FB: Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[02 Warhawk]

I think the MIAC has a conference championship now. So Bethel is going to have to beat SJU twice to get Pool A bid (most likely).

Also interesting, the loser of that game will get that dreaded second loss, which is a back breaker for any pool c bid.

Not a fan of conference championships. It screws over the conference from getting into the post season.

[DuffMan]

I think the MIAC has a conference championship now.

This is correct.  There is the Northwoods Division (Carleton, Gustavus, Saint John's, St. Olaf  and St. Scholastica) and the Skyline Division (Augsburg, Bethel, Concordia, Hamline, and Macalester).  In "Championship Week," the teams play their counterparts (i.e. #1 Northwoods vs. #1 Skyline, #2 Northwoods vs. #2 Skyline, etc), and the winner of the #1 vs. #1 match-up gets the Pool A bid.  Since Bethel's win over SJU this season was not a division game, they would have to beat SJU (or whoever wins the Northwoods Division) in the championship game. 

SJU/Gustavus this weekend has me nervous.

I don't care for this system.  It's tough enough to beat a team once, and then throw in that the locations are predetermined.  Last year, Skyline teams hosted, so despite SJU beating Bethel earlier in the season, they had to go to Bethel to play the championship game.  This year, Northwoods teams host, so if it ends up being SJU and Bethel, Bethel will have to travel to SJU despite already beating them.

The major benefit is the SOS boost--playing a regionally ranked team 2x really bumps up the SOS versus playing Macalaster or Hamline.

['95 Blugold]

I think the MIAC has a conference championship now.

This is correct.  There is the Northwoods Division (Carleton, Gustavus, Saint John's, St. Olaf  and St. Scholastica) and the Skyline Division (Augsburg, Bethel, Concordia, Hamline, and Macalester).  In "Championship Week," the teams play their counterparts (i.e. #1 Northwoods vs. #1 Skyline, #2 Northwoods vs. #2 Skyline, etc), and the winner of the #1 vs. #1 match-up gets the Pool A bid.  Since Bethel's win over SJU this season was not a division game, they would have to beat SJU (or whoever wins the Northwoods Division) in the championship game. 

SJU/Gustavus this weekend has me nervous.

I don't care for this system.  It's tough enough to beat a team once, and then throw in that the locations are predetermined.  Last year, Skyline teams hosted, so despite SJU beating Bethel earlier in the season, they had to go to Bethel to play the championship game.  This year, Northwoods teams host, so if it ends up being SJU and Bethel, Bethel will have to travel to SJU despite already beating them.

The major benefit is the SOS boost--playing a regionally ranked team 2x really bumps up the SOS versus playing Macalaster or Hamline.

Didn't realize that. That format really seems to put the MIAC at a disadvantage for post season invite. Bummer.

[DuffMan]

Didn't realize that. That format really seems to put the MIAC at a disadvantage for post season invite. Bummer.

Yeah, many of us are hoping things change after this year.

[wally_wabash]

I think the MIAC has a conference championship now. So Bethel is going to have to beat SJU twice to get Pool A bid (most likely).

Also interesting, the loser of that game will get that dreaded second loss, which is a back breaker for any pool c bid.

Not a fan of conference championships. It screws over the conference from getting into the post season.

This is correct- the loser of the MIAC championship, whether it is SJU or Bethel, will have two losses and wouldn't be ranked ahead of UWL (probably).  Certainly not Bethel, presuming UWL beats Platteville, which the whole hypothetical assumes.

Interestingly, for all the grumbling about how the MIAC's divisional system + crossover championship game appears that it would limit tournament access to a runner up, in the one season sample size that we have, the MIAC did place two teams in the field with the runner up having been swept by the league champion.  It worked out last year, but I do agree with you all that it isn't a formula I'd rely on in the long term.   

[DuffMan]

It worked out last year, but I do agree with you all that it isn't a formula I'd rely on in the long term.   

Yeah, it worked last year because Bethel's 2 losses were close losses to a "#1 seed" (yeah, yeah, yeah, the NCAA doesn't seed the tournament...)

[TheChucker]

I think the MIAC has a conference championship now. So Bethel is going to have to beat SJU twice to get Pool A bid (most likely).

Also interesting, the loser of that game will get that dreaded second loss, which is a back breaker for any pool c bid.

Not a fan of conference championships. It screws over the conference from getting into the post season.

Yeah. I agree. I wonder what the thinking was for creating divisions in a 10 team conference. The only upside I can think of is that it allows a quasi seeding process in scheduling conference games. There's a massive difference in power from top to bottom in the MIAC. The divisional process potentially removes 2 games from the possibility of a top team playing a bottom team and avoiding the old Gagliardi 10 touchdown monkey stomp.

[Pat Coleman]

I think the MIAC has a conference championship now. So Bethel is going to have to beat SJU twice to get Pool A bid (most likely).

Also interesting, the loser of that game will get that dreaded second loss, which is a back breaker for any pool c bid.

Not a fan of conference championships. It screws over the conference from getting into the post season.

Yeah. I agree. I wonder what the thinking was for creating divisions in a 10 team conference. The only upside I can think of is that it allows a quasi seeding process in scheduling conference games. There's a massive difference in power from top to bottom in the MIAC. The divisional process potentially removes 2 games from the possibility of a top team playing a bottom team and avoiding the old Gagliardi 10 touchdown monkey stomp.

Yes, the benefit is Macalester (as an example) doesn't have to play both Bethel and St. John's in any given year under this system unless they earn their way into the other matchup.

[bleedpurple]

This is correct- the loser of the MIAC championship, whether it is SJU or Bethel, will have two losses and wouldn't be ranked ahead of UWL (probably).  Certainly not Bethel, presuming UWL beats Platteville, which the whole hypothetical assumes.

Thank you, Wally.  That was interesting too! You make a good point about the assumptions in the hypothetical.  La Crosse has even more to worry about than Platteville.  UW-L's final three games are at Oshkosh, home vs River Falls, and home vs Platteville.  I'd be interested in hearing Logan Hansen weigh in on the likelihood of UW-L winning all three. The Eagles will be favored in all three, but it wouldn't be shocking to see 2022 be a year the WIAC eats itself alive.

[bleedpurple]

Random midweek thought.  And I know there's there's no realism to it.  But, after seeing some very exciting non-conference match ups between excellent teams this year, I wonder if the overall quality of D-III football may actually improve if there was no Pool C. With every team in the country unencumbered by Pool C impact and the driving factor in non-conference games being preparedness for conference play, I can only imagine how many awesome non-conference games we might be able to see.  I know there would be a downside in terms of the quality of the playoffs. But I wonder if we would actually have more championship/late playoff type games over the course of a season if teams scheduled just to prepare for their conference games.

[jaybird44]

Hello WIAC fans!  Hope you are doing well and ready for another fun football weekend!

While I prep for the upcoming North Central/WashU clash, I am also preparing to do a 33-hour run/walk next Saturday, October 29-30 for Rett syndrome awareness and research funding.

Rett Gets Rocked 2022 will feature my solo attempt to reach 100 miles, and a 24-hour Rett Relay involving WashU students and other campus folks.  I will be on the indoor track in the Sumers Recreation Center, and the relay will be mainly outdoors at Francis Olympic Field.  Our aim is to raise $10,000 or more, to be split between the International Rett Syndrome Foundation (IRSF) and the Rett Spectrum Clinic in the WashU School of Medicine at St. Louis Children's Hospital.

This is my fifth year for a Rett Gets Rocked ultramarathon...over the previous four years, more than $20,000 have been raised.

Rett syndrome is a neurological disorder caused by a gene mutation in the brain.  It doesn't manifest itself until a child is just learning how to walk and talk, around 6-18 months old.  When it does, those basic abilities get taken away.  Many children end up in wheelchairs for the rest of their lives, and can't talk or even do sign language to communicate.  And, since it's a spectrum disorder, there are other things that are typical with Rett syndrome...frequent seizures, severe scoliosis, eating and drinking difficulties that require the insertion of a g-tube for nourishment, among other difficulties.  And, Rett doesn't care about one's family medical history, socioeconomic status or ethnic background.  It is an equal opportunity destroyer of lives and families.

There's no cure yet, but preclinical studies within the last year at UT-Southwestern in gene replacement therapy have resulted in reversing Rett in mice.  And, the FDA is giving a drug called Trofinetide a Priority Review, after clinical trials were very successful in reducing the severity and frequency of seizures, and restoring some of the function of the arms and legs.  On March 12, the FDA will make a final determination about Trofinetide and whether it becomes the first prescription drug specifically to treat Rett syndrome.

So, there is hope.  That propels me forward in my lunatic fringe interest in ultramarathon running.  You can join the fight for a cure without logging a mile.  The donation link to my IRSF Rett Racers donation page is https://rettracers.funraise.org/fundraiser/jay-murry.
Feel free to forward it to interested parties!

Many thanks for your time and consideration!

Best regards,

Jay Murry
WashU Play-By-Play Announcer
Event Director, Rett Gets Rocked 2022

[emma17]

Jay- we will help out. Neurological disorder is so sadly destructive.

Good luck w torturing yourself. 

[emma17]

Random midweek thought.  And I know there's there's no realism to it.  But, after seeing some very exciting non-conference match ups between excellent teams this year, I wonder if the overall quality of D-III football may actually improve if there was no Pool C. With every team in the country unencumbered by Pool C impact and the driving factor in non-conference games being preparedness for conference play, I can only imagine how many awesome non-conference games we might be able to see.  I know there would be a downside in terms of the quality of the playoffs. But I wonder if we would actually have more championship/late playoff type games over the course of a season if teams scheduled just to prepare for their conference games.

An interesting thought given to non con games we've seen this year.
As you said, the quality of the playoffs might suffer.
Maybe another option is to ignore the non con wins/losses in selecting Pool C- but give credit for the non con SOS portion?

[USee]

on that note after Wheaton's game @Trinity was a one time deal. Wheaton will host Oshkosh in September as part of a 2 year contract home and home.

[bleedpurple]

on that note after Wheaton's game @Trinity was a one time deal. Wheaton will host Oshkosh in September as part of a 2 year contract home and home.

That's awesome! Glad to see both of those teams stepping up!