Re: ICT qualifications

• From: lone1c <no_reply_at_yahoogroups.com>
• Date: Wed, 05 Feb 2003 16:24:04 -0000
• Message-ID: <b1rdr4+lkl2_at_...>

--- In quizbowl_at_yahoogroups.com, "Eric Steinhauser
<esteinhauser_at_u...>" <esteinhauser_at_u...> wrote:
> Let me preface this by saying that I have absolutely no intention of 
> playing at the ICT if the University of Houston does somehow qualify.
> 
> I understand the motivation for these requirements ... really, I 
> do.  In fact, I wouldn't even bother questioning them if the four- 
> team minimum rule had been limited to the Undergraduate Champion 
> invitation, as this is better kept as a designated award at the ICT 
> than anything else.
> 
> However, I'm struck by the same four-team minimum requirement for 
> the overall D1 & D2 champions, in what basically amounts to 
> penalizing a team for its geographic placement.  True, this will not 
> affect most regions in the least bit, but it will affect the SCT at 
> Texas A&M this weekend.
> 
> Of the 12 teams scheduled to appear, only two will classify as 
> Division I -- UT-Austin and UH.  Our schedule, thus, will consist of 
> an 11-game round robin, with only one game against another Division 
> I opponent.  Obviously, this situation is the fault of no one; it is 
> pure happenstance that this region is bereft of D1 teams.
> 
> Now, let's assume for the sake of argument that one of the teams 
> breezes through the entire RR, going 11-0 to capture the D1 crown.  
> However, they are by no means assured of an ICT bid.

Actually, while not ideal, I think this system is a vast improvement
over the system used in previous years, where the Div I, Div II, and
Undergraduate champions received automatic bids--even if they were the
only team in the field! That system rewarded teams for geographical
flukes at the expense of other more deserving teams, as you can't
really talk of a "champion" when there are only a few teams (or worse,
one team) competing. Thus, restricting automatic bids makes sense.

I do agree, however, that Div I and Div II champions who do not
receive an automatic bid should be given some priority in the field,
so that they are not left out in the cold while other teams from "more
competitive" sectionals are invited. However, who's to say that a team
that goes, say, 11-0 in a combined Div I/Div II field with only two
Div I teams is more deserving of a bid than a team that goes 7-4 or
6-5 versus a 12-team Div I field?

--AEI