This is a typical example of the insidious MVFC / Big Sky / CAA propaganda that is designed to set negativism in the minds of the Poll Voters and suppress Furman’s ranking…
“Well, we better not move Furman to #1 in our poll. We know they are currently undefeated with a win over an SEC Team, but they still have that expected loss up in Cullowhee in late October, so we don’t want to look stupid having them #1 when they lose to WCU. So, we’ll just play it safe and keep SDSU, NDSU, Montana State, and William & Mary propped up ahead of the Paladins.”
…which ultimately suppresses the Seed that Furman will be ‘gifted’ by the Playoff Committee…
“Gosh, it was so hard, given that Furman is 11-0 with an SEC FBS win, but when we looked at the overall strength of schedule and their resume, with TTU and KSU finishing below .500, and all the other SoCon Teams all beating each other up, leaving none of them better than 7-4, and out of the Playoff field (despite no OOC losses for the Top 4 Teams, 2 of which also had FBS wins), we just felt, after all was said and done, that the #5 Seed, right where the poll voters have the Paladins ranked, was the right spot for Furman.
And, after they play & defeat, 9-2, 7th ranked, but unseeded, Richmond, 21-17, in Round 2, traveling to the quarterfinals in Missoula, MT to play, 9-2, #4 Seed Montana (who the previous week coasted to a 63-0 romp-in-the-park over surprise Round 2 participant, unranked, 6-5 NEC Champion, Robert Morris (who upset unranked 7-4 Patriot League Champion, Fordham, in Round 1)) on December 9th in -20 degree temps in the middle of a white-out blizzard shouldn’t really cause any problems for Furman to get to the Semi-Finals this year (most likely in Fargo or Bozeman)….y’know, if they are really all that good.”
RELEVANT NOTES…
* NDSU & SDSU don’t play each other until 11/4.
* NDSU has no FBS game and has no OOC opponents ranked in the Top 20
* SDSU has no FBS game and, other than the exception noted below, faces no ranked OOC opponents
* Montana State has no FBS game and, other than the exception noted below, faces no ranked OOC opponents
* SDSU & Montana State do meet in Week 2 after ‘cupcake’ openers for both. The loser of that game won’t drop out of the top 3 cuz…
“just too early to really drop Teams of this caliber for a loss to another top Team” …
“That game was just a clash of heavyweights. It’s a shame either Team had to lose. Certainly no shame (translated to ‘no drop in rankings’) in losing to that caliber of an opponent this early in the season.”…
“could be our Frisco preview” (ad infinitum & ad nauseum)
* William & Mary does not play a Team ranked in the Top 25 and their FBS game is not until October
….They did it to ETSU in 2021, causing a 10-1 Team with an SEC FBS win, that should have been a Top 4 Seed, to end up with a #7 Seed…
…and they did it to Samford in 2022, causing a 10-1 Team that only lost to the FBS National Champion, and should have been a #1 or #2 Seed, to end up with a #6 Seed…
…and they’ll do it to FU this year…
…watch.
#TripleStackedDeck #DefundTheCommittee