All articles tagged with #mid major
Baseball America breaks down the 2026 NCAA baseball bracket reveal, praising UCLA and Georgia Tech for favorable regional paths and NC State’s at‑large bid while Mercer’s omission stings mid‑majors; notes brutal draws for Nebraska and North Carolina and discusses how scheduling, resume metrics, and power-conference dominance shaped the field.
Mercer, despite a historic 44-win season and a top-30 RPI, was left out of the 2026 NCAA Baseball Tournament, sparking criticism that power-conference branding and the selection committee's eye-test outweighed strong metrics and schedule—raising concerns about access for mid-majors.
For the second straight year no mid-major program made the Sweet 16, fueling questions about Cinderella runs in an era shaped by NIL and bigger finances; the piece cites past mid-major breakthroughs like Butler, Wichita State and Florida Atlantic while noting realignment and parity are reshaping opportunities for smaller programs. Yet despite the drought, Nielsen data show strong viewership, suggesting the tournament remains popular even as its landscape shifts.
Analyses argue this year’s NCAA tournament has fewer Cinderella stories due to NIL-fueled talent concentration, easier access to transfers, ongoing conference realignment, and more accurate NET-based seeding, which favors higher seeds and reduces mid-major upsets; while coaches say upsets still happen, the era of frequent double‑digit seed runs is fading.
After an upset-filled opening day, Friday brings Miami (Ohio) hoping to prove their season wasn’t a fluke, Alabama without star Aden Holloway after an arrest, and a women’s tournament kickoff led by Texas, Michigan and LSU, all against a loaded Friday slate of men’s games.
Miami University (Ohio) finished the regular season 31-0, joining a short list of undefeated Division I teams, but a MAC Tournament loss to UMass left them outside the automatic bid line and on Selection Sunday earned them an at-large 11 seed, forcing a First Four showdown with SMU in Dayton to reach the full NCAA field. Under coach Travis Steele, the RedHawks rebuilt around local talent and a balanced offense, driving fan frenzy and prompting a plan for a new arena, even as questions about schedule strength and the path ahead linger.
The NIT field is down to just four power-conference entrants (Auburn, California, Wake Forest, Oklahoma State), cementing its status as a mid-major tournament. The decline is tied to Fox’s College Basketball Crown, which has reduced and drew teams away, while several power programs (Virginia Tech, Indiana, Florida State, Oklahoma) opted out. ESPN networks largely carry the remaining power teams, and the NIT will be aired on ESPN. The piece laments the tournament’s loss of prestige, blaming factors such as the transfer portal, NIL, coaching churn, and Fox’s Crown for its diminished relevance.
Miami (Ohio) earned an at-large invitation to the 2026 NCAA Tournament as a No. 11 seed with a First Four date against SMU, despite going 31-0 in the regular season but never playing a quad-one game. The bubble was exceptionally weak, limiting true snubs, and the committee’s decision was viewed as largely correct. The pick may set a precedent for mid-majors pursuing at-large bids in the future, as other teams like Oklahoma, Auburn, San Diego State, and Indiana missed out while Miami capitalized on the overall bubble softness.
Miami (Ohio) finished the regular season 31-0 but was upset in the MAC Tournament, triggering a high-stakes debate over whether an undefeated record should secure an NCAA bid and how schedule strength, NET metrics, and a broader expansion conversation influence the Selection Committee’s decision for mid-major programs.
Zach Braziller argues that Miami (Ohio) should earn an NCAA Tournament bid despite Bruce Pearl’s assertion they must win the MAC, noting the RedHawks are undefeated and have defied expectations while facing a weak schedule. Dismissing them based on schedule would send a discouraging message to mid-major programs about whether performance beyond conference play matters at all.
Sports Illustrated's comprehensive rankings for the 2025-26 men's college basketball season highlight the challenges of evaluating teams amid roster turnover, international recruitment, and the evolving landscape of college hoops, providing insights into top contenders, sleeper teams, and emerging programs across divisions.
Matt Norlander evaluates the best first-year coaches in college basketball after the 2022-23 season. Six coaches from the Big Six leagues who made the NCAA Tournament in their first year are highlighted, along with six mid-major coaches who made their mark. Norlander notes that it's too early to grade coaching hires, but identifies coaches on their way to good returns after just one season. Four of the seven coaches who earned acclaim last year had downturns or worse in '22-23.
Furman coach Bob Richey praised San Diego State's basketball program, saying they don't consider themselves a mid-major team and could advance as far as they want in the NCAA Tournament due to their physicality, defense, and rebounding. SDSU is headed to the Sweet 16 after beating Furman 75-52 and will face either Alabama or Maryland. Richey also noted that mid-major teams are showing they belong in the tournament, despite the difficulty of getting at-large invitations compared to power conference teams.