FB: Presidents' Athletic Conference

[Pat Coleman]

But I'm going to miss the five posts in a row on the fantasy thread with Bart's rear being exposed. 

Speak for yourself. 

[Ric]

How's that? I call him Super Ric ... LOL

[Ric]

Actually I like the team one better, gonna change it back.

[Pat Coleman]

Preferable to Bart, either way.

The team will look better if you crop your original as a square. The board forces it to fit a 64x64 box, I think.

[Ric]

Thx for the info -- if you didn't like Bart you should have told me I put it up and kinda forgot about it.

[Pat Coleman]

What, and subject myself to more smiting?

[spliskin]

Pitt & Cleveland

Quit complaining and enjoy the win. Take a look at what's happened with the poll numbers. These teams aren't ranked arbitrarily, but based on total points received by all voters. In week #4 W&J had 478 points amassed now they got smacked down to a mere 185 points. They lost a whopping 293 points from a 3 point loss to an unranked team (and rightly so).

Take a look at the votes Thiel has received since the start of D3.com polling........

Preseason poll................0 points
Wk 1 poll.........................0 points
Wk 2 poll.........................2 points
Wk 3 poll.........................3 points
Wk 4 poll.........................4 points
Wk 5 poll.........................104 points

The voters were slowly recognizing Thiel & now a quality win over a ranked team has catapulted them into the top 25. When you start out unranked you have a lot to prove & they have proved that they can beat a good (maybe even great) team. OWU is an average team @ 2-2, while both Bethany & Bluffton are cellar dwellars. W&J hasn't beaten anybody of any quality but their history earned them a preseason ranking based on 440 points. The fact the W&J got knocked down by so many points proves that some voters are questioning how good of a team W&J really is and if they were deserving of such a high ranking to begin with. Noone wants to stick their neck out to far only to be proven wrong if a team falters later in the season.

If Thiel keeps winning-their voting points will keep climbing to push them higher in the polls, but remember these polls don't mean sh*t come playoff time. If Thiel wins the PAC they will get in the playoffs where they control their own destiny.

You're not helping their image any by crying on the message board over meaningless rankings. Be a supportive fan and root & cheer for them but don't complain about things that you or they have no control over. If Thiel continues to focus on the things they can control (their own performance) then everything else will fall into place. I hope you guys aren't alumni because you're giving the school a bad name. Let the team do their talking on the field. All you're doing is giving other teams bulletin board material. I'm sure Leipheimer is telling his players not to buy into any hype so they stay focused on their next opponent and here you guys are begging for more hype. This story was front page of every regional sports section and is being viewed world-wide on this and other internet sites. How much more hype do you want? Your team won, Congratulations! Now they better focus on beating GCC because last week is already over for Thiel. Give it a rest and let them prepare for the next challenge.

[spliskin]

Kid,

Wow that was impressive. You snuck that very detailed history in on me while I was typing. I'm almost embaressed by my feeble stats to try to make these guys get it. How the h*ll did you find all this information?

I'm just glad there is finally some activity on this board. I was begining to think this board was "out of order".

[Ric]

You think people liked Bart? LOL

[spliskin]

Can someone please explain this whole "Karma" thing to me. How does it keep going up and down, and who decides?

[Pat Coleman]

It's in the football FAQ.

[Ralph Turner]

Great research, Kid!

Thiel fans, you are on everyone's radar screen.  And IMHO, the way that the Top 25 works, is that you get your initial position, or in Thiel's case--jump, and then you move ahead of schools as others lose.  Since Thiel doesn't have another Top 25 on the schedule, they will have to ascend by not losing.

If Thiel finishes 10-0, then I anticipate they will have ascended to the Top 12-15 by playoff time, having climbed 2-3 spots per week as other teams above them have lost.

[PittTBCW]

Board,

All of you have made very good comments. I think you are right that we maybe went over board a little. Sorry about that. However, the thing that bothers me is that W&J is ahead of Thiel in the poll when they beat them fair and square on the field. Unlike D1, D3 has a playoff system which will ultimatly determine the National Champion. True Thiel has no playoff experience because of a let down last year. True W&J has playoff experience. Now let me guess since New England lost two games this year but won back to back Super Bowls they would be ranked higher than San Diego who beat them on Sunday because of thier past??? I don't think so.

All in all this was a great win for the Tomcats. Your are 100 percent right that if no let down occurs that Thiel will move up in the poll. The board made some very good points about thier jump being big which is a sign of respect. I apologize for jumping on the board I just found it puzzling to why Thiel was not ranked above W&J when they beat them on the field.

[PittTBCW]

All things aside, W&J still has starters who have started in playoff games and won them. Those kids are a part of this team and you can't push that aside that easily.

If I were Thiel I'd be worried about having a letdown like the one at Buff State last year.

And don't kid yourself -- Bluffton and Bethany are not stellar opponents either. No voter is stupid enough to think that. Ohio Wesleyan has not gotten one vote all year.

W&J did not play any stellar opponents either.

[OldPhart]

Since Thiel doesn't have another Top 25 on the schedule, they will have to ascend by not losing.

Anyone out there think that TMC would climb into the ranking if they win against Frostburg and Anderson?   I know I am looking far into the future and there is no guarantee that either TMC or Thiel will continue their winning streaks until their matchup on October 29th. 

Any Thiel players out there - stop reading this thread & go back to getting ready for GCC this Saturday.  Of course - stay on top of your classes too, midterms are coming up.