Kyle, I tend to agree with the writer with a glaring exception which reflects (I think) your concern. If I'm correct - correct me if I'm not - you feel that playoff eligibility should measure SOS on an equal scale with record, whereas now it seems that record is the deciding factor. I agree with you on what's happening and what should be done. Perhaps the SEC moving to a 9-game schedule will force inclusion of SOS as a co-deciding factor. I still think that with a 12 team playoff it'll be difficult to justify inclusion of a 3-loss team, regardless of SOS, but maybe in the near future the number of playoff teams is expanded to a level which enables a 3-loss team with a solid SOS to get in.
It seems to me they are looking more and more at SOR than they ever have before. Last year is a great example. I mean if they were going on W-L record alone, how does Bama get in over BYU and ND unless they are taking into account SOR. Maybe ND as they didn't play in a championship game but not BYU it would seem. I'm in support of anything that levels the process by which teams are chosen/qualify for the CFP. If adding another conference game in the SEC works, so be it. Personally, I'm of the view that the experience and competitive intensity gained by losing a hard fought game to another highly ranked opponent is more beneficial to your team's growth and chances of winning the CFP than is pounding another cupcake by 50
BT I think that is why a lot of SEC people, Sankey included, want some guaranteed slots for SEC teams. In the last 2 for sure, there were teams left out, like ND who were ranked in the top 12 but were bumped to allow lower ranked teams from the MAC or Mountain West to have a chance.
Alabama being in the SEC Championship game is what got them in. In the past, I agreed with the concept of the value of playing a tough schedule was worth the risk of adding an additional loss. I submit that that is no longer the case. I too agree that automatic bids need to be either reduced or eliminated (JMU). Teams that play in the conference championship games should not be penalized in relation to teams that are not in conference championship games. I actually think doing away with conference championship games and then ranking the top 12 would be the best. W-L record and SOS should be the criteria. Someone is always going to be pissed. That’s my opinion anyway.
I agree with that 100% - no matter the process, nothing is perfect and somone is always gonna be pissed. Re: Championship games, JMU and Tulane surely benefitted, ND doesn't play in one tho for equity sake they should and would benefit imo - Bama did not get penalized but BYU DID get penalized - got left out of the playoffs. Bama got the clear benefit of their more difficult schedule in spite of a worse record. I agree W-L record and SOS should be the primary criteria, that pretty much defines SOR all wrapped into one metric. The best description I heard about the difference between SOS and SOR is that SOS measures how difficult the test was that you took but it doesn't care if you pass or fail. SOR measures the grade you got on the test. In any event, it just gives all us old guys something to talk about while we're awaiting the season. Big 10 media days in Chicago start today, summer/fall camp soon thereafter....can't wait
Jersey patch anyone? And so it goes.....the way I see it is that the only way this arms race ends is with federal legislation that somehow caps NIL/compensation and free agency/portal transfers. The NIL inflation continues unabated as the highly ranked RB David Georges - Tennessee commit - got more than 3 times the money that proven quality and 1st Rd draft picks RB's Treyveon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins got in their senior season - combined - just two years ago. He hasn't even played a down. "JPMorganChase will also be the presenting sponsor of the 1922 Club, a new private club at Ohio Stadium, and will have expanded branding at Ohio Stadium and the Schottenstein Center.....Financial terms of the partnership were not disclosed by Ohio State, but ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported that the deal is expected to yield nearly $17 million per year for OSU. Ohio State basketball jersey with Chase Bank patch. (Photo: Ohio State Dept. of Athletics)
I hate NIL as much as anyone, but how does legislation legally put a cap on someone's compensation? Maybe you can restrict the sources, but saying the kids can only get X amount is going to lose in court every time. Requiring them to sign binding contracts might help, especially with transfers, but I don't see a way to slow down the money until it runs out.
Scott, my understanding - limited as it is - is that they are trying to use some form of federal anti-trust exemptions similar in manner that the NFL, NBA and MLB use to manage their own salary cap processes and that it may also require some form of collective bargaining body as well. Maybe one of our legal guys can give us a better run down of what's on the table, I'm way out of my depth here on any legal explanations just know that something's gotta give as this is unsustainable.
Louisville plays in Papa John's Stadium. Has any other Power 4 team sold it's naming rights to their Stadium!? It seems like the next logical step.
Only a matter of time....I'm certain our AD has feelers out, AD Bjork is a fund-raising whirlwind - good and bad, imo. We have long ago sold naming rights to the field - Safelite Field - 4 or 5 years ago. Stadium is gonna be a tougher sell for him I would think
I think collective bargaining is the only way to solve this mess. First you have to get a but of high school aged kids to agree to it.
You see, to me that sounds like if you have a cupcake schedule and you lose one game, your SOR is going to be higher than the team having 5 ranked teams on their schedule and you lose 2 or 3. Is that the case? If so, it sounds like the number of losses is all that matters. I tried to find the SOR rankings for the teams last season, and I couldn't.
That's possible but not necessarily and certainly not always. Depends on the entirety of your schedule and who you lost to..... Here's how it works, in essence it evaluates the probability that an average team could equal or surpass your record against that exact same schedule and then they rank order the teams. This is how my pal Gemini explained it to me.... "ESPN's Strength of Record (SOR) takes into account the specific teams you lost to by evaluating the exact strength of each opponent on your schedule. How opponent quality affects your SOR score: Win/Loss Probability: SOR calculates the chance that an average top-25 team would achieve your exact record against your specific slate of opponents. Opponent Strength: Losing to a very strong team lowers the difficulty of matching your record less than losing to a weak team would, because an average top-25 team is expected to lose to elite opponents." It basically answers the question for, "Historically has it been more difficult for Team A scheduling Cupcake College X,Y,Z etc to win 11 games and losing 1 or Team B who scheduled Toughie Tech D,E,F etc and lost 2 or 3."