Video: Should Division II Overhaul the Playoff System? - with Mike Racy

[IUPNation]

So back to improving the process.

So do you agree or disagree this will take several steps to fix or you want a whole new wheel right away.

I think planned out changes over the next year or two might work better for a real fix than going all out now and then the cure turns out be worse than the problem.

1. First move is to revaluation the regions for 2023. Change them now..basically reshuffle 3 and 4.

2. Then Fix the criteria. Make it only a ten game basis. Let team schedule who they want for an 11th, give a bonus for playing up an FCS team. The current setup does not encourage playing out of region or FCS teams. West Chester no longer plays Delaware like that had for years. Now they get stuck playing Clarion or Mercyhurst.

If going away from regions what is put in place so certain conferences don’t get all of the advantages every post season. How do you keep the peace but still make it fair. Should semi final games go neutral site so those games aren’t at the same small group of schools every season. Lesser conferences may forgo the advantages of the region if they know the power teams can’t enjoy home cooking in the final two rounds. I would live with that.

[Predatory Primates]

(1) How can I elaborate on the concept of momentum?

(2) I can only speculate. My speculation might be totally off.

IUP was dominating the region and winning a lot of games. They were semifinalists in 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, and 1994. They made the championship game in 1990 and 1993.

Scholarships are reduced by the conference by 1996. When did the reductions begin? It's hard not to see at least a correlation between reductions and IUP achievement.

But back to the speculation on momentum. IUP sees that the reductions are hurting the programs ability to go deep in the playoffs and win the region, much less win a national championship.

Decisions are made in the athletic department. "If we can't fund enough to get to the national championship, why don't we simply fund at a level to be competitive regionally?

Reductions in higher ed contributions are happening around them. "Let's divert and better balance funds since we can't win it all anymore." They are no longer bumping up against the 25 limit.

Success on the field wanes. Interest wanes. IUP Is just another PSAC program.

In the near past, the limitations are removed. But people who would have been supporting a nationally relevant IUP are no longer as interested in financially supporting. It's not as easy to get people to start giving again as it would have been to keep them supporting the program.

Quite frankly, some of the previous supporters are no longer with us and their families didn't have the same experience they did.

(3) You know that's political suicide and a non-starter in Pennsylvania. It's not even relevant.

Record	Playoff Appearances	Semifinals	Championship Game
10-2	1987	-	-
8-3	1988	-	-
11-2	1989	1989	-
12-2	1990	1990	1990
12-1	1991	1991	-
8-1-1	x	-	-
13-1	1993	1993	1993
10-3	1994	1994	-
8-3	x	-	-
8-3	1996	-	-
5-5	x	-	-
10-2	1998	-	-
9-4	1999	1999	-

This makes sense.

[IUPNation]

Thanks for your explanation on momentum and glad you figured it out.

PSAC football scholarship limit
1994 - 30
1995 - 28
1996 - 26

And now we're learning that there were Title IX violations and ineffective fundraiser as coach.

(3) Bad sentence structure again. "You know...." No I don't. There's someone on this message board always saying how revolutionary and forward thinking the school is, so why not? In 2014, legislation was introduced that would have done just that.

Maybe if you paid attention on the Pee Sack board you would have already known it. It was posted there in the past and not by me because I’m not local. The IUP centric (aren’t they all) threads on the Pee Sack forum are always chock full of info. I was just repeating what I read and some speculation.

[IUPNation]

(1) How can I elaborate on the concept of momentum?

(2) I can only speculate. My speculation might be totally off.

IUP was dominating the region and winning a lot of games. They were semifinalists in 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, and 1994. They made the championship game in 1990 and 1993.

Scholarships are reduced by the conference by 1996. When did the reductions begin? It's hard not to see at least a correlation between reductions and IUP achievement.

But back to the speculation on momentum. IUP sees that the reductions are hurting the programs ability to go deep in the playoffs and win the region, much less win a national championship.

Decisions are made in the athletic department. "If we can't fund enough to get to the national championship, why don't we simply fund at a level to be competitive regionally?

Reductions in higher ed contributions are happening around them. "Let's divert and better balance funds since we can't win it all anymore." They are no longer bumping up against the 25 limit.

Success on the field wanes. Interest wanes. IUP Is just another PSAC program.

In the near past, the limitations are removed. But people who would have been supporting a nationally relevant IUP are no longer as interested in financially supporting. It's not as easy to get people to start giving again as it would have been to keep them supporting the program.

Quite frankly, some of the previous supporters are no longer with us and their families didn't have the same experience they did.

(3) You know that's political suicide and a non-starter in Pennsylvania. It's not even relevant.

Record	Playoff Appearances	Semifinals	Championship Game
10-2	1987	-	-
8-3	1988	-	-
11-2	1989	1989	-
12-2	1990	1990	1990
12-1	1991	1991	-
8-1-1	x	-	-
13-1	1993	1993	1993
10-3	1994	1994	-
8-3	x	-	-
8-3	1996	-	-
5-5	x	-	-
10-2	1998	-	-
9-4	1999	1999	-

We have a Bingo.

[Ram Tough]

It wasn’t poor sentence structure. Instead, it was an assumption in a hastily written post.

I am unconcerned with any hyperbolic claims made by anyone else in this thread.

Is it your position that IUP could have moved to a different conference without suffering any political consequences in the state?

I'll just say this. No Division II team in West Virginia wants to play Shepherd since it left the MEC. In fact, I have heard that the MEC has told institutions not to schedule Shepherd in football.

[Brandon]

Thanks for your explanation on momentum and glad you figured it out.

PSAC football scholarship limit
1994 - 30
1995 - 28
1996 - 26

And now we're learning that there were Title IX violations and ineffective fundraiser as coach.

(3) Bad sentence structure again. "You know...." No I don't. There's someone on this message board always saying how revolutionary and forward thinking the school is, so why not? In 2014, legislation was introduced that would have done just that.

It wasn’t poor sentence structure. Instead, it was an assumption in a hastily written post.

I am unconcerned with any hyperbolic claims made by anyone else in this thread.

Is it your position that IUP could have moved to a different conference without suffering any political consequences in the state?

[Horror Child]

(1) How can I elaborate on the concept of momentum?

(2) I can only speculate. My speculation might be totally off.

IUP was dominating the region and winning a lot of games. They were semifinalists in 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, and 1994. They made the championship game in 1990 and 1993.

Scholarships are reduced by the conference by 1996. When did the reductions begin? It's hard not to see at least a correlation between reductions and IUP achievement.

But back to the speculation on momentum. IUP sees that the reductions are hurting the programs ability to go deep in the playoffs and win the region, much less win a national championship.

Decisions are made in the athletic department. "If we can't fund enough to get to the national championship, why don't we simply fund at a level to be competitive regionally?

Reductions in higher ed contributions are happening around them. "Let's divert and better balance funds since we can't win it all anymore." They are no longer bumping up against the 25 limit.

Success on the field wanes. Interest wanes. IUP Is just another PSAC program.

In the near past, the limitations are removed. But people who would have been supporting a nationally relevant IUP are no longer as interested in financially supporting. It's not as easy to get people to start giving again as it would have been to keep them supporting the program.

Quite frankly, some of the previous supporters are no longer with us and their families didn't have the same experience they did.

(3) You know that's political suicide and a non-starter in Pennsylvania. It's not even relevant.

Record	Playoff Appearances	Semifinals	Championship Game
10-2	1987	-	-
8-3	1988	-	-
11-2	1989	1989	-
12-2	1990	1990	1990
12-1	1991	1991	-
8-1-1	x	-	-
13-1	1993	1993	1993
10-3	1994	1994	-
8-3	x	-	-
8-3	1996	-	-
5-5	x	-	-
10-2	1998	-	-
9-4	1999	1999	-

Thanks for your explanation on momentum and glad you figured it out.

PSAC football scholarship limit
1994 - 30
1995 - 28
1996 - 26

And now we're learning that there were Title IX violations and ineffective fundraiser as coach.

(3) Bad sentence structure again. "You know...." No I don't. There's someone on this message board always saying how revolutionary and forward thinking the school is, so why not? In 2014, legislation was introduced that would have done just that.

[Brandon]

(1) Please elaborate. In 1994, the NCAA scholarship limit dropped to 36. The PSAC limit gradually reduced to 25 in 1996.

(2) In 1993, IUP had 29. But per an earlier post from Burgland, at no time from 1998-2012 was IUP above 22. One would think if they were previously at 29, and their conference capped them to 25, that they would have been up against that cap from that time forward. (3) Or leave the conference in search of a more accommodating one.

(1) How can I elaborate on the concept of momentum?

(2) I can only speculate. My speculation might be totally off.

IUP was dominating the region and winning a lot of games. They were semifinalists in 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, and 1994. They made the championship game in 1990 and 1993.

Scholarships are reduced by the conference by 1996. When did the reductions begin? It's hard not to see at least a correlation between reductions and IUP achievement.

But back to the speculation on momentum. IUP sees that the reductions are hurting the programs ability to go deep in the playoffs and win the region, much less win a national championship.

Decisions are made in the athletic department. "If we can't fund enough to get to the national championship, why don't we simply fund at a level to be competitive regionally?

Reductions in higher ed contributions are happening around them. "Let's divert and better balance funds since we can't win it all anymore." They are no longer bumping up against the 25 limit.

Success on the field wanes. Interest wanes. IUP Is just another PSAC program.

In the near past, the limitations are removed. But people who would have been supporting a nationally relevant IUP are no longer as interested in financially supporting. It's not as easy to get people to start giving again as it would have been to keep them supporting the program.

Quite frankly, some of the previous supporters are no longer with us and their families didn't have the same experience they did.

(3) You know that's political suicide and a non-starter in Pennsylvania. It's not even relevant.

Record	Playoff Appearances	Semifinals	Championship Game
10-2	1987	-	-
8-3	1988	-	-
11-2	1989	1989	-
12-2	1990	1990	1990
12-1	1991	1991	-
8-1-1	x	-	-
13-1	1993	1993	1993
10-3	1994	1994	-
8-3	x	-	-
8-3	1996	-	-
5-5	x	-	-
10-2	1998	-	-
9-4	1999	1999	-

[IUPNation]

Please elaborate. In 1994, the NCAA scholarship limit dropped to 36. The PSAC limit gradually reduced to 25 in 1996.

In 1993, IUP had 29. But per an earlier post from Burgland, at no time from 1998-2012 was IUP above 22. One would think if they were previously at 29, and their conference capped them to 25, that they would have been up against that cap from that time forward. Or leave the conference in search of a more accommodating one.

You are assuming all of the money in 1993 was endowed. It could be the yearly haul was cut to stay under the limit. Also IUP got slammed by Title IX violations in the 90’sxwere maybe some funding got shifted when more women’s sports were added to be in compliance.

After Frank retired, donors didn’t warm up to The Lou Tepper and His son Curt didn’t rub the locals well either so there is about a decade of pre 1993 funding maybe not being there. It’s probably why some donations shifted to the much popular Joe Lombardi and his basketball program. A lot happened and we’ve yet to recover from the rest of the Pee Sack stabbing IUP in the back.

I gather by the locals who post that Torterella is well liked by donors so maybe fund raising is finally slowly back on the upswing. He does get the transfers.

[IUPNation]

Is it easy to get into a psac school? Do they have high academic requirements like Truman or Mines?

I ask because I wonder if they have capped enrollments.

That would put them at a disadvantage in a way. Schools like that don't have sales in their mission like schools who are trying to grow do.

Capped? Enrollment across the system has dropped like a rock since the peak around 2010-2012. It’s why they consolidated 6 schools into two triads. It’s a joke.

IUP had 15K a decade ago. Now it’s like 9500 students. Only West Chester has a higher enrollment than a decade ago.

[Predatory Primates]

I think that is more like an overabundance of schools. One thing that has helped Shepherd with funding is that the area around the school is growing. More people + More businesses + More alumni = More money.

Most MIAA schools are in that same boat. They are trying to grow enrollment, and have sales and fundraising as an integral part of their mission.

[Ram Tough]

Is it easy to get into a psac school? Do they have high academic requirements like Truman or Mines?

I ask because I wonder if they have capped enrollments.

That would put them at a disadvantage in a way. Schools like that don't have sales in their mission like schools who are trying to grow do.

I think that is more like an overabundance of schools. One thing that has helped Shepherd with funding is that the area around the school is growing. More people + More businesses + More alumni = More money.

[Predatory Primates]

Is it easy to get into a psac school? Do they have high academic requirements like Truman or Mines?

I ask because I wonder if they have capped enrollments.

That would put them at a disadvantage in a way. Schools like that don't have sales in their mission like schools who are trying to grow do.

[Horror Child]

Of course, but I believe momentum is real.

Please elaborate. In 1994, the NCAA scholarship limit dropped to 36. The PSAC limit gradually reduced to 25 in 1996.

In 1993, IUP had 29. But per an earlier post from Burgland, at no time from 1998-2012 was IUP above 22. One would think if they were previously at 29, and their conference capped them to 25, that they would have been up against that cap from that time forward. Or leave the conference in search of a more accommodating one.

[Ram Tough]

Of course, but I believe momentum is real.

It's easier to tear down than to build back.