Some comments from a representative of a team with more #1 votes than Maryland, Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Texas, and Virginia combined (ooooh, that sounds good!): At ICT, I played against both Oxford teams. Balliol featured Ian Bayley, who would have been a tournament all-star under PPG. He is, in my mind, the best active non-American player. In addition, Western Ontario was there. We never played them, but if you look at the scoresheets, David Thorsley was definitely more than capable of winning games single-handedly. Furthermore, last year Michigan A had Rory Molinari, a superb player from Australia who made some big contributions. Why do I mention this? Because they are, sadly, exceptions rather than rules. I know that in the days before my time, there was a case that if Team USA and Team Canada met on culture-neutral questions, it would be a fair fight. Heck, that may still be the case today. However, that is all a moot point. Quiz Bowl is inherently American in bias, as I'm sure people will admit. As such, Americans will perform better simply due to the fact that they are taught this stuff. Conversely, I will concede that I (at least) would have no chance in a Canadian culture war. Jokes aside, Canada is nothing like the US. I know zero Canadian literature other than L.M. Montgomery and the Avonlea series, and only Canadian political events in my lifetime are in my memory. I couldn't name any Provincial governors or Parliament members who were not Prime Ministers. And I certainly don't know my Junior Hockey teams or CFL Grey Cup history as well as someone who was absorbed in the stuff. I don't want this to sound like an Ugly American post, but just as you'd expect an American team to whoop up on a Canadian team in American football or basketball (another inherently American game), you would expect an American team to defeat a Canadian team at quizbowl as we know it -- a game asking for Amerocentric knowledge. Meanwhile, as in the inherently Canadian game of hockey where the best Canadian players should win a best-of-seven over the top Americans (results of the most recent World Cup notwithstanding -- when's the next one, anyway?), I would expect a team of Canadian quizbowl legends to smash a team of American players in a game where everything was written by and for Canadian players. So, how does this relate to the poll? Well, the poll is conducted by and about the American quizbowl scene. Hence, you shouldn't expect to see non-American teams there. If the Toronto Aronauts could beat the San Francisco 49ers in an American game, we'd mention how far the CFL has gone. But they don't play, so they are in another universe. By the way, your example with the Rochester soccer team is a red herring. They aren't in MLS standings because they aren't MLS. US Soccer, in their infinite wisdom, doesn't do promotion and relegation. if they did, the Rhinos would be up there fighting with DC United and the Columbus Crew every year. For the record, though, had Balliol finished any higher at the ICT, I would have put them in the Top 25. As for Western Ontario and the rest of the Canadian Invasion -- as has been said before, the Mackenzie Bowl will reveal how level the playing field is across the 49th. Andy Goss Duke University
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