This is the first of a series of posts about all the big fat issues that Backseat Coach and I have discovered while trying to figure out the WFA’s 2012 playoff structure. The sheer volume of malarkey found precludes it being put into one post.
OK, so I understand why some league information isn’t made public. I don’t need to know how much league fees are or why one team is awarded a charter and another isn’t or the line items of the WFA’s budget. However, I find it incredibly frustrating that there is this huge void of information about how playoffs are structured (how division winners are determined, who has home field, etc.).
As of today (6/4/12), going to the WFA website and clicking on “Championship Information” brings you to an awesome page about the upcoming 2011 championship game between the Militia and the Surge. (Quick, get your tickets now! I promise, it’s gonna be an awesome game. Little warm, tho.) There’s no other playoff info anywhere on the site that I could find.
Then through a few different channels I saw a three-page Word document laying out the divisions, dividing them into blue (stronger), yellow (less strong) and green (Florida), and explaining how home field would be determined for playoff games. It was a little confusing, but at least it was information.
Except that it’s inaccurate.
The inaccuracy centers around home field for the first round of the playoffs and as such, does not affect the Boston Militia at all, since they will be the Div 2 winner and thus start in the second round. But it does affect a lot of other teams. Here’s the deal: if you’ve seen the playoff document I’m talking about and you looked at the home field determination criteria, you probably saw this:
Round 1
Division WinnerRound 2
Blue/Green Division Winner Hosts
See that part at the beginning that says division winners play at home in the first round of the playoffs (as opposed to the wild card winner of the matched blue division)? HA HA JUST KIDDING. Apparently there was a WFA owner’s meeting last October wherein that was changed, but the WFA forgot to update their materials, resulting in the entire league being sent inaccurate information about games that are going to be played within a matter of weeks. It seems they realized their error and resent the correct information several days later, but unless they titled the email “HOLY EFF WE EFFED IT UP – USE THIS ONE INSTEAD”, my guess is that most people thought it was a dupe of the first and didn’t bother opening it.
So what’s the new deal? It’s as follows:
First round Home Team based on:
- Head to Head record
- Common Opponent-record, point differential
- Overall Record
So let’s put aside for the moment the whole issue of the info being inaccurate, and look at the info itself. That determination of home field is, in your Militia Cheerleader’s humble opinion, a huge pile of bunk. (Remember, this has jack to do with the Militia; they’re not even playing in the first round). I cannot wrap my mind around a system where a division winner travels to a wild card team’s home field. What the hell’s the point of winning your division, then? There’s already a pretty damn big chance that the wild card team from the blue division is gonna win, which means the yellow teams are playing all season for the chance to go somewhere else, lose, and go home. Winnah!
So, takeaway: it’s a sucky change that was made to a playoff system that most people can’t find info on anyway.
Coming up next: The Curious Case of 7-1 vs. 3-5.
