FB: American Southwest Conference

[Ron Boerger]

The NCAA has figured out a new reason to take away your ability to host:  insufficient availability of nearby motel accomodation:  http://www.stlawu.edu/athletics/saints/men%27s+soccer/story/8371

Understand why they did such a thing, but that would be tough!

[umhb2001]

From looking at the D3 reports, TLU has a serious kicker. We're going to have to really put some pressure on these guys to make sure that they stay out of field goal range. If it comes down to a FG, if it's on his foot, he'll put it through!

[CruFrenzy]

"More details have become available about ESPN's broadcast coverage of the Division III semifinals. The games will be broadcast via ESPN syndication, with networks to be determined when the matchups are known. The games will also be broadcast online, on ESPN3.com. The Stagg Bowl will continue to be broadcast on television as well, with coverage of the Friday, Dec. 16 championship game available on ESPNU."

-D3sports.com

So i think this is definately awesome! More coverage of D3football! Now we'll have 4 teams on ESPN instead of 2!

[umhb2001]

More coverage is great! And the more we have guys like Pierre Garcon, Coppage, the RB from Buffalo whose name eludes me right now, and others, this will help get us out there as well. Here's hoping Jerrell Freeman can work his way onto a team and gain some noteriety as well.

[Ron Boerger]

Fred Jackson from Coe is name you want.

[CruGuy]

I'm sure that the collective brain trust here knows, but is there an explanation for why Wesley is considered in the Southern Region? My Google map tells me that they are both north and east of Salisbury which is in the East Region. I'm sure that it has to do with where somebody's conference office was located during the civil war.

[Ralph Turner]

In the last decade and a half, the South Region has grown as schools have joined D-III.

The move to affiliate into AQ conferences has pushed the membership around.

Wesley has been in the South Region as an independent for as long as I can remember.

Salisbury and Frostburg State are in a 2-year affiliation agreement with the Empire 8 so that the Empire 8 can maintain its AQ bid in football.

The MAC, Middle Atlantic Conference, used to be South Region in the early part of the last decade, but was moved to the East Region to balance the representation.  In 2003, ETBU played Lycoming in the second round of the "South Bracket".

[CruGuy]

From my perspective it looks like Wesley has some pretty short bus rides in the east region and some long flights in the south. I know that there is a large concentration of schools in the NE, but I've seldom known the NCAA to choose being fair over being cheap.

[Ralph Turner]

From my perspective it looks like Wesley has some pretty short bus rides in the east region and some long flights in the south. I know that there is a large concentration of schools in the NE, but I've seldom known the NCAA to choose being fair over being cheap.

Please don't confuse Evaluation Region from where they will be bracketed.  The Regional Committee has been looking at Wesley teams for the almost 15 years that this format has been in place.  They can evaluate Wesley.

Mount Union has been moved into the East Bracket for a long time, to cover the weakness in the "ultra-strength" in that Region.

[crufootball]

One thing that might help is this map that always seems to amaze me which shows the lack of D3 football teams in the "South". If teams like Wesley and Thomas More were not placed in the South, our bracket would almost only consists of the ASC and the SCAC.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/01/NCAA_Division_3_football_map.gif

[Ron Boerger]

One thing that might help is this map that always seems to amaze me which shows the lack of D3 football teams in the "South". If teams like Wesley and Thomas More were not placed in the South, our bracket would almost only consists of the ASC and the SCAC.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/01/NCAA_Division_3_football_map.gif

The ODAC and USAC are also traditional "South" if you count the Mason-Dixon line as the point where the "South" starts  but yes, that map does show us how relatively sparse teams are west of the Mississippi, north or south.   

[CruFrenzy]

Who does the Winner of the South Bracket play? Is it the West again or does it rotate each year? Also, which team would have the home field advantage if two No.1 seeds were to meet in the semis? How does that work?

[crufootball]

The home field advantage of the semifinals is not predetermined, when they announce the bracket they will also announce how they ranked the #1 seeds which would determine the location of the semi-finals. Last year the brackets were seeded Wesley, St. Thomas, Mount Union, North Central.

[umhb2001]

It will be very interesting, as always, to see what they do to the "Texas Sub Bracket"! I too forsee McMurry and Trinity matching up, which would be a great game to watch. Question becomes then, who would they fly in to face UMHB.

I love this time of year! Ready for a strong showing from the Cru!

[Ralph Turner]

It will be very interesting, as always, to see what they do to the "Texas Sub Bracket"! I too forsee McMurry and Trinity matching up, which would be a great game to watch. Question becomes then, who would they fly in to face UMHB.

I love this time of year! Ready for a strong showing from the Cru!

After the first Regional Rankings, we had a decent bracket...

#1 UMHB versus a low seed.

#4 Trinity
#5 McMurry

#5 at #4 and the Winner to #1 UMHB