This Week's Poll - Pollsters confronting a confusing mess!!

[EvanFSU]

Like FSU was suppossed to know that BYU was going to have a bad year. Talk about a dumb way to look at things. And it looks like Va Tech played Sonoma pretty tight. Bluevelvet, no matter what they do will never be happy with any west coasters. They put together a solid schedule, which pre season included 2 top 10 teams and 2 Divison II schools, as well as ranked teams in Georgia Tech, Chapman, and Michigan State.

FSU shouldnt have to travel to California every year. Let some of those guys come to FSU's new facility. The SELC is not the WCLL, but give them the respect they deserve.

Like I said, not the toughest schedule in the world, but not a cupcake by any means.

[Bluevelvet]

Your schedule is what it is, now, not what you thought it might be before the season started.
Right now, before BYU drops in the polls, FSU is #38 in laxpower strength of schedule.

Update: 3/7 FSU strength of schedule is revised by laxpower: #29.

[Ken Lovic]

there is a problem with a lot of this in relation to scheduling. I agree with Evan, FSU should not have to travel to Cali every year. They opened a new gorgeous facility and tried to get a number of home games this season to show it off and i agree with that choice. Only BYU is heading their way this year from the first poll.

The SELC is rising and hopefully someday will have the depth that the WCLL has. Those teams automatically have a strong schedule just within their conference.

Outside the WCLL, BYU and Mich always schedule tough and I applaud them for that. I also feel their programs are in a better situation to handle that right now- year in and year out. Full time coaches, more established programs, more school support, more money. Teams like FSU are on their way but taking a spring break, long weekend tournaments, and a possible Nationals trip- teams coached with "working" coaches find it very tough and sometimes have to be considered when making a schedule.

But we can not expect everyone to always to head west each year. I expect FSU to head west next year, either Utah, Colo or Cali but I feel FSU really wanted to present their new facility this year.

my 2 to 3 cents

[benji]

7. Colorado- Texas isn't the real world

What exactly does that mean? We play lax on regulation fields with refs and rules? I see Colorado dropping significantly and/or the 3 LSA teams improving slightly. The 3 teams Colorado played gave them good competition. Why overlook that?

[Bluevelvet]

Ken-
The only problem with FSUs schedule is that it makes it tough to compare them with teams that have a difficult schedule and have a few losses.
(eg. how would FSU do vs. SSU and Michigan? UCSD lost close games to them. Who is better? undefeated and largely untested FSU? or UCSD?)
I am sympathetic to FSUs motivation for staying home in their new facility, but the dilema does not exist because of their motivation, it exists because their schedule is not challenging enough to give pollsters a basis for comparison.

[FredaFelcher]

"What exactly does that mean? We play lax on regulation fields with refs and rules? I see Colorado dropping significantly and/or the 3 LSA teams improving slightly. The 3 teams Colorado played gave them good competition. Why overlook that?"


You see Colorado dropping significantly? For winning three games in three days on the road? They worked Tech by seven, they should drop for that?

[LAXDawg14]

maybe an idea to settle the east coast west coast battle, their could be a east/west nuetral site weekend.... like maybe in texas or something, and east can play west in a non tournament format.

[UofMLaxGoalie11]

maybe an idea to settle the east coast west coast battle, their could be a east/west nuetral site weekend.... like maybe in texas or something, and east can play west in a non tournament format.

my vote will go to battle royale fight to the death. or maybe we could play games and decide who is the best in certain areas, and maybe invite some better ones who didn't win in their area to a place where they would compete to see who is the best of best. I bet we might be able to find somewhere in texas we could do that.

[Bluevelvet]

I don't see any great rivalry between east and west coasts.
The rivalries that I see are among; CSU, SSU, Michigan, UCSB and BYU, at the end of the year, somewhere in the midwest.

[sohotrightnow]

Umm...there is a battle in a neutral site every year in May and the West always comes out on top

[DanGenck]

Umm...there is a battle in a neutral site every year in May and the West always comes out on top

I think that's because all the east teams are in Division I

[EvanFSU]

Bluevelvet,

So let me get this straight....if FSU somehow were to beat BYU, CW POST and Bryant- to you it would all be worthless because BYU is having a bad year and you dont know who is playing for the division 2 teams. So those 3 victories, according to you, would mean nothing. Only SSU, UCSB, and CSU matter in your argument.

It wouldnt matter that Post and Bryant are having top 10 years in D2. I can tell you that neither of those teams have 60 man rosters where they can play distinctly third tier players.

It also doesnt matter that FSU beat UCSD by 5 goals last year in Blaine. But because UCSD is out west, you have assumed they have become better than FSU over the offseason.

I do not doubt the WCLL is the toughest league, but come on man, there are other teams out there.

[OAKS]

Ken-
The only problem with FSUs schedule is that it makes it tough to compare them with teams that have a difficult schedule and have a few losses.
(eg. how would FSU do vs. SSU and Michigan? UCSD lost close games to them. Who is better? undefeated and largely untested FSU? or UCSD?)

Close losses to the top teams are less and less legitimate reasons to give a high vote to a team this year, as it looks like the days of the Elite 7 or so are over. Seems to be that most of the top 10 can run with each other on almost any day, and most of the top 20 are able to beat the top 10 on a good day. Should be a great national tournament.

As for FSU, they have only been in the top 10 for the past two years (this being the third) and had the resources to travel a lot. BYU, Michigan, SSU, CSU etc. have been there for 8-10 years and have an established way of scheduling. FSU will eventually get there.

[CATLAX MAN]

Bluevelvet,

So let me get this straight....if FSU somehow were to beat BYU, CW POST and Bryant- to you it would all be worthless because BYU is having a bad year and you dont know who is playing for the division 2 teams. So those 3 victories, according to you, would mean nothing. Only SSU, UCSB, and CSU matter in your argument.

I don't think he was saying this at all. What he is saying is that if FSU beats BYU, it will come against a team that may be ranked lower in the polls than where they started the year, so the win will not be as impressive because of that. It has nothing to do with the West Coast. It's simple math.

It wouldnt matter that Post and Bryant are having top 10 years in D2. I can tell you that neither of those teams have 60 man rosters where they can play distinctly third tier players.

The games against Div. 2 really don't count in the polls. That goes for losses to those teams also. I'm sure that you would argue that way when or if FSU loses to these teams.

It also doesnt matter that FSU beat UCSD by 5 goals last year in Blaine. But because UCSD is out west, you have assumed they have become better than FSU over the offseason.

I don't know where you get this from, but obviously, what happened last year has no bearing on the polls any longer.

[LaxC21]

I think it is interesting to see how FSU and the SELC have now replaced the LSA in this battle for respect from the WCLL. Anyways, it's the WCLL's world, and the rest just live in it until someone can beat them on a consistent basis.