AP to allow FCS teams to be ranked

[Matt Trump]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070906/ap_on_sp_co_ne/fbc_t25_ap_poll_app_state;_ylt=AtQVgCEi2DNjnSe.4abr3lcLMxIF

After pulling off one of the greatest upsets in college football history, Appalachian State is still shaking things up.

The Associated Press said Thursday that lower-division schools — that means you, Mountaineers — are now eligible for its 71-year-old poll.

[AmesPanther]

That's cool and I think they should be ranked. But like the article said at some point the luster of beating Michigan wears off and then what. If they kept getting votes even if they weren't ranked and then made a playoff run maybe they could be ranked at the end of the season.

[Matt Trump]

I'm guessing their going to lose a game they shouldn't and fall out eventually

[JayJ79]

It's tough to really have much of a valid comparison, since FCS teams only play one, MAYBE two (though that's rare) FBS teams a year. And even then, it's early in the season. So while it might be a novelty for a FCS team to break into the polls for a week or so early in the season, it isn't going to make any difference later in the season when the polls have some bearing.

But then, as previously mentioned, early season polls don't mean much in any case.

[igo4uni]

It's amazing what a big win can do!!

[Newsbreaker]

This is just dumb.

Let's make FCS teams eligible for bowl games too. Hell, why even have a subdivision? Let's just all be in FBS, go play in a December 3rd bowl nobody cares about, and call it a day.

[PantherFan]

It's just like allow non-scholarship FCS teams be in the FCS poll. Drake plays one or two scholarship FCS teams a year, yet they can get votes in the FCS polls. Doesn't make sense. Neither does allowing FCS teams to be allowed in FBS polls. They don't play each other enough to allow decent comparisons.

[Cat80]

More confusion

A lot of people don't know how football is classified at the D I level and now more cross-pollenation? ugh. I've had to inform many people this week how NCAA Division I and football works. I had to ask a guy: Is Georgetown in D I? The answer was yes. I then asked is UNI in D I? The answer was no. I then asked why did they play each other in the NCAA BB tournament? Confusion set in and I compounded it by adding that Georgetown plays nonscholarship football-just like Drake. After a week of explaning it, I have it condensed to 4 types of football:

No football-like Creighton
Non scholarship football-like Drake
65 scholarships-like UNI and App St.
85 scholarships-like Iowa and ISU
All Division I. Period.

[jegbomb52]

This is just dumb.

Let's make FCS teams eligible for bowl games too. Hell, why even have a subdivision? Let's just all be in FBS, go play in a December 3rd bowl nobody cares about, and call it a day.

Imagine that, Newsy thinks it stupid that we let an FCS team invade into his precious FBS BCS dominated polls. I can hear him now "how dare my hawkeyes not be ranked and some D-II school App State be ranked?"

[JayJ79]

Let's see, considering Iowa has won at Michigan only once since '91......

though I agree, it doesn't make any sense to have FCS teams in the AP poll, any more than it would to have FBS in the TSN poll.

[Newsbreaker]

Jeg, you can just about hear it because it's only happening in your head. As "real" as that might seem to you, it has to happen outside your head to actually qualify as a functioning part of "reality."

Thing about this for a minute, my problem with this (and by the way, no FCS team is GOING to be ranked in FBS, so this is almost purely masturbatory) has nothing to do with FBS teams all, but rather with defending FCS football.

We live in a time when teams (paging Western Kentucky) have been leaving FCS football for the "bright lights" of FBS football at a breakneck speed. With each team that leaves, the perception of FCS football suffers...it's a "lower" division, it's a "lesser" level of play, "serious" schools want to play FBS anyway...on and on.

A positive, if not purely semantic step, has been taken to protect FCS football...changing the name, and giving our champion the title of "Division I Football Champion". Not "subdivision" champion, not "half" champion, just Champion. At the moment, those who live exclusive in the Chris Fowler world of FBS football either don't know about the change, or just don't care. Still, we're going to award a championship every year, and that team is going to publicize itself as "Division I Football Champion" and that's going to flat piss some people off.

Do no be mistaken...if FCS football hasn't already been assaulted by so many teams leaving to be irrelevant after-thoughts at the FBS level isn't bad enough, an all-out assault is coming to FCS football. It IS going to happen.

This is an unintentional move in that direction. Follow the logic here.

"FBS teams are better. If an FCS team can prove itself to an almost unprecedented level, maybe the football world will consider they to be good enough to even be mentioned with the gods of FBS football. The #1 FCS team in the country, MAYBE good enough to be the 20th or 25th team in FCS. Congrats boys, your little subdivision can now be considered with the teams that matter."

Well thanks you, how can we possibly show our appreciation? How about this, I'll pay for the one way ticket to hades, you get on first.

Here's how it's going to happen.

First, make FCS teams eligible for the almost completely meaningless FBS football poll.

Second, change the rules so that the top FCS teams can elect to take a slot in a minor bowl, rather then participate in the FCS playoffs. We've already got more bowl slots then teams with winning records, and more bowls will be approved to further that direction. Rather then take 5-7 FBS teams, let's let some of the "little guys" take a shot.

Don't think teams won't take that opportunity. Playoffs are a money loser, but any bowl trip... Then the playoffs aren't a march to find the best FCS team, but rather one of the better FCS teams.

Finally, they just eliminate the playoffs completely. What's the point, 2 or 3 playoff teams aren't competing anyway! Just get rid of FCS football completely. If teams want to only offer 63 schollys, that's their choice, but no more subdivision. No more rankings for UNI, no more playoff appearances, no more success like we've come to enjoy.

Don't think many FCS schools wouldn't love that. In their minds (paging Illinois State) ANY football at the "I-A" level is better then the best football at the FCS level. If they can't move to that level of their own accord, then just eliminate the distinction. Same result...right?

It's got nothing to to with "infringing" or any of the nonsense Jeg fills his head with. It has to do with preserving UNI football for generations to come.

We are NOT anybody's "little brother." We are NOT second tier. We CAN stand on our level of play and our own two feet. This is as patronizing a move as there has ever been.

They're coming for us. Which side of that fight are you going to decide to be on?

"I sat quietly while they came for everyone else, and when they came for me, there was nobody left to fight on my behalf."

[TH1974]

I hope you were joking with that conspiracy theory, news. It's a little half-baked.

The exposure of this last week is good for 1AA football. I can see more people getting interested in the subdivision, more games being televised, and more attention to the playoffs and championship games, but I don't see the big boys being threatened to the point of shutting it down in the manner you described.

[TH1974]

I *do* think FBS teams will think twice before scheduling higher-tier FCS teams now. That might hurt somewhat.

[williebat]

I gotta say that I would say no thanks to being including in 1-a polls or bowl games or whatever. This is because I am a fan of 1-aa (FCS) football. IMO it is less corrupt, more competitive a better game all around. 1-aa includes many highly talented athletes of which quite a few will go on to have NFL careers and a few will be NFL superstars.

Bigger is not always better.

[DomeRanger Posse]

But Newsy has a point. UNI is a great competitive program in FCS ball, and will continue to be so. But there are schools out there that IF an FCS gets a nod in the poll will start to argue that they need to play in bowl games. And with that argument, after years (it won't be an immediate move) some schools will consistently call for bowl competition and the dollars it brings in. And people will slowly start to erode away from the FCS heading to call for everyone being DIA across the board.

What about the flip-side? Since we're now playing for the Division I championship, how would we react if Nebraska, Florida State, or some other stump jump FBS team decided that FCS is being exclusionary in its model and that all teams should be open to compete for the DI football championship? UNI goes from being irrelevant in the eyes of the "big" schools because we're smaller to irrelevant because we get shut out of the playoffs year after year by FSU, LSU, etc ad nauseum. Am I saying that the Masons and the Illuminati who run the NCAA are looking to end good football? No. But this COULD be a slippery slope here. It's just human nature, folks.