Qualifying Process for NCAAs

[jdalu75]

An alumnus who shall remain nameless asked me recently how wrestlers qualify for NCAAs. This is what I came up with.


First, each conference receives one automatic qualifier (AQ) at each weight. So if no wrestler in the conference at a weight earns a pre-allocated spot, the conference will get one spot anyway.

Second, individual wrestlers can earn pre-allocated spots for their conferences. The NCAA will allow no more than 29 pre-allocated plus automatic qualifier spots at each weight. In order to have a chance of earning a pre-allocated spot a wrestler must have two of the three following criteria:

• A .700 winning percentage, at weight, and against Division I opponents who are not teammates;
• A CP ranking of 30 or better;
• An RPI of 30 or better.

If there are more than 29 wrestlers with pre-allocated spots, the NCAA raises the bar to .710-29-29. Still more than 29, then the bar is raised to .720-28-28. They'll keep raising the bar until they have 29 or fewer pre-allocated spots (adding in the AQ as needed). I've seen as few as 26 pre-allocated spots in a weight class. Under no circumstances will the NCAA lower the bar to .690-31-31.

Remember that those earning the pre-allocated spots do it for their conferences, not for themselves. If a guy earns one of three spots for his conference and then finishes 4th, he doesn't get one of the spots. And if a guy who earns a spot is unable to wrestle in his conference tournament, then the conference loses the spot unless his team has a replacement wrestler who also would have earned a spot (when Jordan Kutler withdrew from EIWAs his freshman year, we lost the spot; a year or two later Navy held a late wrestle-off and replaced a guy who'd earned a spot, but we didn't lose it because the replacement would have earned one).

Third, wrestlers failing to win the pre-allocated spots at the conference tournaments have a shot at the at-large berths. There are at least four for each weight class and there have been as many as seven. This is messy. After the conference tournaments the NCAA updates winning percentages and the CP and RPI rankings. Wrestlers need to meet two or more of the following in order just to be considered for an at-large:

● .700 Win %
● Top 33 RPI
● Top 33 CR
● .700 winning percentage against all competition << I guess this includes bouts against D2, D3, JC, and NAIA, but it's not defined anywhere >>
● One win against a wrestler receiving an earned position (pre-allocated) << at any point during the season >>
● Qualifying event placement one below number of pre-allocated spots

New this year: they also have to wrestle at least two bouts in the conference tournament.

All the wrestlers in a weight class who pass that test are then ranked against each other, using these criteria:

● Head-to-head competition — 25%
● Quality wins — 20%
● Qualifying event placement — 15%
● Results against common opponents — 10%
● RPI — 10%
● Coaches rankings — 10%
● Win percentage — 10%

It's the same process and criteria that they use for seeding. Wrestler A is compared to Wrestler B, winner gets a point; then Wrestler A is compared to Wrestler C, winner gets a point, and so on until all wrestlers in the pool of guys who are under consideration have been ranked individually against all the others. The four to seven guys with the most points are the at-large wrestlers. I suspect that some years, at some weights, fewer than ten guys are under consideration.

A year ago the NCAA added subjective criteria for the at-large process; no telling how this is applied:

The committee may also consider the following subjective measures to supplement established selection and seeding criteria:
● Bad Losses
● Outside the top 30 CR and/or 30 RPI
● Conference Champion
● Performance in last five matches
● Number of Injury default or medical forfeits wins/losses
● Best quality win
● Wrestler availability (injured or medically unable to compete)


The 33 chosen ones are seeded equally, regardless of whether they're pre-allocated or at-large qualifiers.

Finally, the NCAA selects two alternates at each weight class. I guess that they're the top two who missed on the at-large bids, but that's not defined anywhere either. If wrestlers drop out before the NCAA tournament, there're a couple of spares available. One alternate at each weight class is invited to NCAAs as a standby, to allow for late drops. Must be cruddy to make weight one last time and then not get to wrestle, but at least there's a chance. Every year one or two alternates make the field. Golf does the same thing with the US Open; they have a couple of players standing by, hoping one of the other qualifiers doesn't show (I think the Kentucky Derby did essentially the same thing last May).

[HFO]

An alumnus who shall remain nameless asked me recently how wrestlers qualify for NCAAs. This is what I came up with.


First, each conference receives one automatic qualifier (AQ) at each weight. So if no wrestler in the conference at a weight earns a pre-allocated spot, the conference will get one spot anyway.

Second, individual wrestlers can earn pre-allocated spots for their conferences. The NCAA will allow no more than 29 pre-allocated plus automatic qualifier spots at each weight. In order to have a chance of earning a pre-allocated spot a wrestler must have two of the three following criteria:

• A .700 winning percentage, at weight, and against Division I opponents who are not teammates;
• A CP ranking of 30 or better;
• An RPI of 30 or better.

If there are more than 29 wrestlers with pre-allocated spots, the NCAA raises the bar to .710-29-29. Still more than 29, then the bar is raised to .720-28-28. They'll keep raising the bar until they have 29 or fewer pre-allocated spots (adding in the AQ as needed). I've seen as few as 26 pre-allocated spots in a weight class. Under no circumstances will the NCAA lower the bar to .690-31-31.

Remember that those earning the pre-allocated spots do it for their conferences, not for themselves. If a guy earns one of three spots for his conference and then finishes 4th, he doesn't get one of the spots. And if a guy who earns a spot is unable to wrestle in his conference tournament, then the conference loses the spot unless his team has a replacement wrestler who also would have earned a spot (when Jordan Kutler withdrew from EIWAs his freshman year, we lost the spot; a year or two later Navy held a late wrestle-off and replaced a guy who'd earned a spot, but we didn't lose it because the replacement would have earned one).

Third, wrestlers failing to win the pre-allocated spots at the conference tournaments have a shot at the at-large berths. There are at least four for each weight class and there have been as many as seven. This is messy. After the conference tournaments the NCAA updates winning percentages and the CP and RPI rankings. Wrestlers need to meet two or more of the following in order just to be considered for an at-large:

● .700 Win %
● Top 33 RPI
● Top 33 CR
● .700 winning percentage against all competition << I guess this includes bouts against D2, D3, JC, and NAIA, but it's not defined anywhere >>
● One win against a wrestler receiving an earned position (pre-allocated) << at any point during the season >>
● Qualifying event placement one below number of pre-allocated spots

New this year: they also have to wrestle at least two bouts in the conference tournament.

All the wrestlers in a weight class who pass that test are then ranked against each other, using these criteria:

● Head-to-head competition — 25%
● Quality wins — 20%
● Qualifying event placement — 15%
● Results against common opponents — 10%
● RPI — 10%
● Coaches rankings — 10%
● Win percentage — 10%

It's the same process and criteria that they use for seeding. Wrestler A is compared to Wrestler B, winner gets a point; then Wrestler A is compared to Wrestler C, winner gets a point, and so on until all wrestlers in the pool of guys who are under consideration have been ranked individually against all the others. The four to seven guys with the most points are the at-large wrestlers. I suspect that some years, at some weights, fewer than ten guys are under consideration.

A year ago the NCAA added subjective criteria for the at-large process; no telling how this is applied:

The committee may also consider the following subjective measures to supplement established selection and seeding criteria:
● Bad Losses
● Outside the top 30 CR and/or 30 RPI
● Conference Champion
● Performance in last five matches
● Number of Injury default or medical forfeits wins/losses
● Best quality win
● Wrestler availability (injured or medically unable to compete)


The 33 chosen ones are seeded equally, regardless of whether they're pre-allocated or at-large qualifiers.

Finally, the NCAA selects two alternates at each weight class. I guess that they're the top two who missed on the at-large bids, but that's not defined anywhere either. If wrestlers drop out before the NCAA tournament, there're a couple of spares available. One alternate at each weight class is invited to NCAAs as a standby, to allow for late drops. Must be cruddy to make weight one last time and then not get to wrestle, but at least there's a chance. Every year one or two alternates make the field. Golf does the same thing with the US Open; they have a couple of players standing by, hoping one of the other qualifiers doesn't show (I think the Kentucky Derby did essentially the same thing last May).

Well done. A+

[jdalu75]

Well done. A+

Really? Every time I try proofreading it I fall asleep midway through.

[lu_alum]

Well done. A+

Really? Every time I try proofreading it I fall asleep midway through.

How dare you say that? The Pre-Championships Manual is one of my favorite items to read each year.

[HFO]

Well done. A+

Really? Every time I try proofreading it I fall asleep midway through.

It is finally accessible and lays out the process. Infinitely better than it has ever been. Is it convoluted still? Absolutely.