There were always lots of complaints about the RPI score, and so the NCAA created the NET. It was supposed to be a better assessment and ranking tool. And while the Selection Committee doesn’t always follow the score, it does pay attention to it. It is what creates the Quad system the committee uses to rank schedules.

Traditionally, the top 30 or so teams (whether it be RPI or NET) make the tournament. The Committee might disagree if the 10th team in the computer rankings is better than the 14th team – but they are still typically part of the 36 best at large teams in the country.

So, the Patriot league has created the test case. Because of the pandemic, most of their teams cancelled their non-conference games, and they created a very strange round robin by divisions. And thus, we have the story of Colgate. The Raiders have had a good season, in a strange way. They ended their season 11-1 and have won their first round game in the Patriot Conference tournament. But this is relevant because at the moment, Colgate is 8th in the NET standings.

That’s right – the Colgate Raiders are in the top 10 teams in the country according to the NCAA NET ranking. When we look closer, here is what Colgate’s season has been:

• They went 3-1 against Army, losing by 2 and winning the others by at least 9 points
• They went 5-0 against Boston University, winning all the games by at least 7 points
• They went 4-0 against Holy Cross, winning all the games by at least 9 points (although one did need overtime before they took control)

That’s right, the 8th place team in the country has only played 3 teams – Army, Boston University, and Holy Cross.

We all know that Colgate is probably not the 8th best team in the country. Strangely, they didn’t even claim the conference regular season title – Navy somehow played one more game against their pairings and went 12-1. I have to imagine if Colgate loses to Bucknell on Wednesday in the Patriot semifinals or in the Patriot finals on Selection Sunday against the winner of the Army vs Loyola MD semifinal, they will probably be out of the dance. But if Colgate beats Bucknell on Wednesday, they will likely enter Selection Sunday in the top 10 of the NET.

If they lose, they would likely be the highest ranked team in the computer ranking to ever miss the tournament. Even if they do win, I can’t imagine they would get a ranking above one of the 37 at-large teams. Regardless of what happens, it is a tough situation for all. You clearly don’t get an invite to the dance by only playing 4-5 teams in the Patriot conference. But would there be outrage if a minor conference team made it into the top 10 team in the ranking the NCAA uses doesn’t get an at-large bid if they lose in their conference championship game.

I hope Colgate wins their last two games. Make this a non-issue – win your conference championship so you deserve your ticket to the dance. But it certainly creates some oddities around how important the committee considers their computer ranking.