Don't get me wrong folks, I agree with that the Sioux have as much right as
BU, Michigan State, or Colorado College to be at the top of the heap until
proven otherwise, whether beaten regularly by top teams or losing too often
to unranked teams.
 
Likewise, I don't feel that a single loss alone to an unranked squad,
especially this early in the season, should cause any team to lose so many
points.
 
My gripes lie within the inconsistencies of the polls, not in how "correct"
they may be. UND and Maine both lose games to "unranked" teams, yet UNH
loses 2 games to a top 10 team (BC) and gets penalized. Cornell beats
cellar dwellers and is vaulted into the top 10.
 
I just seems that the effort put forth by many of the voters seems to be
fairly minimal, especially at this point of the season. I would be curious
to see how a coaches-only poll would match up against a press-only poll.
 
The question of the day is: If polls this early in the season are
"inaccurate" and "overly opinion-based" and "not to be minded" -- then why
conduct them at all?
 
Whether players, coaches, media, fans, whoever like to admit it or not,
polls *do* make a difference. A team's position in the polls throughout the
season can have great effect on both their own and their opponents
performance. To see this all you need to do is go to a game where the "#1
team in the country" is playing... anybody else, especially if they're
playing at the lesser-ranked (or unranked) team's home rink.
 
The majority of the time this is touted as the "game of the year" for the
lower ranked school. More seats are sold (and scalped), the fans are
louder, and the players are juiced up even more. This is the same in just
about any sport.
 
Likewise, a team being ranked #1 means it shoulders a lot of responsibility
-- and while teams like Michigan, BU, and Minnesota (among others) are very
accustomed to many (if not most) of their away games being "huge" games for
their opponents, a team like Vermont or Colorado College can earn
additional respect.
 
Finally, I can't believe that a team's standing in the leading national
poll doesn't have at least *some* effect on the selection committee. If a
team is ranked significantly high in the polls all year but lower
mathetmatically and statistically, you can bet the polls will influence a
decision to seed that team just a bit higher come tournament time.
 
Which in the end gang, all comes back to the almighty dollar. Recruiting,
quality of facilities, TV and radio contracts, and post-game media coverage
are all increased alongside a team's poll standings... and decreased as well.
 
 
 
 
greenie
S P O O N  ! !
(go BU)
(go RAPIDS!!!!)
 
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