Okay, now I'm really confused
At first I just thought I was an idiot, now I'm not so sure (insert joke here).
After wondering aloud on this blog earlier about why UNCG will play its fourth SoCon game before 2007 begins, I got an answer back from Spartans uber fan (sorry no umlatt on my keyboard) Steve Huntley.
According to Steve, the SoCon has gone to a full round-robin schedule, which means 20 games for each team. Thus the need to start early.
That, of course, led to this question from me. If everyone in the league now plays each other twice, why even bother with divisions anymore?
Then I actually did a little work and went back and counted the number of conference games on the schedule (yes, it took some time, ha ha). Turns out that the G has 18 conference games. It plays everyone in the league twice except The Citadel and College of Charleston.
That leads to this inevitable response - huh?
The problem, I'm guessing, lies in the fact that the North only has only five teams, while the South has six. That makes the standard 16-game play everyone in your division twice and everyone in the other division once system impossible.
But scheduling 20 games is a daunting task - just ask the ACC coaches who are staunchly opposed to getting rid of easy non-conference wins.
So we're left with 18 and a lack of balance. UNCG doesn't have to face a decent C of C team twice, but it misses out on an extra win against The Citadel.
No need to complain now, but feel free to do so come conference tournament time.
Oh, and if you have suggestions for how to fix this conundrum - which team would you add to make it 12? which team would you drop to make it 10? Would you go to 20? - please feel free to write in.
As for me, I gotta go take an aspirin.