NCAA CHANGES PLAYOFFS!

[89Hen]

In an emergency meeting held on Sunday, the NCAA Football Championship Committee made a change to the format for the FCS playoff schedule this year. The field was set to be expanded to 20 teams for the first time in its history, but the committee now expects that there may be as few at 12 teams that are playoff eligible by their guidelines. The committee, which is comprise of athletic directors from FCS schools across the country, voted 12-2 to reduce the field to 12 for this year, which is how many the playoff field had from 1982 through 1985. The top four teams will be given a first round bye and the remaining 8 teams will play Thanksgiving weekend with the winners advancing to the quarterfinal round.

When asked why there were so few teams eligible this year, committee member Steve Parsons from the University of San Diego replied, "We think a lot of it has to do with Montana not winning or sharing the Big Sky Conference title, which many believe is the seventh sign of the apocolypse. It also could be Indiana State having a winning season. The bottom line is, we were afraid we'd have no excuse to leave a team from the Pioneer out of the field, or have to put in a 6-5 team to prevent Dayton or Jacksonville from getting an at-large berth."

http://web1.ncaa.org/onlineDir/exec/spo ... &sport=MWP

[AZGrizFan]

When asked why there were so few teams eligible this year, committee member Steve Parsons from the University of San Diego replied, "We think a lot of it has to do with Montana not winning or sharing the Big Sky Conference title, which many believe is the seventh sign of the apocolypse.

http://web1.ncaa.org/onlineDir/exec/spo ... &sport=MWP

Montana fans would agree.

[93henfan]

Not bad.

[putter]

In order to right the world, the commitee should just let the teams in by attendance and forget about record. That way they can get the highest bids for every round and then determine seeding starting with the largest geographic state the teams are from..

[89Hen]

In order to right the world, the commitee should just let the teams in by attendance and forget about record. That way they can get the highest bids for every round and then determine seeding starting with the largest geographic state the teams are from..

Might as well.

At least I can feel good about being opposed to expanding the field to 20 from the start. The problem was never that there were too many good teams being left out, it was that they were often scraping the bottom of the barrel for 15 and 16.

[dbackjon]

In order to right the world, the commitee should just let the teams in by attendance and forget about record. That way they can get the highest bids for every round and then determine seeding starting with the largest geographic state the teams are from..

Might as well.

At least I can feel good about being opposed to expanding the field to 20 from the start. The problem was never that there were too many good teams being left out, it was that they were often scraping the bottom of the barrel for 15 and 16.

I don't mind the expansion, because it was driven by giving auto-bids to the NEC and Big South.

20 out of 100+ teams is not a lot

There are still some very good teams that will be left out, but only because of the criteria used by the NCAA, and the realities of FCS football. Many teams play a bodybag game, or two, which gives them a loss. and teams in the West, especially, have little choice but to schedule a D2 team so to get at least 5 home games.

Southern Utah is a prime example this year. Two close FBS losses, and a local D2 game put them out of consideration. But they are a solid team.

[Cap'n Cat]

In order to right the world, the commitee should just let the teams in by attendance and forget about record. That way they can get the highest bids for every round and then determine seeding starting with the largest geographic state the teams are from..

Interesting development. Word is that they are still in session, considering a proposal from UNI AD Troy Dannen which states that schools from the #1 corn producing state in the union get top consideration for their bid.


"Fvck Montana!!!!"

[93henfan]

In order to right the world, the commitee should just let the teams in by attendance and forget about record. That way they can get the highest bids for every round and then determine seeding starting with the largest geographic state the teams are from..

Might as well.

At least I can feel good about being opposed to expanding the field to 20 from the start. The problem was never that there were too many good teams being left out, it was that they were often scraping the bottom of the barrel for 15 and 16.

You also have to consider the angle that the new format rewards a team for being Top 12, as they'll now get a week's rest. It also rewards the Top 4, as they'll be playing a team that was beat up in a playoff game the prior week.

[89Hen]

20 out of 100+ teams is not a lot

There are still some very good teams that will be left out, but only because of the criteria used by the NCAA, and the realities of FCS football. Many teams play a bodybag game, or two, which gives them a loss. and teams in the West, especially, have little choice but to schedule a D2 team so to get at least 5 home games.

Southern Utah is a prime example this year. Two close FBS losses, and a local D2 game put them out of consideration. But they are a solid team.

Solid teams? That's what the criteria is?

I'm tired of SUU. This is the third year we've heard the same story from them. Take out the FBS and D2 games and they're 5-3 with no wins over playoff teams.

Maybe it's just a year of parity, but IMO this is going to be the weakest field I can recall since 2002 when Fordham, Northeastern, Murray AND Eastern Illinois, a weak Bethune... made it. It was such a weak field, McNeese not only won a first round game, they made it to Chatty.

This was just a bad year to expand.

[Cap'n Cat]

SUU fans are precious, too. UNI goes out there, rapes them, and somehow it's a win for the 'Birds.