As we enter the month of February, games are starting to tighten up and more and more upsets are happening. The battles will continue over the next three weeks as we see teams trying to compete for league titles. Speaking of which, this past week we saw Union (KY) become the first team to punch their ticket to the NAIA National Championships as they will get the Appalachian Athletic Conference Regular Season Champions auto-bid. We will have several more teams who have a shot to lock up auto-bids this week as well. As always, our Bracketology Report is in no way perfect and is meant for a fun guide of how the NAIA National Championships are set up and is a fun way to talk more about NAIA postseason play!
The Bracket
Pod Seeding
Auto-Bids
Tournament Champion: Columbia
Regular Season Champion: College of Idaho
Tourney Champ/2nd Seed: Eastern Oregon
Regular Season Champion: Grace
Tourney Champ/2nd Seed: Indiana Wesleyan
Regular Season Champion: Arizona Christian
Tourney Champ/Runner-Up: Ottawa (AZ)
Regular Season Champion: Oklahoma Wesleyan
Tourney Champ/2nd Seed: Kansas Wesleyan
Regular Season Champion: Tx A&M Texarkana
Tourney Champ/Highest ARC: LSU Shreveport
Regular Season Champion: Faulkner
Tourney Champ/Runner Up: Loyola
AAC Regular Season Champions
Tourney Champ/2nd Seed: Tennessee Wesleyan
Regular Season Champion: Roosevelt
Tourney Champ/2nd Seed: St. Xavier
Tournament Champion: Montana Tech
Regular Season Champion: Jamestown
Tourney Champ/Runner-Up: Dordt
Regular Season Champion: Georgetown
Tourney Champ/Runner-Up Freed-Hardeman
Tourney Champion: Rio Grande
Tourney Runer-Up: IU Kokomo
Tourney Champ: Thomas
Regular Season Champion: Antelope Valley
Tourney Champ/2nd Seed: UC Merced
Tournament Champion: Florida College
Tourney Runner-Up: Iowa Wesleyan
Tournament Champion: Tougaloo
Regular Season Champion: William Penn
Tourney Champ/2nd Seed: Evangel
Host Bid: Peru State
Tourney Champ: Mayville State
Regular Season Champion: Langston
Tourney Champ/Runner-Up: Wayland Baptist
Regular Season Champion: Indiana Tech
Tourney Champ/Runner-Up: Rochester
At-Large Bids
Firmly In, Even without an Auto-Bid
Crossroads: Huntington, Marian, Bethel (IN)
CCAC: Olivet Nazarene
GSAC: The Master’s, Hope International
GPAC: Morningside, Northwestern (IA)
KCAC: Southwestern (KS)
HEART: Mid America Nazarene
Mid-South: Thomas More, UT Southern, Shawnee State
WHAC: Madonna, Rochester
The Bubble
IN…At Least For Now
Cascade: Southern Oregon
CCAC: IU South Bend
Frontier: Providence
GSAC: Menlo, Jessup
HEART: Baker
Mid-South: Pikeville
RRAC: Xavier
SSAC: Dalton State, Mobile
Sun: St Thomas (FL)
Last Four In
Dalton State (GA) – | RPI: 57 | SOS: 78 | ARC Rank: 7th in the Southeast
A team that has won 6 of its last 8 games, the Roadrunners have found some momentum in a Southern States Athletic Conference that is a bit tougher than some may thing. Dalton State, though, has a favorable schedule and if they can win their next four games, before the road trip to Loyola and Mobile, they should be in. If they lose a game or two prior to those games, they may need to steal a road win on that final road trip to have a shot at an at-large spot!
Southern Oregon – 14-8 | RPI: 52 | SOS: 56 | ARC Rank: 12th in the West
4 of their final 6 games are on the road, so this isn’t a lock. They will need to avoid bad losses over final six games and this spot could come down to the Corban game on February 17th as both of those teams could be in contention for an at-large spot at that point. They are currently behind Corban in the Cascade standings, but with a higher ARC, RPI and SOS ranking and having won the first meeting between the two, Southern Oregon seems to be the favorite for now.
Mobile (AL) – 16-7 | RPI: 96 | SOS: 180 | ARC Rank: 12th in Southeast
9-3 since the break with wins over St. Thomas (FL), a sweep of Stillman and a win @ No. 16 Loyola over that stretch. They do have losses to Middle Ga State and Ave Maria. Ultimately, their fate may come down to the games they have left with Faulkner, Life and Dalton State.
Baker (KS) – | RPI: 75 | SOS: 193 | ARC Rank: 9th in the Midwest
Baker is 8-2 in since the break with a win @ No. 19 Evangel. They are in for now, but over their final six games they host MidAmerica Nazarene, travel to Central Methodist (Who will be looking to overtake them on the Bubble) then finish off Heart of America play hosting both William Penn and Peru State. It’s a tough schedule and we will find out a lot more about Baker over the next couple of weeks.
First Four Out
Cumberlands (KY) – 15-8 | RPI: 56 | SOS:89 | ARC Rank: None
They have good wins @ No. 14 Freed-Hardeman and have swept Pikeville. The toughest part for Cumberlands is they were left out of the Great Lakes ARC Ratings and are ranked behind Pikeville. For now, Pikeville gets the nod, but don’t be shocked if both teams end up making it in.
Point Park (PA) – 18-5 | RPI: 81 | SOS: 214 | ARC Rank: None
They need to keep winning, BUT here us out, Point Park has only lost ONCE this semester and it was a 4OT road loss to IU East. Joe Valrie and Cyrie Coates provide the Pioneers with a dynamic scoring duo and Jalen Stamps emergence gives them a trio that can make them a tough out in the NAIA Tourney. We said this a ton last year with IU Kokomo and they made it to Kansas City….this Point Park team is one to watch out for if they can make it in.
LSU Alexandria – 15-7 | RPI: 59 | SOS: 128 | ARC Rank: 8th in the Southwest
Larry Cordero has done great things at LSUA. Building the program from scratch just nine seasons ago, Alexandria quickly became a national power. They have been a bit down the past two seasons, but they still have a tough group who is battling for one of those final at-large spots. They have won 7 of their past 8 games, with the loss coming at Xavier. They still have to go to Texarkana and will host Shreveport yet. The Generals have some shots to improve their resume but need wins!
Montana State Northern – 16-7 | RPI: 37 | SOS: 60 | ARC Rank: 13th in the West
The Lights are rising fast and can certainly play themselves in. They have won 3 straight games with a big win versus Montana Tech. The Frontier Conference is making the turn into the 3rd round of league play. Things can get crazy when you are playing a team for the 3rd time, and we have seen it happen a lot in the Frontier Conference over the years. If they can carry their current momentum into the next round of conference games, the Lights could secure an at-large spot.
Next Four Out
Life (GA) – 15-6| RPI: 42 | SOS: 95 | ARC Rank: 8th in the Southeast
Life keeps teetering on being really good. They have the talent to do some damage in the NAIA Tourney if they can qualify. However, the Eagles need to add some quality wins to their resume. They will play 5 of their final 6 games on the road so it isn’t an easy task. It’s safe to say, that if the Eagles will EARN their spot at an at-large selection if they can get some road wins down the stretch.
Concordia (NE) – 15-9 | RPI: 59 | SOS: 33 | ARC Rank: 10th in the North-Central
The Bulldogs have been a bit inconsistent this season. However, they have the RPI and SOS rankings to keep them in the conversation. They are just 2-5 against the Top 4 teams in the GPAC. They host Dordt on Saturday, they need to get that win in order to get themselves back closer to the “IN” line.
UNT Dallas – 13-6 | RPI: 93 | SOS: 181 | ARC Rank: 9th in the Southwest
UNT Dallas was red hot there for a while. They even handed No. 3 Langston their only loss of the season. However, they have been awful on the road this season and it may cost them an at-large bid.
Vanguard – 11-9 | RPI: 39 | SOS: 6 | ARC Rank: 14th in the West
Vanguard’s record is the main thing keeping them out of an at-large slot. They have been inconsistent and currently aren’t in line to qualify for the GSAC Tourney. If they can play well down the stretch and get themselves back into the GSAC Tourney, they may have a shot at an at-large selection. Until then, they find themselves out.
