FB: Northwest Conference

[D O.C.]

Reminder a poll had us ranked #1 in preseason.
We did not live up to that.
I'm pleased we got the snaps taken care of.
Another trip to Texas can be done.
Play to potential and we've got another trip to Texas on the biggest holiday travel days of the year. Doubt many fans will leave Thanksgiving weekend to pay top dollar to fly and stay around Belton. That 2nd playoff game is always tough on the travel team.
IMHO

[hazzben]

I don't think it's that you scheduled UMHB, but that HSU had a 'better looking loss.' If it's a similar margin of defeat, I'm betting you guys are hosting as a conference champ.

I wouldn't say scheduling UMHB (though I agree you guys should/could be hosting) for the SoS bump was a bad thing. It's a high risk, high reward scenario. Look at it from UMHB perspective. They are probably the overall #1 seed because of that game and its result.

If you scheduled a lesser team, and won the game, you have a good shot at hosting 2 rds, but might be on the road in the quarters and probably are in the semis.

What would you rather risk?? Playing a very good non-con game (win = hosting through semis // loss = rd 1 or rd 2 road game) or playing an average non-con game (win = hosting through quarters, but probably not semis)??

[gren]

I think that is the lesson that many teams might look at for future games....why schedule against other elite teams if the end result might be losing the chance to host a playoff game if you run the rest of the table and your conference?  It's unfortunate but it might make other top teams think twice in the future.

Oddly enough .... wonder if we would have beat UMHB? we may have been the #1 over all seed this year? Possibly with the way things turned out.... but we didn't so we don't have a 1st round home game. Pretty dramatic irony.

We would have hosted a game and then seen the bony middle finger of the NCAA. The history speaks for itself.

[Pat Coleman]

I think that is the lesson that many teams might look at for future games....why schedule against other elite teams if the end result might be losing the chance to host a playoff game if you run the rest of the table and your conference?  It's unfortunate but it might make other top teams think twice in the future.

Oddly enough .... wonder if we would have beat UMHB? we may have been the #1 over all seed this year? Possibly with the way things turned out.... but we didn't so we don't have a 1st round home game. Pretty dramatic irony.

We would have hosted a game and then seen the bony middle finger of the NCAA. The history speaks for itself.

Like in 2012? 2015? Come on now -- Linfield has been the top seed in its bracket on more than one occasion, as recently as 2015. That's the actual history.

[CAT BAT 22]

I don't think it's that you scheduled UMHB, but that HSU had a 'better looking loss.' If it's a similar margin of defeat, I'm betting you guys are hosting as a conference champ.

I wouldn't say scheduling UMHB (though I agree you guys should/could be hosting) for the SoS bump was a bad thing. It's a high risk, high reward scenario. Look at it from UMHB perspective. They are probably the overall #1 seed because of that game and its result.

If you scheduled a lesser team, and won the game, you have a good shot at hosting 2 rds, but might be on the road in the quarters and probably are in the semis.

What would you rather risk?? Playing a very good non-con game (win = hosting through semis // loss = rd 1 or rd 2 road game) or playing an average non-con game (win = hosting through quarters, but probably not semis)??

I'd say your break down here is right on.  My answer is IF you agree with Pat's comment on the podcast that Linfield has the absolute toughest path to the championship... then no, the trade off wasn't worth it.  I'd like to know what we can do to lose a conference game, play nobody out of conference and then get shipped to the easiest quadrant in the tournament. 

[gren]

I think that is the lesson that many teams might look at for future games....why schedule against other elite teams if the end result might be losing the chance to host a playoff game if you run the rest of the table and your conference?  It's unfortunate but it might make other top teams think twice in the future.

Oddly enough .... wonder if we would have beat UMHB? we may have been the #1 over all seed this year? Possibly with the way things turned out.... but we didn't so we don't have a 1st round home game. Pretty dramatic irony.

We would have hosted a game and then seen the bony middle finger of the NCAA. The history speaks for itself.

Like in 2012? 2015? Come on now -- Linfield has been the top seed in its bracket on more than one occasion, as recently as 2015. That's the actual history.

I stand corrected. Just a bitter pill to swallow when your team is an automatic and ranked higher nationally than the home team on Nov 19. My rant is over.

[hazzben]

I don't think it's that you scheduled UMHB, but that HSU had a 'better looking loss.' If it's a similar margin of defeat, I'm betting you guys are hosting as a conference champ.

I wouldn't say scheduling UMHB (though I agree you guys should/could be hosting) for the SoS bump was a bad thing. It's a high risk, high reward scenario. Look at it from UMHB perspective. They are probably the overall #1 seed because of that game and its result.

If you scheduled a lesser team, and won the game, you have a good shot at hosting 2 rds, but might be on the road in the quarters and probably are in the semis.

What would you rather risk?? Playing a very good non-con game (win = hosting through semis // loss = rd 1 or rd 2 road game) or playing an average non-con game (win = hosting through quarters, but probably not semis)??

I'd say your break down here is right on.  My answer is IF you agree with Pat's comment on the podcast that Linfield has the absolute toughest path to the championship... then no, the trade off wasn't worth it.  I'd like to know what we can do to lose a conference game, play nobody out of conference and then get shipped to the easiest quadrant in the tournament. 

I think Mount would say, win 12 Stagg Bowls! I wasn't thrilled with them ending up there either, but at least they go on the road

[bluenote]

I think Mount would say, win 12 Stagg Bowls! I wasn't thrilled with them ending up there either, but at least they go on the road

I would have liked to have seen them placed in a bracket with one of these teams in the bracket: STU, UWW/UWO or UMHB. And on the road on top of that....

[Pat Coleman]

I stand corrected. Just a bitter pill to swallow when your team is an automatic and ranked higher nationally than the home team on Nov 19. My rant is over.

About the ranking -- the committee has good reason to do that, based on the common opponent factor. I think our voters are somewhat split on where Linfield should be vs. HSU, but I can see the committee's point.

[D O.C.]

Would have helped if Chapman won the SCIAC?
Would have helped if ncaa committee looked at LINFIELD'S history to see what an outlier giving up 66 was?
Would have helped if ncaa committee realized 27 by LINFIELD  was the most scored on #1 team in 10 games?

We're going. We're going.
Don't push us.

[George Thompson]

I think that is the lesson that many teams might look at for future games....why schedule against other elite teams if the end result might be losing the chance to host a playoff game if you run the rest of the table and your conference?  It's unfortunate but it might make other top teams think twice in the future.

Agree 100%.    LC should just schedule a SCIAC team and a local team, NAIA or NCAA Div. II.    Keep our travel budget lean and mean.     At least we could just drive to a local game.    NCAA III selection committee does us few favors.   Why put up with the grief of being punished for playing and losing to a  top team?

NCAA Division III clearly favors the midwest colleges.   Oshkosh, St. Johns and MU all get home games.   Not a west coast team.   You see the bias with every playoff selection.

George

[D O.C.]

George, I think the committee this year will see their bias. 
The whole set-up since 1999 when PLU slapped everyone in the face has been an uphill battle for the NWC. It has not helped the conference has slid into mediocrity taking it's Champion with it. We cannot get an SOS playing Eastern Oregon.
The powers want us to pick up (and pay for) a 10th game. You saw PC's fact about LINFIELD being the only team in d3's Top 25 having a 9 game schedule.

We were set up with St. Johns. Oshkosh and Whitewater at home. All of them close games but you might say we gave up the home field advantage.

[MonroviaCat]

I think that is the lesson that many teams might look at for future games....why schedule against other elite teams if the end result might be losing the chance to host a playoff game if you run the rest of the table and your conference?  It's unfortunate but it might make other top teams think twice in the future.

Agree 100%.    LC should just schedule a SCIAC team and a local team, NAIA or NCAA Div. II.    Keep our travel budget lean and mean.     At least we could just drive to a local game.    NCAA III selection committee does us few favors.   Why put up with the grief of being punished for playing and losing to a  top team?

NCAA Division III clearly favors the midwest colleges.   Oshkosh, St. Johns and MU all get home games.   Not a west coast team.   You see the bias with every playoff selection.

George

Well you do at least....

[MonroviaCat]

I stand corrected. Just a bitter pill to swallow when your team is an automatic and ranked higher nationally than the home team on Nov 19. My rant is over.

About the ranking -- the committee has good reason to do that, based on the common opponent factor. I think our voters are somewhat split on where Linfield should be vs. HSU, but I can see the committee's point.

So what is your opinion Pat? You were at the Linfield-MHB game--I don't think anybody would argue that MHB was the better team on that day but how far apart did you think those teams were/are (4th quarter meltdown aside)?  And yes, I agree with the committees decision regarding giving HSU the home game once they decided to match Linfield and HSU (but I do feel they could have done a few different things (e.g. swap Linfield and Huntington for instance) if $ wasn't a factor).

[(509)Rat]

I think that is the lesson that many teams might look at for future games....why schedule against other elite teams if the end result might be losing the chance to host a playoff game if you run the rest of the table and your conference?  It's unfortunate but it might make other top teams think twice in the future.

Agree 100%.    LC should just schedule a SCIAC team and a local team, NAIA or NCAA Div. II.    Keep our travel budget lean and mean. [/i]    At least we could just drive to a local game.    NCAA III selection committee does us few favors.   Why put up with the grief of being punished for playing and losing to a  top team?

NCAA Division III clearly favors the midwest colleges.   Oshkosh, St. Johns and MU all get home games.   Not a west coast team.   You see the bias with every playoff selection.

George

That's actually a terrible idea. Scheduling anyone outside of division III is a complete waste of money. Unless you can convince Oregon or Oregon St to give you hundreds of thousands of dollars to travel and get whooped. At least that would be a net positive on the budget.