country.

Q: What qualifies as a “blowout”?
A: If you score more than 49 points AND keep the opponent under 21 points…That is our threshold for a blowout.

Q: What happens with ties?
A: Ties give both teams 15 points, and bonuses for offense and defense still apply.

Q: How are C and K values calculated?
A: C values depend on your rank, while K values depend on the matchup. Both are designed to ensure rankings reflect performance fairly.

Q: Can JV teams join the rankings?
A: Not yet! Right now, the system is built for varsity teams, but we plan to include JV squads in the future.

Final Thoughts

This ranking system is built to reward hard work and strong performance. Every game matters, every team counts, and every point tells a story.

• We will be constantly monitoring the system in case any glitches or issues arise.

• We welcome feedback from coaches as we fine-tune this over the coming months.

If you made it this far, congrats! You get the nerd award 🤓 and you’ll probably be one of the 3 people who will reach out with questions—which you can do here: [email protected]

Cheers!

-The Rugby Riot Team