AUTOMATIC BIDS

Montana (Big Sky)

Villanova (CAA)

South Carolina St. (MEAC)

S. Illinois (MVC)

E. Illinois (OVC)

Holy Cross (Patriot)

Appalachian St. (Southern)

Stephen F. Austin (Southland)

AT-LARGE BIDS

E. Washington (8-3)

Elon (9-2)

McNeese St. (9-2)

New Hampshire (9-2)

Richmond (10-1)

South Dakota St. (8-3)

Weber St. (7-4)

William & Mary (9-2)

BUBBLE BURST

Northern Iowa (7-4)

Colgate (9-2)

James Madison (6-5)

Liberty (8-3)

NEXT FOUR OUT

Lafayette (8-3)

Furman (6-5)

Montana St. (7-4)

Florida A&M (8-3)

WEEKLY INDEX

Week 5

Week 6

Week 7

Week 8

Week 9

Week 10

Week 11

Final Bracket

The Bracket: Final Edition

(1) Villanova
Villanova, PA
Holy Cross
South Carolina St.
Orangeburg, SC
New Hampshire
(4) Richmond
Richmond, VA
Elon
Appalachian St.
Boone, NC
William & Mary
(2) Montana
Missoula, MT
South Dakota St.
Weber St.
Ogden, UT
Stephen F. Austin
(3) S. Illinois
Carbondale, IL
E. Illinois
McNeese St.
Lake Charles, LA
E. Washington

Posted November 21, 2009 10:55 PM

Breaking It Down

Selecting the Field
Every week's bracket is based on an "If the season ended today" mindset. The eight automatic bids are just that: automatic. Whichever team is atop the standings of each of the eight auto-bid conferences at the end of the week receives a bid. Expectedly, teams on top of conference standings early in the season often are not in the same spot come Selection Sunday. The other eight bids, the at-large selections, are simply the teams I believe to be the best remaining in the country. Keep in mind again this is not a prediction of what I think the brackets will look like in late November, but rather a collection of deserving teams week to week.

The Pairings
All first round match-ups in these brackets are my best attempts at mimicking what the committee would do with the chosen 16 teams while adhering to these rules:

• Seeding the top four teams and spacing them accordingly across the bracket
• Avoiding first round match-ups with teams from the same conference
• Creating geographically-friendly match-ups that follow the NCAA's 400-mile limitations when possible
• Giving home field advantage to schools that historically have made winning bids

"This is garbage..."

Comments? I'm itching to hear your praise/raging hatred. Sound off to erik@nobowls.com and let me know what's on your mind.