RU stays at #8 this week but OSU jumps up 2 spots so at least our 2 wins over OSU look better. Hopefully we can take out PSU and OSU can handle Hopkins on Saturday.
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No. 8 Rutgers Men's Lacrosse Welcomes No. 14 Ohio State Saturday @ 5pm On BTN
- Thread starter Tango Two
- Start date
Watching them play, and Ive never said this about a Hopkins team- they lack talent. Outside of one guy they arent athletic in the midfield. Attack can’t create much and their D isn’t imposing.
They constantly get ranked with top 5 classes too. They were the biggest user of early recruitment. Lots of those guys were committed as 9th graders and never got bigger or stronger.
They have another supposed top 5 class coming. But yea, their alums are going to have to pony up to keep up with the rest of the league. They have them, but will they do it? Especially if they aren’t getting results? They expect to play for a championship every year but that’s no longer realistic. Will be interesting to watch.
They do have a really good fogo which isn’t great for us.
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I'm starting to feel like if the B1G only got two into the NCAAs, it wouldn't really be a screw job. Unless Ohio State finds a way to win a game against the two conference big dogs (out of five likely chances), I'm not sure if they would have a legitimate gripe about being excluded. I doubt that anybody else is even in the running anymore without a tournament championship.
Am I wrong?
Am I wrong?
I agree. No OOC games really killed the B1Gs chances. I think they can beat teams like Denver and they always play ND tough often winning. But you are what your record says you are. They need to beat Maryland and go on a run to have a chance.
Kessinich has UVA at #4 despite a 10 goal loss to Syracuse. The media poll has them at 6 ahead of RU. ACC bias is overwhelming. And schools like Lehigh are given the benefit of the doubt despite their schedule. A full schedule for the Big 10 would have changed some of those records.
For RU, as much of a screwing as it would be, they need to finish #2 in the Big 10 and win their first tournament game to get to May Madness.
For RU, as much of a screwing as it would be, they need to finish #2 in the Big 10 and win their first tournament game to get to May Madness.
Agreed. B1G will probably only get 2 in at this point unless OSU wins out and wins the B1G Tourney. Maryland and Rutgers just need to take care of business and they'll be fine.
Biggest challenges ahead.
1) Penn St
2) Michigan
3) Hopkins
1) Penn St
2) Michigan
3) Hopkins
Yeah, it's lame (and when my team was in the ACC I fully acknowledged the bias).
I think Rutgers belongs in the top 4/5 at worst. Maryland is #2 now in some polls, and Rutgers was in a position to win either/both Maryland games until the end. Virginia at #4? LOL. And what is going with Lehigh shooting up everybody'd perception list, given that schedule?
You can pretty much justify any ranking you want with the Top 3. 4 & 5 should be RU and Denver, either order, as they've only lost to Top 3 teams.
Haven’t seen anything definitive about the NCAA dropping the play-in game this year. Keeping the play-in game could give the BigTen a decent shot at getting a third team in.
Future lacrosse studs...enjoy it...your gonna snap your fingers and you'll miss them when they're gone...my house is very quiet when they're in New Brunswick and Baltimore...
Exactly...we go 8-2 and win 1 in the BTT...not only are we a lock, we're probably at worst a 5-6 seed....
What pisses me off is an ACC team gets rolled in conference and it's like "oh, what a great loss...it's ok" Maryland IS the best team in America yet Rutgers is getting dawged for losing to them two times...so stupid...
We gotta keep winning....
You know what, I watched that game again last night...OSU is a tough out...they're very very talented offensively and that's why they were ranked in the top 10 the first time we beat them...those are two VERY GOOD wins! I've got access to a guy that was on the field for RU on Saturday late in that game...he's said the OSU guys are a damn tough cover...slick, skilled, fast, shifty, powerful....no picnic playing OSU
PS...Kirst (goalie was fantastic)...I rewatched the game...holy shit...fantastic...and give credit to every player on our defense that was on the field in the last 30 seconds...they were under tremendous pressure...and they all held firm...very impressive
OSU is a damn good team...screw all these pollsters and the rankings
RU is gonna have to keep winning since a 4-3 Syracuse that was rolled twice at home seems to be everybody's darling...F them
Correct...I was close to responding on twitter, but my name is my account...so it's best that I stay away from those types of disputes...but that guy is an idiot
Agreed. The B1G is being vastly underrated at 2 team talk. I would love to see OSU play some of these other teams. Amazing how they are being viewed as Delaware like.
The B1G brass really screwed the league playing only conference games.
Does the winner of the B1G Tournament get an auto bid or does the NCAA just select the top 16 teams across all conferences? If they get an auto bid then I see more risk for RU if someone other than Maryland or RU wins the tournament.
Looks like we could claim 2nd in the Big Ten with a 6-4. In that scenario I would be nervous about a NCAA bid if we don't either win the conference tournament or lose to Maryland in the final. Anyone else winning the tournament could be a problem for us. If we go out in the semis (6-5 overall) and Maryland wins the tournament could the B1G be a one bid league?
If we get to 7-3 in the regular season, there will still be some pressure to win one tournament game to get to 8-4 overall but I would like our chances much better. The wild card again is whether the conference tournament winner steals a bid. If so, then there could still be some risk if anyone other than Maryland wins.
I we are 8-2 in the regular season I think we are in regardless of what happens in the tournament.
With our remaining schedule, I think 7-3 is the likely floor. Get by PSU this weekend then 8-2 looks like a real possibility.
Looks like we could claim 2nd in the Big Ten with a 6-4. In that scenario I would be nervous about a NCAA bid if we don't either win the conference tournament or lose to Maryland in the final. Anyone else winning the tournament could be a problem for us. If we go out in the semis (6-5 overall) and Maryland wins the tournament could the B1G be a one bid league?
If we get to 7-3 in the regular season, there will still be some pressure to win one tournament game to get to 8-4 overall but I would like our chances much better. The wild card again is whether the conference tournament winner steals a bid. If so, then there could still be some risk if anyone other than Maryland wins.
I we are 8-2 in the regular season I think we are in regardless of what happens in the tournament.
With our remaining schedule, I think 7-3 is the likely floor. Get by PSU this weekend then 8-2 looks like a real possibility.
But the risk then is the Baltimore Mafia doing to the Big 10 what they did to the Ivies in 2019. Penn #4 vs. Yale #5 in the 2nd rd.. The risk this year would be Maryland #3 vs. RU #6. Get the Big 10 out of the tournament ASAP.
B1G has an autobid. It's why it was imperative getting Hopkins to go along with Maryland, which was a sticking point for Maryland to join the B1G. People can say it's only lacrosse, but that rivalry is real. Maryland was not joining the B1G unless Hopkins came along.
PSU is another huge game. This is the only thing left in their season to play for. The Friendship Cup. Misnomer, because there isn't much friendship between these two programs. Really, there isn't much friendship in the B1G. The acc is a country club league. The B1G is a bunch of balls of knives going at each other. They are going to come out firing so we need to be ready.
As an aside, RU absolutely dominates the all time series.
It's funny...the B1G has no love lost among its members. Everyone hates everyone and wants bragging rights and to claim superiority. That's how it should be.
My only quibble with that is when a Big 10 member plays a non-Big 10 member. While you may make an exception for Penn St. I always go by the slogan: "Hey, they can't do that to our pledges. Only we can do that to our pledges."
PSU will be a tough game....they are all tough...that's why the thought of the big ten not getting at least 2 in is soooo dumb...I'm really getting pissed reading things this weekend about the big ten and RU...this is what happened when you play each other twice...you beat the hell out of each other...it's still a loaded conference...so if ND or Syracuse or UVA go 2-4 in the ACC, are people going to say "Oh, they were two games under 500...they shouldn't make the tourney..."
PSU is 2-5....they have two losses to a #2 MD team, and a loss to a #7 Rutgers...those are not "bad" losses...it's funny how in the big ten, those are bad losses, but in the ACC it's a badge of honor
Also , the Big East is soft, Denver has beaten GT...who else have they beaten? GT played ONE tough game, Denver and lost...again, I'm not saying those two teams are bad...but I'd take RU vs both right now...my point is each schedule and conference has flaws...
Keep an eye on the Patriot...Lehigh beat Army this weekend (remind me what Cuse did vs Army again)...Army travels to Loyola on Saturday...if Loyola beats Army and then beats Georgetown on May 1....hmmmm...IMO, Loyola needs to win out to make it...but then what happens to Army and Lehigh....again, just thinking about other conferences that could get multiple bids....
PS...I was told the first game vs PSU was the trophy game this year...that RU will hold the "Friendship Cup" for a year based on the early win...they weren't gonna flip flop it in one season...at least that is the info I got...still need to beat the, of course 😏
Just to clarify what I said earlier (not that my opinion is important), I agree that OSU is much better than they get credit for. I think they belong in the NCAAs even if they can't beat Maryland or Rutgers. It should be no different than all those ACC teams that can't beat UNC or Duke, but will get in to NCAAs...
So the auto bid goes to the conference regular season winner, Tournament winner or whomever the NCAA feels has earned it?
The only way I would be really concerned about only getting one bid or there being two bids and RU not getting one is if someone other than MD or RU wins the tournament and steals a bid.
As I posted on Saturday, watch out for the Patriot League getting 3 bids and the Big 10 2.
I have Denver a little stronger than you. Their only losses are to UNC and Duke and they had a lot of transfers to mesh into the team. As I said above, I think they and RU are 4 and 5.
I was very unimpressed with Denver when I saw them early. They lacked foot speed across the board and their attack didn’t look dynamic. Wouldn’t be surprised if they got better through. Biggest difference is Irlan. He changes everything.
I'm feeling bullish about the B1G getting 2 spots, maybe 3. One important note: The Ivy League is sitting the year out. In 2019, the Ivies got two schools in.
There are 9 conferences this year vying for 17 slots. 3 are definitely single bids - SoCon, NEC & MAAC. So that leaves 6 conferences for the remaining 14 slots.
I think the CAA is likely to get 1 spot. Delaware is ranked 12th, but that is right on the bubble right now. It is possible two CAA teams get hot to end the year, but I'm keeping that conference at 1 bid. I don't see Hofstra or UMASS or Drexel fighting their way at this point.
Similarly, America East. UBMC, Stony Brook, Albany and Vermont are all ranked in the top 25, but none is higher than 18. The best thing to happen would be for Albany to beat Syracuse this week. However, I'm keeping the AE at 1 bid for now. So there are 4 conferences vying for 12 spots.
Let's give the Big East two bids - Denver and Georgetown, with Nova on the outside looking in. The bottom of the conference is terrible, so some upsets, plus some interconference losses could turn the Big East into a one bid conference. Three conferences left with 10 spots remaining.
Next up is the Patriot League. This is an interesting conference with 5 viable teams - Lehigh, Army, Loyola, Navy and BU. Leigh is ranked 7, with the other schools ranked 11, 13, 19 and 26. Loyola plays Georgetown later in the year - and Lehigh plays Villanova. Two big matches. There are still so many games to play, but today the Patriot League gets 3 in.
The ACC is the top dog. All five schools are in the top 10. The only question mark to me is The Fruit. However, a win against Albany and they are all but in - as long as the don't get embarrassed against other ACC rivals.
That leaves the Big Ten with two bids. RU is in easily, and if the season ended today with the current rankings as tourney seedings, RU would host Syracuse in the first round. OSU Is the first team out.
Last four at-larges in: Loyola, Army, Georgetown, Syracuse
Last four out: Ohio State, Stony Brook, Hofstra, Navy
I've been using the Inside Lacrosse rankings. US Lacrosse Magazine's rankings are similar, but RU is #6 there and Ohio State is only #20 - well outside the tourney.
Syracuse going 1 for 4 in the acc is going to be a huge blemish. They need to be better to make the tourney. They got embarrassed on their own field by ND and and Army.
There’s talk of only having 16 teams instead of 17 this year.
Also, Albany just kicked All-American attack Tehoka Nanticoke off of the team.
Maybe you're right...one thing I'm not giving enough weight on for DU is the massive advantage they will have at the face off x....I will adjust my previous comment on Denver...a little bit anyway 😏
Thanks for sharing...great post!
I follow the Patriot closely for personal reasons....a big game this weekend is Army visiting Loyola...as it stands right now, I think Loyola is out. Now if they run the table, beat Georgetown on May 1...they might play their way back into the discussion....then of course the PL Tourney can swing things...that's one to watch....if the Patriot is a 2 team league, maybe that opens up a bid for someone else...
All very interesting...
