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SumItUp
September 17th, 2009, 11:27 AM
What will it take for the Liberty Flames to receive an at-large bid to this year's playoffs?

The Liberty football community was very disappointed by not being selected as an at-large team in 2008 after finishing with a 10-2 record capped by a season ending 26-3 win over #14 Elon. They also had an earlier victory against Youngstown State in Ohio and an undefeated record in the Big South. The loss against Lafayette was surprising to our fans, but Lafayette was prepared for that game and played very well. The other loss to Presbyterian remains a mystery.


Liberty started this season with a very respectable showing against the WVU Mountaineers, but ultimately lost 33-20 in Morgantown. Upcoming OOC games are against Lafayette & JMU before entering the Big South schedule. IF Liberty is able to go through the Big South schedule unscathed, could Liberty receive an at-large bid if they lose to either Lafayette or JMU? Do they need to beat both teams to have a chance or do you think regardless of what they do, they will not have an opportunity to see the playoffs before the Big South is included next year as an auto bid conference?

elcid83
September 17th, 2009, 11:44 AM
You'll have to beat the Runnin' Bulldogs first!

Go Runnin' Bulldogs!

Saint3333
September 17th, 2009, 11:45 AM
I think they have to win both due to other teams in the FCS beating FBS opponents or having "respectable" losses like Liberty did against WVU. Other years dominating the Big South and a close loss to JMU may get them in, but not this year (at least to date).

Bam
September 17th, 2009, 11:45 AM
Wait one more year!

GannonFan
September 17th, 2009, 11:47 AM
Gotta beat JMU and pretty much win out from here (can't lose to Lafayette again - th PL is at a historic low point). If you don't JMU could be sitting there taking your playoff spot. On the bright side, if you win the Big South next year you'll be in. xlolx

Hoseinexile07
September 17th, 2009, 11:49 AM
Not losing to the likes of us again.

grizband
September 17th, 2009, 11:50 AM
Their chances hinge on how other "bubble" teams do throughout the course of this year. If Montana wins all of their remaining games, but loses to Weber State at home, I believe both teams will make the playoffs. Similar scenarios exist in many other conferences, where several quality teams are vying for one auto-bid, leaving a large pool of candidates for eight at large bids. In my opinion, Liberty needs to go undefeated in the Big South, beat JMU, and possible also Lafayette to gain an at large spot in the playoffs.

danefan
September 17th, 2009, 12:01 PM
Liberty needs to win the rest of their games. The CAA winning and playing tough in all of their FBS games has pretty much put the burner to everyone else in contention for an at-large.

Or as someone else said - wait until next year.

kdinva
September 17th, 2009, 12:02 PM
After what transpired last season..........10-1. But, maybe 9-2 if you do beat JMU.

appmaj
September 17th, 2009, 12:03 PM
Win out...

BDKJMU
September 17th, 2009, 12:04 PM
What will it take for the Liberty Flames to receive an at-large bid to this year's playoffs?

The Liberty football community was very disappointed by not being selected as an at-large team in 2008 after finishing with a 10-2 record capped by a season ending 26-3 win over #14 Elon. They also had an earlier victory against Youngstown State in Ohio and an undefeated record in the Big South. The loss against Lafayette was surprising to our fans, but Lafayette was prepared for that game and played very well. The other loss to Presbyterian remains a mystery.


Liberty started this season with a very respectable showing against the WVU Mountaineers, but ultimately lost 33-20 in Morgantown. Upcoming OOC games are against Lafayette & JMU before entering the Big South schedule. IF Liberty is able to go through the Big South schedule unscathed, could Liberty receive an at-large bid if they lose to either Lafayette or JMU? Do they need to beat both teams to have a chance or do you think regardless of what they do, they will not have an opportunity to see the playoffs before the Big South is included next year as an auto bid conference?

Liberty lost to by 2 Tds to Lafayette and lost to the Presby, an in transition team that went 3-8 outside of their Liberty win. On top of that Liberty played 2 Div II teams- those wins don't count. So Liberty was 8-2 vs Div I with only one quality win- Elon. Youngstown State was 4-8 last season. Liberty's only had 2 (Div I) wins against teams with winning records:
7-5 Charleston Southern

8-4 Elon

So no, Liberty didn't deserve a playoff game last season.

As far as this season, at a minimum Liberty would have to go 9-2 (which would really be 8-2 as the DII game against W VA Wesleyan doesn't count) with only a close loss to JMU, beating Lafayette, and going undefeated in the Big South. If Liberty upset JMU could possibly lose another game and get a bid at 9-2, (some of that would depend on how JMU did the rest of the season. A win over an unranked a JMU that ended up 5-6/6-5 wouldn't look as good as one over a JMU that ended up 7-4/8-3) but would need to go 10-1 to be a lock.

WMTribe90
September 17th, 2009, 12:06 PM
Agree with others. Winning out would virtually guarantee a spot. Beyond that, I think you'd have a better shot if you beat JMU, but lost to Lafayette (close). Besides competing with WVU, the JMU game will likely be your only measuring stick game against a ranked opponent.

g-webb1994
September 17th, 2009, 02:29 PM
gotta win out, no other way....

WestCoastAggie
September 17th, 2009, 02:43 PM
Win out and get some help from the MEAC, which u will

Dukie95
September 17th, 2009, 02:49 PM
Gotta win out. Beating Lafayette and JMU gets you into the conversation, then you can't screw up in the conference.

By the way, I know Liberty folks feel slighted that Maine got in, but if it wasn't Maine it was going to be W&M. Liberty didn't deserve it last year.

ToTheLeft
September 17th, 2009, 03:09 PM
Yeah, I think 10-1 is our only chance. But then I think it's pretty much a lock, depending on the other teams vying for spots. Wins over JMU, G-W (who is pretty respectable this year), and Lafayette, combined with the showing against WVU and a Conference Championship, should be enough to get us in. We don't have to explain any losses, and we would have a quality win or two. For the first time in the past 3 years, we could present a bid for the playoffs where we didn't have to explain why we lost the game we lost... it's 10-1 or bust if we want to play on the Road to Chatty this year.

9-2 is out, because either that means we don't beat JMU, and then don't have any quality wins, or it means we beat JMU but lost to a bad team, and that would keep us out over teams with better schedules. (CAA teams, Big Sky teams, SoCon teams, even OVC and MEAC teams have better schedules)

I believe we CAN go 10-1, but it will be very difficult. Should we do it, however, we would more than likely have to be "Woofed" out of the playoffs. But that is a long way away.

Dukie95
September 17th, 2009, 03:12 PM
Right...wouldn't hurt to "Belicheck" the Big South, either. Three point wins over Presbeterian, for example ... meh

Can you match what UR and JMU will do against VMI? Can you handle CCU better than Towson does? The CAA's the measuring stick and you have to play like you belong.

carney2
September 17th, 2009, 03:13 PM
Must win this week @ Lafayette

and

Must be respectable vs. JMU.

ToTheLeft
September 17th, 2009, 03:31 PM
Right...wouldn't hurt to "Belicheck" the Big South, either. Three point wins over Presbeterian, for example ... meh

Can you match what UR and JMU will do against VMI? Can you handle CCU better than Towson does? The CAA's the measuring stick and you have to play like you belong.

We did that in 07, but didn't do jack OOC (almost beat William and Mary and Toledo, had we won those it would have been a different story). Last year we didn't dominate the conference that much, and combine that with our losses and it just wasn't that strong of an ending.

But I agree with you, some style points couldn't hurt. In 07 we beat the Big South by an average of like 46-7 or something nuts like that. A repeat performance this year, along with a win over JMU, would make for a very nice resume.

jmufan999
September 17th, 2009, 04:11 PM
wow, i think for the first time ever i agree with pretty much every post. this has got to be a record.

points i agree with:
-Liberty needs to win out to get in... most likely
-beating JMU could allow another loss, but only if JMU has at least a winning record (if not a very good record)

and Dukie95 also made a great point about Maine. people love to get all up in arms about it. the fact is (ok, it's my opinion) that the "last team in" almost always loses their first round game anyway. i saw W&M and UNI both play last year, UNI absolutely would have won (of course, geographically, they wouldn't have played them. but i'm just making a point), barring something freakish happening. and they would have beaten Liberty, too.

i think the tiebreaker for the committee came down to this: all things being equal, who has the best chance of making our (the committee's) decision look better? a team with a great record but very few "big" wins? or a team with a worse record but a tougher schedule? i guess they felt like Maine had the better chance of possibly pulling off a first round upset. just my guess.

ASU_MBA
September 17th, 2009, 06:13 PM
There will be at least 2 teams from the SoCon and 3 or 4 from the CAA....Liberty has to win out to get in....the CAA is just too good this year and will take the at-large bids.
If they beat JMU it may allow them one lost

phoenix3
September 17th, 2009, 08:22 PM
Last year if the flames lost to any other opponent other than Presby they would've been in. Simple as that.

BDKJMU
September 17th, 2009, 09:19 PM
Last year if the flames lost to any other opponent other than Presby they would've been in. Simple as that.

No. If they had lost to VMI instead they wouldn't have gotten in. Nor would they have gotten in if they had lost to one of the DII teams. Heck, was Presby last year as a transition team counted as DI or DII?

kirkblitz
September 17th, 2009, 09:19 PM
stop scheduling d2 you pussies and your in, heck even coastal doesnt play d2 and we suck xlolx

SuperJon
September 17th, 2009, 09:59 PM
stop scheduling d2 you pussies and your in, heck even coastal doesnt play d2 and we suck xlolx

Tell Iona not to drop their program and that would be ok.

Tell ODU to sign the contract.

Tell Cal Poly to do a home and home.

In case you don't follow, we didn't have a DII this year and then Iona dropped their program.

Go...gate
September 17th, 2009, 10:02 PM
It is kind of early yet - we may have a lot of upsets to come - but IMO, LU would have to be 9-2 or better.

SuperJon
September 17th, 2009, 10:08 PM
I still say the only way we get in is at 10-1 with JMU getting an at-large bid. I call it the Coastal Rule.

g-webb1994
September 17th, 2009, 10:20 PM
I bet if G-W found a way to go 9-2, with the only losses to FBS NC State and Buffalo, that we would be sitting home.:(

ngineer
September 17th, 2009, 10:25 PM
Gotta beat JMU and pretty much win out from here (can't lose to Lafayette again - th PL is at a historic low point). If you don't JMU could be sitting there taking your playoff spot. On the bright side, if you win the Big South next year you'll be in. xlolx

Unfortunately, I agree. A loss to Lafayette will cook your goose, unless you then knock off JMU . Beating Lafayette, but losing to JMU won't do it with too many other success stories out there this year. CAA could legitimately make an argument for 5-6 teams this year.

Zeus69
September 17th, 2009, 10:45 PM
Liberty was ranked 14 in the country in last years coaches poll.. name me another team in the top 16 that didnt get in that was eligible for the playoffs..... that's right you CANT! If Elon won they would have been in, but Liberty won so.... proof that the selection committe is a joke. Maine sucked and they got in. Yeah we lost to presby but name another team that beat two top 25 teams, had 8 division one wins, was ranked in the top 15 and won their conference.....

PantherRob82
September 17th, 2009, 10:57 PM
Liberty was ranked 14 in the country in last years coaches poll.. name me another team in the top 16 that didnt get in that was eligible for the playoffs..... that's right you CANT! If Elon won they would have been in, but Liberty won so.... proof that the selection committe is a joke. Maine sucked and they got in. Yeah we lost to presby but name another team that beat two top 25 teams, had 8 division one wins, was ranked in the top 15 and won their conference.....

You lost to Presbyterian.

BDKJMU
September 18th, 2009, 03:31 AM
Liberty was ranked 14 in the country in last years coaches poll.. name me another team in the top 16 that didnt get in that was eligible for the playoffs..... that's right you CANT! If Elon won they would have been in, but Liberty won so.... proof that the selection committe is a joke. Maine sucked and they got in. Yeah we lost to presby but name another team that beat two top 25 teams, had 8 division one wins, was ranked in the top 15 and won their conference.....

Wrong! Liberty beat ONE team that finished in the top 25- Elon. Lost to a Lafayette team that finished 7-4 and unranked and lost to a bad Presby transitional team, which pretty much canceled out the Elon win. The only other team Liberty beat that even finished with a winning record was Charleston Southern, who finished 7-5. Liberty absolutely didn't deserve a playoff bid last season. Really not even close. So quit your whinin!

Native
September 18th, 2009, 06:53 AM
Liberty needs to win the rest of their games. The CAA winning and playing tough in all of their FBS games has pretty much put the burner to everyone else in contention for an at-large.

Or as someone else said - wait until next year.

Yup!

Dukie95
September 18th, 2009, 07:19 AM
Liberty was ranked 14 in the country in last years coaches poll.. name me another team in the top 16 that didnt get in that was eligible for the playoffs..... that's right you CANT! If Elon won they would have been in, but Liberty won so.... proof that the selection committe is a joke. Maine sucked and they got in. Yeah we lost to presby but name another team that beat two top 25 teams, had 8 division one wins, was ranked in the top 15 and won their conference.....

Those rankings don't mean anything to the selection committee.

Liberty may have been ranked too high to begin with, (I personally don't see how they were top 25 at all with a PC loss) then got a bump from beating Elon, but Maine and W&M had much better wins than Liberty did.

Zeus69
September 18th, 2009, 08:27 AM
Wrong Puke i mean Duke fans... Youngstown State was in the top 25 at the time we played them... that is how you count top 25 wins... but you should have known that right... oh and as I said earlier the committee is a joke... the COACHES ranked Liberty in the top 15.. who would know better than them.. definantly not the fans on some message board or some committee

Dukie95
September 18th, 2009, 08:42 AM
Well, if you're still hanging your hat on an early season YSU win there's not much I can say to sway you. Clearly you guys are steamed over this and I'll drop it.

Don't pick on the JMU fans, we have no reason to pick on you...many others see it that way as well.

danefan
September 18th, 2009, 08:45 AM
Wrong Puke i mean Duke fans... Youngstown State was in the top 25 at the time we played them... that is how you count top 25 wins... but you should have known that right... oh and as I said earlier the committee is a joke... the COACHES ranked Liberty in the top 15.. who would know better than them.. definantly not the fans on some message board or some committee

Have you ever seen the Coaches' Poll?

If a Coach knows anything about other teams that aren't on his schedule, he's not doing his job.

PantherRob82
September 18th, 2009, 09:11 AM
Wrong Puke i mean Duke fans... Youngstown State was in the top 25 at the time we played them... that is how you count top 25 wins... but you should have known that right... oh and as I said earlier the committee is a joke... the COACHES ranked Liberty in the top 15.. who would know better than them.. definantly not the fans on some message board or some committee

Youngstown was a joke. Didn't Southern Utah also beat them?xrulesx

Also, the coaches poll is a joke. Fans on the message board know more than the coaches. The coaches don't watch games on Saturday. They prepare their team for their game.

IaaScribe
September 18th, 2009, 09:24 AM
Look, someone had to be left out last year, and I thought when you looked at the four teams getting serious looks at the end, all had pretty big flaws. But I'll say this, no one had a worse loss on its schedule than Liberty did. And if you compare, say, W&M to Liberty, they both had great wins (UNH for the Tribe, Elon for the Flames), but W&M didn't have a devastating loss like the Presby game. Nor did Maine. I thought the second Liberty lost in Clinton, that it was over, and it proved to be true.

SuperJon
September 18th, 2009, 10:35 AM
Wrong Puke i mean Duke fans... Youngstown State was in the top 25 at the time we played them... that is how you count top 25 wins... but you should have known that right... oh and as I said earlier the committee is a joke... the COACHES ranked Liberty in the top 15.. who would know better than them.. definantly not the fans on some message board or some committee

Dude, you're better than that. Don't resort to name calling. I know this is still a soft spot for you and every single guy you graduated with but don't stoop to that level.

Bull Fan
September 18th, 2009, 10:50 AM
Have you ever seen the Coaches' Poll?

If a Coach knows anything about other teams that aren't on his schedule, he's not doing his job.


True. I think for the most part, the SID's fill out the poll for the coaches. In I-AA, where there is limited tv coverage, how the hell do you expect (say, for example) the coach at Northeastern to be ranking teams out west? The only only film they watch is of their team and their opponents as danefan alludes to.

While it's certainly not a perfect system, you'd like to think the committee has the luxury of lining up all their ducks before the selections are made. No way you should be solely relying on polls.

BDKJMU
September 18th, 2009, 11:48 AM
Wrong Puke i mean Duke fans... Youngstown State was in the top 25 at the time we played them... that is how you count top 25 wins... but you should have known that right... oh and as I said earlier the committee is a joke... the COACHES ranked Liberty in the top 15.. who would know better than them.. definantly not the fans on some message board or some committee

No its not....and YSU finished 4-8. So again, Liberty beat 1 top 25 team.

BDKJMU
September 18th, 2009, 11:55 AM
Wrong Puke i mean Duke fans... Youngstown State was in the top 25 at the time we played them... that is how you count top 25 wins... but you should have known that right... oh and as I said earlier the committee is a joke... the COACHES ranked Liberty in the top 15.. who would know better than them.. definantly not the fans on some message board or some committee

And most coaches don't vote in that poll. They don;t have time to deal with popularity polls. They let their SIDs do it. And the SIDs generally don't know jack squat about teams outside their conference.

In the final GPI, Liberty finished 18th.xrulesx
http://www.collegesportingnews.com/stats/writer/GPI/20081124gpi.html

And the GPI is a better indicator than SIDs voting in the Coaches' Poll who usually don't know squat about teams outside their conference or at least region of the country.

SumItUp
September 18th, 2009, 12:07 PM
Thanks for all the responses. My intention was not for this thread to be about last year. Admittedly, all Liberty Flames fans have strong feelings about last season, but the question is about this season.

I believe that Liberty will be a lock if they win out the rest of the year regardless of what happens in other games around the country. That seems to be acknowledged by most that have responded. I still believe that there may be a scenario with another loss that will allow Liberty to join the playoffs this year, but that will be dependent on which game they lose and how the rest of FCS finishes their seasons.

Now it is up to the team to do their part. That starts this week against Lafayette.

Dukie95
September 18th, 2009, 12:15 PM
I believe that Liberty will be a lock if they win out the rest of the year regardless of what happens in other games around the country.

I agree



I still believe that there may be a scenario with another loss that will allow Liberty to join the playoffs this year, but that will be dependent on which game they lose and how the rest of FCS finishes their seasons.


You can't lose any conference games. You might be able to lose @Lafayette and still beat JMU at home. The schedule the Big South teams play is just too weak by comparison to the other teams competing for that same spot. There isn't even a good next best team in the Big South you can safely lose to.

jmufan999
September 18th, 2009, 12:51 PM
Liberty was ranked 14 in the country in last years coaches poll.. name me another team in the top 16 that didnt get in that was eligible for the playoffs..... that's right you CANT!

um, I can. entering the playoffs, the Nov. 17th GPI rankings had Elon #11, W&M #12, Central Arkansas #15, Harvard #16 (since they're ineligible for playoffs, i'll list the next up on the list), McNeese State and Furman tied at #17. should i list more before we get to Liberty's #27?

what you don't understand (although someone has already pointed it out on this thread, i believe) is that you'll NEVER have a year where all of the top 16 get in. that's because of the auto-bids that take away some of those spots. you'll have an auto-bid in a few years (maybe it's next year), so don't get all upset about it.


If Elon won they would have been in, but Liberty won so.... proof that the selection committe is a joke.

right... because Elon had to go through the SoCon while you only had to go through the Big South, a non-autobid conference. you didn't have to play App State, Wofford, and Richmond (all of which were playoff teams), Elon did.

ASU_MBA
September 18th, 2009, 02:39 PM
Zeus69....stop driving the bitter bus...Liberty was not a playoff team last year, your schedule was a joke. Two D2 schools....and a lose to the Blue hose and Lafayette...if you were in a real conference this discussion would never take place because you would have lost 4 or 5 games....You beat an Elon team that was a week out from losing a heartbreaker at the Rock for the conference championship.
Just stop talking about this dead subject, I am so sick of hearing certain Liberty fans cry about not making the playoffs last year.
Also, Gardner Webb may win the conference this year making this thread a waste of time.

Sly Fox
September 18th, 2009, 03:45 PM
Forgive me for being cynical based on the CAA lovefest, but I could see us running the table finishing 10-1 and still be wondering how an 8-3 team like a New Hampshire gets in ahead of us. As long as the haves are deciding whether or not the have nots are worthy to be in their playoffs then there will be injustices.

As for last year, I'm getting too old to get my blood pressure soaring again. Suffice it to say that the decisions of college presidents decades ago to decide who would be in their old boys clubs shouldn't be the determining factor in who gets in the playoffs. Non-auto bid teams are essentially playing for pride. Next year, teams will actually have to prove they deserve all of their bids. And the recruiting talk about wasting your college experience on a school where you'll never get a chance to play int he playoffs will be gone. Anxious to see how this affects the future until the next round of realignment (depending on which comes first).

WestCoastAggie
September 18th, 2009, 03:50 PM
Forgive me for being cynical based on the CAA lovefest, but I could see us running the table finishing 10-1 and still be wondering how an 8-3 team like a New Hampshire gets in ahead of us. As long as the haves are deciding whether or not the have nots are worthy to be in their playoffs then there will be injustices.

As for last year, I'm getting too old to get my blood pressure soaring again. Suffice it to say that the decisions of college presidents decades ago to decide who would be in their old boys clubs shouldn't be the determining factor in who gets in the playoffs. Non-auto bid teams are essentially playing for pride. Next year, teams will actually have to prove they deserve all of their bids. And the recruiting talk about wasting your college experience on a school where you'll never get a chance to play int he playoffs will be gone. Anxious to see how this affects the future until the next round of realignment (depending on which comes first).


LET'S GO LIBERTY!!!! xwhistlex

BDKJMU
September 18th, 2009, 03:52 PM
Forgive me for being cynical based on the CAA lovefest, but I could see us running the table finishing 10-1 and still be wondering how an 8-3 team like a New Hampshire gets in ahead of us. As long as the haves are deciding whether or not the have nots are worthy to be in their playoffs then there will be injustices.

As for last year, I'm getting too old to get my blood pressure soaring again. Suffice it to say that the decisions of college presidents decades ago to decide who would be in their old boys clubs shouldn't be the determining factor in who gets in the playoffs. Non-auto bid teams are essentially playing for pride. Next year, teams will actually have to prove they deserve all of their bids. And the recruiting talk about wasting your college experience on a school where you'll never get a chance to play int he playoffs will be gone. Anxious to see how this affects the future until the next round of realignment (depending on which comes first).

xbawlingxxbawlingxxbawlingxxbawlingxxbawlingx

GPI. Cupcake schedule in 08'. Lose to the Blue Hose. End of story. How many delusional Liberty fans are their out there that think they deserved to be in the playoffs last season?

GannonFan
September 18th, 2009, 03:53 PM
Forgive me for being cynical based on the CAA lovefest, but I could see us running the table finishing 10-1 and still be wondering how an 8-3 team like a New Hampshire gets in ahead of us. As long as the haves are deciding whether or not the have nots are worthy to be in their playoffs then there will be injustices.

As for last year, I'm getting too old to get my blood pressure soaring again. Suffice it to say that the decisions of college presidents decades ago to decide who would be in their old boys clubs shouldn't be the determining factor in who gets in the playoffs. Non-auto bid teams are essentially playing for pride. Next year, teams will actually have to prove they deserve all of their bids. And the recruiting talk about wasting your college experience on a school where you'll never get a chance to play int he playoffs will be gone. Anxious to see how this affects the future until the next round of realignment (depending on which comes first).

Wah wah wah. Teams from non-auto bid leagues have been getting into the playoffs for years - GSU, UD, Hofstra, Youngstown St, Coastal Carolina - there's no old boys network, there's no conspiracy. Play a good schedule, win most of your games, and you're in. Real simple. xthumbsupx

Sly Fox
September 18th, 2009, 04:38 PM
xbawlingxxbawlingxxbawlingxxbawlingxxbawlingx

GPI. Cupcake schedule in 08'. Lose to the Blue Hose. End of story. How many delusional Liberty fans are their out there that think they deserved to be in the playoffs last season?

GPI is decided by what you highlighted. I hardly think it makes anyone delusional to think we should've been in the mix for that final spot and that our resume was better than the team selected. But I really don't want to go down this road once again.

The point of my post is that conference affiliation determines the majority of your strength of schedule. It did last year and it will again this year. Its the facts that we all must live by. You can be mediocre and if your conference mates are strong then you can ride their coattails. I'm past last year, I'm focused on what it might take to get in the playoffs this year. The system is set up in a fashion that we really have only a remote shot to enter picture. That is what I am bemoaning. Coastal was thrown a bone a couple of years ago and everyone in non-auto bid leagues will have that lorded over us for another season. Next season we can move beyond this set up and feel like we are on a level playing field.

BDKJMU
September 18th, 2009, 04:50 PM
GPI is decided by what you highlighted. I hardly think it makes anyone delusional to think we should've been in the mix for that final spot and that our resume was better than the team selected. But I really don't want to go down this road once again.

The point of my post is that conference affiliation determines the majority of your strength of schedule. It did last year and it will again this year. Its the facts that we all must live by. You can be mediocre and if your conference mates are strong then you can ride their coattails. I'm past last year, I'm focused on what it might take to get in the playoffs this year. The system is set up in a fashion that we really have only a remote shot to enter picture. That is what I am bemoaning. Coastal was thrown a bone a couple of years ago and everyone in non-auto bid leagues will have that lorded over us for another season. Next season we can move beyond this set up and feel like we are on a level playing field.

WRONG! Big South teams play 6 league games. Liberty played 6 OOC games last season. So who you scheduled OOC determined your SOS just as much as your league. This season its 6 league and 5 OOC, so OOC determines SOS alsmost as much as the strength of the league. Who did Liberty play?
-No I-A team.
-TWO DII teams.
-WCU, one of the 2 worst So-Con teams.
-A medicocre Lafayette team who they lost to
-a mediocre at best YSU team (4-8) who they beat
-And one good team Elon, who they beat.

When your league mostly crap, you schedule mostly crap, lose to the Blue Hose, you aren't getting in at 10-2.

Sly Fox
September 18th, 2009, 05:09 PM
Once again, you are missing the point. Yes, Liberty does have to schedule 6 non-conference games. How many do CAA teams have to schedule? And how much of a boost do CAA teams get by already having their strength of schedule high based on league numbers?

I'm ready to move on from last year. We had no interest in playing two DIIs. We didn't want to have any on our schedule. But having to fill so many non-conference slots we have troubles getting teams to schedule with us. That's why we have mad love for the JMU powers that be for stepping up for the next 4 years much the way William & Mary worked with us on our series the past few years. Sadly since we have raised our game as a program we are no finding it much more difficult to get teams to work with us. This all goes back to who was let into league years ago.

IaaScribe
September 18th, 2009, 05:20 PM
Just to clarify, Presbyterian was considered a non-conference game last season for all Big South teams. From this year going forward, PC will be counted as a league games.