The thing is JMU wasn't even that good this year. Yeah, I get that they're dangerous if they can put it together but so are a bunch of teams. The highest you could've plausibly seeded them was 7th IMO. So having them unseeded isn't that big of travesty and, like I said, they podded them with the #8 seed which is something they didn't need to do but if they had seeded to #9 this bracket would look the exact same as it does now.
As far as the rest of teams on NDSU's side I really don't see what's so alarming about it. After JMU the best unseeded teams were probably Nicholls, Wofford, and Jacksonville St. Two of those are on the other side of the bracket (Wofford being the one that isn't). I really don't think Kennesaw is a strong #4 seed and that's the next highest seed on NDSU's side. I just don't see any massive difference from the top side to the bottom side of the bracket. I think the people criticizing the selection committee are just waaaaay overvaluing how good JMU was this year.
Yep. But alas the "lets hide behind the saving money rationalization" in the first round while forcing teams to then bid and then pay us (NCAA) a guaranteed amount of $$$ to host the game in said money saving round forced the committee's hand in many ways and not much else they could do
Is what it is. Beat them all and leave no doubt they are better than the rest
Indiana State snub is a legit gripe.
Southland getting same # as MVFC is nuts (see also Tree screw job)
Odd number of seeds between Big Fluffy and CAA is odd.
For the Bison fans funneling the two most obvious matchup concerns in JMU and SDSU to the FargoDome seems unfair when the Bison are the #1 seed. It can all be explained rationally through the seeding process, but the optics don't look good.
I don't think that seeding is a negotiated thing. Sounds like the committee ranks the teams and they add up the results and use that for seeding. That's what the committee rep meant by "keeping the seeds pure" in his Bison1660 interview.
So it sucks that the Big Sky has 3 seeded teams on the same side of the bracket, but it's not something that was engineered to be that way. Heck, if I were a Big Sky member, I'd be more concerned that they have The Big Sky Destroyer (San Diego) on their side of the bracket.
The Bison are going to bitch slap anyone in the way this year. Everyone else is playing for second anyway. Would like to see EWU or Weber in Frisco. GO BISON!
Please don't come back to bite us in the ass. Please don't come back to bite us in the ass. Please don't come back to bite us in the ass. Please don't come back to bite us in the ass. Please don't come back to bite us in the ass. Please don't come back to bite us in the ass. Please don't come back to bite us in the ass.
No, no it's not really. Maybe when looked at in the context of who got in from some of the weaker conferences, but that happens every year. That's the nature of they way the playoffs and selection process is set up. One of ISUb's wins was a D2 this year. They lost convincingly to UNI, who got in ahead of them.