USA hooker Chris Biller had one of his stronger games Saturday against Georgia, hitting his lineout throws, getting the strikes in the scrum despite being under pressure, and making some key tackles and counter-rucks.

For the former Cal All American, this could be a year where he takes complete hold of the national team job. Certainly he has come into camp with a professional attitude, say coaches.

For a hooker, there’s a lot of work to take care of on the field. You are expected to be as strong as a prop, yet active like a flanker, with sometimes a little scrumhalf thrown in. You need to have the skill and timing to get those lineout throws right, and don’t forget the scrum, either.

Against Georgia, there was little margin for error in the lineouts. The early throws went to Todd Clever at the back, and Biller’s throws had to be high and hard enough to elude the Georgia jumpers, but low enough to be hauled in by Clever. He did that superbly. Only late in the game was Georgia able to disrupt a few USA lineouts.

“The lineouts have been solid,” Biller told RUGBYMag.com. “We got a new system in that’s pretty simple. I think Scott LaValla and Brian Doyle have been really steady in the lineout. We’ve have good lifts, good jumps, and good tempo, and that’s a good combination.”

At the end of the game, Georgia deserves kudos for their hard work.

“Credit to Georgia,” said Biller. “They started getting up in our spots and made good guesses. I probably could have thrown a better ball, but more than anything, credit to Georgia.”

In the scrums, Biller and Shawn Pittman spent a lot of last week working together.

“Their tighthead is strong and we needed to be ready for that,” said Biller. “And at tighthead Eric Fry is getting better every game. We felt the scrum was stable.”

Out in the loose player is where Biller can really make an impact. At his best he wins the point of contact and bounces right onto his feet and is ready to do it again. The USA rucked very well against Georgia, allowing them to get quick ball.

But it’s all symbiotic, said Biller. The forwards produce quick ball for the backs, but the backs help the forwards too.

“It helped that our backs put us on the front foot so much,” said Biller. “So it was easier for us to get those first guys off the ball. Dan Pane puts us through the works every week on that.”

The USA will have to take care of all of that, and more, against Italy.

“Italy is a tough ballclub,” said Biller. “if we thought the set piece was tough [against Georgia], it will be even tougher [against Italy]. But if we compete and keep improving hopefully we can get a scalp. Hopefully with our new style we can ask some questions of them.”