NCAA seeding...

[Cannon Shell]

Originally Posted by SniperSB23

The superconferences are hurting the sport a lot. No conference should have so many teams that you can't play each team twice and if you do you should absolutely be split into divisions. I think the committee is sending their disapproval on this trend to big conferences. The end result though is that Syracuse has year after year scheduled one of the more pathetic non-conference schedules. They knew it was going to burn them one of these times and it finally did. They are going to have to adjust in the future or risk not making the tourney. They played 6 games non-conference against teams in the top 140 in the RPI. Niagara is in the play-in game and they are in the top 140. In those six games they went 3-3. They beat Penn, Hofstra, and Holy Cross. They lost to Wichita St, Oklahoma St, and Drexel. Of their 14 non-conference games they had 12 at home and one in NYC against Oklahoma St. If they want to improve their tournament resume they have to go on the road more than once in the non-conference schedule. It can only help their recruiting base to play a few games on the road. So while I would have put Syracuse in for sure, I can't feel sorry for them when their only road game non-conference was two hours away at RPI #247 Canisius.

I agree that Boehiem shoots himself in the foot with his nonconfernece schedule but he cant control what the Big East does. If the committee does not like the super conferences then issue a statement but it is not fair to hold politics against college kids and the fans.

[SniperSB23]

Originally Posted by Cannon Shell

I agree that Boehiem shoots himself in the foot with his nonconfernece schedule but he cant control what the Big East does. If the committee does not like the super conferences then issue a statement but it is not fair to hold politics against college kids and the fans.

Well I don't think it is just politics. In the end Syracuse had a non-conference schedule that was detrimental and in conference only had three quality wins to go with two bad losses. I get a feeling the comittee chair making the statement he did about unbalanced conference schedules was the equivalent of issuing a statement but that Syracuse was excluded based on their full resume, not because of politics.

[pmayjr]

Lots of good points here guys.

Just in case you haven't signed up yet, here's the info for the Derbytrail FREE bracket pool through Yahoo (info on another DT thread)-

http://www.derbytrail.com/forums/showthread.php?t=10694

I hope to see you guys in...

[Cannon Shell]

Originally Posted by SniperSB23

Well I don't think it is just politics. In the end Syracuse had a non-conference schedule that was detrimental and in conference only had three quality wins to go with two bad losses. I get a feeling the comittee chair making the statement he did about unbalanced conference schedules was the equivalent of issuing a statement but that Syracuse was excluded based on their full resume, not because of politics.

Then why not just say "Syracuse just did not play a strong enough nonconference schedule with enough success to be included"? All that crap about not playing each team twice is pathetic. Why? Because while you dont play the tough teams twice you also dont play the patsies twice and in some seasons dont play some of the patsies at all. Texas Tech really does not belong either. I know Air Force kind of faded late but they were more qualified that Stanford and TT both of whom they beat.

[SniperSB23]

Originally Posted by Cannon Shell

Then why not just say "Syracuse just did not play a strong enough nonconference schedule with enough success to be included"? All that crap about not playing each team twice is pathetic. Why? Because while you dont play the tough teams twice you also dont play the patsies twice and in some seasons dont play some of the patsies at all. Texas Tech really does not belong either. I know Air Force kind of faded late but they were more qualified that Stanford and TT both of whom they beat.

I hated the interviews with the head of the committee as well this year. He seemed totally clueless or just afraid to say what they were actually thinking. They should get a new spokesman and point out exactly why they excluded any team they get asked about. I bet if they rattled off some numbers about Syracuse like I did people would be a lot less bothered by it than they are by the garbage he was spouting. Stanford, TT, and Arkansas are all a joke. There are ten teams I could argue getting in before them. I don't really get the backlash by a lot of people on Illinois though. They seemed deserving to me.

[Scav]

Originally Posted by SniperSB23

I hated the interviews with the head of the committee as well this year. He seemed totally clueless or just afraid to say what they were actually thinking. They should get a new spokesman and point out exactly why they excluded any team they get asked about. I bet if they rattled off some numbers about Syracuse like I did people would be a lot less bothered by it than they are by the garbage he was spouting. Stanford, TT, and Arkansas are all a joke. There are ten teams I could argue getting in before them. I don't really get the backlash by a lot of people on Illinois though. They seemed deserving to me.

Sniper, they are brutal, absolutely brutal, they will lose that game by 20. I hope they win because SIU will SMOKE them but they are going to get smoked by VT

[SniperSB23]

Originally Posted by Scav

Sniper, they are brutal, absolutely brutal, they will lose that game by 20. I hope they win because SIU will SMOKE them but they are going to get smoked by VT

I don't really see where you are coming from. They never lost a game by 20 this year and that includes playing Ohio St, Wisconsin, Maryland, and Arizona. I don't think they are very dangerous in the tournament but I think they belong there with a 9-7 league record and two wins in their conference tourney.

[Cannon Shell]

I guess what pisses me off the most is this idea that this is such a "hard" job and the committee must be locked up for 5 days to make all these tough decisions. 90% of the field is settled by last week. An upset in a conference final may upset things a bit but it should not be as complicated as they make it.

[SniperSB23]

Originally Posted by Cannon Shell

I guess what pisses me off the most is this idea that this is such a "hard" job and the committee must be locked up for 5 days to make all these tough decisions. 90% of the field is settled by last week. An upset in a conference final may upset things a bit but it should not be as complicated as they make it.

I saw Lunardi's offer to just pay him instead and save the precious time it supposedly takes them. I'm willing to make the same offer. I don't think my bracket would have been as offensive to so many people as the one they came up with. I got 62 out of 65 which is one of my worst years but I beat Lunardi who had 61 at best. Just wait until next year on ESPN.com when they claim Lunardi had 64 out of 65 last year like they do every year when he really has 62 or 63.

[Cannon Shell]

Originally Posted by SniperSB23

I saw Lunardi's offer to just pay him instead and save the precious time it supposedly takes them. I'm willing to make the same offer. I don't think my bracket would have been as offensive to so many people as the one they came up with. I got 62 out of 65 which is one of my worst years but I beat Lunardi who had 61 at best. Just wait until next year on ESPN.com when they claim Lunardi had 64 out of 65 last year like they do every year when he really has 62 or 63.

Truthfully it does not really matter because all of the teams we discussed probably would not get out of the opening week but the NCAA drives me crazy. Just like Billy Packer. Is there anybody that enjoys listening to him? He was bearable when it was him, Al McGuire and Dick Enberg but he not only is annoying to listen to, he is often wrong about his observations.

[Hickory Hill Hoff]

Originally Posted by Cannon Shell

Truthfully it does not really matter because all of the teams we discussed probably would not get out of the opening week but the NCAA drives me crazy. Just like Billy Packer. Is there anybody that enjoys listening to him? He was bearable when it was him, Al McGuire and Dick Enberg but he not only is annoying to listen to, he is often wrong about his observations.

Case in point, the incident in the North Carolina / Duke game

[SniperSB23]

Originally Posted by Cannon Shell

Truthfully it does not really matter because all of the teams we discussed probably would not get out of the opening week but the NCAA drives me crazy. Just like Billy Packer. Is there anybody that enjoys listening to him? He was bearable when it was him, Al McGuire and Dick Enberg but he not only is annoying to listen to, he is often wrong about his observations.

Last year was awesome. He absolutely flipped out when George Mason and Wichita St got in the tourney. Outside of Dickie V being mad about Arkansas getting in this year I don't think I've even seen an analyst so upset as Packer was last year. Of course they only made it to the Elite 8 and Final Four respectively to expose Packer as the total idiot that he was.