October 31 Bracket Predictions

[UNHWildCats]

I had Jacksonville State there but then decided that being Big Sky champ might boost EWU over Jax State.

Over a potentially 11-0 JSU team with a win over an SEC team and averages around 10,000 more in attendance than EWU?
Thats a good one, LOL

what does attendance have to do with detemrining a seeds spot?

And yes. Big Sky is light years better than the Ohio Valley.... Jax State is tops, we will likely see in the SEMO matchup that SEMO is about 10 miles behind Jax State and the rest are about 100 miles behind SEMO... SEC win is nice... but EWU at 9-2 with the Big Sky schedule is > Jax State and OVC schedule

[UNHWildCats]

It's a mess. I looked at what remains for teams and through my own feelings chose winners and losers. It may or may not playout like that but if theres a team missing you think should be in, its simply because I dont think they will get to 7 division I wins. I had a real problem with this too, because the field gets weak on the backend. If my predictions hold up we have a very real chance of seeing a 6 win team (div I wins) make the field as an at-large over two of the teams I put in.

Auto Qualifiers
Eastern Washington - Big Sky Champion
Liberty - Big South Champion
William & Mary - Colonial Athletic Champion
Bethune-Cookman - MEAC Champion
Northern Iowa - Missouri Valley Champion
Jacksonville State - Ohio Valley Champion
Lehigh - Patriot Champion
Stephen F. Austin - Southland Champion
Appalachian State - Southern Champion
Robert Morris - Northeast Champion

At-Large Selections
Montana State - Big Sky
Deleware - Colonial
Villanova - Colonial
New Hampshire - Colonial
Massachusetts - Colonial
South Carolina State - MEAC
Southeast Missouri State - Ohio Valley
Wofford - Southern
Central Connecticut State - Northeast
Dayton - Pioneer

Who didn't make the field and why?
Montana - I picked them to lose to Montana State and thus failing to achieve 7 division I wins.
Weber State - I picked them to lose to Montana State and Texas Tech and thus failing to achieve 7 division I wins.
James Madison - I picked them to lose to William & Mary and thus failing to achieve 7 division I wins.
North Dakota State - I picked them to lose their three remaining games and thus failing to achieve 7 division I wins.
Holy Cross - I picked them to lose to Lehigh and thus not achieving 7 division I wins.
Chattanooga - I picked them to lose to Auburn and Wofford and thus not achieving 7 division I wins.
Furman - I picked them to lose to Georgia Southern and thus not achieving 7 division I wins.
Georgia Southern - I picked them to lose to Appalachian State and thus not achieving 7 division I wins.

You get the idea.


The Bracket

Northern Iowa
-------------------------------> #1 Appalachian State
South Carolina State


..................................New Hampshire
..................................SEMO


..................................Lehigh
..................................#5 Delware

Bethune-Cookman
-------------------------------> #4 William & Mary
Liberty




Robert Morris
-------------------------------->#3 Jacksonville State
Dayton


..................................Wofford
..................................Villanova


..................................Montana State
..................................SFA


Central Connecticut State
---------------------------------> #2 Eastern Washington
Massachusetts

If Montana State beats Montana and Weber, as you have postulated, they will be the Big Sky Champion by virtue of having beat Eastern head-to-head. sigh.

[UNHWildCats]

It's a mess. I looked at what remains for teams and through my own feelings chose winners and losers. It may or may not playout like that but if theres a team missing you think should be in, its simply because I dont think they will get to 7 division I wins. I had a real problem with this too, because the field gets weak on the backend. If my predictions hold up we have a very real chance of seeing a 6 win team (div I wins) make the field as an at-large over two of the teams I put in.

Auto Qualifiers
Eastern Washington - Big Sky Champion
Liberty - Big South Champion
William & Mary - Colonial Athletic Champion
Bethune-Cookman - MEAC Champion
Northern Iowa - Missouri Valley Champion
Jacksonville State - Ohio Valley Champion
Lehigh - Patriot Champion
Stephen F. Austin - Southland Champion
Appalachian State - Southern Champion
Robert Morris - Northeast Champion

At-Large Selections
Montana State - Big Sky
Deleware - Colonial
Villanova - Colonial
New Hampshire - Colonial
Massachusetts - Colonial
South Carolina State - MEAC
Southeast Missouri State - Ohio Valley
Wofford - Southern
Central Connecticut State - Northeast
Dayton - Pioneer

Who didn't make the field and why?
Montana - I picked them to lose to Montana State and thus failing to achieve 7 division I wins.
Weber State - I picked them to lose to Montana State and Texas Tech and thus failing to achieve 7 division I wins.
James Madison - I picked them to lose to William & Mary and thus failing to achieve 7 division I wins.
North Dakota State - I picked them to lose their three remaining games and thus failing to achieve 7 division I wins.
Holy Cross - I picked them to lose to Lehigh and thus not achieving 7 division I wins.
Chattanooga - I picked them to lose to Auburn and Wofford and thus not achieving 7 division I wins.
Furman - I picked them to lose to Georgia Southern and thus not achieving 7 division I wins.
Georgia Southern - I picked them to lose to Appalachian State and thus not achieving 7 division I wins.

You get the idea.


The Bracket

Northern Iowa
-------------------------------> #1 Appalachian State
South Carolina State


..................................New Hampshire
..................................SEMO


..................................Lehigh
..................................#5 Delware

Bethune-Cookman
-------------------------------> #4 William & Mary
Liberty




Robert Morris
-------------------------------->#3 Jacksonville State
Dayton


..................................Wofford
..................................Villanova


..................................Montana State
..................................SFA


Central Connecticut State
---------------------------------> #2 Eastern Washington
Massachusetts

wait if Montana State beats Montana and Weber State that means they will be 7-1 in the Big Sky Conference and Eastern Washington if they win against Idaho State will be 7-1 and Northern Arizona already has 2 loses and so does Montana and Weber State so they couldn't win the Conference so it would be a tie between Eastern Washington and Montana State both at 7-1 in the Big Sky Conference so it would come down the tie breaker between Eastern Washington and Montana State and Montana State won that game 30-7 so then Montana State would get the Auto Bid and Eastern would not be ranked number 2

I would still have EWU seeded #2 and perhaps Montana State could sneak into a seed, but wins vs Drake and Fort Lewis dont help. Yes EWU played Central Washington... but thats only one weak opponent compared to two for Montana State. EWU still gets the seed as an at-large

[UNHWildCats]

If Montana State beats Montana and Weber, as you have postulated, they will be the Big Sky Champion by virtue of having beat Eastern head-to-head. sigh.

my appologies. I still would give EWU the seed I think... because that NAU loss is looking uglier every day... and two weak opponents Drake and Fort Lewis dont help

[bluehenbillk]

Travis, just curious, do you have UNH beating W&M or 'Nova in the next 2 weeks?

[UNHWildCats]

Travis, just curious, do you have UNH beating W&M or 'Nova in the next 2 weeks?

Nova. But I aint ruling out UNH closing out with three wins to go 8-3

[clenz]

Wait...so one MVFC team? Wow.


That one MVFC team finishes the season 8-3, then gets sent to SC State....even though UNI will outbid anyone outside of ASU, Montana, and UD....in the PIG for the right to play #1....aka one of the last teams in?


Wow...just wow

[freebird]

UPDATE: I changed Montana State to Big Sky Champ and EWU to at-large based on the fact in my predictions both would be 7-1 and Montana State gets tie breaker. EWU still gets the seed though based on Montana State having wins over Drake and Fort Lewis compared to just one weak opponent for EWU OOC (Central Washington) and the fact that Montana State loss to NAU looks a bit uglier today.



It's a mess. I looked at what remains for teams and through my own feelings chose winners and losers. It may or may not playout like that but if theres a team missing you think should be in, its simply because I dont think they will get to 7 division I wins. I had a real problem with this too, because the field gets weak on the backend. If my predictions hold up we have a very real chance of seeing a 6 win team (div I wins) make the field as an at-large over two of the teams I put in.

Auto Qualifiers
Montana State - Big Sky Champion
Liberty - Big South Champion
William & Mary - Colonial Athletic Champion
Bethune-Cookman - MEAC Champion
Northern Iowa - Missouri Valley Champion
Jacksonville State - Ohio Valley Champion
Lehigh - Patriot Champion
Stephen F. Austin - Southland Champion
Appalachian State - Southern Champion
Robert Morris - Northeast Champion

At-Large Selections
Eastern Washington - Big Sky
Deleware - Colonial
Villanova - Colonial
New Hampshire - Colonial
Massachusetts - Colonial
South Carolina State - MEAC
Southeast Missouri State - Ohio Valley
Wofford - Southern
Central Connecticut State - Northeast
Dayton - Pioneer

Who didn't make the field and why?
Montana - I picked them to lose to Montana State and thus failing to achieve 7 division I wins.
Weber State - I picked them to lose to Montana State and Texas Tech and thus failing to achieve 7 division I wins.
James Madison - I picked them to lose to William & Mary and thus failing to achieve 7 division I wins.
North Dakota State - I picked them to lose their three remaining games and thus failing to achieve 7 division I wins.
Holy Cross - I picked them to lose to Lehigh and thus not achieving 7 division I wins.
Chattanooga - I picked them to lose to Auburn and Wofford and thus not achieving 7 division I wins.
Furman - I picked them to lose to Georgia Southern and thus not achieving 7 division I wins.
Georgia Southern - I picked them to lose to Appalachian State and thus not achieving 7 division I wins.

You get the idea.


The Bracket

Northern Iowa
-------------------------------> #1 Appalachian State
South Carolina State


..................................New Hampshire
..................................SEMO


..................................Lehigh
..................................#5 Delware

Bethune-Cookman
-------------------------------> #4 William & Mary
Liberty




Robert Morris
-------------------------------->#3 Jacksonville State
Dayton


..................................Wofford
..................................Villanova


..................................Montana State
..................................SFA


Central Connecticut State
---------------------------------> #2 Eastern Washington
Massachusetts

For this to happen UNH will have to beat either William and Mary or Villanova to get to 7 wins right?
Which one do you see them beating?

I think Montana beats MSU at home and gets the 3rd BSC birth possibly in place of UNH.
WI/NIU is a play in game.

Right now I'd say South Carolina State and Dayton are the last two in, and could be had. The Pioneer league will likely get a representitive, but how do you choose between Dayton and Jacksonville? SC St's bid could well go to the UNI/WI loser.

[freebird]

whoops

[JSU02]

Over a potentially 11-0 JSU team with a win over an SEC team and averages around 10,000 more in attendance than EWU?
Thats a good one, LOL

what does attendance have to do with detemrining a seeds spot?

And yes. Big Sky is light years better than the Ohio Valley.... Jax State is tops, we will likely see in the SEMO matchup that SEMO is about 10 miles behind Jax State and the rest are about 100 miles behind SEMO... SEC win is nice... but EWU at 9-2 with the Big Sky schedule is > Jax State and OVC schedule

The NCAA wants to make money, so yes, they do look at attendance when determining playoff games. A two loss EWU will NOT be a #2 seed. Nothing on EWU's schedule stands out as stellar to me. The biggest W is over a Montana team that is having a down year.

[EWURanger]

but EWU at 9-2 with the Big Sky schedule is > Jax State and OVC schedule

Concur. Outside of JSU and SEMO, the rest of the OVC is pretty sub-standard.

[cats2506]

I would still have EWU seeded #2 and perhaps Montana State could sneak into a seed, but wins vs Drake and Fort Lewis dont help. Yes EWU played Central Washington... but thats only one weak opponent compared to two for Montana State. EWU still gets the seed as an at-large

at 6-3 Drake isnt a bottom dweller, and is still an FCS win, MSU's DII win over Ft Lewis was an absolute blowout, EWU's win over DII Cent Wash was a 35-32 squeaker, MSU's win over EWU was a dominating 30-7

To each his own I guess but it looks like you got a thing for the Eagles.

[Mvemjsunpx]

The NCAA wants to make money, so yes, they do look at attendance when determining playoff games.

Not when determining seeds. The only place money comes in is determining home games in unseeded matchups.


That being said, I don't think there's any way a 9-2 EWU with a non-DI win gets a higher seed than an 11-0 Jax State with an SEC win. The Big Sky is certainly better than the OVC, but not by that much. If Eastern was 9-2 with an all-DI schedule, then maybe, but it won't happen here.

[UNHWildCats]

Wait...so one MVFC team? Wow.


That one MVFC team finishes the season 8-3, then gets sent to SC State....even though UNI will outbid anyone outside of ASU, Montana, and UD....in the PIG for the right to play #1....aka one of the last teams in?


Wow...just wow

dont read anything into what team is on top or bottom... i just put them in... I wasnt suggesting anyone as a road team or home team.

[UNHWildCats]

UPDATE: I changed Montana State to Big Sky Champ and EWU to at-large based on the fact in my predictions both would be 7-1 and Montana State gets tie breaker. EWU still gets the seed though based on Montana State having wins over Drake and Fort Lewis compared to just one weak opponent for EWU OOC (Central Washington) and the fact that Montana State loss to NAU looks a bit uglier today.



It's a mess. I looked at what remains for teams and through my own feelings chose winners and losers. It may or may not playout like that but if theres a team missing you think should be in, its simply because I dont think they will get to 7 division I wins. I had a real problem with this too, because the field gets weak on the backend. If my predictions hold up we have a very real chance of seeing a 6 win team (div I wins) make the field as an at-large over two of the teams I put in.

Auto Qualifiers
Montana State - Big Sky Champion
Liberty - Big South Champion
William & Mary - Colonial Athletic Champion
Bethune-Cookman - MEAC Champion
Northern Iowa - Missouri Valley Champion
Jacksonville State - Ohio Valley Champion
Lehigh - Patriot Champion
Stephen F. Austin - Southland Champion
Appalachian State - Southern Champion
Robert Morris - Northeast Champion

At-Large Selections
Eastern Washington - Big Sky
Deleware - Colonial
Villanova - Colonial
New Hampshire - Colonial
Massachusetts - Colonial
South Carolina State - MEAC
Southeast Missouri State - Ohio Valley
Wofford - Southern
Central Connecticut State - Northeast
Dayton - Pioneer

Who didn't make the field and why?
Montana - I picked them to lose to Montana State and thus failing to achieve 7 division I wins.
Weber State - I picked them to lose to Montana State and Texas Tech and thus failing to achieve 7 division I wins.
James Madison - I picked them to lose to William & Mary and thus failing to achieve 7 division I wins.
North Dakota State - I picked them to lose their three remaining games and thus failing to achieve 7 division I wins.
Holy Cross - I picked them to lose to Lehigh and thus not achieving 7 division I wins.
Chattanooga - I picked them to lose to Auburn and Wofford and thus not achieving 7 division I wins.
Furman - I picked them to lose to Georgia Southern and thus not achieving 7 division I wins.
Georgia Southern - I picked them to lose to Appalachian State and thus not achieving 7 division I wins.

You get the idea.


The Bracket

Northern Iowa
-------------------------------> #1 Appalachian State
South Carolina State


..................................New Hampshire
..................................SEMO


..................................Lehigh
..................................#5 Delware

Bethune-Cookman
-------------------------------> #4 William & Mary
Liberty




Robert Morris
-------------------------------->#3 Jacksonville State
Dayton


..................................Wofford
..................................Villanova


..................................Montana State
..................................SFA


Central Connecticut State
---------------------------------> #2 Eastern Washington
Massachusetts

For this to happen UNH will have to beat either William and Mary or Villanova to get to 7 wins right?
Which one do you see them beating?

I think Montana beats MSU at home and gets the 3rd BSC birth possibly in place of UNH.
WI/NIU is a play in game.

Right now I'd say South Carolina State and Dayton are the last two in, and could be had. The Pioneer league will likely get a representitive, but how do you choose between Dayton and Jacksonville? SC St's bid could well go to the UNI/WI loser.

While I did place a Pioneer team in my bracket I dont think one will make it. a 7-4 Montana with only 6 division I wins would be chosen before Jacksonville or Dayton.

[UNHWildCats]

but EWU at 9-2 with the Big Sky schedule is > Jax State and OVC schedule

Concur. Outside of JSU and SEMO, the rest of the OVC is pretty sub-standard.

And really SEMO hasnt done a thing to prove their not sub-standard too.... they look on par with Jacksonville State because of how bad the rest are, but I don't think SEMO is as good as people think they are and Jax State is going to demolish them.

[UNHWildCats]

I would still have EWU seeded #2 and perhaps Montana State could sneak into a seed, but wins vs Drake and Fort Lewis dont help. Yes EWU played Central Washington... but thats only one weak opponent compared to two for Montana State. EWU still gets the seed as an at-large

at 6-3 Drake isnt a bottom dweller, and is still an FCS win, MSU's DII win over Ft Lewis was an absolute blowout, EWU's win over DII Cent Wash was a 35-32 squeaker, MSU's win over EWU was a dominating 30-7

To each his own I guess but it looks like you got a thing for the Eagles.

Drake is a bottom dweller considering the conference they pile up wins in.

[∞∞∞]

I just had a crazy thought about Jacksonville. We're their best win, which isn't really that impressive. But if we end up 8-3 which is highly likely, is there any chance ODU might sneak into the Top 25 in the last poll of the regular season, even if it's at 25? I mean, there isn't much of a chance, but the way some of these pollsters vote, the chance is still there. If that happens, Jacksonville would have a Top 25 win on the resume, and a new case for a playoff bid.

Also, having seen JU play in person, they are very good and disciplined, and personally, I believe they deserve a spot. They played us better than W&M did, and did it the entire game. That's not to say they'd beat W&M, because I don't think that, but I think they'd give a team like Cal Poly a helluva game, and probably some other current Top 25 teams.

[siuham]

I just had a crazy thought about Jacksonville. We're their best win, which isn't really that impressive. But if we end up 8-3 which is highly likely, is there any chance ODU might sneak into the Top 25 in the last poll of the regular season, even if it's at 25? I mean, there isn't much of a chance, but the way some of these pollsters vote, the chance is still there. If that happens, Jacksonville would have a Top 25 win on the resume, and a new case for a playoff bid.

Also, having seen JU play in person, they are very good and disciplined, and personally, I believe they deserve a spot. They played us better than W&M did, and did it the entire game. That's not to say they'd beat W&M, because I don't think that, but I think they'd give a team like Cal Poly a helluva game, and probably some other current Top 25 teams.

I considered ODU this week. With the way the year has gone, it's not out of the question.

[EWURanger]

That being said, I don't think there's any way a 9-2 EWU with a non-DI win gets a higher seed than an 11-0 Jax State with an SEC win.

We have 6 Division I wins already. Oh, you mean FBS win. I do understand your points, though, and even if we win out I don't think we'll get a seed above Jacksonville State. Would I want to see us play them in the play-offs? Hell yeah I would.

The Big Sky is certainly better than the OVC, but not by that much.

1. CAA 24.9
2. Big Sky 32.2
3. MVFC 32.7
4. SoCon 33.1
5. Great West 40.6
6. Southland 47.4
7. OVC 65.0
8. NEC 65.4
9. IAA Independents 74.3
10. Ivy 75.5
11. Patriot 82.4
12. SWAC 89.2
13. Pioneer 89.4
14. Big South 90.3
15. MEAC 104.8

You must be one of these move-uppers that's unable to give anyone else in the conference any credit.

[EWURanger]

I would still have EWU seeded #2 and perhaps Montana State could sneak into a seed, but wins vs Drake and Fort Lewis dont help. Yes EWU played Central Washington... but thats only one weak opponent compared to two for Montana State. EWU still gets the seed as an at-large

at 6-3 Drake isnt a bottom dweller, and is still an FCS win, MSU's DII win over Ft Lewis was an absolute blowout, EWU's win over DII Cent Wash was a 35-32 squeaker, MSU's win over EWU was a dominating 30-7

To each his own I guess but it looks like you got a thing for the Eagles.

Dude, you know CWU is a perrenial championship contender in Division II, right? They are light years ahead of Fort Lewis.

[Mvemjsunpx]

We have 6 Division I wins already. Oh, you mean FBS win. I do understand your points, though, and even if we win out I don't think we'll get a seed above Jacksonville State. Would I want to see us play them in the play-offs? Hell yeah I would.

The Big Sky is certainly better than the OVC, but not by that much.

1. CAA 24.9
2. Big Sky 32.2
3. MVFC 32.7
4. SoCon 33.1
5. Great West 40.6
6. Southland 47.4
7. OVC 65.0
8. NEC 65.4
9. IAA Independents 74.3
10. Ivy 75.5
11. Patriot 82.4
12. SWAC 89.2
13. Pioneer 89.4
14. Big South 90.3
15. MEAC 104.8

You must be one of these move-uppers that's unable to give anyone else in the conference any credit.

Wow, you managed to misinterpret most everything I said.

We have 6 Division I wins already. Oh, you mean FBS win.

No, that's not at all what I meant. I meant that EWU played a non-DI while JSU didn't. Unless they changed it this year, the playoff selection criteria specifically mentions some sort of (small) preference for teams that play all-DI schedules.

You must be one of these move-uppers that's unable to give anyone else in the conference any credit.

I don't think I mind-swapped with kemajic, but I could double-check.

Seriously, though, I oppose the possible move-up to FBS. I just can't get it up for the randomdouchebagblog.com Jack Sh!t Bowl in Boise.

The Big Sky is clearly better than the OVC, as I said, but I think the OVC would have to be down around Patriot League or worse levels for a 9-2 EWU to beat out an 11-0 Jacksonville State for a seed. The OVC isn't a power conference, but I think it's the best it's been since the Romo years.

[EWURanger]

at 6-3 Drake isnt a bottom dweller, and is still an FCS win, MSU's DII win over Ft Lewis was an absolute blowout, EWU's win over DII Cent Wash was a 35-32 squeaker, MSU's win over EWU was a dominating 30-7

To each his own I guess but it looks like you got a thing for the Eagles.

Dude, you know CWU is a perrenial championship contender in Division II, right? They are light years ahead of Fort Lewis.

[EWURanger]

We have 6 Division I wins already. Oh, you mean FBS win. I do understand your points, though, and even if we win out I don't think we'll get a seed above Jacksonville State. Would I want to see us play them in the play-offs? Hell yeah I would.



1. CAA 24.9
2. Big Sky 32.2
3. MVFC 32.7
4. SoCon 33.1
5. Great West 40.6
6. Southland 47.4
7. OVC 65.0
8. NEC 65.4
9. IAA Independents 74.3
10. Ivy 75.5
11. Patriot 82.4
12. SWAC 89.2
13. Pioneer 89.4
14. Big South 90.3
15. MEAC 104.8

You must be one of these move-uppers that's unable to give anyone else in the conference any credit.

Wow, you managed to misinterpret most everything I said.

We have 6 Division I wins already. Oh, you mean FBS win.

No, that's not at all what I meant. I meant that EWU played a non-DI while JSU didn't. Unless they changed it this year, the playoff selection criteria specifically mentions some sort of (small) preference for teams that play all-DI schedules.

You must be one of these move-uppers that's unable to give anyone else in the conference any credit.

I don't think I mind-swapped with kemajic, but I could double-check.

Seriously, though, I oppose the possible move-up to FBS. I just can't get it up for the randomdouchebagblog.com Jack Sh!t Bowl in Boise.

The Big Sky is clearly better than the OVC, as I said, but I think the OVC would have to be down around Patriot League or worse levels for a 9-2 EWU to beat out an 11-0 Jacksonville State for a seed. The OVC isn't a power conference, but I think it's the best it's been since the Romo years.

Ok, that makes sense. I was only ribbing you a little anyway.

[89Hen]

The Pioneer league will likely get a representitive

Why is that?