It’s time for our manufactured national qualifier rankings. Up first is 17 Open.
The factors taken into consideration are 1) percent chance of qualifying; 2) number of eventual Open qualifiers; 3) percentage of teams eventually Open-qualified from the field; 4) number of nationally-ranked teams; 5) percentage of nationally-ranked teams in the field; and 6) average ranking of those teams. Those spots are then added up and divided by six to get an average ranking, with the goal being to get the lowest number, thus indicating the qualifier ranked highly in most every category.
It’s hardly an exact science. There are some obvious flaws with the way the averages are generated. For example, coming up with the chance of qualifying is done from subtracting the number of teams already having a bid from the number of teams in the field and then using the number of bids available and dividing that by the number of teams without a bid. This, of course, doesn’t take into account the odds of trickle down and get into the nitty-gritty of that, or whether it’s harder to qualify when no qualified teams are in the field versus when a bunch are in the field. The rankings are also biased and influenced heavily based on our own national rankings. The latest release from the month of May is used and not the rankings at the actual time of each qualifier.
At the same time, I do feel the number of eventual Open qualifiers and the percentage of in terms of the overall field is relevant and a strong reflector of just how difficult a qualifier was or wasn’t. The lower the percentage, the less difficult a qualifier was, as compared to a qualifier that may have 50 percent or more of the field eventual qualify.
I also feel there is a lot to be taken from the overall rankings and that even though the system is far from perfect it is fairly reflective of the strength of each individual qualifier. Generally speaking, the rankings more times than not match up with the “eye test” if you will.
Here are some takeaways from this year’s breakdown. It was not surprising in the least to see the Windy City Qualifier top out at No. 1 with the lowest average. That qualifier just felt like the strongest of the year. It averaged out at 4.3, which is well above last year’s winner, which was the Salt Lake Showdown at 2.8.
What really stood out with this year’s rankings is how closely bunched many qualifiers were. For instance, Mideast (5.7), Sunshine (5.7), Salt Lake (5.8), West Coast (6.2), Boston (6.3) and Northeast (6.7) all came in within a one-point range.
West Coast and Boston were both first-year qualifiers and came out of the gate strong. Arguably the biggest surprise was the strength of the West Coast Qualifier, which at the time didn’t appear to be very strong at all to me. However, the ranking suggests otherwise.
The same could be said for the Red Rock Rave. I was surprised how high it ranked, coming in the Top 5. I would not have guessed that. Not even close.
Another observation was how low down the Lone Star Classic finished. This was a qualifier that ranked No. 2 last year with an impressive average of 3.7, but dropped all the way to No. 11 with an average of 8.7 in 2026. With the event moving to Houston and being on the same weekend as Windy City, Big South and West Coast, there simply wasn’t the same amount of depth and talented teams as in year’s past.
You can view the rankings, as well as a full breakdown, below.
Final Rankings
1. Windy City: Avg. 4.3
T2. Mideast: 5.7
T2. Sunshine: 5.7
T4. Salt Lake Showdown: 5.8
T4. Red Rock Rave: 5.8
6. West Coast: 6.2
7. Boston: 6.3
8. Northeast: 6.7
9. Northern Lights: 7.7
10. Show Me: 8.5
11. Lone Star: 8.7
T12. Big South: 10
T12. Far Western: 10
14. Pacific Northwest: 12.2
***
1. WINDY CITY (Avg. 4.3)
2025 ranking: T3, Avg 5
Number of Teams: 40
Bids Available: 3
Number of Previously-Qualified Teams: 9
Percent Chance of Qualifying: 9.7 (6th)
Number of Eventual Open Qualifiers: 15 (2nd)
Percent Eventually Qualified from Field: 37.5 (5th)
Number of Ranked Teams from Vballrecruiter Top 50: 17 (T1st)
Percent of Ranked Teams in Field: 42.5 (2nd)
Average of Ranked Teams: 26.2 (10th)
***
2. MIDEAST (Avg. 5.7)
2025 ranking: T3, Avg 5
Number of Teams: 48
Bids Available: 4
Number of Previously-Qualified Teams: 5
Percent Chance of Qualifying: 9.3 (5th)
Number of Eventual Open Qualifiers: 13 (T5th)
Percent Eventually Qualified from Field: 27.1 (T10th)
Number of Ranked Teams from Vballrecruiter Top 50: 17 (T1st)
Percent of Ranked Teams in Field: 35.4 (8th)
Average of Ranked Teams: 25.1 (5th)
***
3. SUNSHINE CLASSIC (Avg. 5.7)
2025 ranking: 5, Avg 5.7
Number of Teams: 48
Bids Available: 4
Number of Previously-Qualified Teams: 1
Percent Chance of Qualifying: 8.5 (2nd)
Number of Eventual Open Qualifiers: 14 (T3rd)
Percent Eventually Qualified from Field: 29.2 (T8th)
Number of Ranked Teams from Vballrecruiter Top 50: 16 (3rd)
Percent of Ranked Teams in Field: 33.3 (9th)
Average of Ranked Teams: 25.8 (9th)
***
4. SALT LAKE SHOWDOWN (Avg. 5.8)
2025 ranking: 1, Avg 2.8
Number of Teams: 42
Bids Available: 4
Number of Previously-Qualified Teams: 15
Percent Chance of Qualifying: 14.8 (12th)
Number of Eventual Open Qualifiers: 17 (1st)
Percent Eventually Qualified from Field: 40.5 (4th)
Number of Ranked Teams from Vballrecruiter Top 50: 15 (T4th)
Percent of Ranked Teams in Field: 35.7 (7th)
Average of Ranked Teams: 25.5 (7th)
***
5. RED ROCK RAVE (Avg. 5.8)
2025 ranking: 11, Avg 8.7
Number of Teams: 32
Bids Available: 3
Number of Previously-Qualified Teams: 3
Percent Chance of Qualifying: 10.3 (8th)
Number of Eventual Open Qualifiers: 11 (7th)
Percent Eventually Qualified from Field: 34.4 (7th)
Number of Ranked Teams from Vballrecruiter Top 50: 13 (6th)
Percent of Ranked Teams in Field: 40.6 (5th)
Average of Ranked Teams: 21.5 (2nd)
***
6. WEST COAST (Avg. 6.2)
2025 ranking: n/a
Number of Teams: 17
Bids Available: 2
Number of Previously-Qualified Teams: 2
Percent Chance of Qualifying: 13.3 (11th)
Number of Eventual Open Qualifiers: 9 (T9th)
Percent Eventually Qualified from Field: 53 (1st)
Number of Ranked Teams from Vballrecruiter Top 50: 8 (11th)
Percent of Ranked Teams in Field: 47.1 (1st)
Average of Ranked Teams: 23.8 (4th)
***
7. BOSTON (Avg. 6.3)
2025 ranking: n/a
Number of Teams: 48
Bids Available: 4
Number of Previously-Qualified Teams: 0
Percent Chance of Qualifying: 8.3 (1st)
Number of Eventual Open Qualifiers: 13 (T5th)
Percent Eventually Qualified from Field: 27.1 (T10th)
Number of Ranked Teams from Vballrecruiter Top 50: 11 (T8th)
Percent of Ranked Teams in Field: 22.9 (13th)
Average of Ranked Teams: 19.4 (1st)
***
8. NORTHEAST (Avg. 6.7)
2025 ranking: 9, Avg 7.7
Number of Teams: 48
Bids Available: 4
Number of Previously-Qualified Teams: 3
Percent Chance of Qualifying: 8.9 (3rd)
Number of Eventual Open Qualifiers: 14 (T3rd)
Percent Eventually Qualified from Field: 29.2 (T8th)
Number of Ranked Teams from Vballrecruiter Top 50: 15 (T4th)
Percent of Ranked Teams in Field: 31.3 (10th)
Average of Ranked Teams: 27.3 (12th)
***
9. NORTHERN LIGHTS (Avg. 7.7)
2025 ranking: 8, Avg 7.3
Number of Teams: 26
Bids Available: 3
Number of Previously-Qualified Teams: 0
Percent Chance of Qualifying: 11.5 (9th)
Number of Eventual Open Qualifiers: 9 (T9th)
Percent Eventually Qualified from Field: 34.6 (6th)
Number of Ranked Teams from Vballrecruiter Top 50: 11 (T8th)
Percent of Ranked Teams in Field: 42.3 (3rd)
Average of Ranked Teams: 26.5 (11th)
***
10. SHOW ME (Avg. 8.5)
2025 ranking: 7, Avg 7.2
Number of Teams: 47
Bids Available: 4
Number of Previously-Qualified Teams: 6
Percent Chance of Qualifying: 9.8 (7th)
Number of Eventual Open Qualifiers: 10 (8th)
Percent Eventually Qualified from Field: 21.3 (12th)
Number of Ranked Teams from Vballrecruiter Top 50: 12 (7th)
Percent of Ranked Teams in Field: 25.5 (11th)
Average of Ranked Teams: 25.3 (6th)
***
11. LONE STAR CLASSIC (Avg. 8.7)
2025 ranking: 2, Avg 3.7
Number of Teams: 22
Bids Available: 3
Number of Previously-Qualified Teams: 4
Percent Chance of Qualifying: 16.7 (13th)
Number of Eventual Open Qualifiers: 9 (T9th)
Percent Eventually Qualified from Field: 40.9 (3rd)
Number of Ranked Teams from Vballrecruiter Top 50: 9 (10th)
Percent of Ranked Teams in Field: 40.9 (4th)
Average of Ranked Teams: 29.2 (13th)
***
12. BIG SOUTH (Avg. 10)
2025 ranking: 12, Avg. 9.2
Number of Teams: 35
Bids Available: 3
Number of Previously-Qualified Teams: 2
Percent Chance of Qualifying: 9.1 (4th)
Number of Eventual Open Qualifiers: 5 (13th)
Percent Eventually Qualified from Field: 14.3 (14th)
Number of Ranked Teams from Vballrecruiter Top 50: 5 (13th)
Percent of Ranked Teams in Field: 14.3 (13th)
Average of Ranked Teams: 23.2 (3rd)
***
13. FAR WESTERN (Avg. 10)
2025 ranking: 10, Avg 8
Number of Teams: 19
Bids Available: 3
Number of Previously-Qualified Teams: 3
Percent Chance of Qualifying: 18.8 (14th)
Number of Eventual Open Qualifiers: 8 (12th)
Percent Eventually Qualified from Field: 42 (2nd)
Number of Ranked Teams from Vballrecruiter Top 50: 7 (12th)
Percent of Ranked Teams in Field: 36.8 (6th)
Average of Ranked Teams: 35 (14th)
***
14. PACIFIC NORTHWEST (Avg. 12.2)
2025 ranking: 6, Avg 6.2
Number of Teams: 24
Bids Available: 3
Number of Previously-Qualified Teams: 1
Percent Chance of Qualifying: 13 (10th)
Number of Eventual Open Qualifiers: 4 (14th)
Percent Eventually Qualified from Field: 16.7 (13th)
Number of Ranked Teams from Vballrecruiter Top 50: 3 (14th)
Percent of Ranked Teams in Field: 12.5 (14th)
Average of Ranked Teams: 25.7 (8th)
