FCS Playoffs

[Tribal]

I'm not sure what all the fuss is about. A #5 seed isn't useless at all. EWU has an opportunity to play a team that beat them earlier this season. Because of your seed, won't you play Montana State on the red turf? I've never been to your stadium but that's got to be an advantage. If you beat them, you will most likely have to play App State or Villanova to determine who will go to Frisco, TX. If it's Villanova, they will have to travel over 3,000 miles to play you in Washington. Playing App State is another story. You think U of Montana has a large rowdy crowd? In the finals, you would probably play William & Mary (I hope) or Delaware. The teams that I listed are no Sac State, Portland State, or Idaho State. I think you'll have an appreciation about why App State, Delaware and W&M received higher seeds if you play them. Honestly, I'm not trying to come off as a jerk, and don't intend to sound like I'm talking smack. I love FCS football and I feel that the playoff format is righteous. But, Weber State and Southern Illinois thought highly of their record until they were demolished by W&M last year in the playoffs. The CAA rankings are not part of any East Coast bias...their teams regularly beat FCS teams, or, at a minimum, play them VERY closely. I'm pulling for EWU to go far. Good luck.

 

[HannahO]

Unfortunately, our #5 seed only gets us the first weekend bye and a home game against SEMO. If Montana State wins their game, EWU will have to go there to play since they are a higher seed (#4) something we don't begrudge them since they had the head to head advantage over us. I do think it's legitimate to question Bill and Mary's #2 seeding given their record but it doesn't matter now - it will play out on the field. It is also a legitimate point that because of the committee's regionalization, teams from West of the Mississippi (and the Big Sky in particular) beat up on one another in the early rounds while the CAA teams have a sprinkling of the East Coast AQ's out of lesser conferences in their bracket. It's been that way for years - we just don't like it when folks back East use the resulting playoff records as an example of how superior their teams are ...

We are aware of the atmosphere at App State and have played there fairly recently - '04 I think (losing by 3) so we know that they are not Sac State, Portland State or Idaho State but we also play some good competition out here (Nevada this year, Cal last year, and Texas Tech two years ago as well as the usual Montana, Montana State league games). I don't think we will take any team lightly but it's nice to go into this round of playoffs relatively healthy and rested unlike last year when we had to win the last five games to make the playoffs.

Here's to surprising the prognositicators that have App St coming out of the top bracket and Delaware out of the bottom one! How dreadfully boring that would be!!

 

[Screamin_Eagle174]

We played Appy in the 2007 QF's, but everything else is pretty spot on.

 

[HannahO]

We played Appy in the 2007 QF's, but everything else is pretty spot on.

Thanks, getting old means all the years start melting together! :lol:

 

[kalm]

I'm not sure what all the fuss is about. The teams that I listed are no Sac State, Portland State, or Idaho State. I think you'll have an appreciation about why App State, Delaware and W&M received higher seeds if you play them. Honestly, I'm not trying to come off as a jerk, and don't intend to sound like I'm talking smack.

Sac State is also no Towson or Maine. For that matter VMI, Duquesne, and St. Francis of PA who the CAA frequently plays and gets credited with DI wins are no Central Washington either. The CAA is slightly better than the BSC, MVC, and Southern, but it's highly debateable how much and whether that should lead to a team with two FCS losses getting in ahead two from another power conference with only one loss. And don't get me started on Delaware's OOC schedule.

You claimed no ECB, but have already showed a little in your inititial post.

 

[Tribal]

Look at who W&M beat and where those teams were ranked. Delaware and Villanova 1/2; UNH 8, and Richmond 18. We were beating UNC by 10 points late in the game. Our other 2 losses were very close, away, and against teams who were ranked #4 and #9 at some point. W&M didn't play Towson or Duquense or St. Francis or Central Conn. VMI is a tradition match-up going back to the 19th century so we can't very well shun them now. So W&M has beaten 4 highly ranked teams this season. You beat Montana (great win) and N. Arizona (I think they sniffed the top 25 at some point). Honestly, what do you think your record would be if you played UNC, Richmond, Delaware, New Hampshire, JMU, Maine, ODU, VMI, Rhody, UMASS, and Maine? Would you lose 3 of those match-ups? I'm speaking now as someone who hasn't watched EWU play...but my guess is you most likely would lose to UNC, Delware, and UNH. Richmond, JMU, and UMASS would probably be close. With your record and ranking, I would expect you to beat ODU, VMI, Rhody, and Maine. I think it's fair to expect EWU would go 8-3 at best. This is all speculation, of course. I am no expert on EWU football like you guys are. I hope EWU plays well. W&M could very well lose their first playoff game because the teams that beat us did it on the ground and both of our potential match-ups run the hell out of the ball.

 

[kalm]

Look at who W&M beat and where those teams were ranked. Delaware and Villanova 1/2; UNH 8, and Richmond 18. We were beating UNC by 10 points late in the game. Our other 2 losses were very close, away, and against teams who were ranked #4 and #9 at some point. W&M didn't play Towson or Duquense or St. Francis or Central Conn. VMI is a tradition match-up going back to the 19th century so we can't very well shun them now. So W&M has beaten 4 highly ranked teams this season. You beat Montana (great win) and N. Arizona (I think they sniffed the top 25 at some point). Honestly, what do you think your record would be if you played UNC, Richmond, Delaware, New Hampshire, JMU, Maine, ODU, VMI, Rhody, UMASS, and Maine? Would you lose 3 of those match-ups? I'm speaking now as someone who hasn't watched EWU play...but my guess is you most likely would lose to UNC, Delware, and UNH. Richmond, JMU, and UMASS would probably be close. With your record and ranking, I would expect you to beat ODU, VMI, Rhody, and Maine. I think it's fair to expect EWU would go 8-3 at best. This is all speculation, of course. I am no expert on EWU football like you guys are. I hope EWU plays well. W&M could very well lose their first playoff game because the teams that beat us did it on the ground and both of our potential match-ups run the hell out of the ball.

We had this discussion on the CS.com board and as I stated over there, history and dollars are supposed to have no meaning when it comes to seeding, but they clearly do. FWIW I would have seeded W&M ahead of us at #3, but behind MSU with Delaware at the #5 spot. That's because I think the strength of the BSC this year trumps the assumption that the CAA is that much better. I think that SUU, Montana, Weber State, Sac State, and Northern Arizona would have all competed for a playoff spot in the CAA this year and could easily have replaced UNH or Nova. But I think you've got to seed one of the CAA teams in the top 3 and you guys would get the nod ahead of the hens based on the head to head and the quality wins you cited.

 

[EagerEagle]

Good luck to the tribe, I have had the pleasure of seeing three of your games this year on Direct. All were impressive. I wouldn't mind meeting up with you guys in Texas in a couple weeks. Rankings are what they are, we can't change anything now, just gotta go out and win the games.

 

[Tribal]

I hear you guys (and ladies if that's the case) loud and clear. The nice thing about the FCS playoff system is that the best team wins and it's not based on polls in the long run. Although it's certainly within the rules, my only problem with some of the FCS teams is that they're stacked with guys who once played for Alabama, Arkansas, Missouri and so forth. Montana and App State are generally full of former FBS players. W&M has about one every 7 years. We'll never know how Weber St, N. Arizona and some of your other schools would have faired out in the CAA. But, those schools weren't good enough to earn at at-large so I have my guess. I know how Weber State did last year in the playoffs against a CAA team. I am pulling hard for EWU. Your school has been in the thick of things a few times recently. I think, if you can get by Montana State, you'll have a real shot at playing in Frisco, TX. You guys should be rooting for Villanova of it's between them or Delaware. Actually, I'll fly to Washington if Nova plays you guys there...I've got to see a football game on red turf.

 

[FrontFive4Life]

Did anybody catch the NDSU v RMU game (fyi, you can stream any game live on http://www.ncaa.com) ? Robert Morris looked pretty terrible, but then again they only have around 30 schollies to NDSU's 65. I wasn't impressed with NDSU's quarterback, though it looks like their o line plays very physical football and their back is pretty decent.

Obviously, SEMO is our first and, at this point, only concern. I can't wait for Saturday!

 

[93bird]

I think it would be interesting to see a team from the CAA or any other FCS conference try to play a Big Sky conference schedule. Spokane to Flagstaff, Portland to Greely. Every trip is a haul. Then you've got the rain, snow, concrete turf, and Big Sky refs. It's tough to play a game out West, much less finish the season rated #1.

 

[ewunerd]

I think it would be interesting to see a team from the CAA or any other FCS conference try to play a Big Sky conference schedule. Spokane to Flagstaff, Portland to Greely. Every trip is a haul. Then you've got the rain, snow, concrete turf, and Big Sky refs. It's tough to play a game out West, much less finish the season rated #1.

Flagstaff is at a high altitude (advantage NAU) and I've heard if EWU's field were built where the parking lot is behind it, runners would get a time adjustment for altitude there too. Are there many high altitude places in the CAA? It does sortof feel like a slap in the face to the Big Sky that both #1 an #2 CAA are considered better than #1in the Big Sky. I don't have much issue with EWU's seed but I do think MSU deserved a higher seed than W&M.