Softball Ranked 18/20

[CajunRed]

_ Rankings go pretty much according to your name, your football conference, and the relationship of your coaching staff with people from other softball powers.

Proof:

Arizona State Lost to unranked Kentucky and had 3 errors in the game. They also lost to unranked Illinois State after having 5 errors. Poor defense and 2 losses to pretty weak teams, yet they are still ranked #7. They have one victory over a ranked team and that was over #24 Texas A&M.

Washington lost to unranked Utah State after allowing a 5 run inning. They have no victories over ranked teams. They remain #1.

Michigan lost to unranked Virginia and is ranked #4.

Ohio State has four losses including unranked Kentucky, unranked Houston, and two to Alabama, yet remain ranked ahead of the Cajuns. Let’s compare the two teams. Both lost to Houston by one run. The Cajuns lost to Texas, and Ohio State lost to Alabama. Ohio State lost to Kentucky, but beat Louisville and Baylor (both ranked in the top 27).

Northwestern has losses to unranked Creighton, unranked Nevada, and three ranked teams. They are 5-5 with only one victory over a ranked team. They remain in the top 25.

At this point in the season people are only guessing about rankings, and most have no clue about how other teams lost. There should be no rankings until 20 games (or 5-6 weeks) into the season.

We should be very proud of our team, but we should also be happy that our coaching staff and team history is regarded with high respect throughout the country. Placed in a regional that is not “stacked” and a reasonable super regional bid gets the Cajuns into the CWS. I’m predicting a top 3 finish for this team. We have the best pitching in the country, reasonable hitting, and a defense that will be among the very best by seasons end.

Yes, rankings now matter because it is VERY hard to move up. Every team ranked above us in the NFCA poll is from a BCS conference. They tend to stand together in all sports. This team is going to pull off something that is almost impossible – make a run at a national title from a small conference.

Geaux Cajuns! Why not us!?! _

A lot of good information. This was an interesting read. It does irritate the crap out of me sometimes when I see certain programs maintain a ranking that they should not based on what they've done so far in the season. They so often get some kind of credit for what they've done in the past... or what they SHOULD do... or what they are EXPECTED to do. I keep thinking that the rankings should come down to what you've ACTUALLY done!!

Good following comments by CajunT.

[lcitsh]

_Also, rankings dont matter. _

That's actually true in basketball, but not really any other sport. And it's less of a factor in recruiting than many would think. Rankings matter in softball because it's a reflection of the respect a team/program has on a national level. This selection committee uses rpi less than most other sports selection committees, so a team that is ranked has a better chance of receiving a favorable draw in post season play than a non-ranked team. The Cajuns ranking is due to a long standing of success, respect from coaches in the PAC10, SEC, Big 10 & Big 12 (teams they play each year), well known recruiting classes & consistency on pretty much all levels. There will be quite a bit of fluctuation in the rankings until the beginning of April, then it will settle in to a consistent top 15 and new teams moving in and out of 16-25.

[wcd35]

_ That's actually true in basketball, but not really any other sport. And it's less of a factor in recruiting than many would think. Rankings matter in softball because it's a reflection of the respect a team/program has on a national level. This selection committee uses rpi less than most other sports selection committees, so a team that is ranked has a better chance of receiving a favorable draw in post season play than a non-ranked team. The Cajuns ranking is due to a long standing of success, respect from coaches in the PAC10, SEC, Big 10 & Big 12 (teams they play each year), well known recruiting classes & consistency on pretty much all levels. There will be quite a bit of fluctuation in the rankings until the beginning of April, then it will settle in to a consistent top 15 and new teams moving in and out of 16-25. _

Read my next post after that one you quoted.