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Extra Point - No Need For 24-Team Playoff
By Matt Dougherty, The Sports Network
http://www.sportsnetwork.com/default...AGN3790542.htm
Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - Fans who felt cheated because they missed out on matchups like Drake-Montana, Coastal Carolina-Sam Houston State and Duquesne-Lehigh in last year’s playoffs might not agree with this column.
So now that we've lost the folks in Myrtle Beach, let's take a look at the few positives and many negatives for a 24-team field, which was suggested by the I- AA committee.
According to the committee, the 16-team I-AA playoff offers championship access to a lower percentage of teams than any Division I sport and any other postseason football championship. Technically, they’re right. Only 16 of 120 teams make the I-AA playoffs, allowing around 13 percent of teams a shot at postseason glory. That figure sits below the 20 to 28 percent of teams that make playoffs in baseball, basketball, hockey, lacrosse and soccer. However, it is only slightly lower than the 14 percent of Division III teams that make the football postseason and 16.4 percent of Division II squads that qualify.
On the surface, I-AA teams seem to receive a bit of an unfair shake. But even simple figures can be deceiving. All eight Ivy League teams are ineligible for the playoffs until the presidents wise up and realize postseason football won’t tarnish their reputation. In the SWAC, Southern, Grambling State and Alabama State all have tie-ins to regular season games on Thanksgiving weekend. UC Davis and Northern Colorado have two more seasons without playoff chances, while North Dakota State and South Dakota State have three more years where playoffs are out of the picture. Already, we’ve moved to 16 of a possible 105 (15.2 percent) teams making the postseason, and that’s only if no SWAC team outside of the aforementioned trio makes the league title game.
A move to...........................
FOR FULL ARTICLE
http://www.sportsnetwork.com/default...AGN3790542.htm
By Matt Dougherty, The Sports Network
http://www.sportsnetwork.com/default...AGN3790542.htm
Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - Fans who felt cheated because they missed out on matchups like Drake-Montana, Coastal Carolina-Sam Houston State and Duquesne-Lehigh in last year’s playoffs might not agree with this column.
So now that we've lost the folks in Myrtle Beach, let's take a look at the few positives and many negatives for a 24-team field, which was suggested by the I- AA committee.
According to the committee, the 16-team I-AA playoff offers championship access to a lower percentage of teams than any Division I sport and any other postseason football championship. Technically, they’re right. Only 16 of 120 teams make the I-AA playoffs, allowing around 13 percent of teams a shot at postseason glory. That figure sits below the 20 to 28 percent of teams that make playoffs in baseball, basketball, hockey, lacrosse and soccer. However, it is only slightly lower than the 14 percent of Division III teams that make the football postseason and 16.4 percent of Division II squads that qualify.
On the surface, I-AA teams seem to receive a bit of an unfair shake. But even simple figures can be deceiving. All eight Ivy League teams are ineligible for the playoffs until the presidents wise up and realize postseason football won’t tarnish their reputation. In the SWAC, Southern, Grambling State and Alabama State all have tie-ins to regular season games on Thanksgiving weekend. UC Davis and Northern Colorado have two more seasons without playoff chances, while North Dakota State and South Dakota State have three more years where playoffs are out of the picture. Already, we’ve moved to 16 of a possible 105 (15.2 percent) teams making the postseason, and that’s only if no SWAC team outside of the aforementioned trio makes the league title game.
A move to...........................
FOR FULL ARTICLE
http://www.sportsnetwork.com/default...AGN3790542.htm