FOURTH MDIA Div. A Top 25 Poll is out (4/5/06)!

[echo 600]

1. Kellie Pickler (hotness on skates)
2. Taylor Hicks (who doesn't love Joe Cocker covers)
3. Chris Daughtry (time for a white dude to win)
4. Katherine McPhee (tall glass of talent right there, I tell ya)
5. Elliot Yamin (from VA, represent)
6. Bucky Covington (got the midwest vote)
7. Paris Bennet (on her way out)
8. Ace Young (Nancy boy)

Oh, wait a minute.

Crapolla, i'm in the wrong forum again, aren't I?

[lil lady lax fan]

Nah, come on, Pete. UCSD shouldn't fall that far. They lost to Michigan. Plus SSU by one, ASU by one and USD by one. USD is the #1 B division team. They are very good. All the losses were close.
No way they fall from #5 to #10 for a loss to the #1 B team in the country and a traditional rival. They are 9-4 with the #6 SOS in the country. They play a tough schedule and they don't get blown out. They should be ahead of FSU and Oregon and they just beat Arizona last weekend.

2 bad loses in a row should drop them that far. I really should have put Oregon at 9 and FSU at 8 because Oregon is not playing great ball right now either.
I know that USD is good, maybe even great, but they wouldn't come close to beating anyone else in the top ten of Div A. I know that it is a rivalry game, but I saw them play last year, and I have seen quite a few Div B games this year, and that is a bad loss. If you lose to them then you have major weaknesses. And that puts you at the bottom of the Top Ten. Now when they play great, then they can be top 5 maybe even the best, but right now, they are #10. That is the thing about this year. It really depends on how you are playing lately. So many questionable teams in the 4-12 range, that 1 week of bad play can send you to the bottom of that pile.

pete, how can you claim that it is a bad loss, you have no idea if they could hang with other top ten A teams, they played 2 A teams this year, and won both games. They dominated usc 15-3, and beat ucsd. Until usd and other top B teams play more top level A teams, you don't know how the divisions stack up. I'm not saying usd would consistantly be able to beat top 10 A teams, but it shouldn't matter, division A has their championship, and so does division B. ucsd has beaten ucsb and arizona, which is more than the teams ranked 6-10 can say

You should also look at the power rating for USD which is comparable to UCSD's (79.54 vs 80 for UCSD) Don't go discounting them just because they are a Division B team. I have to second Maple Leaf's opinion of USD's skill--they could give quite a few of the top division A teams a run for their money. I think UCSD is well-placed at #6 or 7

[Bluevelvet]

Some upsets already and it is only 4 days since the last poll. New Top 10 as of 4/9.

1. CSU- beat Oakland and Utah
2. SSU-beat TAMU
3. Michigan (still think they are the best team in the MDIA)
4. BYU- beat Oregon by 8
5. UCSB-upset by AZ but easily beat ranked ASU; both on the road.
6. Colorado- beat Utah. Can't put them ahead of UCSB after the recent 14-6 loss.
7. UCSD- another 1 goal upset loss; this one to division B rival USD
8. Oregon- lost again; @ BYU and it was not close
9. Arizona- beat #4 UCSB
10. FSU beat #20 Chapman 11-9 @ home

Now CSU falls to the upset. I also think Sonoma will lose this week or in the WCLL final 4.
Still think Michigan has the best team in the MDIA. They have intelligence, discipline and good coaching.

[TrainerDan]

Some upsets already and it is only 4 days since the last poll. New Top 10 as of 4/9.

1. CSU- beat Oakland and Utah
2. SSU-beat TAMU
3. Michigan (still think they are the best team in the MDIA)
4. BYU- beat Oregon by 8
5. UCSB-upset by AZ but easily beat ranked ASU; both on the road.
6. Colorado- beat Utah. Can't put them ahead of UCSB after the recent 14-6 loss.
7. UCSD- another 1 goal upset loss; this one to division B rival USD
8. Oregon- lost again; @ BYU and it was not close
9. Arizona- beat #4 UCSB
10. FSU beat #20 Chapman 11-9 @ home

Now CSU falls to the upset. I also think Sonoma will lose this week or in the WCLL final 4.
Still think Michigan has the best team in the MDIA. They have intelligence, discipline and good coaching.

Not meant as a slight to Michigan but the fact is that they always come up short at the national tournament. They made the semis last year which was the first time for them in awhile. Previously to that they always seemed to bow out in the 2nd round. They are definitely one of the top 5 teams in the nation but to say they are the best team at this point may be reaching a bit. This was CSU's 1st loss and they are still the team to beat, even with the loss this afternoon. BYU can make quite a statement over the next few games. They have CU tomorrow, Sonoma on Wed., and then play at Utah next saturday. If the Cougars win out on those 3, well that's a dang solid finish to the season. Go Cougars!

[Bluevelvet]

I am pretty certain that Michigan would not have lost to BYU with a 3 goal lead with 1 minute left in the third. They are too smart and too disciplined for that.
Michigan may not win it all, and they may not get the #1 seed, but in MY OPINION they are the best team in the MDIA. (I've seen all the top 10 except FSU and Oregon).

[TrainerDan]

I am pretty certain that Michigan would not have lost to BYU with a 3 goal lead with 1 minute left in the third. They are too smart and too disciplined for that.
Michigan may not win it all, and they may not get the #1 seed, but in MY OPINION they are the best team in the MDIA. (I've seen all the top 10 except FSU and Oregon).

You seem to be forgetting that Michigan already lost to BYU this year when they had a 2 goal lead at the end of third. You have a very strong opinion which you're entitled to...I for one would not put money on Michigan

[WaterBoy]

I would actually tend to agree with bluevelvet on this one- except I haven't seen as many teams as him.

Obviously the "best" team is hard to put a finger on, but I think Michigan, especially at this point, has about as much claim as any other team. The next week should straighten it all out a bit more.

[Dan Wishengrad]

Connecticut (7-1) over Northeastern in triple overtime. Very interesting result in the PCLL, sure to shake up the next poll.

[steveperry]

Georgia Tech gets beat 8-3 by unranked Georgia as well. G Tech's 2nd unranked loss in the last 2 weeks.

Now that is UCSD, Georgia Tech, and Northeastern getting beat by unranked teams since the last poll. If I remember, Chapman was punished with a big drop after their loss to then unranked (now well ranked in the top 18) ASU by 1, and more recently to LMU by 1. Will this happen to these teams, or do they get a slap on the wrist in the next poll? Should be an interesting discussion this week before the wednesday poll.

[Bluevelvet]

Chapman dropped 3 spots from #17 to #20. I assume the other teams will have similar drops.

Not meant as a slight to Michigan but the fact is that they always come up short at the national tournament. They made the semis last year which was the first time for them in awhile. Previously to that they always seemed to bow out in the 2nd round. They are definitely one of the top 5 teams in the nation but to say they are the best team at this point may be reaching a bit. This was CSU's 1st loss and they are still the team to beat, even with the loss this afternoon. BYU can make quite a statement over the next few games. They have CU tomorrow, Sonoma on Wed., and then play at Utah next saturday. If the Cougars win out on those 3, well that's a dang solid finish to the season. Go Cougars!

Michigan looks better and better with each upset. If Sonoma also goes down this week, look for Michigan as the #1 seed.

[univduke21]

With this weekend's game in the RMLC going the way that they did, it will be interesting to see the new poll on the 19th.
1. CSU - lost to BYU
2. Sonoma State- beat Cal Poly
3. Michigan- beat Oakland
4. UCSB - lost to Arizona, beat Arizona State
5. UCSD- lost to Arizona State and San Diego, beat Arizona
6. BYU - Beat CSU, Lost to Colorado
7. Oregon - lost to BYU and Cal Poly
8. Colorado - beat BYU
9. Florida State- beat Chapman
10. Cal Poly - beat Oregon, lost to Sonoma State

This next poll should be interesting....

[laxfan25]

Connecticut (7-1) over Northeastern in triple overtime. Very interesting result in the PCLL, sure to shake up the next poll.

Go Huskies!

[Bluevelvet]

With this weekend's game in the RMLC going the way that they did, it will be interesting to see the new poll on the 19th.
1. CSU - lost to BYU
2. Sonoma State- beat Cal Poly
3. Michigan- beat Oakland
4. UCSB - lost to Arizona, beat Arizona State
5. UCSD- lost to Arizona State and San Diego, beat Arizona
6. BYU - Beat CSU, Lost to Colorado
7. Oregon - lost to BYU and Cal Poly
8. Colorado - beat BYU
9. Florida State- beat Chapman
10. Cal Poly - beat Oregon, lost to Sonoma State

This next poll should be interesting....

univduke21- Some of what you posted re: SSU, UCSD, Oregon and Cal Poly happened before the last poll 4/5.

[FredaFelcher]

Colorado also beat Utah and Oakland. I bet they bump up to five in Wednesday's poll.

[oaklandlax]

It will be very interesting to see what happens this week. I know that Oakland’s early lost to Northeastern and Lindenwood really hurt them, but strong wins vs Duluth, State, and a close lose by four vs Colorado who beat BYU who beat CSU might bring them to 16. It really does not matter unless you are ranked in the top 12 going into your conference finals. I know the only chance that Oakland might have is if they win the CCLA's but after losing to U of M yesterday, its going to be tuff road. I think the pollsters do a good job, I would not be surprised if they did look at the strength of schedule when voting in the last poll. I think that there are a lot of comparable teams in the league this year, and that makes it very fun to read or see. Here are the losses that Oakland has had this year, and wins in the top 25.

OU vs LU #12 lost by 4 (Oakland 11 at the time lost to #12)
OU vs Northeastern #16 at the time lost by 5 (bad loss)
OU vs Colorado # 8 lost by 4
OU vs CSU # 1 lost by 9 (bad loss, good showing in 1st half down 4-3)
OU vs U of M # 3 lost by 8 (bad loss)

OU vs Duluth #11 won by 6
OU vs MSU #21 won by 10
OU vs Illinois #24 won by 1

I think some teams in the top 25 do not have a very tuff schedule. Take a look at BYU they have the toughest schedule in the nation. Here are some examples of teams in the top 25 from Laxpower who don’t have a tuff schedule.

Oregon at 17 (ranked 7 in last poll)
Georgia Tech at 32 (ranked 16 in last poll)
Lindenwood at 36 (ranked 12 in last poll)
Virginia Tech at 37 (ranked 14 in last poll)
Duluth at 46 (dropped 15 in last poll)
Northeastern at 70 (dropped 19 in last poll)

I think the top 12 is right, and looks like it’s a lock for these teams to go to Dallas

1. Colorado State (29 First Place Votes) - 749 pts
2. Sonoma State - 716 pts
3. Michigan (1 First Place Vote) - 695 pts
4. Univ. of California, Santa Barbara - 646 pts
5. Univ. of California, San Diego - 603 pts
6. Brigham Young University - 587 pts
7. Oregon - 566 pts
8. Colorado - 558 pts
9. Florida State - 524 pts
10. Cal Poly SLO - 452 pts
11. Arizona - 427 pts
12. Lindenwood University - 401 pts

You put this two teams in because of there conference

15. Minnesota-Duluth - 319 pts
19. Northeastern University - 246 pts

Only leaving two spots

13. Utah - 366 pts
14. Virginia Tech - 327 pts
16. Georgia Tech - 303 pts
17. Oakland University - 275 pts
18. Arizona State - 269 pts

This is going to be interesting!!!!!!!!!!!!!!