Take a look at the USA Men's Sevens team's roster for this weekend's Rugby World Cup Sevens and you'll get a look into what head coach Mike Friday likes in his Eagles—speed, height, balance, and versatility.

OK, not all of the players are tall, but when he's had a choice and has healthy alternatives, he picks rangy players who can run and play in the air. But he also wants versatility, and it's worth noting that every player has been getting significant work at other positions ahead of the three-day tournament, which gets underway Friday, July 20, in San Francisco.

Versatility

Maka Unufe has evolved to play center and added halfback and forward roles to his repertoire.

"Maka can play anywhere on the pitch," Friday said of Unufe, who has been with the program since 2011 when he was a 19-year-old wing who scored the most tries in the Pan-Am Games. 

Flexibility, especially when injury replacements in the overall squad are not allowed once the World Cup begins, will be crucial.

"Kevon (Williams) and Carlin (Isles) are developing as halfbacks," Friday continued. "Perry (Baker) is still developing as a center and he's learning. Martin (Iosefo) and (Stephen) Tomasin can play anywhere. Brett Thompson can play on the wing. Madison (Hughes) can play both halfback positions and at center, and he's been working on his play as a hooker. We've been practicing all of this, and we know they can do it. At some point, you’ve got to take the training wheels off the bike."

Chris Mattina and Patrick Blair are the injury replacements on the USA team. They will be called up only if a player is injured before the tournament starts.

The Baker-Isles Show

Wings Perry Baker and Carlin Isles have been nagging Friday for years to be allowed to play on the same field at the same time. For years Friday said they weren't ready, but he has also been working on both to make it happen. Isles can play scrumhalf as well as wing, and Baker can play some center.

It's still a work in progress, but at the Canada 7s in Vancouver, it produced some glorious moments.

How @MikeFriday09 just proved himself wrong, and we're OK with that. @CanadaSevens @WorldRugby7s #Canada7s @Eagles7s @SpeedSt11ck @Carlin_Isles https://t.co/Q4DoP9z5xZ

— Alex Goff (@goffrugbyreport) March 10, 2018

?Forced...✋?right there I think you mean 3 years hard work behind closed doors by both ???? to learn the game and be position flexible. ??? #Dawgslyf

— Mike Friday (@MikeFriday09) March 10, 2018

"They say they wore me down but they have also worked at their craft," Friday said. "We broke the deadlock against New Zealand in Vancouver, and while I think Perry's got some work to do in identifying gaps and working with Carlin, we know they can do it and it just makes us more flexible across the board."

And maybe a little scary.

Restarts, Restarts, Restarts

Here's where the height options come in. Brett Thompson has missed a ton of rugby in the last four years because of injuries, but now that he's healthy, Friday has put Thompson in the squad because he has a fearsome combination of speed, strength, and ability in the air. 

And winning restarts is a huge part of the USA game.

"One thing that's for sure in the game of sevens, there will be restarts," Friday said.

The USA led the rest of the World Series in restart retention by a wide margin. This is basically how many times you win the ball back when you kick off. The Eagles won over 40 percent of their restarts, while the next best was around 25 percent.

"We're recognized as the best in the world at restarts—possession is everything," Friday said. "We try to hit a 50 percent return and we're close. We're very fortunate to have the restart man in Folau Niua. It starts with him. A lot of it does depend on your kicker being able to put the ball where you need it to be. You can’t underestimate the value of Folau."

Niua's accuracy with his kicks has been impressive, but Hughes, also, has shown some significant improvement in kickoffs. As for the chasers, Unufe, Danny Barrett, Ben Pinkelman, Matai Leuta, Baker, and Williams are all solid to excellent at winning the ball in the air. Often Iosefo is the guy chasing those tap-downs and making something happen.

This aspect of play will be hugely influential in the USA's success.

Leadership And Depth

This season the Eagles have played without key personnel. Baker was hurt twice, and in his stead, Isles became the top try-scorer in the World Series. Hughes was out, and yet the USA won Las Vegas without him. Pinkelman stepped in as captain—a role Friday thrust on him in the Silicon Valley Seven warmup tournament—and blossomed.

"Ben Pinkelman is a dominant character in the leadership group and he did a fantastic job in Silicon Valley," Friday said. "Technically he’s very astute. He’s a strategist. When Madison got injured it meant that Pinky had to come out of his comfort zone. He’s much happier minding his own business, staying out of the limelight, not doing the media stuff, and just chasing kicks and forcing turnovers. But he’s done really well and that and other guys stepping up has allowed Madison to share the burden.

"There’s a shared ownership across the squad, that’s what you need. You need that shared ownership, and when they’re self-governing, they become tighter as a unit."

Friday acknowledged that all of the injuries have been a "massive headache," but in the end, it forced players to play out of position and forced game time on players who needed it. The fact that the USA encountered success at the same time was a bonus.

What does that mean now? No one can know. The USA is capable of winning the World Cup. The Eagles have shown that this year. But so are several other teams, with South Africa and Fiji probably at the top of that list. But if the Eagles do win, it will be thanks to restarts, flexibility, and leadership... and maybe a little razzle-dazzle when Isles and Baker take the field together.