fupaladin01 wrote: ↑Mon Oct 02, 2023 2:52 pm
#5 right now is a nice advantage... and I think we're around the teams that I believe could be on par with us. But we don't exactly have a bunch of quality wins so I can understand the case for someone like SIU being just ahead until we prove ourselves.
The bigger example of bias is in the "Also receiving votes" category. There, a 2-3 UNH team from the CAA with ONE D-1 win receives 143 votes while Mercer, 3-2 with THREE D-1 wins gets a measly 29. MAKE IT MAKE SENSE TO FUPALADIN01
It doesn't make sense at all, though UNH has 2 D1 wins - Stonehill is D1 - but it also doesn't really matter for Mercer. It kinda, sorta does for Furman because of x value of the defeat of a currently-ranked-opponent vs. the x-y value of the defeat of a ranked-at-the-time-opponent...
...but rankings aren't going to help/hurt Mercer. Due to the blowout loss @ Ole Miss, the loss (perceived to have been a blowout) to Furman, the perceived 'bad' win over North Alabama, and the perceived 'not-so-great' win over Morehead, Mercer will not get a Seed even if they win out beating every team the face 100-0, going 9-2/7-1 and 9-1 in FCS. But, they will be in the Playoffs if they finish 9-2. 50/50 chance of an at-large bid if they finish 8-3 depending on who they lose to and who that team beats/loses to. 7-4, they are out. All about wins/losses for the Bears at this point - not rankings.
But EVERYTHING matters to FU right now - WINNING is, of course, REQUIRED...but things breaking right (actually way more than 'right' ... cuz 'right' won't be enough to overcome the BS) to get a Top 4 Seed... or Allah be praised - a Top 2 Seed - could make all the difference for FU's National Championship hopes. The Team that wins the National Championship will be ... A) The Team that PLAYS the best...B) The Team that has the best path to the Championship ... and C) The best Team .... in that order.