My NCAA lacrosse bracketology

I wanted to see what a bracketology would look like from week to week. For those who don't know, a bracketology is a week-to-week prediction of what the tournament would look like based on the games played thus far. There are 17 teams in the NCAA lacrosse tournament. There is a play-in game and then the tournament of 16 teams. There are nine automatic bids (the ACC does not have enough teams to have an automatic bid, but they usually get at least three teams in, and sometimes all of them make it). Only the top-8 teams are seeded. I believe the 8th seed and what would be the 9th play each other, and the two lowest-rated teams play in the play-in game, with the winner playing the top-seed. The rest of the first-round matches are based on geography. The first round games are at the seeded-team's campus site. The rest of the tournament games are at neutral sites. Teams from the same conference are not allowed to play each other in the first round. For this year, I will use the rankings do determine seeding and at-large bids. The first few weeks will look weird, but it will play itself out at the end. Monday April 29th (automatic bids in CAPS) Play-In Game MARIST @ MOUNT ST. MARY'S First Round MAR/MSM @ (1) PENN ST. Cornell @ (8) Notre Dame Towson @ (5) Maryland DENVER @ (4) Virginia Syracuse @ (6) LOYOLA (MD) STONY BROOK @ (3) PENN HIGH POINT @ (7) Duke MASSACHUSETTS @ (2) Yale Bids by Conference ACC- 4, Ivy- 3, Big 10-2, CAA-2 First 4 Teams Out Ohio State, Johns Hopkins, Georgetown, North Carolina Wednesday April 24th (automatic bids in CAPS) Play-In Game MARIST @ STONY BROOK First Round MAR/SB @ (1) PENN ST. Cornell @ (8) LOYOLA (MD) Notre Dame @ (5) Yale VILLANOVA @ (4) PENN Ohio St. @ (6) Virginia HIGH POINT @ (3) Duke HOBART @ (7) Syracuse TOWSON @ (2) Maryland Bids by conference ACC-4; Big 10- 3; Ivy- 3 First 4 Teams Out Denver, Massachusetts, Boston, Georgetown Wednesday April 17th (automatic bids in CAPS) Play-In Game VERMONT @ CANISIUS First Round VER/CAN @ (1) PENN ST. Ohio St. @ (8) LOYOLA (MD) Notre Dame @ (5) PENN DENVER @ (4) Yale DELAWARE @ (6) Virginia HIGH POINT @ (3) Duke Cornell @ (7) Syracuse MOUNT ST. MARY'S @ (2) Maryland Bids By Conference ACC- 4, Big 10- 3, Ivy- 3 First 4 Out Towson, Massachusetts, Boston, Army Monday April 8th update (automatic bids in CAPS) Play-In Game VERMONT @ DETROIT First Round VER/DET @ (1) PENN ST. Syracuse @ (8) Cornell Ohio St. @ (5) Yale RICHMOND @ (4) Virginia Notre Dame @ (6) PENN TOWSON @ (6) Maryland VILLANOVA @ (7) Duke MOUNT ST. MARY'S @ (2) LOYOLA (MD) Teams by Conference ACC-4, Big 10- 3, Ivy- 3 First 4 Teams Out High Point, Denver, Johns Hopkins, Lehigh Monday April 1st update (automatic bids in CAPS) Note: Conference play began for the remaining conferences that did not begin last week. That made an impact in the bracket. Play-In Game ALBANY @ MOUNT ST. MARY'S First Round ALB/MSM @ (1) Penn St. Ohio St. (8) Duke QUINNIPIAC @ (5) Yale RICHMOND @ (4) Virginia LEHIGH @ (6) PENN Cornell @ (3) MARYLAND DENVER @ (7) Notre Dame TOWSON @ (2) Loyola (MD) Teams by conference ACC-3, Big 10- 3, Ivy-3, Patriot-2, First 4 Teams Out: Syracuse, High Point, Army, Massachusetts Tuesday March 26th update. The bracket (automatic bids in CAPS) Play-in game VERMONT @ SIENA First Round VER/SIE @ (1) PENN STATE Denver @ (8) Syracuse Cornell @ (5) Duke MARQUETTE @ (4) Ohio St. TOWSON @ (6) Loyola (MD) LEHIGH @ (3) Maryland RICHMOND @ (7) Virginia HOBART @ (2) YALE Teams by conference ACC-3, Big 10- 3, Big East-2, Ivy-2, Patriot-2 First 4 teams out Notre Dame (4-3), Penn (4-3), High Point (7-2), Army (7-2)

If I Was King of Sports- 2019 Reno 16

I believe that NCAA Division II basketball should have a second postseason basketball tournament just like Division I does. My proposal would be the Reno 16. There are 8 regions in division II. My proposal would take the top 2 teams in each region that were not selected for the NCAA Division II basketball tournament and send them to Reno. This idea is based off the Vegas 16 tournament that happened in 2017. It was a good idea in my opinion, but division I was just too saturated with postseason tournaments. Many division II teams have excellent seasons, but do not continue; because only 64 teams qualify for the NCAA division II basketball tournament. If I had things my way, I would hold the tournament at the Reno Events Center, but the University of Nevada would be a possibility, too. Having two venues might be a good idea, because one day if by some miracle this tournament actually happened, I would want to have a tournament for the division III teams, as well. In my proposal, I would rank the top 4 teams and then the rest of the games would be chosen at random. I think random choosing would make things more entertaining, but I would want to separate the top-4 teams, that way we don't risk the top-2 teams playing each other in the first round. The teams Atlantic Region 1. Mercyhurst (19-6)-2 2. Slippery Rock (17-9) Central Region 1. Wayne St. (NE) (18-9)-1 2. Sioux Falls (18-11) East Region 1. Bentley (19-10)-3 2. Bloomfield (19-9) Midwest Region 1. Indianapolis (16-8) 2. Ferris St. (16-11) South Central Region 1. Newman (16-8) 2. Dixie St. (16-8) South Region 1. Eckerd (17-9) 2. Barry (14-10) Southeast Region 1. Lincoln Memorial (19-8) 2. Belmont Abbey (19-7) West Region 1. Northwest Nazarene (16-7)-4 2. Azusa Pacific (19-10) The Bracket Newman vs. (1) Wayne St. (NE) Bloomfield vs. Barry Indianapolis vs. Dixie St. Eckerd vs. (4) Northwest Nazarene Slippery Rock vs. Lincoln Memorial Sioux Falls vs. (3) Bentley Ferris St. vs. Belmont Abbey Azusa Pacific vs. (2) Mercyhurst

If I Was King of Sports-2019 209 basketball tournament

The rules to this tournament are mentioned in my previous blogs, but I do have a couple of changes. I decided to make a bracket for the girls tournament. One change is if one school qualifies as hosts for both the boys and girls tournaments, then there will have to be a different location for the girls (if this tournament actually happened, the burden for the new location will be on the boys next year). I would want to test out three different options for the alternative location: 1) Have the #2 seed host, 2) find the closest school geographically to the #1 seed so that team would not have to travel as far, 3) have the closest school geographically to the #1 seed in the pod to host, even if it is the #8 seed. My bracket this year will use the first two options. (Note: For the issue of St. Mary's: The girls have an independent schedule, and thus will be independents. The boys reported an ineligible player late in the season. In my tournament, it would lose its right to host. That pod would be at the #2 seed.) Boys Bracket Pod A: at Weston Ranch-Stockton (8) Atwater Falcons (CCC) vs. (1) Weston Ranch Cougars (VOL) (5) Holt Academy Bobcats (MVL) vs. (4) Venture Academy Mustangs (CCAA) (6) Bear Creek Bruins (SJAA) vs. (3) Tracy Bulldogs (TCAL) (7) Pitman Pride (CCAL) vs. (2) Mountain House Mustangs (WAC) Pod H: at Argonaut-Jackson (8) Gustine Reds (SL) vs. (1) Argonaut Mustangs (MLL) (5) Oakdale Mustangs (VOL) vs. (4) Buhach Colony Thunder (CCC) (6) Dos Palos Broncs (WSL) vs. (3) Ripon Christian Knights (TVL) (7) Enochs Eagles (CCAL) vs. (2) Stockton Christian Eagles (MVL) Pod E: at Modesto Christian (8) Waterford Wildcats (SL) vs. (1) Modesto Christian Crusaders (TCAL) (5) Delta Charter Dragons (MVL) vs. (4) Big Valley Lions (CCAA) (6) Stagg Delta Kings (SJAA) vs. (3) Beyer Patriots (WAC) (7) Merced Bears (CCC) vs. (2) Gregori (CCAL) Pod D: at Turlock Christian (Note: Due to St. Mary's using ineligible players) (8) Summerville Bears (MLL) vs. (1) St. Mary's Rams (TCAL) (5) Turlock Bulldogs (CCAL) vs. (4) Denair Coyotes (SL) (6) East Union Lancers (VOL) vs. (3) El Capitan Gauchos (WAC) (7) Hilmar Yellowjackets (TVL) vs. (2) Turlock Christian Eagles (CCAA) Pod F: at Liberty Ranch-Galt (8) Johansen Vikings (WAC) vs. (1) Liberty Ranch Hawks (SVC) (5) Riverbank Bruins (TVL) vs. (4) Calaveras (MLL) (6) Lodi Flames (TCAL) vs. (3) Manteca Buffaloes (VOL) (7) Central Valley Hawks (CCC) vs. (2) Chavez Titans (SJAA) Pod C: at Brookside Christian-Stockton (8) Franklin Yellowjackets (SJAA) vs. (1) Brookside Christian Knights (CCAA) (5) Kimball Jaguars (VOL) vs. (4) Hughes Academy Titans (MVL) (6) Amador Buffaloes (MLL) vs. (3) Los Banos Tigers (WAC) (7) Linden Lions (SDL) vs. (2) Ripon Indians (TVL) Pod G: at Central Catholic-Modesto (8) Livingston Wolves (TVL) vs. (1) Central Catholic Raiders (VOL) (5) Modesto Panthers (CCAL) vs. (4) Edison Vikings (SJAA) (6) Ceres Bulldogs (WAC) vs. (3) Vanguard Lions (IND) (7) Lincoln Trjoans (TCAL) vs. (2) Mariposa Grizzlies (SL) Pod B: at Sonora (8) McNair Eagles (SJAA) vs. (1) Sonora Wildcats (MLL) (5) Downey Knights (TCAL) vs. (4) Sierra Timberwolves (VOL) (6) Orestimba Warriors (SL) vs. (3) Lathrop Spartans (WAC) (7) Escalon Cougars (TVL) vs. (2) Golden Valley Cougars (CCC) Non-advancing pods Pod I: at Galt (8) Delhi (SL) vs. (1) Galt (SVC) (5) Millennium (CCAA) vs. (4) Pacheco (WAC) (6) Elliot Christian (CCAA) vs. (3) Bret Harte (MLL) (7) Davis (WAC) vs. (2) West (TCAL) Pod J: at Lodi Academy (8) Today (TCAL) vs. (1) Lodi Academy (MVL) (5) LeGrand (SL) vs. (4) Hughson (TVL) (6) Patterson (CCC) vs. (3) Tioga (MVL) (7) Humphreys Charter (MVL) vs. (2) Don Pedro (MVL) Pod K Central Valley Christian (IND) @ Stone Ridge Christian (CCAA) Girls Tournament Pod A: at Holt Academy-Stockton (Pod at #2 seed due to conflict with boys tournament) (8) Golden Valley Cougars (CCC) vs. (1) Argonaut Mustangs (MLL) (5) Sierra Timberwolves (VOL) vs. (4) Lodi Flames (TCAL) (6) Venture Academy Mustangs (CCAA) vs. (3) Edison Vikings (SJAA) (7) Modesto Panthers (CCAL) vs. (2) Holt Academy Bobcats (MVL) Pod H: at Summerville-Tuolumne City (Pod at closest location to #1 seed due to conflict with boys tournament) (8) Stagg Delta Kings (SJAA) vs. (1) Sonora Wildcats (MLL) (5) Orestimba Warriors (SL) vs. Central Catholic Raiders (VOL) (6) Mountain House Mustangs (WAC) vs. (3) Ripon Chrisitan Knights (TVL) (7) Buhach Colony Thunder (CCC) vs. (2) Stockton Christian Eagles (MVL) Pod E: at Kimball-Tracy (8) Amador Buffaloes (MLL) vs. (1) Kimball Jaguars (VOL) (5) Modesto Christian Crusaders (TCAL) vs. (4) Merced Bears (CCC) (6) McNair Eagles (SJAA) vs. (3) Ripon Indians (TVL) (7) Gregori Jaguars (CCAL) vs. (2) Beyer Patriots (WAC) Pod D: at Bear Creek-Stockton (8) Tracy Bulldogs (TCAL) vs. (1) Bear Creek Bruins (SJAA) (5) Liberty Ranch Hawks (SVC) vs. (4) Hughes Academy Bobcats (MVL) (6) Gustine Reds (SL) vs. (3) East Union Lancers (VOL) (7) Ceres Bulldogs (WAC) vs. (2) Livingston Wolves (TVL) Pod F: at Atwater (8) Tokay Tigers (TCAL) vs. (1) Atwater Falcons (CCC) (5) Oakdale Mustangs (VOL) vs. (4) Le Grand Bulldogs (SL) (6) Dos Palos Broncs (WSL) vs. (3) Los Banos Tigers (WAC) (7) Millennium Falcons (CCAA) vs. (2) Turlock CCAL) Pod C: at Mariposa (8) Downey Knights (CCAL) vs. (1) Mariposa Grizzlies (SL) (5) Weston Ranch Cougars (VOL) vs. (4) Hughson Huskies (TVL) (6) Stone Ridge Christian Knights (CCAA) vs. (3) El Capitan Gauchos (CCC) (7) Don Pedro Panthers (MVL) vs. (2) Calaveras (MLL) Pod G: at Lathrop (8) Chavez Titans (SJAA) vs. (1) Lathrop Spartans (WAC) (5) Waterford (SL) vs. (4) Pitman Pride (CCAL) (6) Escalon Cougars (TVL) vs. (3) Manteca Buffaloes (VOL) (7) West Wolfpack (TCAL) vs. (2) Turlock Christian Eagles (CCAA) Pod B: at St. Mary's-Stockton (8) Delta Charter Dragon (MVL) vs. (1) St. Mary's (IND) (5) Patterson Tigers (CCC) vs. (4) Johansen Vikings (WAC) (6) Bret Harte Bullfrogs (MLL) vs. (3) Enochs Eagles (CCAL) (7) Galt Warriors (SVC) vs. (2) Lincoln Trojans (TCAL) Non-advancing pods Pod I: at Hilmar (8) Franklin (SJAA) vs. (1) Hilmar (TVL) (5) Summerville (MLL) vs. (4) Big Valley (CCAA) (6) Davis (WAC) vs. (3) Lodi Academy (MVL) (7) Pacheco (WAC) vs. (2) Linden (SDL) Pod J: at Denair (4) Delhi/Riverbank winner vs. (1) Denair (SL) (3) Tioga (MVL) vs. (2) Central Valley (CCC) Pod K: Delhi (SL) @ Riverbank (TVL)

If the Sac-Joaquin Section ran its playoffs like the NCAA tournament- 2019

Apparently I did this blog last year, so I will keep it as simple as I can. I wondered what the high school basketball playoffs might look like if it was ran like the NCAA tournament. I will give some basic rules for my hypothetical tournament and what the brackets might look like. For the actual playoff brackets, go to There are teams that qualified for the actual playoffs that would not qualify here, and vice versa. Like last year, there would be no divisions. The smallest school could play the largest school. There are a few logistic differences between high school and college. 1) Because it is high school, I think teams should have a winning record in order to qualify. I gave the exception to teams who actually qualified for the playoffs (there are 3 teams in this case). 2) In college, teams cannot play in the same city as the host in the first two rounds, I allowed this as long as schools were not within two miles of each other. Like college, the bracket is divided in four-team pods, the highest-seed gets location priority. The #4 seeds gets what's left. 3) The talent "gap" between automatic qualifiers and at-large teams is not as big in high school as it is in college. Therefore, the at-large play-in games for my tournament will fall in the 15th seed as opposed to the 11th or 12th in college. If this tournament actually happened, there would be some predetermined host sites. In this model, I just used the largest schools in each region. For the tournament, there are four area codes in the Sac-Joaquin Section. Each region is named after area codes. Host sites 1st and 2nd rounds 209 530 707 916 Lincoln (Stockton) Davis Armijo (Fairfield) Franklin (Elk Grove) Turlock Yuba City Vacaville Pleasant Grove (Elk Grove) 3rd and 4th rounds 209: University of the Pacific (Stockton) 530: University of California-Davis 707: Solano Community College (Vacaville) 916: Sacramento State University Semifinal and Final: Golden One Center Play-In Games (@ Galt) At-large 15th seed: Modesto (14-13) vs. Stagg (14-13) 15th seed: Oakdale (15-13) vs. Lathrop (17-9) 16th seed: Highlands (13-9) vs. Foresthill (17-8) 16th seed: Greene Academy (11-9) vs. Stockton Christian (23-4) Bracket: Overall #1 seed: Weston Ranch (Stockton) 209 @ Lincoln (Stockton) (16) Mira Loma (11-13) vs. (1) Weston Ranch (27-1) (9) Kennedy (15-13) vs. (8) West Campus (20-6) @ Yuba City (12) Brookside Christian (23-3) vs. (5) Rio Americano (20-6) (13) Placer (17-10) vs. (4) Liberty Ranch (26-2) (11) Cordova (16-11) vs. (6) Monterey Trail (17-10) (14) El Dorado (17-11) vs. (3) Whitney (18-9) @ Pleasant Grove (Elk Grove) (10) Gregori (19-9) @ (7) El Camino (19-8) (15) Sacramento Adventist (23-5) vs. (2) Grant (20-6) 707 @ Turlock (16) Highlands/Foresthill vs. (1) Modesto Christian (21-7) (9) Sierra (15-11) vs. (8) El Capitan (20-6) (12) Ripon (16-11) vs. (5) Manteca (19-9) (13) Vacaville (14-11) vs. (4) Roseville (20-7) @ Armijo (Fairfield) (11) Marysville (20-7) vs. (6) Burbank (18-9) (14) Chavez (15-12) vs. (3) Vanden (19-7) @ Davis (10) Mountain House (20-6) vs. (7) Wood (20-6) (15) Modesto/Stagg vs. (2) Sheldon (17-10) 916/279 @ Franklin (Elk Grove) (16) Mariposa (22-5) vs. (1) Rocklin (24-3) (9) Woodcreek (16-9) vs. (8) Tracy (16-9) @ Vacaville (12) Turlock (14-12) vs. (5) Franklin-Elk Grove (18-9) (13) Edison (15-12) vs. (4) Central Catholic (19-8) @ Davis (11) Kimball (14-13) vs. (6) Sonora (22-4) (14) Bear Creek (13-15) vs. (3) Sacramento (16-9) @ Lincoln (Stockton) (10) Beyer (20-8) vs. (7) Golden Valley (22-5) (15) Argonaut (16-10) vs. (2) St. Mary's (20-6) 530 @ Pleasant Grove (Elk Grove) (16) Greene Academy/Stockton Christian vs. (1) Folsom (22-5) (9) Del Campo (13-13) vs. (8) Center (19-7) @ Armijo (Fairfield) (12) Foothill (13-8) vs. (5) River Valley (18-8) (13) Lincoln (18-9) vs. (4) Oak Ridge (17-10) @ Vacaville (11) Ponderosa (15-11) vs. (6) Davis (16-8) (14) Union Mine (17-11) vs. (3) Center (15-12) @ Franklin (Elk Grove) (10) Rodriguez (15-10) vs. (7) Inderkum (19-8) (15) Oakdale/Lathrop vs. (2) Jesuit (20-8) First 4 Out (all under .500) Elk Grove Pleasant Grove Vista del Lago Cosumnes Oaks NIT Teams would not have to have a winning record to qualify. Since the section does not have conference tournaments, those teams that finished second in league that did not qualify would get automatic bids. Elk Grove Bracket (8) Alpha Charter (Elverta) @ (1) Elk Grove (5) Los Banos @ (4) Ripon Christian (6) Enochs (Modesto) @ (3) Lodi (7) Sacramento Waldorf @ (2) Del Oro (Loomis) Cosumnes Oaks Bracket (8) Hughes Academy (Stockton) @ (1) Cosumnes Oaks (Elk Grove) (5) Valley (Sacramento) @ (4) Buhach Colony (Atwater) (6) Bear River (Grass Valley) @ (3) Nevada Union (Grass Valley) (7) Venture Academy (Stockton) @ (2) Granite Bay Vista del Lago Bracket (8) Vacaville Christian @ (1) Vista del Lago (Folsom) (5) Calaveras (San Andreas) @ (4) East Union (Manteca) (6) Amador (Sutter Creek) @ (3) Downey (Modesto) (7) Mesa Verde (Citrus Heights) @ (2) Laguna Creek (Elk Grove) Pleasant Grove Bracket (8) Western Sierra (Rocklin) vs. (1) Pleasant Grove (Elk Grove) (Game would be at Western Sierra since Pleasant Grove would host the other tournament) (5) Christian Brothers (Sacramento) @ (4) Rosemont (Sacramento) (6) Bella Vista (Fair Oaks) @ (3) River City (West Sacramento) (7) Denair vs. (2) Yuba City (Game would be at Denair since Yuba City would host my other tournament)

If I Was King of Sports- 2018 Former VOL vs. Current VOL challenge

December 8, 2018 I intended to write this blog at the beginning of the school year, but let's be honest, I forgot. Generally I do an annual former VOL vs. current VOL blog for basketball, but since there was realignment this year, I wanted to do it for all sports. I will do one for basketball right now, but I will edit it for each sport when I have enough time to spare for it. On a side note, until this year I believed the VOL was the only league which a challenge like this one would be interesting, but this year there have been enough changes in the CCC and WAC that a challenge could be easily done for those leagues as well. Former full member VOL schools and current leagues in parenthesis (that I know of) Bear Creek (SJAA), Buhach Colony (CCC), Central Valley (CCC), Ceres (WAC), Downey (CCAL), Lathrop (WAC), Livingston (TVL), Los Banos (WAC), Modesto (CCAL), Pitman (CCAL), Riverbank (TVL), Sonora (MLL), Tracy (TCAL), West (TCAL). (Note: After I made the original post, I found out that St. Mary's was in the VOL for two years in the 1970's. I will use them for the other sports.) Boy's Basketball In my model, it would be in order of maxpreps rankings (though I don't agree with them) for the former VOL teams. I have my predicted order of finish for current VOL. Sonora @ Central Catholic Tracy @ Weston Ranch Los Banos @ Manteca Lathrop @ Sierra Downey @ Kimball Riverbank @ Oakdale Livingston @ East Union Games that will actually happen or that have happened 11/24 West @ Manteca (MAN won 90-67) 11/26 Oakdale @ Livingston (OAK won 87-54) 11/27 East Union @ Ceres (EU won 55-49) 11/29 East Union @ Downey (DOW won 69-66) 11/30 Modesto vs. Kimball (KIM won 75-61) Sierra @ West (SIE won 80-57) 12/1 Buhach Colony @ East Union (BC won 63-62) 12/4 Central Catholic @ Downey (CC won 57-39) 12/17 Downey @ East Union 12/20 Kimball @ West Manteca @ Tracy 12/21 Kimball @ Tracy Weston Ranch @ Downey 12/26 Tracy vs. Weston Ranch (@ Modesto Christian) 1/11 Oakdale @ Riverbank Girl's Basketball In this model, I will use the top rankings (former VOL) vs. how they finished in the VOL last year. St. Mary's vs. Kimball Bear Creek vs. Manteca Lathrop vs. East Union Los Banos vs. Oakdale Sonora vs. Central Catholic Pitman vs. Weston Ranch West vs. Sierra Football St. Mary's vs. Central Catholic Pitman vs. Manteca Buhach Colony vs. Oakdale Downey vs. East Union Los Banos vs. Sierra Sonora vs. Kimball Modesto vs. Weston Ranch From here on out, I will find match ups that actually happened. If there are not enough of them, then I will make up the remaining match ups to fill the hypothetical challenge. Girls Volleyball Modesto vs. Central Catholic Pitman vs. Oakdale Bear Creek vs. Manteca West vs. Kimball Downey vs. East Union Livingston vs. Sierra (Sierra did not have a game against former VOL) Riverbaank vs. Weston Ranch (Weston did not have a game against former VOL) Girls Tennis There is usually no non-league in tennis, so for my model, I will just use the teams in alphabetical order. (Note: Current small schools do co-ed tennis in the spring) Bear Creek vs. Central Catholic Buhach Colony vs. East Union Central Valley vs. Kimball Ceres vs. Manteca Downey vs. Oakdale Lathrop vs. Sierra Los Banos vs. Weston Ranch Water Polo There are only 3 former VOL members in water polo (all MLL members and two were solely associate members) and there is an associate member of the VOL (Ripon). For water polo only, I would turn it into a MLL vs. VOL challenge. Amador vs. Central Catholic Calaveras vs. Kimball Sonora vs. Oakdale Bret Harte vs. Ripon

What if Stanislaus County had a football tournament

Modesto Christian 25.9 Oakdale 18.7 Gregori 11.9 Denair 11.4 Modesto 9.2 Big Valley -9.1-x Davis -7.3 This week a couple of coworkers and I were discussing the topic of "What if there was a Stanislaus County high school football tournament?" The reality is this year that the conversation begins and ends with Central Catholic, but it was more particularly, "How would Denair do?" Denair won the Sac-Joaquin Section, Division VII championship and defeated Santee High School of Los Angeles for the California state Division 7-AA championship. Could Denair do well against the "big boys"? Barring a miracle, Central Catholic would win the championship; but who would get second? That would depend on how the bracket is situated. My idea is to have a sixteen team tournament. To allow everyone to participate, I would have the top 10 teams to qualify directly and the other 12 to play qualification games for six spots. One change I would make is I would allow all league winners to qualify (but not section winners). In the tournament, I would allow teams of the same league to play qualification games, but not in the first round of the tournament. Like the Sac-Joaquin Section, I would use calpreps.com ratings to rank the teams. Teams who would directly qualify (in alphabetical order) (*=league winner) Big Valley*, Central Catholic*, Denair, Downey, Gregori, Modesto, Modesto Christian, Oakdale, Pitman, Turlock*, Qualification (Matchups would have a different way to have matchups each year if my idea actually happened. For this year, it would be by geography. The higher rated team would be the home team.) Qualification Matchups Orestimba @ Patterson Turlock Christian @ Hughson Riverbank @ Waterford Johansen @ Davis Beyer @ Enochs Ceres @ Central Valley I think all home teams would win. Tournament (16) Central Valley (CCC) @ (1) Central Catholic (VOL) (9) Modesto (CCAL) @ (8) Denair (SL) (12) Enochs (CCAL) @ (5) Modesto Christian (TVL) (13) Waterford (SL) @ (4) Downey (CCAL) (11) Hughson (TVL) @ (6) Oakdale (VOL) (14) Davis (WAC) @ (3) Pitman (CCAL) (10) Patterson (CCC) @ (7) Gregori (CCAL) (15) Big Valley (CCAA) @ (2) Turlock (CCAL) My predicted 2nd round (9) Modesto @ (1) Central Catholic (5) Modesto Christian @ (4) Downey (6) Oakdale @ (3) Pitman (10) Patterson @ (2) Turlock Semifinals (5) Modesto Christian @ (1) Central Catholic (3) Pitman @ (2) Turlock Finals (2) Turlock @ (1) Central Catholic Winner Central Catholic

If I was King of Sports-California High School 8-man football state championship

Over the past few years, the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) has created a state championship for football based on the bowl system. It evolved from three division, to five, and now thirteen to ensure section champions get a chance to play more football. Unfortunately if you are a small school and can only have 8-man football, there is no championship. I think that is wrong. A state championship needs to be created. The question is, "How can we do it?" There is no simple answer. There are many factors to be considered. The reality is that there may have to be a committee that chooses two Northern California teams and two Southern California teams to play semifinal games with the winners playing in the championship. With the logistics and the size of the state, that might be the best solution. Fortunately in my blogs, we don't have to worry about logistics. In my suggestion, I would have a 32-team tournament. There are 18 leagues throughout the CIF. Those 18 would be in. Just to try to have some representation from all over the state, I would require three at-large bids be from the north, three from the south, and the other eight teams can be from either region. Whether the Central Section (Fresno/Bakersfield area) is considered to be "north" or "south" depends on the sport. For my model, since the Sac-Joaquin Section (Sacramento/Stockton/Modesto area) does not have 8-man football, the Central Section would be in the north. I have separated the teams in two brackets. I used calpreps.com rankings for the at-large teams and the rankings. Like the current Sac-Joaquin Section format, a team must have 4 wins in order to be eligible, unless it wins its league. If this tournament were to actually happen, I would use a committee. Also, teams from the same league would not play each other in the same round. Bracket 1 (Note: Records are prior to playoffs) League winners in CAPS (16) BORREGO SPRINGS (9-1) (City-San Diego Section) @ (1) MISSION PREP-San Luis Obispo (10-0) (Central Sierra-Central Section) (9) CORNERSTONE CHR.-Antioch (9-0) (PCL-Central Coast Section) @ (8) Villanova Prep-Ojai (6-3) (Mt. Pinos-Southern Section) (12) BIG VALLEY-Bieber (9-0) (CA North-Northern Section) @ (5) HESPERIA CHRISTIAN (8-1) (Agape-Southern Section) (13) Tomales (4-4) (N.Central III N-North Coast Section) @ (4) ANIMO ROBINSON-Los Angeles (7-2) (City-Los Angeles Section) (11) Riverdale Christian (6-3) (Central Sierra-Central Section) @ (6) LOS MOLINOS (9-0) (CA South-Northern Section) (14) Calistoga (5-4) (North Central III-S-North Coast Section) @ (3) CATE-Carpinteria (8-0) (Mt. Pinos-Southern Section) (10) Riverside Cty. Education Aca. (5-3) (Victory-Southern Section) @ (7) Orcutt Academy (7-3) (Central Sierra-Central Section) (15) SHERMAN OAKS CES-Los Angeles) (6-4) (Valley-Los Angeles Section @ (2) Faith Baptist-Canoga Park section of Los Angeles (7-2) (Independent-Southern Section) Bracket 2 (Note: Records are prior to playoffs) (16) CALVARY BAPTIST-La Verne (6-2) (Omega-Southern Section) @ (1) MOJAVE (7-0) (Desert Mountain-Southern Section) (9) SOUTH FORK-Miranda (6-3) (NCL) III-N-North Coast Section) @ (8) Branson-Ross (6-1) (North Central III-S-North Coast Section) (12) McCloud (7-1) (Independent-Northern Section) @ (5) STUART HALL-San Francisco (8-0) (North Central III-S-North Coast Section) (13) Hillcrest Chr.-Thousand Oaks (7-2) (Omega-Southern Section) @ (4) Windward-Los Angeles (6-3) (Prep-Southern Section) (11) Calvary Chapel-Downey (5-2) (Express-Southern Section @ (6) Fresno Christian (8-1) (Central Sierra-Central Section) (14) Laton (6-4) (Central Sierra-Central) @ (3) CHADWICK-Palos Verdes Estates (8-0) (Prep-Southern Section) (10) FOOTHILLS CHRISTIAN-El Cajon (6-2) (Ocean-San Diego Section) @ (7) SAGE HILL-Newport Beach (9-0) (Express-Southern Section) (15) VALLEY CHR. ACA.-Santa Maria (6-2) (CVL-Southern Section) @ (2) BLOOMINGTON CHRISTIAN (7-0) (Victory-Southern Section)