A little preseason softball publicity

[Just1More]

Just for reference purposes. The Cajuns OOC RPI for last year was ranked 2nd. Hard to improve much on that although this schedule would have the potential to boost our overall RPI value which is what is critical. The SBC was the seventh ranked conference for RPI last year. Not great but in the top half of the country.

Point is that we are limited in what we can control. With a couple of hundred teams playing and only eight #1 seeds it isn't easy to get there.

90, take one team out of our conference, the Cajuns, and the SBC is not the seventh ranked conference. And place us in one of the other conferences and they go up. 49-4 against that schedule and ending up the #14 seed in the NCAA tournament was a rip off. I know the entire argument was over their double and triple whammy RPI formula. We had that lengthy evaluation last year. My point is that Mike has up'd the ante even moreso, and although I agree with it, we should expect a better seed with a solid record. I know we dropped the ball by losing the SBC tourney, but last year's seed was a rip off. And it matters. We end up in our own tough regional against a very tough #2 and then get shipped to a super that we shouldn't have had to. It's not just "we cannot control this" and "there are 8 other more deserving programs". It was a rip off and Scott better get in touch with the violent side of his DNA if it happens again.

Let T-Joe be the after-the-fact damage control apologist. We constantly play good cop-good cop with this stuff. It is time to grab someone by the balls and let them know you're in the room.

[lcitsh]

UL had the #1 out of conference schedule and RPI in the country last year.

Is this the year RPI rewards road games a bit more? I hope so because otherwise I don't know how this will improve on last years #1 ranking.

edit: 2nd

One of the last things Scott wanted to do as committee chairman was to submit and get approved a new formula which was to reward road victories, much like the men's basketball formula does. I understand it was approved but I haven't seen it so I don't know how much of a factor it will be. I hope it is a factor because schools like Arizona State will be penalized for playing no road non-conference games this season.

[CajunRed]

One of the last things Scott wanted to do as committee chairman was to submit and get approved a new formula which was to reward road victories, much like the men's basketball formula does. I understand it was approved but I haven't seen it so I don't know how much of a factor it will be. I hope it is a factor because schools like Arizona State will be penalized for playing no road non-conference games this season.

THAT is a HUGE key!

[Just1More]

The unfortunate situation for us will remain. Until the selection committee starts treating all softball programs fairly, our only recourse is to beat every team we play and win a national championship. That's the only way to get the respect this program has earned.

You provide salient points. But, the idea that the committee will drift in the right direction by gravity alone... could ever happen... is a pipe dream. You make way too casual a remark... "we just have to beat every team we play and win a national championship" and totally disregard the issue that the RPI formula has double and triple unfair formula components. That needs to be addressed by all ADs.

I guess, in the past one of the additional points was, "well, the committee is made up mostly of members favorable to west coast teams". ADs from other conferences were vocal about changing that for the survival of the sport. Scott has to find ways to change our program's purely vertical climb. One of them is to think hard and take actions (before the fanbase blows up about it) on the impact of conference affiliation and another one of them is to make committee members very uncomfortable with the current RPI formula. He had better not be glad handing them and feeling good that they at least allow our ladies a seat anywhere on the bus.

[Just1More]

One of the last things Scott wanted to do as committee chairman was to submit and get approved a new formula which was to reward road victories, much like the men's basketball formula does. I understand it was approved but I haven't seen it so I don't know how much of a factor it will be. I hope it is a factor because schools like Arizona State will be penalized for playing no road non-conference games this season.

If he's actively getting that done, then we all approve. Funny that Scott publicly responded to the seeding last year but never mentioned this initiative. We had to find it out from the men's basketball clock operator.

[sportsfanatic21]

Scott has to find ways to change our program's purely vertical climb. One of them is to think hard and take actions (before the fanbase blows up about it) on the impact of conference affiliation and another one of them is to make committee members very uncomfortable with the current RPI formula. He had better not be glad handing them and feeling good that they at least allow our ladies a seat anywhere on the bus.

This will probably NEVER happen. (See football, NCAA, Boise St)

[Just1More]

This will probably NEVER happen. (See football, NCAA, Boise St)

Football (FBS) has a much bigger issue... no playoff system... and huge money at stake. Those obstacles are vastly more impenetrable than the playoff college sport seeding via RPI... and especially women's softball. If there were a poster child path for fairness, I'd push women's softball. I know ways I could approach it and make everyone involved be forever shamed for not opening up the sport to inclusivity and equal opportunity.

[Cajun90]

90, take one team out of our conference, the Cajuns, and the SBC is not the seventh ranked conference. And place us in one of the other conferences and they go up. 49-4 against that schedule and ending up the #14 seed in the NCAA tournament was a rip off. I know the entire argument was over their double and triple whammy RPI formula. We had that lengthy evaluation last year. My point is that Mike has up'd the ante even moreso, and although I agree with it, we should expect a better seed with a solid record. I know we dropped the ball by losing the SBC tourney, but last year's seed was a rip off. And it matters. We end up in our own tough regional against a very tough #2 and then get shipped to a super that we shouldn't have had to. It's not just "we cannot control this" and "there are 8 other more deserving programs". It was a rip off and Scott better get in touch with the violent side of his DNA if it happens again.

Let T-Joe be the after-the-fact damage control apologist. We constantly play good cop-good cop with this stuff. It is time to grab someone by the balls and let them know you're in the room.

JIM- I'm a numbers guy and was just showing the numbers from last year since there are plenty who make assumptions that arne't true. Whether or not the Cajuns leaving or moving conferences wasn't the point. The point was our conference wasn't the dredges of the earth for softball last year like some may have assumed. The MWC and CUSA were both behind the SBC.

Not sure where you got the idea I thought it was right or we deserved the 14 seed. You read something into it you shouldn't have. My point is that unless your PAC 12, SEC, or Big 12 its an uphill battle no matter what you do to end up on top of the mountain.

[Just1More]

JIM- I'm a numbers guy and was just showing the numbers from last year since there are plenty who make assumptions that arne't true. Whether or not the Cajuns leaving or moving conferences wasn't the point. The point was our conference wasn't the dredges of the earth for softball last year like some may have assumed. The MWC and CUSA were both behind the SBC.

Not sure where you got the idea I thought it was right or we deserved the 14 seed. You read something into it you shouldn't have. My point is that unless your PAC 12, SEC, or Big 12 its an uphill battle no matter what you do to end up on top of the mountain.

Fair enough, but look at the thread you responded to. It was me, not the plenty. I was talking specifically about the seed screwing and you ended with something about 100 teams and only 8 #1 seeds. I thought you were opposing me. Being a numbers guy, you should know more than the plenty that #14 is vastly different than #11. The plenty would say, "hum, just three spots off". In playoffs... with the attempt to balance regionals and super regionals... the seeding is extremely important to a program's outcomes. I read these threads last year where people took their first peek at softball (I guess) and made the assumption that it really didn't matter..."you have to beat them all to win it all". Seeding has decided champions many many times. I look back and see your point.

I wouldn't underestimate the difference the Cajuns make to the SBC and the conference RPI and what effect it would have leaving it and going to another conference. We assist every team we play in our conference's RPI. They, in turn, drag ours down. I'm glad the SBC is improving. It can't happen fast enough. But, if we went to CUSA, that conference would instantly launch way above the SBC. As a numbers guy, you have to consider the multiplicative effect our RPI does for any conference ranked 5th or lower.

[Turbine]

If every conference lost their very best team the SBC would be dead last.

jmo