November 06, 2006
I'd really like to know the NCAA's method for picking playoff teams. Is there any thought or logic involved? Do they actually consider a teams' record, stats, and national rank? Or does the NCAA just get drunk and throw darts at a list of team names? Because, based on today's announcement of playoff teams, I strongly suspect it's the drunken dart throwing method that they uses and, boy, do they ever need help with their aim.
It never crossed my mind that UP would have trouble getting into the playoffs. They're the defending national champs, only lost three games, and ranked #6 nationally, so the question wasn't if UP would make the playoffs, but simply how high a seed they'd be. But it seems I made a mistake in using logic to asses the situation because, when the NCAA announced the playoffs today, UP was not included as one of the 16 seeds, making them the first defending champs in NCAA women's soccer history to be unseeded the following season.
Although, all was not lost. The NCAA, despite their infinite lack of wisdom, did see fit to include UP as an 'at-large selection,' so UP did make the playoffs, but only as an after thought. This means UP is in uber crappy playoff position, will likely be on the road for all their games, and faces a steep uphill battle, because being one of the best teams in the nation and only losing 3 games doesn't earn you more than that in the NCAA. At least not when you're a tiny, relatively unknown, less affluent school. Ahem.
So, UP is being shipped off to play BYU in Utah November 9th and, suffice it to say, come game time Thursday night, I'll be running around like a maniac, making sacrificial offerings to the soccer gods. And, hopefully, within 90 minutes of that, I'll be celebrating a glorious victory, too.
HOME | ARCHIVES
|