Bracketology 101's Top 10 Mid-Majors

This is the first in a new weekly series at Bracketology 101. Each Friday throughout the college basketball season, we will pick a topic and come up with a "Top 10" list that ranks the best players, teams, conferences, fans, home courts...and more. Point totals will be comprised of votes from Chris and Craig, as well as from the newest member to the Bracketology 101 family, Jason "Pecker" Polayes. Pecker is a college basketball fan and aspiring bracketologist, but he is best known for his role as manager of the Univeristy of Connecticut men's basketball team. To contact Pecker, or to ask him to clean up a puddle of sweat or to do your laundry, you can e-mail him at bracketologyblog@yahoo.com.

This week's Top 10 ranks the best mid-major teams in the country. All teams not in the "Big 6" conferences were considered. The list takes into account games already played this season, as well as where we think teams will be at the end of the year. As always, we welcome your comments, and we invite our readers to post their own list. Enjoy...

Top 10 Mid-Majors
Teams were ranked on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 scale by the three voters. First place votes are in parentheses.
1. Gonzaga 29 (2)
2. Memphis 28 (1)
3. Northern Iowa 18
4. Nevada 17
4(tie). Bucknell 17
4 (tie). George Washington 17
7. Ohio 16
8. Old Dominion 12
9. Wisconsin-Milwaukee 5
10. Creighton 2
10 (tie). UNLV 2
10 (tie). Winthrop 2
Also receiving consideration: CS-Fullerton, Denver, Murray State

Bracketology 101's First "Field of 65"

Here are Chris and Craig's long-awaited first "Field of 65" for the 2005-2006 season:

Last Four In
Southern Illinois, Akron, UNLV, Temple

Last Four Out
Michigan, North Carolina, Cincinnati, Vanderbilt

Conference Breakdown
Big East (7), ACC (6), Big Ten (6), Big XII (5), SEC (5), PAC-10 (5), MVC (3), C-USA (2), A-10 (2), MAC (2), MWC (2).

The Seeds

The 1s
Duke, Connecticut, Texas, Michigan State

The 2s
Oklahoma, Villanova, Arizona, Kentucky

The 3s
Stanford, Gonzaga, Louisville, Boston College

The 4s
Illinois, Wake Forest, Memphis, West Virginia

The 5s
Syracuse, UCLA, Alabama, Indiana

The 6s
Maryland, George Washington, Iowa, Kansas

The 7s
Northern Iowa, Florida, N.C. State, Nevada

The 8s
LSU, Washington, Texas Tech, Wisconsin

The 9s
Arkansas, Ohio, Georgetown, Iowa State

The 10s
Miami (Fla.), San Diego State, California, Creighton

The 11s
Old Dominion, Houston, Notre Dame, Ohio State

The 12s
Temple, Southern Illinois, UNLV, Akron

The 13s
Penn, Illinois-Chicago, Western Kentucky, Bucknell

The 14s
Winthrop, Boston University, Manhattan, Davidson

The 15s
Murray State, Oral Roberts, East Tennessee State, Cal-State Fullerton

The 16s
Alabama A&M, Hampton, Fairleigh Dickinson, Montana, Northwestern State

Questions? Comments? E-mail Chris and Craig at bracketologyblog@yahoo.com

Coming Tomorrow To Bracketology 101

On Wednesday, Bracketology 101 will unveil its first "Field of 65" of the season. Now that the real games have started, and pre-season tournaments are underway, it's time to start thinking about who's in, who's out, and who's on the bubble (yes, the bubble exists even in late November).

A complete field, along with seeds, will be posted tomorrow.

Until then, enjoy the games.

Chris & Craig

Coming Soon to Bracketology 101!

After a long summer break, Bracketology 101 will soon make its return with a preview of the 2005-2006 college baseketball season.

Midnight Madness is only three weeks away, and in the weeks leading up to and following the official start of practices across the country, Chris and Craig will get you ready for the season with the following:

1. Our Pre-season "Field of 65"
2. Our Pre-season "Sweet 16" Teams"
3. In-depth previews of our projected 2006 Final Four teams: Duke, Connecticut, Villanova and Oklahoma.

Check back in the coming weeks for updates.

Thanks,

Chris and Craig
Bracketology 101