Some of you out there have probably never attended a seeding meeting. Let me share with you some of the things that matter most when it comes to a team getting in and getting a high seed.

You would think that scores of games would matter. A close loss for one team against a team that somebody else blew out. You would think the team that blew out the other team would have an advantage.

Nope. Literally, a win is a win and a loss is a loss to the NCS committee. They hardly care about how two teams competing for a final spot compared in score against another team. So when trying to grasp the seeding, throw that thinking out the window.

NCS tries to get people on the committee that know absolutely nothing about what is going on in football. They want unbiased people. And these people usually follow the criteria down to a T. So, overall record is weighted heavily despite anyone’s argument of strength of schedule (Strength of schedule is considered, but way down the list).

Head-to-head is also weighted heavily. The coaches rankings are another criteria that is often used.  From what I have seen, the coaches rankings are the only way a team with a worse overall record than another team will have an advantage. But these three things matter most. End of story.

Let me give you an example from this season. San Leandro beat Castro Valley 15-14 in overtime and Monte Vista crushed Castro Valley 48-9. The committee won’t see anything of this. They will see it as both teams won. That is why if San Leandro gets in and Monte Vista gets in, the Pirates will likely be ranked higher because of its overall record.

When trying to put the seeding together for yourself, make sure to remember that the people on the committee go in knowing very little. Most haven’t even seen a game. So, you have to put yourself in their shoes.

 Some of you have asked where to find the criteria that the committe follows. Here is the link: http://cifncs.org/sports/football/files/ATLGSEECCH.pdf