Disappointing to be no.2
Aaron O'Connell
Issue date: 11/12/09 Section: Sports
The Pilots, though retaining home field advantage for what could be their first two games of the playoffs, have every right to be disappointed by their no. 2 seed.
Seeding for the playoffs is decided by a select committee of individuals, headed by Paul Bradshaw of Baylor, who dole out the seeds based on their perceptions of the teams overall performance.
The four number one seeds in the nation were Stanford (20-0-0), Florida (16-4-1), UCLA (17-2-1) and North Carolina (17-3-1).
The Pilots were ranked second in the nation by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, third in RPI (Ratings Percentage Index) and finished with a better overall record than all three of the other no.1 seeds.
The committee's rationale? The Pilots failed to produce as well against "the very top of the field" as the other no. 1 selections.
Others are not so sure this is true.
Graham Hays, in a column for ESPN titled "5 Burning Questions: Soccer Bracket", asks aloud what many have been wondering.
His number one question is, "What the heck happened to Portland's seed?"
Hayes goes on to point out that the pilots have a 10-1-0 record against teams ranked in the top 50, the Pilots are 10-1-0 outscoring their opponents 24-5, three of those goals coming from the Pilots only loss of the season.
Additionally, the Pilots have an edge over UCLA. The Pilots posta 9-0-0 record against common opponents. While The Bruins notch an 8-0-1 record against these same teams. The Bruins also lost two other no.1 seeds this season, blown out by Stanford 7-2 and shutout by North Carolina 2-0.
North Carolina, on the other hand, has been defeated by unranked Miami, no. 17 Virginia, and no. 6 Florida State. The Pilots bested Miami with ease by a score of 2-0. The argument for the committee could have been their no.2 RPI rating, but why then was the Pilots no. 3 RPI ranking not given more weight?
There's also Florida State, who aside from their difficult conference, bring nothing particularly special to the table.
Seeding for the playoffs is decided by a select committee of individuals, headed by Paul Bradshaw of Baylor, who dole out the seeds based on their perceptions of the teams overall performance.
The four number one seeds in the nation were Stanford (20-0-0), Florida (16-4-1), UCLA (17-2-1) and North Carolina (17-3-1).
The Pilots were ranked second in the nation by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, third in RPI (Ratings Percentage Index) and finished with a better overall record than all three of the other no.1 seeds.
The committee's rationale? The Pilots failed to produce as well against "the very top of the field" as the other no. 1 selections.
Others are not so sure this is true.
Graham Hays, in a column for ESPN titled "5 Burning Questions: Soccer Bracket", asks aloud what many have been wondering.
His number one question is, "What the heck happened to Portland's seed?"
Hayes goes on to point out that the pilots have a 10-1-0 record against teams ranked in the top 50, the Pilots are 10-1-0 outscoring their opponents 24-5, three of those goals coming from the Pilots only loss of the season.
Additionally, the Pilots have an edge over UCLA. The Pilots posta 9-0-0 record against common opponents. While The Bruins notch an 8-0-1 record against these same teams. The Bruins also lost two other no.1 seeds this season, blown out by Stanford 7-2 and shutout by North Carolina 2-0.
North Carolina, on the other hand, has been defeated by unranked Miami, no. 17 Virginia, and no. 6 Florida State. The Pilots bested Miami with ease by a score of 2-0. The argument for the committee could have been their no.2 RPI rating, but why then was the Pilots no. 3 RPI ranking not given more weight?
There's also Florida State, who aside from their difficult conference, bring nothing particularly special to the table.
Be the first to comment on this story