Bracketology Breakdown
Last Four In: UC-Davis, Southeastern Louisiana, Jacksonville State, Albany
First Six Out: Sam Houston State, Monmouth, one-third of the Colonial
You’ll notice one-third of the Colonial as part of the next six out. That’s four of the conference’s twelve teams, for those who struggle with mathematics; Towson, New Hampshire, Delaware, Stony Brook. One would think at least one of those four will separate from the pack and claim a bid later on, but who really knows? The overall depth of the CAA is amazing, but nobody besides James Madison and Villanova are sure things. The CAA’s third team right now, Albany, is the last team in the field.
The Missouri Valley lost a bid this week as Youngstown State fell to 0-3 in conference after a cupcake-laced 4-0 non-conference start. They can still rectify their situation, but they’d better find some insulin or the 2019 diabetic coma will end with just a full belly on Thanksgiving weekend. The rest of the MVFC looks remarkably shallow and four bids might be the maximum the league will haul.
The Ohio Valley, Southern and Southland continue to grind on each other like an untrained sixteen year old driving a clutch for the first time. All the gears are being worn down and almost everyone is slipping. Each of these conferences have the capability of landing up to four bids or as few as two. The overall bubble is in such flux, it’s nearly impossible to forecast where bids will be locked. And we’re only five weeks from Selection Sunday!
Bids By Conference
Big Sky (5): *Weber State, Sacramento State, Montana State, Montana, UC-Davis
Big South (1): *Kennesaw State
Colonial (3): *James Madison, Villanova, Albany
Missouri Valley (4): *North Dakota State, South Dakota State, Illinois State, Northern Iowa
Northeast (1): *Duquesne
Ohio Valley (2): *Tennessee-Martin, Jacksonville State
Patriot (1): *Holy Cross
Pioneer (1): *San Diego
Southern (2): *Furman, Wofford
Southland (4): *Central Arkansas, Incarnate Word, Nicholls, Southeastern Louisiana
* denotes projected conference automatic qualifier
