In 1971, there were 34 major college independents playing football. In 2022, there are seven independents, and the ranks are going to shrink soon. Liberty and New Mexico State will join Conference USA next year. BYU is headed to the Big 12. The question remains what will Notre Dame do?
Can the Irish afford to remain an independent? By the time the season starts, we may know the answer. With NBC rumored to be ready to pay big bucks to get a weekly Big Ten game in prime time, there may be little need to offer Notre Dame the vault the Irish desire. The Big Ten may be on the precipice of paying out 9-figures to its teams. If the Irish are only offered 30 to 40 million dollars, they may be willing to become Big Ten team number 17.
Of the seven indies this year, four figure to be good, and three will struggle to win three ball games apiece.
FBS Independents PiRate Ratings
Team
PiRate
Mean
Bias
Average
Notre Dame
119.0
117.0
118.9
118.3
BYU
112.1
110.1
112.1
111.4
Army
98.5
99.2
99.1
98.9
Liberty
95.3
97.4
97.9
96.9
Connecticut
77.5
79.0
74.5
77.0
New Mexico St.
74.8
77.1
74.0
75.3
Massachusetts
75.2
75.9
72.6
74.6
Independents
93.2
93.7
92.7
93.2
There are no official Independent Media Polls like there are for conferences, but I have included the consensus of seven of my friends that produce computer ratings like the PiRate Ratings.
Computer Power Rating Poll
#
West
1st Place
Overall
1
Notre Dame
6
48
2
BYU
0
40
3
Army
1
38
4
Liberty
0
28
5
N. Mexico St.
0
18
6
Connecticut
0
15
7
U Mass
0
9
The PiRate Rating are designed to be used for the next week of football games and not meant to be used to predict won-loss records. Nevertheless, here are the projected won-loss records.
While 2020 was one strange logistical nightmare for college football conferences, it was a walk in the park compared to what the FBS Independents endured.
First, Notre Dame decided to join the Atlantic Coast Conference as a full-fledged member for one season. Then, the Irish ran the table, upsetting Clemson to win the ACC regular season title. That NBC TV contract must mean a lot to the Irish, because full-time membership in the ACC might have allowed the once top program in football to increase its recruiting base and return to the glory of their earlier times. Alas, the NBC money meant more than membership in one of the top four leagues.
BYU, Army, and Liberty had to move mountains to play a full schedule, sometimes scheduling a Saturday three or four days before. It was almost a 21st Century barnstorming tour for the three schools, but it seemed to work as the Cougars went 11-1, the Black Knights went 9-3, and the Flames finished 10-1. BYU’s lone loss came at the hands of Coastal Carolina in one of those last-minute scheduled games. Trying to prepare for CCU’s highly unorthodox offense with no advance notice may have been something the Baltimore Ravens might have struggled pulling off.
Army finished first in the nation in total defense, allowing just 275 yards per game, and they finished runner-up in scoring defense, allowing 14.8 points per game. Liberty lost by one point at North Carolina State, which is all that kept the Flames from running the table. Liberty knocked off previously undefeated Coastal Carolina in overtime in the Cure Bowl.
Connecticut, New Mexico State, and UMass didn’t fare so well in the year of Covid. UConn cancelled their season and never played a game. This comes off a 2019 season where the Huskies went just 2-10 with one FBS win over UMass.
UMass didn’t play until Mid-October and then the Minutemen played just 240 minutes, going 0-4 and scoring just one touchdown, one field goal, and one safety. The Minutemen were outgained by more than 400 yards in their season-ending loss to Liberty 45-0. In the nine years since UMass has been a full FBS member, they have a 19-81 record, with nothing better than a couple of 4-8 seasons.
Then, there is New Mexico State. The Aggies were one of three FBS schools to cancel their entire 2020 season. NMSU is just barely hanging on as an FBS football program, and losing the entire season was a big financial tragedy. However, there was an even bigger tragedy in Las Cruces this Spring.
The Aggies decided to play a couple of FCS opponents that were playing Spring schedules. On February 21, NMSU welcomed Tarleton State to Aggie Memorial Stadium for a Sunday afternoon contest. Tarleton State had just lost to McNeese State and would lose again the week after the NMSU game to upstart football program Dixie State. This should have been a game where the last player on the Aggie bench saw at least a quarter of action when the game was a 35-point blowout.
Sure enough, the game was a blowout, and NMSU got to empty their bench in the final quarter. Unfortunately, Tarleton State scored two touchdowns in the first four and a half minutes. Three plays into the third quarter, the Texans led the Aggies 40-7. They won 43-17 after emptying the bench.
How does a hopeful normal season look for the Independents? There is no official Independent Media poll. Instead of showing you how the media voted, here is a composite look at how 20 other computer power ratings see the Independents finishing this year.
Notre Dame
Liberty
Army
BYU
Connecticut
UMass
New Mexico St.
How do the three PiRate Ratings see the 2021 season for this septet?
Notre Dame returns to full Independent status this year. The Irish face a major rebuild on the offensive side of the ball. If Wisconsin transfer Jack Coan can find some of the spark that made him shine two years ago, Notre Dame may not suffer greatly from the loss of Ian Book. However, the offensive line will be inexperienced, and the receiving corps needs a go-to big play receiver.
The Irish return half of their defensive regulars from 2020, but they lose their defensive coordinator, Clark Lea. Lea’s defense was tops in the ACC, and the 19.7 points per game allowed is incredible when you consider that they played Clemson twice, Alabama, and North Carolina.
Notre Dame faces a weaker schedule this year, but there are still potential tough games against Florida State, Wisconsin, Cincinnati, Virginia Tech, USC, North Carolina, Virginia, and Stanford. Don’t expect another undefeated regular season in South Bend, and don’t expect a return to the Playoffs. The schedule is full of trap games. Toledo, Purdue, Cincinnati, Virginia Tech, USC, North Carolina, and Stanford will be tough contests, and it is possible that the Irish do no better than 3-4 in these seven games and at best 5-2.
Liberty should be more talented and will be a much more experienced team this year. The Flames were 10-1 last year, but 2021 presents LU with a considerably tougher schedule. Coach Hugh Freeze takes the Flames to Oxford, Mississippi, in November, where LU will take on his former team, Ole Miss. It should be one of the most exciting games of the season, and the final score might look more like a basketball game. Games against Louisiana and Army follow the Ole Miss game. If Liberty wins two of their last three, they could win 10 games again.
Army’s offense didn’t click on all cylinders last year, but the Black Knights’ defense surrendered less than 115 rushing and 160 passing yards per game to lead the nation in total defense. That great defense returns an intact defensive line and an experienced secondary, so it might be even tougher to move the ball on the Black Knights this year. Unfortunately, a new quarterback and inexperienced offensive line probably means the Cadets will regress a bit this year.
BYU finished third nationally in scoring and fourth nationally in scoring defense. Key players on both sides of the ball must be replaced, foremost being quarterback Zach Wilson, who now wears a New York Jets’ uniform. At least, the Cougars should know who they are going to play the following Saturday when they wake up Monday mornings this year.
Connecticut last won a game on October 26, 2019, when they topped a 1-win UMass team. The Huskies have not defeated a legitimate FBS program since they beat Tulsa in October of 2017. Expect UConn to show an improved passing game and better all around defense this year, but the Huskies have a long way to go before they will be competing for winning records as a new Independent.
As for UMass and New Mexico State, these two teams may be the weakest among the 130 FBS teams. They both are definitely in the bottom five. The two teams close out the 2021 season facing off in Las Cruces. Unless these schools can find a conference during the upcoming round of realignment, they both face the possibility of joining former FBS Independent Idaho at the FCS level.
Here are the preseason PiRate Ratings for the Independents.
FBS Independents
Team
PiRate
Mean
Bias
Average
Notre Dame
108.8
110.6
111.2
110.2
BYU
109.2
108.2
110.3
109.2
Liberty
104.3
105.6
106.5
105.5
Army
100.0
99.8
100.2
100.0
Connecticut
77.4
78.6
74.2
76.7
UMass
74.8
74.0
70.5
73.1
New Mexico St.
70.3
71.1
67.6
69.7
Indep. Averages
92.1
92.6
91.5
92.1
While the PiRate Ratings are designed only to compare teams’ power ratings in their next scheduled game, we can still have a little fun trying to predict won-loss records.
Note: The preseason ratings you see in the previews may not be the same as the ratings you see for the first game. We update every team’s rating based on player injuries, changes to the depth charts, and other factors that may change during preseason practice.
Some of our Group of 5 Conference won-loss predictions were figured before the beginning of August preseason practices. Thus, it could be that a player or players on some teams have already suffered season-ending or multiple game injuries or have left their teams, and these won-loss predictions no longer accurately reflect our ratings. We hope that by the time we preview the Power 5 conferences, we will know who is not going to be available (players and head coaches).
The number of FBS Independents has ballooned by 50% as Liberty moves up to FBS football and New Mexico State returns to this group after spending four years in the Sun Belt Conference.
There is no real affiliation between the six teams in the independent ranks. The top program, Notre Dame, is all but a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Irish play five ACC teams every year. In the past, Notre Dame may have been hurt by not being affiliated with a conference. That is no longer the case. Notre Dame has an easier path to the FBS Playoffs now that the top 4 teams qualify. With no conference championship game to play and the ability to arrange their schedule in the most convenient way, Notre Dame is a serious contender this year to make their first appearance in the playoffs.
If the Irish run the table or finish a strong 11-1, it will be the defense that carries them to the promised land. After surrendering 21.5 points per game and 369 yards per game in 2017, the outlook for 2018 looks better. A solid linebacking corps ranks among the nation’s elite. Middle linebacker Te’von Coney and outside linebacker Drue Tranquill may be the best duo in the nation in ruining enemy drives. Julian Love has a chance to be named an All-American from his cornerback position. The Irish are deep and talented on the back line of defense. The front four is the weakness of the defense, but in this case, the weakness means they are maybe the 30th best defensive line in the nation.
Look for an improved pass rush this year. Road games against Northwestern and Southern Cal are the two toughest on the schedule, and the Irish are strong enough this year to win both and should at least split these two games.
Brigham Young was one of the perennial best passing teams for decades during the Lavell Edwards days. A who’s who of quarterbacks including Ty Detmer, Jim McMahon, Marc Wilson, Gifford Nielsen, and Virgil Carter gave the Cougars the necessary tools to make the offense click. In recent years, not only has BYU not had a dangerous passer, passing has become a liability in Provo. Coach Kalani Sitake may have just one more year to turn things around before finding himself on another mission. The season may depend on whether the offensive line can keep senior Tanner Mangum upright and out of the hospital, something it has failed doing the previous two seasons. He is recovering from an Achilles’ injury and will lack a lot of mobility.
Speaking of passing, that word is not in the dictionary in West Point, NY. Army attempted just five passes per game last year, and completed just over 1 1/2 of those attempts per game. Still, with only 28 passing yards per game, the Black Knights averaged almost 31 points per game by leading the nation in rushing yardage. The 10-3 season was the best at West Point since 1996. The Cadets will take a small backward step this year with a decimated offense needing to rebuild, but the defense could limit opponents to 330 yards and 20 points per game this year.
Mark Whipple is a quarterback whisperer. He has a long history of getting the most out of his passers. Throughout his career, Whipple has helped tutor Greg Landry during his USFL stint, Ben Roethlisberger with the Steelers (including a Super Bowl Championship season), and Donovan McNabb when he threw for the most yards in his career and led the Eagles to the NFC Championship Game. As offensive coordinator at Miami in 2009, he got the most out of Jacory Harris. So, it should be no surprise that the man that took Massachusetts to a I-AA championship his first go around in Amherst, is on the verge of making the FBS version of the Minutemen into a bowl-eligible team. UMass finished 4-8 last year with enough near misses to make a bowl game if they had gone the other way. This year, with experienced quarterback Andrew Ford, we expect the Minutemen to crash through the barrier and enjoy a won-loss record on the plus side of .500. If Ford stays healthy for 12 games, he should crash through the 3,500 passing yard barrier and make a run at 4,000. He has talented and experienced receivers returning as well as the most experienced and talented offensive line protecting him since he arrived on campus. UMass should score around 35-38 points per game, and while the defense is still quite suspect, the Minutemen should win seven games and receive their first bowl bid since they played in the 1972 Boardwalk Bowl.
New Mexico State left the Sun Belt on good footing, as the Aggies finished with a bowl win and winning season in their SBC swan song. The Sun Belt was never a good fit for this team; this school would be an excellent addition to the Mountain West, where rival New Mexico already plays, or Conference USA, where rival UTEP plays. Coach Doug Martin has enough key talent returning on both sides of the ball to return to a bowl in 2018, but they will have to stay healthy in the back half of their schedule after facing a brutal beginning. NMSU will play on August 25 against Wyoming and a short five days later, play at Minnesota. Then, on September 8, the Aggies have another tough road game at Utah State. They could 0-3 to start the season.
Liberty finished 6-5 in their final year in FCS football last season. The Flames beat Baylor, so they will not be intimidated this year when they line up against teams like Old Dominion, North Texas, and New Mexico. Coach Turner Gill’s team won last year with a brilliant passing attack, as they frequently outscored their opponents in their wins. They gave up more than 40 points in two of those wins! In Liberty’s favor, most of their brilliant offense returns in 2018, but the schedule is about 20 points stronger per game this year than last. Don’t expect Liberty to contend for a winning season in year one in the FBS.
There is no FBS Independents media group that meets and hears speeches from the coaches and then interviews players before voting in a preseason poll. Rather than leave this section empty, I will show you how a conglomerate of 10 of my peers believe the teams will finish.
Independents
1st Place
Votes
1. Notre Dame
10
60
2. Army
0
47
3. BYU
0
43
4. New Mexico State
0
26
5. Massachusetts
0
24
6. Liberty
0
10
The PiRate Ratings mostly agree with these other 10 very successful computer geniuses, and where we don’t it is probably because they are correct, and we are not.
FBS Independents
Team
Overall
PiRate
Mean
Bias
Average
Notre Dame
0-0
125.6
121.5
123.7
123.6
BYU
0-0
95.9
97.0
96.3
96.4
Army
0-0
95.6
96.4
95.5
95.9
Massachusetts
0-0
89.8
92.4
92.0
91.4
N. Mexico St.
0-0
82.0
85.3
82.5
83.3
Liberty
0-0
75.2
73.9
74.2
74.5
Independents Averages
94.0
94.4
94.0
94.2
New Coaches
There are no new coaches among the six independents. Sitake is most definitely on the hot seat at BYU, and if something were to happen in South Bend, and the Irish terribly under-perform, Brian Kelly might be in trouble. However, we cannot see a scenario happening with Notre Dame this year, and the Irish have a better chance of going 12-0 than 6-6.
Predicted Won-Loss Records
Independents
Record
Notre Dame
12-0
Army
8-4
New Mexico State
7-5
Massachusetts
7-5
BYU
6-6
Liberty
2-10
Bowl Tie-ins
This year, no Independents have a definite bowl contract. Notre Dame counts toward the ACC when bowls pick representative, and they can be selected ahead of any ACC rival if they have at least one win fewer than the ACC alternative. In other words, if Duke is 9-3 and the Irish are 8-4, bowls can take Notre Dame ahead of Wake Forest. If Duke is 10-2 and Notre Dame is 8-4, then Duke must be selected before Notre Dame.
BYU has an agreement with ESPN that if the Cougars become bowl eligible, ESPN will place them in one of their televised bowls as an at-large opponent.
Liberty is not eligible for a bowl this season, but there are technicalities involved that could send the Flames to the Cure Bowl.
New Mexico State has a secondary bowl tie-in with the New Mexico Bowl.
At one point in the 1960’s and 1970’s there were in excess of 30 college football teams not affiliated with a conference. Schools did not need a conference affiliation to succeed. Penn State, Notre Dame, Florida State, Miami, and other big name schools were power teams that frequently competed for national titles. Michigan State was actually an independent that won a national title prior to becoming the final member of the original Big Ten. There was even a five-year period where Oregon, Oregon State, and Washington State left the Pacific Coast Conference and played as independents, as the forerunner to today’s Pac-12 almost dissolved.
Today, the independent ranks are close to dissolving, but they are hanging on by a thread, or should we say four threads. Army, BYU, Massachusetts, and Notre Dame are what’s left, althought New Mexico State will join this group next year, more because they are being evicted from the Sun Belt. and the MWC has no vacancies for them at this time.
Notre Dame is only a quasi-independent. They belong to the ACC in many ways–they play a five-game schedule of ACC teams, and they can qualify for any ACC Bowl, as long as they are within one win of the next available team.
BYU is a tough fit as a full member in any conference, because the Cougars will not play any athletic competition on Sunday. In basketball, the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee seeds them in brackets that keep them away from a Friday-Sunday schedule. They would be a perfect fit with New Mexico State in the Mountain West or even with New Mexico or Utah State in the Big 12, with New Mexico State replacing whichever school left.
Army is okay as an independent, although the West Pointers could fit right into the American Athletic with rival Navy. Massachusetts could easily fit in this league as well, and the independents would be history.
Since there are no preseason media polls, we will start by showing you our own PiRate Retrodictive Ratings for the four schools. You might ask how there could be retrodictive ratings, when no games have been played yet. How can we rate them on their results thus far? Obviously, this is not possible, but we begin each season adjusting the previous season’s final retrodictive ratings just like we do our regular PiRate, Mean, and Bias Ratings. By the fourth week of the season, the retrodictive ratings are 100% based on the current year’s results.
PiRate Retrodictive Ratings (Independents)
Independents
#
Team
PiRate Retrodictive
1
Notre Dame
2
BYU
3
Army
4
Massachusetts
Here are our regular predictive PiRate, Mean, and Bias preseason ratings.
Independents
Team
PiRate
Mean
Bias
Average
Notre Dame
109.7
107.8
109.6
109.0
B Y U
103.0
101.9
103.6
102.8
Army
94.6
94.2
95.5
94.8
Massachusetts
86.0
84.4
86.0
85.5
Independents Averages
98.3
97.1
98.7
98.0
And, here are our not-so-scientific predictions for won-loss and bowl projections.
Independents Projected Standings
Team
Conference
Overall
Bowl
BYU
x
9-4
[Military]
Notre Dame
x
8-4
Pinstripe
Army
x
8-4
Armed Forces
Massachusetts
x
3-9
BYU’s bowl bid is an at-large bid.
Trivia: Nobody could come up with the answer to yesterday’s trivia question. Rather than show all the incorrect replies, since we don’t want to embarrass anybody, we erased them from the responses.
Here it is again: Who are these two legendary coaches? Coach number one was a college head coach who won 70% of his games at his first Division 1 school, a team that played in a now defunct conference. He moved on to be a college head coach at two additional schools, the second of which he was replaced by a second coaching legend who won more than 200 games at the college level and more than 250 when his NFL wins were added. Four decades after winning 70% of his games at the first school, Coach number one was still coaching, now the head coach of an NFL team which he guided to the playoffs multiple times. Coach number two was still coaching four decades later after he replaced coach number one. Coach number two won a national championship during his career.
Name the two coaches. If nobody gets the answer by the time we go to press with tomorrow’s preview, we will give the answer, but we know that our readers tend to be among the most knowledgeable football fans and analytical geniuses, so we expect somebody to come up with the correct answer.
We had several guesses, and some of you actually guessed coach number two as coach number one. Nobody guessed correctly on coach number one. He is Marv Levy, who coached at New Mexico in 1958 and 1959, going 7-3 both years. New Mexico played in the defunct Border Conference, a pre-WAC establishment. Levy moved on to an unsuccessful stint at UC-Berkeley, and then to William & Mary. Levy led the Buffalo Bills to four consecutive Super Bowls four decades later.
Coach number two, who succeeded Levy at William & Mary was Lou Holtz. Holtz won 249 games at the collegiate level and another three in the NFL with the Jets.
Coming later today–The American Athletic Conference
At one time, there were 30 college football teams at the highest level playing as independents not affiliated with any conference. There was a veritable who’s who of college football members that lived a nomadic existence. Notre Dame, Penn State, Miami, Georgia Tech, Florida State, Air Force, Houston, Boston College, Syracuse, Pittsburgh, and others once made hay in the sunshine of the independent ranks.
In 2016, one new team has been added to the independent ranks, bringing the total to just four. With conferences scrambling to add conference games to their schedules (Big Ten moved up to 9 this year, while Big 12 and Pac-12 already play 9), it could be tough for these teams to make future schedules, or at least schedules strong enough to sell tickets.
Notre Dame is fortunate. The Irish can participate in the ACC in all other sports, plus they get the benefit of having five guaranteed games against ACC football members, and they can also take one of the ACC’s automatic bowl bids, even with one-fewer win than the ACC regular team. Let’s see: A 6-6 Notre Dame team or a 7-5 Wake Forest team: which one would the next bowl in the pecking order take?
BYU is almost as fortunate as Notre Dame. The Cougars still have enough prestige based on a gloried past to sell seats on the road, while their home base is very loyal. BYU could be a future member of the Big 12, but the Cougars do not want to play Sunday games, and it could be a problem for some sports like baseball. Our guess is that the Big 12 will find a way to play Thursday-Saturday games against BYU.
Army West Point remains the lone service academy not in a conference. The Black Knights are no longer a power player like they once were in the days of Colonel Earl “Red” Blaik, who went 121-33-10 in 18 years at West Point, including three national championships and three more seasons where Army kept a goose egg in the loss column.
Today, Army must rely on scheduling games against FCS schools, MAC teams, and the two service academy rivals. Still, the Cadets cannot manage a winning record and bowl eligibility. Worse, their losing streak to Navy has now reached 14, and the chances for that number hitting 15 are better than 50%.
Army fans should cheer up some, because the PiRates believe the Black Knights have a decent shot at getting to six wins and taking an at-large bowl bid this year, even if Navy is not one of those wins. Coach Jeff Monken has two experienced quarterbacks, and enough talent returning to make the offense add a few points per game to the average, while the defense should see major improvement this year, shedding at least a field goal off the generosity of last year. Nine of their 12 games are winnable, so getting to 6-6 is quite possible this year.
Massachusetts was not a great fit in the Mid-American Conference. The Minutemen may be a better option one day in the AAC, but UMass must first become respectable on the gridiron. Their record for the last four seasons is just 8-40, and it’s not like they have been playing a difficult schedule. The biggest loss for this school is not having Eastern Michigan, Miami of Ohio, and Kent State on their schedule. Other than weak FCS member Wagner, there are no other guaranteed wins on the Minutemen’s 2016 slate.
There is no pre-season media polls for the four independents. Therefore, here is the consensus of computer ratings (including the three PiRate Ratings) for the teams to start the season. There are no surprises.
Independents
#
Team
Includes PiRate Retrodictive
1
Notre Dame
2
BYU
3
Army
4
Massachusetts
Here are the initial PiRate Ratings for the quartet.
Independents
Team
PiRate
Mean
Bias
Average
Notre Dame
116.0
110.8
114.6
113.8
BYU
110.4
102.7
110.1
107.7
Army
84.7
93.7
87.1
88.5
Massachusetts
74.9
84.4
76.1
78.5
Independents Averages
96.5
97.9
97.0
97.1
The PiRate Ratings are meant to be used only to predict the outcomes of the next week of games, and are not best used to predict beyond that point. Because we use algorithms that include automatic adjustments by each team based on depth and experience, two different teams can win by the exact score we predict, and their new ratings might change differently.
Thus, using our ratings to predict won-loss records and bowl projections is a bit comical, but then we all need some laughs every now and then. So, laugh away at our projected standings and bowls.
Independents Projected Standings
Team
Conference
Overall
Bowl
Notre Dame
x
9-3
Orange
BYU
x
6-6
Poinsettia
Army
x
6-6
[Cure]*
Massachusetts
x
1-11
* Army fills in as an at-large team in the Cure Bowl
Starting Saturday, August 20: The PiRates begin previewing the Power 5 Conferences. First up–The Big Ten. Can a new team emerge as the team to beat in 2016, or will it be a repeat?
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Let me preface this extra entry this morning before proceeding. I am not a member of the NCAA Selection Committee, obviously. I do not have a secret source inside the room leaking information to me.
However, I am friends and acquaintances with more than one former member of the selection committee, and I do know a lot about how the process works.
Based on the learned knowledge, it is my belief that prior to the start of play on Saturday, March 16, there are 66 teams penciled into the bracket with room for two more from The Bubble.
Three teams are still alive that will not get an invitation if they fail to win their conference tournament. These three are U Mass, Southern Mississippi, and Vanderbilt. Additionally, it is our belief that Alabama needs to beat Florida today to be considered for one of the final two spots. If these teams win their tournaments and receive automatic bids, somebody penciled in will be erased off the paper.
Along with the Crimson Tide, Tennessee and Kentucky are waiting and hoping from the SEC. Don’t think for a second that politics doesn’t play a part in this process. Kentucky does not belong in this tournament, as the Wildcats are no better than Arkansas since the loss of Nerlens Noel. The Cats have lost all four games away from Rupp Arena by double digits since Noel went down. This is the resume of an NIT team that if it gets three home games, could easily be headed to Madison Square Garden in a couple weeks.
Tennessee cannot be selected ahead of Alabama. Their resume pales in comparison to the Tide, which beat them two out of three times, including the most important game yesterday.
Boise State and La Salle really should not be considered. They have too many losses to “bad teams,” and they lost early in their conference tournaments.
The wildcard in all this is Akron. Should Ohio top the Zips in the MAC Championship Game, Akron could very well steal one of the two remaining bids. Ohio will not get in as an at-large, so this game is very important for bubble-watchers.
Middle Tennessee has a resume that looks like a for-sure at-large team, and with Ole Miss winning last night, the Blue Raiders look like the leading candidate for one of the two remaining invitations. However, remember what I said about politics. The Sun Belt Conference has sent two teams to the dance before, and even sent four many years ago when it was a stronger league, but Middle will be excluded if Akron loses to Ohio. The Zips beat the Blue Raiders in the regular season.
I believe that Maryland punched its ticket last night with the upset of Duke. I also believe that Iowa, Illinois, and Minnesota are still in the Dance despite early exits from the Big Ten Tournament. You can add Oklahoma and Iowa State from the Big 12, and Colorado will still get in from the Pac-12, while Arizona State will be left out.
I have also included Wichita State from the Missouri Valley and St. Mary’s from the West Coast, but remember what I said about politics. The Gaels are poison after picking up a truckload of NCAA violations. While the punitive action does not commence until next season, the Selection Committee may decide to dole out its own punishment.
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