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Summary: Texas A&M cancels their midweek game with Incarnate Word due to risk of loss or lowering of RPI status with a win. I agree with this writer’s take, myself.
Thoughts?

UltimateVUFan wrote: ↑Tue May 17, 2022 1:01 pm https://www.si.com/college/arkansas/hog ... c-baseball

Summary: Texas A&M cancels their midweek game with Incarnate Word due to risk of loss or lowering of RPI status with a win. I agree with this writer’s take, myself.
Thoughts?

Stunned.

Wow! That is incredibly weak.

Why does it not surprise me it’s the Aggies?

They are getting skewered in the press because of this -- and they should be.

Total BS. If I had a vote, I hold it against them - and against all of the other teams who are following suit.

I’m in Arkansas and they are really talking about it! Great article. Thanks.

Several other major programs have done this same thing this week, including Ole Miss and Virginia, for reasons that include "travel difficulties." It's becoming a big problem.

SEC network commentators on rally cap praised the decision FWI.

charlestonalum wrote: ↑Tue May 17, 2022 6:59 pm SEC network commentators on rally cap praised the decision FWI.

Of course they did. Where does their salary originate? They can’t criticize the decision that might be detrimental to SEC income in terms of being a host team come tourney time.

Does anyone know of a website that shows raw RPI (e.g. Kansas Men’s Basketball last season .6607 according to CBSSports.com)?

https://www.cbssports.com/college-baske ... kings/rpi/

All the college baseball RPI sites I see merely show rank. Would be interesting to see exactly how much A&M’s raw RPI drops (if it does) against #190 Incarnate Word.

Meanwhile, other top teams play other (mostly) lesser teams midweek. If Texas A&M wants a higher Strength of Scheduke then schedule better teams and play some midweek road games.

They should not have scheduled home games versus Fordham (3games, RPI #266), Houston Baptist (#176), Tarketon State (#260) and UT-Arlington (#256).

The aformentioned talkingheads said even with a win that A&M would drop so, of course, you cancel the game.

Then just play your 30 SEC games and no others.
Your Strength of Schedule would be tremendous and a .500 record would have the team in the Top 10 RPI.

Fix this, NCAA! Call it a forfeit by A&M.

charlestonalum wrote: ↑Tue May 17, 2022 9:05 pm The aformentioned talkingheads said even with a win that A&M would drop so, of course, you cancel the game.

Sorry charleston, can't agree. An example of teaching young people that you only have to live up to your commitments if they are still convenient or profitable. They scheduled the game, play the game .

In an environment where coaches, and now players, can break their commitments easily, are we really surprised when commitments to just play the game also are irrelevant? We should all aspire to be in charge of the schedule- make some choices that turn out to be suboptimal? Hey, no problem!

Who makes the baseball schedule, anyway?

I don't think any program should back out of a game that was scheduled to be played unless it involves circumstances out of their control.

On the other hand, the RPI should never punish a team for a win over any opponent. The best idea I've seen is to tweak it so that such a win would be dropped from the RPI formula (or make it so that any such win after May 1 can't hurt you).

The original basketball RPI penalized a team slightly (.010 or something like that deducted from the raw score which we never see in the college baseball RPI) for merely PLAYING a non-Division I opponent.

Now, those games just are not counted in the calculation. The point is that — yes — the RPI can be tweaked. I don’t have a suggestion regarding how to account for a game against a team with a low RPI.

Sure wish the raw numbers were published somewhere… we could calculate the hit to Vanderbilt’s RPI had the North Alabama (currently #286) not been cancelled.

OldDude wrote: ↑Wed May 18, 2022 12:56 pm

charlestonalum wrote: ↑Tue May 17, 2022 9:05 pm The aformentioned talkingheads said even with a win that A&M would drop so, of course, you cancel the game.

Sorry charleston, can't agree. An example of teaching young people that you only have to live up to your commitments if they are still convenient or profitable. They scheduled the game, play the game .

Old Dude, I was quoting rally cap folks: I think it is a disgrace that A&M didn't play. Read the post carefully.

AuricGoldfinger wrote: ↑Wed May 18, 2022 3:00 pm I don't think any program should back out of a game that was scheduled to be played unless it involves circumstances out of their control.

On the other hand, the RPI should never punish a team for a win over any opponent. The best idea I've seen is to tweak it so that such a win would be dropped from the RPI formula (or make it so that any such win after May 1 can't hurt you).

One other point to add...

One of the things that makes college baseball unique is that every program plays midweek games against relatively nearby schools. It minimizes travel expenses and missed classes and builds goodwill. It's just not realistic to think that high level programs should stop scheduling those games.

charlestonalum wrote: ↑Wed May 18, 2022 7:07 pm

OldDude wrote: ↑Wed May 18, 2022 12:56 pm

charlestonalum wrote: ↑Tue May 17, 2022 9:05 pm The aformentioned talkingheads said even with a win that A&M would drop so, of course, you cancel the game.

Sorry charleston, can't agree. An example of teaching young people that you only have to live up to your commitments if they are still convenient or profitable. They scheduled the game, play the game .

Old Dude, I was quoting rally cap folks: I think it is a disgrace that A&M didn't play. Read the post carefully.

Oops, sorry. didn't pick up on the attribution.

No apologies nenessay: we are in total agreement, and it is disheartening that "commentators" or should we say entertainers on the SEC network don't have integrity or belief in honoring contracts. I can't see Corbin or Vanderbilt doing that just before a scheuled game. It is part of the SEC win at any cost philosophy.