Playoff Hosting

[jakejc795]

I saw a tweet from UND saying that they confirmed with the NCAA that conference-mates would not meet in the first round. For what that's worth.

Slight caveat (if this is the tweet you're referencing) -- there reportedly won't be first round conference rematches, so UND could play Bears, for instance. Nevertheless, it would mean Craig Haley's bracket needs revision

[Roy]

Hats off to the Bison for playing, , they had more to lose and unlike IL St , Western and the U they maned up and put it on the line. A worthy adversary !

[JackJD]

Hats off to the Bison for playing, , they had more to lose and unlike IL St , Western and the U they maned up and put it on the line. A worthy adversary !

Roy's right.

[jakejc795]

Roy's right.

I still find Hill and Jarnigan's throwing the rest of the conference under the bus incredibly crass.

Farley, Nielson, and Spack all went on record saying teams discussed how they never wanted Spring season to compromise the Fall season, and if I were a member of other Valley team's athletic department, I'd trust both of them about as far as I could throw them

[JackJD]

I haven't thought too deeply about why some schools threw in the towel on the Spring season. The pandemic screwed up a lot of stuff; and, if a team couldn't meet the Covid 19 requirements that were set by the conference, then they couldn't play. IIlinois (corrected) State's rationale for ending their season didn't make much sense and seemed to open the door for just quitting because their win/loss record wasn't to their liking. That decision created difficulties for the remaiing teams on the schedule.

I agreed with Roy because NDSU had its share of adversity due to Covid this season, it lost players who would have contributed a lot if the season had take place in the Fall, etc. but they showed up for today's game and like every Bison team for decades, they came out to win.

I can be corrected but I think today's game dropped Coach Entz's record as head coach to 22 wins, 2 losses. That's impressive. They're still one of the top FCS teams in the country. I'm convinced the Jacks are a better team but I'm relying in part of today's win over the Bison to reach my concusion. The Bison have earned a lot of respect. And so have the Jacks.

Tomorrow, 10:30 a.m. -- pairings and hosting will be unveiled.

Corrected: Had Indiana State in first paragraph; meant Illinois State.

[Mr_Tibbs]

Thinking about playoff parings, I have a strong feeling we will be seeing UND in the second round. I'm not sure that we will be in a pod with NDSU. The only possible bus trips from Brookings are all conference teams we've already played, and therefore we won't be seeing them in the first round. I saw a bracket that had Mo State getting set to Brookings in the first round, but I highly doubt that will happen. It's not a bus trip. I feel like we will get a northeast team in round 1, and a big sky/und winner in the quarters. After that, we will likely be facing either Weber State or Sam Houston, assuming they win.

Seeds are likely to be:
JMU
SDSU
SHSU

The fourth seed comes down to Weber, UND, or Delaware. Personally, I think Delaware is the best of the three, but least likely to be seeded. My guess is Weber, but who knows honestly. If UND is a seed, you can almost guarantee NDSU will play in GF in the quarters, with the winner to Brookings in the semis.

Should be some potentially fun games, and there will be no cupcakes in this bracket, unless we happen to draw a northeast non-power AQ in round 1.

Some teams I don't want to see early in the bracket:

EWU - Pretty solid team, with an offense to keep them in any game
Weber - Although they've underperformed, still have a great D and a solid running game.
Delaware - As stated above, I think they are on of the best teams in the country and likely won't be seeded. Dangerous matchup in the first round for anyone.

[jakejc795]

I haven't thought too deeply about why some schools threw in the towel on the Spring season. The pandemic screwed up a lot of stuff; and, if a team couldn't meet the Covid 19 requirements that were set by the conference, then they couldn't play. Indiana State's rationale for ending their season didn't make much sense and seemed to open the door for just quitting because their win/loss record wasn't to their liking. That decision created difficulties for the remaiing teams on the schedule.

I agreed with Roy because NDSU had its share of adversity due to Covid this season, it lost players who would have contributed a lot if the season had take place in the Fall, etc. but they showed up for today's game and like every Bison team for decades, they came out to win.

I can be corrected but I think today's game dropped Coach Entz's record as head coach to 22 wins, 2 losses. That's impressive. They're still one of the top FCS teams in the country. I'm convinced the Jacks are a better team but I'm relying in part of today's win over the Bison to reach my concusion. The Bison have earned a lot of respect. And so have the Jacks.

Tomorrow, 10:30 a.m. -- pairings and hosting will be unveiled.

I'm not sure the Valley was all that influential in the decisions, as shown by teams opting out at various points for various reasons and by Hill and Jarnigan's rants about the conference being happy it had multiple co-champs/playoff qualifiers.

Stig said a couple weeks ago that the Jacks were fortunate to get their games in, and I don't see how a person can fault the Sycamores for opting out prior to the season, particularly when "powers" like 'cats and Grizz, whose records almost inevitably would've been better, also did days later.

The 'guins are the team that irked me, because their opt out was a Wed. prior to a game that the Valley could've theoretically had as Bears-Hawks playoff elimination

[jakejc795]

Thinking about playoff parings, I have a strong feeling we will be seeing UND in the second round. I'm not sure that we will be in a pod with NDSU. The only possible bus trips from Brookings are all conference teams we've already played, and therefore we won't be seeing them in the first round. I saw a bracket that had Mo State getting set to Brookings in the first round, but I highly doubt that will happen. It's not a bus trip. I feel like we will get a northeast team in round 1, and a big sky/und winner in the quarters. After that, we will likely be facing either Weber State or Sam Houston, assuming they win.

Seeds are likely to be:
JMU
SDSU
SHSU

The fourth seed comes down to Weber, UND, or Delaware. Personally, I think Delaware is the best of the three, but least likely to be seeded. My guess is Weber, but who knows honestly. If UND is a seed, you can almost guarantee NDSU will play in GF in the quarters, with the winner to Brookings in the semis.

Should be some potentially fun games, and there will be no cupcakes in this bracket, unless we happen to draw a northeast non-power AQ in round 1.

Some teams I don't want to see early in the bracket:

EWU - Pretty solid team, with an offense to keep them in any game
Weber - Although they've underperformed, still have a great D and a solid running game.
Delaware - As stated above, I think they are on of the best teams in the country and likely won't be seeded. Dangerous matchup in the first round for anyone.

Do you think there's any merit to Sam Herder's bracket pairing Hawks and Bears in first round?

It'd seem to give committee some leeway in fielding a quarter of the field from among Valley, because one team would be eliminated in first round.

His bracket also ensures that the only way the Jacks would meet the teams you indicate you don't want to play early would be in Frisco

[Mr_Tibbs]

They could pair MSU and UND in the first round, but the only reason to do that would be to eliminate a western team early. It's a flight, so they don't gain anything money wise. One thing to watch though is that some bracketology out there have Murray State or APSU getting a bid along with MSU, which would create a bus trip for the Bears. This year's brackets is going to have a lot of flights in early rounds. So look for second round pairings to be based on the favored team having a bus trip in the quarters.

[filbert]

Jackrabbits are the #1 seed!

[jakejc795]

Jackrabbits are the #1 seed!

I don't think this has been discussed, but don't you think Stig should get serious consideration for Spring season Coach of the Year?

[jakejc795]

They could pair MSU and UND in the first round, but the only reason to do that would be to eliminate a western team early. It's a flight, so they don't gain anything money wise. One thing to watch though is that some bracketology out there have Murray State or APSU getting a bid along with MSU, which would create a bus trip for the Bears. This year's brackets is going to have a lot of flights in early rounds. So look for second round pairings to be based on the favored team having a bus trip in the quarters.

Looks like they're also considering replacement teams in event of first round cancellations.

[jakejc795]

Jackrabbits are the #1 seed!

Jacks win, and they'd face SIU-Weber State winner. Guess the squeaky Saluki "got the grease"

[filbert]

Jacks play Holy Cross. MVFC gets 5 teams in: SDSU, NDSU, Missouri St., UND, SIU.

[YanktonJack7]

Holy cow. Other side of the bracket is stacked. Jacks need to make the most of this. 1-0 and all that but great shot to get to Frisco