The Cal Poly football team was not one of the eight at-large teams selected to the 16-team Division I-AA playoffs Sunday, although the surprise field includes two teams with four losses.
It is the first time any four-loss team – let alone two – has received an at-large bid since Idaho went with a 6-4 record in 1995.
The 16th-ranked Mustangs (7-4, 2-2 Great West Football Conference) were not selected primarily because they had six wins against I-A and I-AA competition. The Division I Football Championship Handbook reads, “less than seven Division I wins may place a team in jeopardy of not being selected.”
Although it is ranked No. 1 among 16 I-AA conferences in USA Today’s Jeff Sagarin ratings, the five-team Great West will not provide an automatic berth to the I-AA playoffs until it consists of six playoff-eligible teams aligned for at least two seasons.
Fourth-ranked North Dakota State (10-1, 4-0) beat visiting No. 19 South Dakota State (7-4, 3-1) for the Great West title Saturday by a score of 41-28. Neither the Bison nor Jackrabbits, though, reached the postseason because they and fellow Great West member UC Davis (5-5, 1-3) are all still transitioning from Division II.
The two four-loss teams selected were No. 15 Montana State (7-4, 6-2 Big Sky Conference) and the main surprise, No. 17 Eastern Illinois (8-4, 7-1 Ohio Valley Conference).
The biggest gripe among teams not selected would belong to No. 14 San Diego (10-0, 7-0 Pioneer Football League). The Toreros have had a breakthrough season under third-year head coach Jim Harbaugh, whose team has overcome having no scholarships.
Harbaugh, however, did not seem discouraged by his team being passed up.
“We have tremendous respect for these playoffs, and this format is the best way to crown a national champion,” Harbaugh said on the Toreros’ official Web site. “…There are 16 deserving teams and our team played well enough to receive strong consideration.”
San Diego was likely passed up for the postseason for the same reason the selection committee excluded Cal Poly with a 9-2 record in 2004 – strength of schedule. Only three of the eight teams in the Pioneer have winning overall records. Additionally, San Diego’s schedule included home games against NAIA Azusa Pacific and Division II Dixie State College.
Defending I-AA champion Appalachian State (10-1) enters the tournament as the No. 1 seed. The first-round game between James Madison and Youngstown State will be shown on ESPN2 at 4:30 p.m. PST Nov. 25.
ESPN2 will also televise the championship Dec. 15.