The expanded Pac-10 is reportedly going to create North and South divisions with a pod system for conference play, which is expected to look something like this:
Pod 1: NW schools.
Pod 2: CA schools.
Pod 3: AZ and MTN schools.Each year, you'd play everyone in your pod and three of the four teams in each of the other pods. (For instance: The NW schools would play three of the four CA schools every year.)
However, Pac-10 officials may have run afoul of NCAA bylaws in creating this system, because in order to have a championship game, there must be a round-robin schedule between divisions:
17.9.5.2 Annual Exemptions. [FBS/FCS] The maximum number of football contests shall exclude the following: c) Twelve-Member Conference Championship Game. [FBS/FCS] A conference championship game between division champions of a member conference of 12 or more institutions that is divided into two divisions (of six or more institutions each), each of which conducts round-robin, regular-season competition among the members of that division;
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Good.
The pod system is stupid. Why have division if you don’t play everyone else within?
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by David Piper on Sep 27, 2010 10:15 PM EDT reply actions
Agreed. I hated the idea.
If you don’t play everyone in the division you are asking for controversy over who wins the division.
by daedalus17 on Sep 28, 2010 12:24 AM EDT up reply actions
I thought the idea included a round-robin? i.e., if Div A was UO, UW, Cal, UCLA, UA, CU, then UO’s permanent opponents would be UW, WSU, OSU, Cal, UCLA, UA and CU, and they’d switch ASU/Utah every year and USC/Stanford every year for a 9-game schedule.
by AllSaintsDay on Sep 27, 2010 11:02 PM EDT reply actions
Oh, never mind. Clicking through enough links tells me otherwise.
by AllSaintsDay on Sep 27, 2010 11:05 PM EDT up reply actions
Bylaws can be changed.
And the PAC 10 has the clout to do so.
Also, the MAC violates this bylaw every year (possible with an exemption due to logistical issues of having 13 members)
It is possible to have the pods and a full round robin in the division.
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by Ben Prather on Sep 28, 2010 12:36 AM EDT reply actions
Not in the current set up
The way the schedule is currently set up the teams do not play a full round robin. The reports are saying that each pod would play three from opposite pods each year and the pod of Arizona, Arizona State, Utah, and Colorado would each miss one divisional opponent each year.
The other pods could get in a full round robin by scheduling certain teams, but the pod I mentioned there is no way with the current schedule set up to have a round robin.
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by Jeremy Mauss on Sep 28, 2010 12:41 AM EDT up reply actions
I was going to post something about easily getting the bylaw changed
But you beat me to it. Not hard to do at all.
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by Jeff Nusser on Sep 28, 2010 1:28 AM EDT up reply actions
even if they get it changed
That does not mean there will not be any controversy. I think it is a bad idea to do this type of scheduling that does not provide a round robin schedule. Ties probably would be rare but the chance is too likely.
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by Jeremy Mauss on Sep 28, 2010 1:42 AM EDT up reply actions
How do you know it is easy for the PAC 10 to change the NCAA bylaws?
Now I am no expert on the ability of a conference to change the NCAA bylaws; however, at this point I do not trust when people say it is easy for a conference to change the NCAA bylaws on a subject that is very sensitive to everyone like this. What is your source that corfirms it will be easy?
I have heard this argument before when everyone said it would be easy for the Pac 10 or Big 10 to change the bylaws so they could have a championship game with less than 12 teams. We all know the result. Now here we are with people claiming again that it would be easy to change the exact same bylaw that was not changed before.
I would say the ability to change the bylaws is uncertain.
The division alignment decision is suppose to happen on October 21. Even if they can change the bylaws, can they do it in time. Setting up the divisions this way before it is allowed is risky. Are they willing to go ahead and set up the divisions and ask for forgiveness later?
My vote. Set up the divisions so you play everyone in your own division and then nobody has to worry about it. I don’t want the additional division champion controversy.
by daedalus17 on Sep 28, 2010 12:51 PM EDT up reply actions
good points
The Pac-10 was at least entertaining the idea of having a title game with 10 teams. I do not know how far they got on that, but not very far since they added Utah and Colorado.
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by Jeremy Mauss on Sep 28, 2010 1:07 PM EDT up reply actions
2 days after you write this it shows up on Ted Millers blog
Pac 10 divisions blog link.
I bolded parts relating to the article and our comments to the article…
I thought this part was interesting…
by daedalus17 on Sep 29, 2010 10:40 PM EDT up reply actions
I saw that too
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by Jeremy Mauss on Oct 1, 2010 12:55 AM EDT up reply actions
I think you answered your own question.
Confer3nece bylaws are trivial to change. To change the NCAA bylaws the PAC 10 would need to submit a proposed change and then a vote would occur and if it passed the bylaw would change.
The Big 12 proposed, and it was rushed to the forefront, a proposal to change the bylaws to allow 6-6 teams the same rights to bowl access as winning teams. That change was made, faster than the standard process, last year.
NCAA exemptions are fairly common. This case, with a deliberate plan to violate the bylaw when other options exist that comply, my make the exemption process iffy.
For the record – I am opposed to not playing everyone in your division. I am in favor of Utah playing the Arizona schools every year – even if that means (being in the North) that we only play two California team each year.
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by Ben Prather on Oct 2, 2010 12:04 AM EDT up reply actions
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