So much for a part of selection committee's decision to deny the Aggies a playoff spot by noting Sac's "significant win over Nicholls State." It looks like Nicholls was a real powerhouse...
It is a championship, they have to take conference champions and give them a shot. Fifth place teams from major conferences have already proved they aren’t the best teams, they have to give lesser teams a chance to prove the same thing on the field.
In 2009 Davis won a conference without an autobid. Team was 6-5 but two losses were to Boise State and Fresno State, a third was to the #5 team Montana by 17 to 10, and they didn’t get a bid.
Drake almost had the Bison today... Another 15 minutes and they surely would have turned it around.
In all seriousness though it is frustrating that the Pioneer gets an auto bid when they are so clearly not at a competitive level with the rest of the playoff teams.
I don’t know the winning % of non scholarship D2 teams, but in a way it is deceiving because in the early years they would lose to the eventual champion; Lehigh, Eastern Illinois, Southwest Texas State. There were only eight teams in the playoffs in those years,
I just do not see how South Dakota and North Dakota are so dominant in FCS football. They are in the middle of nowhere and they still get the best players in the FCS.
and for the Dakota schools other than SDSU, it's hard to beat going to a dome in the winter. Granted you lose the cold weather edge but people like going inside in the late season.
Hoping SD holds off Sac today. They are up 17-0 but Sac is in the red zone in the early 2nd half.
What I've never liked about college sports polls is how they rank teams in the preseason based on a combination of reputation, their previous season and additions/losses. All before a single game has been played. Then it is hard for teams to move into or up within the polls once play begins culminating in (for both FCA and NCAA basketball) committees using those polls to determine who gets into the playoffs. I like the suggestion some sportswriters have made to NOT have preseason polls, but poll them after two or three games have been played. By the way, I note that as I write this, Sac State is trailing South Dakota State at the half 24-14.