There are certain truisms The Machine lives by:\u00a0 Only good things happen with Coors Light, snitches get stitches, and if she fucks on the first date, don\u2019t marry her.\u00a0 These well-tested foundational elements of life are true 100% of the time, unlike stereotypes, which are only true 90% of the time.\u00a0 You can imagine our horror then, when these guarantees fail us.\u00a0 It shakes us to our core, and causes us to question everything.<\/p>\n
Up until last week, The Machine had another truism it swore by:\u00a0 if you\u2019re the #1 team in the country and lose, you\u2019re no longer the #1 team in the country.\u00a0 Sounds simple right?<\/p>\n
Last week was a crazy week in College Basketball.\u00a0 4 of the top 5 teams and 6 of the top 10 teams lost.\u00a0 The Top 5 teams were (in order):\u00a0 Indiana, Florida, Michigan, Duke, Kansas. \u00a0All of them lost, except Duke.\u00a0 Not only did Indiana lose but they lost to unranked Illinois.<\/p>\n
However, imagine our shock\/horror\/rage, when The Machine opened up Monday\u2019s paper and saw the new top 5: \u00a0Indiana, Duke, Miami, Michigan, Gonzaga.\u00a0 Indiana\u2019s still #1?\u00a0 How is that possible?\u00a0 Did they get participation points?\u00a0 How can you lose (to an unranked team no less) and still be considered the number one team in the country?\u00a0 And, to make things even more ridiculous, how does Illinois not crack the top 25?\u00a0 You\u2019re telling me Colorado State, with that thrilling win over (unranked) Nevada, gets to break into the top 25 but not a team that beat #1?\u00a0 It makes no sense.<\/p>\n
These rankings are, to be professional about it, total horseshit.\u00a0 They\u2019re completely arbitrary, not like that infallible BCS computer ranking system.\u00a0 Seriously, what purpose do they serve?\u00a0 They\u2019re no longer a barometer for placement in the NCAA tourney…RPI, BPI, conference tournaments, and Joe Lunardi have taken that over (seriously, he calls himself a Bracketologist).\u00a0 So what, then?\u00a0 National pride for your school?\u00a0 Bragging rights?\u00a0 Maybe.<\/p>\n
Perhaps they do\/did serve some purpose, but not anymore.\u00a0 Being #1 in the country means nothing, other than you\u2019re probably going to lose.\u00a0 For the past six consecutive weeks, the #1 team lost, and for the first five weeks, that also (logically) meant they lost their #1 ranking.\u00a0 Two weeks ago, when (then) #1 Michigan lost to (then) #3 Indiana it dropped Michigan to #3 and propelled Indiana to #1.\u00a0 If losing to the #3 team in the country knocks you out of first place, how does losing to an unranked team not?<\/p>\n
We’re either in an unprecedented year of basketball parity, or the people ranking these teams are clueless (\u201chey, which Big Ten\/ACC team you want to make #1 this week?).<\/p>\n
Point is, even with parity, if the rankings are to have any meaning, they have to have real consequences and rewards.\u00a0 Thus, The Machine thinks the following should happen, ASAP: \u00a0if the #1 team loses, they automatically drop to (at least) #10, and there they can claw their way back to the top.\u00a0 Falling to #3, or in Indiana\u2019s case, remaining #1, has no real consequences at all.\u00a0 Likewise, if you\u2019re unranked and you beat a top 10 team, you\u2019re in the top 25. \u00a0This gives hope to teams that pull off a huge upset, like Illinois, who also beat #18 Minnesota last week, yet are still on the outside looking in.<\/p>\n
Rankings need to send a message, and that message shouldn\u2019t be the \u201cif you had fun you won\u201d mantra that\u2019s currently being taught to our children and ruining our sports culture (seriously how am I going to bet on my son\u2019s little league games if they don\u2019t keep score)?\u00a0 By providing real rewards and consequences, the rankings would all of a sudden become relevant again.\u00a0 The season\u2019s long enough where a team that drops from #1 to #10 can still fight their way back to the top, and by rewarding teams more, it keeps the rankings fluid, allows more teams a chance to get in the top 25, and gives them momentum.<\/p>\n
It makes so much sense, that it will never happen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
There are certain truisms The Machine lives by:\u00a0 Only good things happen with Coors Light, snitches get stitches, and if she fucks on the first date, don\u2019t marry her.\u00a0 These well-tested foundational elements of life are true 100% of the … Continue reading