2010 NCAA Final Four Thread

[NJTank]

The NCAA is a big fat joke, they say they cant do a D-1A Football Tournament because it would hurt classes, yet they have one for D-1AA, D2 and D3.

Now they want to take the perfection of 64 teams and water it down to 96.

Part of the fun of the the NCAA Tournament is the bubble talk. That will be gone now.

The regular season was devalued by the conference tournaments some what already now. It means zippo. You figure a plus .500 record for teams in the ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big XII, Pac Ten and SEC.

I mean this is one of the dumbest things the NCAA could do and it almost seems certain from the way they are talking that it will be done.

[NEW.ERA]

Makes sense when you have 200+ schools fighting for 65 spots, but yes this does put a little bit less emphasis on the Regular Season but could put more emphasis on the Conference Tournaments which is a good thing.

[Cujo]

The current 64 (or 65, whatever) team format is absolutely perfect for NCAA hoops. If anything, expanding to 96 waters down the whole damn thing. It basically combines the NIT with the NCAA field -- and that's not something I really care to see.

How's the saying go?... "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!"?

[sc49erfan15]

So...are there going to be 31 more at-larges? Auto bid for the Great West? Multiple auto-bids for conferences? I feel like this is going to hurt mid-majors...more will get in, but they'll have to win more games to get to anything significant.

[infrared41]

So this is a done deal?

Lame. Talk about de-valuing the regular season.

The College Basketball regular season is already meaningless in terms of TV viewers and interest. Basketball is the perfect illustration of why a large (16 team etc.) playoff would hurt college football.

[zmspartans]

to put it quite simply , expanding the field to 96 means adding 31 teams that dont deserve to be in .

[LightningRide75]

$$$$$$$$$$ Cha-Ching. That's what it's all about and everyone knows it.

[Still MIGHTY]

So this is a done deal?

Lame. Talk about de-valuing the regular season.

The College Basketball regular season is already meaningless in terms of TV viewers and interest. Basketball is the perfect illustration of why a large (16 team etc.) playoff would hurt college football.

Then make it 8, 6, 4, or just make it a damn plus one.

Like Tank said (dear God, agreeing with Tank), the bubble talk of the NCAA is what drives ESPN's late season coverage and fills up the empty space on sports talk and television. With football as large as it is, you get those people complaining about not getting in and having bubbles, and these guys still get to win their "prestigious" bowls. You get the attention, the talk, the money, and a legit champion.

As for the 96, what a joke.

It is all about money and the networks. Especially if ESPN take the thing once CBS' contract is up. They have the multiple channels and outlets (ABC, ESPN, ESPN 2, ESPN3.com, News, Classic, U) that could handle the amount of teams and games.

And to go back to the football for a second, they argue that a championship would make kids miss more class time or whatever, yet they expand the NCAA basketball tournament during a class schedule? I read that the extra games were going to be played on Tuesday/Wednesday of the first or second week. Thursday - Sunday is doable based on the general college class schedule, but Tuesday/Wednesday cuts into a majority of classes.

The whole thing is just bull.

Dismantle the NCAA and start over.

[OnWis97]

Makes sense when you have 200+ schools fighting for 65 spots, but yes this does put a little bit less emphasis on the Regular Season but could put more emphasis on the Conference Tournaments which is a good thing.

I'd say it's a bad thing. You go out over a 16 or 18 or 20 game conference schedule and show what you can do and then somehow losing on a buzzer beater in the first round is supposed to be even more important?

The 64 team tourney is beautiful and getting there is what it's all about in the small conferences, which is why the conference tourneys there are particularly contrary to the integrity of how to choose a champion and give the honor of a big dance appearance.

Anyway, off the top of my head, here are impacts:

• money
  
• Diminishing the "bubble". Any mediocre team from a big conference is now in. I guess Northwestern will finally get in now (but I wanted them to get into this one). BAD
  
• Coaching job security (I'd say good, as they are too quickly canned)
  
• Some more mid-majors in and maybe even some little conference regular season champs in (good)
  
• Some teams playing and others having byes for round 1 (BAD. Could conceivably serve as disadvantage to favorite)
  
• More teams in (GOOD in that more kids get the dream but BAD in that the dream is watered down)
  
• A 16 seed will finally beat a one seed, due to the fact that the 16s will now be at large...weaker than today's 12, but stronger than today's 16. BAD The true little guy intrigue will be diminished and I like the "easy" matchups for 1s and 2s today as a reward for a good body of work.
  
• 24 seeds, which will be as good as 16 seeds will get a shot at winning a game because they'll open against Northwestern, Northern Illinois, etc. rather than Duke, Kansas, etc.
  

Actually, I am finding more good than I thought I would. I still like it the way it is. At 96, the entire thing gets watered down. The 64 is perfect and much of the "good" addresses problems that should be addressed in other ways (Dump conference tourneys, stop canning coaches every time they go 14 and 15).

It's not the end of the world, but it should not be messed with either.

[HedleyLamarr]

Too bad it's not NCAA Football adding 30+ teams to their tournament.

I'll ask this: Which regular season are you watching more of....college basketball or college football?

As I stated to someone a couple weeks ago: There's a reason why the college football thread went over 100 pages while the college basketball thread was only at 10 pages by mid-March. The regular season for basketball is pretty meaningless. Not many people care about college basketball until the time conference tournaments begin, and the interest wanes before the Final Four is played.

[BaltimoreFan]

$$$$$$$$$$ Cha-Ching. That's what it's all about and everyone knows it.

Exactly, that drives everything in sports and always has. If you really hate this idea, just completely ignore the new first round and pay attention to the top 64 seeds. That's what I'm going to do. If enough people do it, maybe the NCAA will switch back.

The thing I hate about it, is there once was a time when you could argue the NIT Champion could win the NCAA Tournament (the 1972 Maryland team comes to mind). There's no way any of the NIT Final Four teams could compete in this field. In fact they would have all probably been elminated in the first round (or at least second). There no reason to expand other than money. They are going to ruin one of the truely great sports tournament.

[Jigga]

Too bad it's not NCAA Football adding 30+ teams to their tournament.

I'll ask this: Which regular season are you watching more of....college basketball or college football?

As I stated to someone a couple weeks ago: There's a reason why the college football thread went over 100 pages while the college basketball thread was only at 10 pages by mid-March. The regular season for basketball is pretty meaningless. Not many people care about college basketball until the time conference tournaments begin, and the interest wanes before the Final Four is played.

I see what you're getting at, and your point is valid. However, I would never confuse what goes on here as being any indication of the general sports fandom landscape.

[Sport]

Too bad it's not NCAA Football adding 30+ teams to their tournament.

I'll ask this: Which regular season are you watching more of....college basketball or college football?

As I stated to someone a couple weeks ago: There's a reason why the college football thread went over 100 pages while the college basketball thread was only at 10 pages by mid-March. The regular season for basketball is pretty meaningless. Not many people care about college basketball until the time conference tournaments begin, and the interest wanes before the Final Four is played.

An 8 team tournament where the only invitees are conference champions would not ruin the college football regular season.

[Cujo]

My Final Four picks:

- Butler over Michigan State 60-56

- West Virginia over Duke 75-64

(And becauase I went 0-for-4 with my Elite Eight picks, I'm sure it'll be Duke vs. Sparty)

[Gary]

Michigan State defeats Butler 72-68, West Virginia over Duke 83-79

[dfwabel]

The officiating crew for the late game will be:

Curtis Shaw (Mostly Big Ten and Sun Belt)

John Higgins (Mostly Big Ten and MVC)

Randy McCall (Mostly WAC and MVC)

Alternate: Pat Adams (Mostly SEC and A-Sun)

For Monday night:

John Cahill (Mostly Big East and ACC)

Ted Valentine (Mostly Big Ten and SEC)

Tom Eades (Mostly SEC and MVC)

Thank goodness, Ed "There is no smiling today" Hightower is not scheduled this weekend, but Valentine tires to make himself part of the game too.

If one is really interested: Officials Comparison

[HedleyLamarr]

An 8 team tournament where the only invitees are conference champions would not ruin the college football regular season.

But there's 11 conferences....who's going to determine which conference champions play and which ones won't? Three conferences aren't going to be happy about being excluded.

Simply put, winning the Sun Belt conference is not equal to winning the SEC. Winning the MAC conference is not comparable to winning the Big XII.

If you must have an 8-team playoff, why not just have the best 8 teams, regardless of conference affiliation? Makes the most sense, wouldn't you think?

Of course, with an 8-team playoff, all you do is invite a bigger argument for "Who's #8?". The more teams you include, the more teams that think they're worthy of being invited....

[ninersdd]

Why do they have these poor angles for the Final four in football stadiums. Next year its gonna be just as bad in Houston

[dfwabel]

Why do they have these poor angles for the Final four in football stadiums. Next year its gonna be just as bad in Houston

It is due to the center of the dome design they started with in 2008. The pitch of the camera angle is different than what it is opposed to a Colts game.

Blog story on the group which transforms the dome into the NCAA "50 yard line venue"

After experimenting with the setting at the 2008 NCAA Tournament regionals in Houston and Detroit, The Colonnade Group and the NCAA-selected architectural firm HKS Inc. of Dallas had to figure out some quick solutions. The bench for players and coaches was below the floor, forcing some awkward stair climbing.

The solution?

"We call it the launching pad, and it's in front of the benches," said Robertson, who has run the company since its inception in 1991. "It's a rubber- coated step system that runs the length of the floor, offering a quick, easy climb for players entering or exiting the game and a safe landing for a player diving for a loose ball."

The Colonnade Group works SEC and Big 12 events on an annual basis in entertainment and sports production, as well as providing skybox management for schools including LSU and tailgating hospitality at Alabama and Georgia.

But for the Final Four, employees and subcontractors for The Colonnade Group become an army of Bob the Builders, creating thousands upon thousands of new rows, complete with chair back seats, which start to climb from the ground after traditional accommodations are made for media and games operation on the floor. The makeshift seats actually cover much of the venue's original seating.

The plan also includes four quads of 600 seats on floor level for students from the Final Four schools.

FYI, HKS is the architect of record for Lucas Oil Stadium and Cowboys Stadium

[WJMorris3]

An 8 team tournament where the only invitees are conference champions would not ruin the college football regular season.

But there's 11 conferences....who's going to determine which conference champions play and which ones won't? Three conferences aren't going to be happy about being excluded.

Simply put, winning the Sun Belt conference is not equal to winning the SEC. Winning the MAC conference is not comparable to winning the Big XII.

If you must have an 8-team playoff, why not just have the best 8 teams, regardless of conference affiliation? Makes the most sense, wouldn't you think?

Of course, with an 8-team playoff, all you do is invite a bigger argument for "Who's #8?". The more teams you include, the more teams that think they're worthy of being invited....

You could always invite all 11 conference champions, and give the top five a bye - that's fair, and allows any team worthy of the national championship to participate.