In basketball and football, it’s always about the rankings — who’s up, who’s down, and which team deserves to be where.

That’s not exactly the case with rugby. There’s no poll with considerable authority, and coach Jack Clark doesn’t think much of them. Maybe that’s because his team is practically always No. 1, and the Bears make a joke of the rankings when they blow out Top-5 teams.

Now, however, the rankings have some purpose 1) because they determine playoff seeding and 2) because they guarantee home-field advantage in some instances.

Cal, for one, locked up the top overall seed Saturday, when it defeated UC Davis, 38-10, in its first road match since Feb. 8.

The Round of 16 begins April 18 in Albuquerque, N.M., and the Bears will be competing for their fifth straight national championship.

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