According to Cal South Rules:
1 - Top 4 from prior year CRL are in
2- 4 Semi-finalists from National Cup are in, now remove any duplicates as they become "open"
3 - Balance/open from play ins
http://media.calsouth.com/data/Down...17_APPENDIXCQualificationProcess.pdf?rev=3621
That said it appears that in the '05s Cal South offered automatic bids to top 6 in CRL. As per page #4 of the rules, they can do whatever they want. It is a rapidly evolving landscape & everyone is trying to stay relevant, but in my opinion if you didn't qualify 1-4 in CRL or as a semi-finalist in National Cup then you should have to play your way in.