REPORT OF THE
BRACKET/FORMAT SUBCOMMITTEE
1. ACTION ITEM.
Determination of
Participants for Wrestling Championships.
a.
Recommendation. That the cabinet direct the Division I
Wrestling Committee to adopt and implement a system, effective with the 2009
championships, whereby each eligible conference receives automatic
qualification for the champion in each of the ten weight classes. The remaining 220 wrestlers shall be selected
on an at-large basis by the committee with the assistance of a ranking program,
similar to what tennis has with the ITA rankings or what other sports have with
the Rating Percentage Index (RPI).
b.
Rationale. The subcommittee feels that this sort of
system used to select and identify the 330 wrestlers for the finals site is the
most fair and equitable way to determine the field. Specifically, it eliminates the two
primary concerns with the current process in that it eliminates the historical
piece of the selection process and it also eliminates the
“wild-card” process, whereby conferences determine which wrestlers
(other than the champion in each weight class) advance to the finals site.
c.
Estimated Budget Impact. None.
d.
Student-Athlete Impact. None.
2.
INFORMATIONAL ITEMS.
a. Bracketing Issues. The subcommittee reviewed bracketing issues. Specifically, there is a concern for some championships where, due to geographical restrictions, the same teams may meet each other in the first round every year if both teams are not seeded. The subcommittee reviewed historical data relative to a sampling of the following championships: women’s volleyball, women’s soccer, men’s soccer, field hockey, baseball and softball to see how prevalent this concern is and to discuss possible solutions to help alleviate this issue across all team championships. The subcommittee plans to investigate the financial ramifications of a potential change in pairings policies for Division I team championships (plus men’s and women’s tennis), whereby two unseeded teams would not be paired in the first-round in back to back years or for a third consecutive year (if the first option proves to be cost-prohibitive). The staff was directed to gather the necessary information for further review by the subcommittee at its September meeting.
b. Automatic Qualification—Calculation of Conference RPI. The subcommittee reconfirmed the current policy, which directs sports committees to calculate conference RPI’s (for purposes of determining automatic qualifiers and play-in conferences) based on what the conference’s membership will be based on the year in which the championship will take place (i.e., women’s lacrosse automatic qualifiers and play-in conferences for the 2008 championship are based upon what conferences’ membership will be for the 2008 season).
The National Collegiate Athletic Association
June 26,
2007 TAJ:ks