DistrictBaller

http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/sport...in/bkc1213.htm

The A-10 is the #7 conference only behind the Power 6 in Sagarin's preseason rankings.

There are 10 A-10 teams in Sagarin's top 100 with St. Bonaventure on the cusp at #106 and no teams worse than 200.

Here's how the A-10 looks in his rankings:

36 Saint Louis
40 VCU
43 Saint Joseph's
44 Temple
59 Butler
72 Xavier-Ohio
73 Massachusetts
81 Dayton
87 La Salle
95 Richmond
106 St. Bonaventure
132 Charlotte
147 George Washington
172 Rhode Island
182 Duquesne
199 Fordham

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DrG

I'll beat ExplorerSteve to this one: You're missing LaSalle at 87.

DistrictBaller

Thanks, somehow I missed that.

__________________
"We will wreak havoc on our opponent's psyche and plan of attack."
- VCU Head Coach Shaka Smart

uz2b-len

When these preseason rankings are statistically based,like Sagarin, they don't make a lot of sense. For example, in this one, no one who is paying attention sees Fordham finishing behind URI and Duquesne (although obviously anything can happen). And no one sees Xavier finishing ahead of UMass and La Salle. Kind of makes you question the whole thing.

jimbo65

Dont know this for sure but Sagarin likely uses last year's performance for the initial rating. Likely does not get into departures, arrivals etc.

A10BBall

Yes it is a very outdated methodology... The results (this ranking) kinda proves that...

Too many questions and holes to bother

ATPTourFan

I like Sagarin's data-based rankings once January comes around, but they're really useless before then for the multitude of reasons stated above.

DrG

Sagarin himself would probably say all this represents is a starting baseline for the new season. He uses a statistical method that quickly corrects the ratings through the early part of the season. I would agree these ratings don't mean much until everybody is into conference play in January, although at that point they probably provide a decent picture of the OOC component of SOS.

xu95

kind of like the RPI.

hykos1045

The A10 being 7th is probably fair although the only stat I care about is number of postseason teams come March, a number we must constantly have improved upon.

We are already the #4 conference in men's soccer with projected 4 bids out of 48 finalists. That's pretty good although losing second year running top ten team Charlotte, as well as Richmond dropping the sport, will be a blow.

jpschmack

Yeah, but for the opposite reason:

The RPI is worthless until teams have played a decent number of games to balance out hollow wins from real wins. (Some would say it always fails to balance out hollow wins), and of course, the main factor in RPI is conference play.

And Sagarin is worthless early because instead of having meaningless number based on only a few games early in the season, he uses old data early so the numbers have more "substance," even if that substance is crap that doesn't matter.

Steve81

Shouldn't just say Xavier? Have they always hyphenated it with Ohio?

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UMass87

I'm gonna start calling them Xavier of Ohio and see if they get pissy like the Miami of Ohio folks (or Ohio State folks).

bprichard

Calling it Miami of Ohio does make me pissy! Don't do that! Whatever. I have to live with the fact that I went to the same school as Paul Ryan. Things aren't going to get a whole lot worse.

ExplorerSteve

All of this is pre-season trash compactor garbage.

Let the season begin and may the best A10 team finish first. We are sending at least 5 teams to the Big dance this year and La Salle will be one of them.

Looking forward to another great season.

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