FB: Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[art76]

The MIAC championship for the Pool A bid? Even if Bethel wins would they get it, considering they already lost to SJU earlier in the year?

As I understand it, the winner of the game in week 11 is the AQ. So yes, if BU wins, they are in the dance. If BU loses, it becomes a real crap (emphasis on the crap) shoot.

[faunch]

The MIAC championship for the Pool A bid? Even if Bethel wins would they get it, considering they already lost to SJU earlier in the year?

As I understand it, the winner of the game in week 11 is the AQ. So yes, if BU wins, they are in the dance. If BU loses, it becomes a real crap (emphasis on the crap) shoot.

So it will be a blood 🅰️ 🛀?

[OzJohnnie]

Whitworthless losing means they likely drop from the regional rankings.  The candidates for the spot are:

Gustavus, 7-2, SOS .594, RRO 0-2
Claremont-Mudd-Scripts, 7-2, SOS .553, RRO 0-1
Whitworth, 7-2, SOS .535, RRO 0-1
Greenville, 7-1 (against D3), SOS .359, RRO 0-0

I think GAC moves in.  That makes quite the conundrum for the committee come final rankings.  UWW and SJU stand first and second in the country for SOS, respectively, split by just a hair.  If GAC moves in and both UWW and SJU win this coming weekend then they will both finish 10-0 and have a 3-0 RRO record but SJU will have the highest SSO in D3 by quite a fair margin while UWW will drop a few spots as they play UWSP, currently winless in the WIAC and 2-7 overall.  UWW has the three point victory over SJU by last minute field goal in 2019 as tie-breaker, however.  It will be a tight call to see who gets the #1 seed in region 6 and the sure #1 bracket seed in the post-season.  Regardless, I think if both teams win out then both should get a post-season bracket.

I'm not forgetting Linfield, by the way.  If they win out then their argument will be:

Linfield, 8-0 (vs D3), SOS .544, RRO 1-0

That will get them third seed in the region, I think, and second seed in a bracket.  Whitworth losing does Linfield no favours.

EDIT:

By the way, if GAC do move in and win their championship week game then BU will have an interesting argument if they lose to SJU this coming weekend.

Bethel, 8-2, SOS around .56, RRO 1-2

I know people have decided a two-loss team can't get one of the pool c spots but BU will definitely be at the top of the two-loss pile and I think the committee will have to look at them.  A strong schedule and a good RRO stat as well.  Sure, the odds of getting a pool c are small but they aren't zero.

EDIT:

If River Falls beats Oshkosh then that makes things interesting in the WIAC.  You would think that RF would go straight into the regional rankings but they have a SOS less than .500, which is unusual for a WIAC team.  CMS would have a strong argument to be regionally ranked than UWRF would, I think.

[art76]

Gonna be interesting to see if Bethel moves up one or two spots in the top 25 with Union and UW LaCrosse both losing right above them. I'm thinking at least one spot and the second spot depends on how much the one score loss to UW Whitewater nicks UW LaCrosse in the voters minds.

[sjujohnnie]

In the spirit of thankfulness, I'd just like to express my gratitude for this board, the posters on it, & all of the posters' insights! Always look forward to reading the commentary! Such a source of enjoyment! Thank you!

[hazzben]

I'll second that gratitude. Always enjoy when it's d3boards season again. 🙂

[DuffMan]

The MIAC championship for the Pool A bid? Even if Bethel wins would they get it, considering they already lost to SJU earlier in the year?

Yes, that is how it works this year.  We now have 2 divisions in the MIAC.  The winners of those divisions play for the title.  Bethel and SJU are in different divisions, so their first meeting was an inter-divisional game.
The game is at Bethel because location (Skyline or Northwoods division) was predetermined by the conference.
I don't like it, but it is what it is.

[hazzben]

I would think if the division model wasn't already in trouble, a full slate of rematches might be the nail in the coffin.

[Retired Old Rat]

I would think if the division model wasn't already in trouble, a full slate of rematches might be the nail in the coffin.

I sure hope so.  Not a fan of rematches in football unless they are later round playoff games.  The Bethel/SJU rematch creates a lot of negative playoff scenarios that can harm both teams playoff chances or seeding.  I'd love to see Bethel get in, but not if it negatively impacts SJU's seed.  I'd like to see a long run of home playoff games.  I've traveled a fair amount in the past for playoff games but would prefer not to this year.

[RoyalsFan]

The MIAC championship for the Pool A bid? Even if Bethel wins would they get it, considering they already lost to SJU earlier in the year?

Yes, that is how it works this year.  We now have 2 divisions in the MIAC.  The winners of those divisions play for the title.  Bethel and SJU are in different divisions, so their first meeting was an inter-divisional game.
The game is at Bethel because location (Skyline or Northwoods division) was predetermined by the conference.
I don't like it, but it is what it is.

I understand that you don't like it, but do you really think it would be fair to give SJU both games the home field advantage?

[hazzben]

If it was the other way around, I'd be somewhere between annoyed and pissed. If we beat SJU at home, and then had to go beat them again on the road for the Pool A bid, that would suck.

I understand why they did it this way, but I can totally get the frustration from the Johnnie side of things.

Bethel will need to play a nearly perfect game, especially up front, to have a chance. I'm hoping things break our way nationally so that there's still a prayer for Pool C if SJU holds serve. Not looking likely at this point though. We need some upsets and RPI and Cortland to win. The Whitworth loss was a good first break for Bethel though. If GAC gets regionally ranked, that would be another. Add in UWRF beating UWO, etc etc that's a lot of what if's. Need to win Saturday.

[Retired Old Rat]

I am annoyed, but mostly frustrated at needing to defeat an excellent team twice in the same season to earn a high, possibly #1, seeding in the playoffs. As much as I love spending time in Collegeville, the commute from my home in St. Paul to Arden Hills is a lot shorter.

[AO]

If it was the other way around, I'd be somewhere between annoyed and pissed. If we beat SJU at home, and then had to go beat them again on the road for the Pool A bid, that would suck.

I understand why they did it this way, but I can totally get the frustration from the Johnnie side of things.

Bethel will need to play a nearly perfect game, especially up front, to have a chance. I'm hoping things break our way nationally so that there's still a prayer for Pool C if SJU holds serve. Not looking likely at this point though. We need some upsets and RPI and Cortland to win. The Whitworth loss was a good first break for Bethel though. If GAC gets regionally ranked, that would be another. Add in UWRF beating UWO, etc etc that's a lot of what if's. Need to win Saturday.

If it was the other way around Bethel would be nearly guaranteed a playoff bid.  The only thing to be annoyed about is the lack of a motivation for the league leading team.  St. John's can't get ahead of Whitewater with a win.  I think Bethel would get a pool C bid if the game was canceled, less confident if they play and lose.

[faunch]

If it was the other way around, I'd be somewhere between annoyed and pissed. If we beat SJU at home, and then had to go beat them again on the road for the Pool A bid, that would suck.

I understand why they did it this way, but I can totally get the frustration from the Johnnie side of things.

Bethel will need to play a nearly perfect game, especially up front, to have a chance. I'm hoping things break our way nationally so that there's still a prayer for Pool C if SJU holds serve. Not looking likely at this point though. We need some upsets and RPI and Cortland to win. The Whitworth loss was a good first break for Bethel though. If GAC gets regionally ranked, that would be another. Add in UWRF beating UWO, etc etc that's a lot of what if's. Need to win Saturday.

If it was the other way around Bethel would be nearly guaranteed a playoff bid.  The only thing to be annoyed about is the lack of a motivation for the league leading team.  St. John's can't get ahead of Whitewater with a win.  I think Bethel would get a pool C bid if the game was canceled, less confident if they play and lose.

I think the Johnnies will be motivated to finish with a 10-0 record and to secure a couple home playoff games. Saturday will have the feel of a playoff game. It's silly that SJU has to play on the road and sucks that Bethel has less seating on the visitor sideline than a number of 9 man high school teams. Weather is going suck and maybe some fans will stay away but there's not going to be nearly enough seating. Game location should be moved.

[hazzben]

Look at it this way Faunch, it's a closer drive than Collegeville and at least Bethel has some away seating, which is more than some MIAC schools. You can also watch at home for free.