AUTOMATIC BIDS
Montana (Big Sky)
Richmond (CAA)
South Carolina St. (MEAC)
S. Illinois (MVC)
E. Illinois (OVC)
Holy Cross (Patriot)
Elon (Southern)
Stephen F. Austin (Southland)
AT-LARGE BIDS
Appalachian St. (6-2)
Delaware (5-3)
McNeese St. (6-2)
New Hampshire (7-1)
Northern Iowa (5-3)
South Dakota St. (7-1)
Villanova (7-1)
William & Mary (7-1)
BUBBLE BURST
E. Washington (6-3)
Weber St. (5-4)
Liberty (6-2)
Lafayette (7-1)
NEXT FOUR OUT
N. Arizona (5-3)
C. Conn. St. (7-1)
Massachusetts (4-4)
Colgate (8-1)
WEEKLY INDEX
Week 5
Week 6
Week 7
Week 8
Week 9
Week 10
Week 11
Final Bracket
The Bracket: Week 9
| (1) Richmond | ||||
| Richmond, VA | ||||
| Elon | ||||
| Appalachian St. | ||||
| Boone, NC | ||||
| South Carolina St. | ||||
| (4) Villanova | ||||
| Villanova, PA | ||||
| Holy Cross | ||||
| Delaware | ||||
| Newark, DE | ||||
| Stephen F. Austin | ||||
| (2) Montana | ||||
| Missoula, MT | ||||
| South Dakota St. | ||||
| Northern Iowa | ||||
| Cedar Falls, IA | ||||
| New Hampshire | ||||
| (3) S. Illinois | ||||
| Carbondale, IL | ||||
| E. Illinois | ||||
| McNeese St. | ||||
| Lake Charles, LA | ||||
| William & Mary |
Posted November 1, 2009 8:27 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.