Well the bracket was unveiled and it really couldn’t have gone any better for the Tribe. Fears of the College being sent south to Appalachian State in the first round proved unfounded, and instead, the Tribe finds itself with a home game against one of the weakest teams in the field. Furthermore, the squad avoids Richmond and Villanova until at least the semifinals, two teams which many feel are the two toughest in the nation.
The College will have one week to prepare for a home game against Weber State, before likely heading to Carbondale, Ill. to take on Southern Illinois with a win.
To kick off the week, we assembled a Flat Hat panel consisting of myself, football beat writer Mike Barnes, my co-sports editor Chris Weidman, and sports editor emeritus Andrew Pike ’09. The results:
First round
With home team in italics
1) Montana over South Dakota State
Stephen F. Austin over Eastern Washington
Appalachian State over South Carolina State
(4) Richmond over Elon
(2) Villanova over Holy Cross
New Hampshire over McNeese State
William and Mary over Weber State
(3) Southern Illinois over Eastern Illinois
Second round
(1) Montana over Stephen F. Austin
(4) Richmond over Appalachian State
(2) Villanova over New Hampshire
William and Mary over (3) Southern Illinois
Semifinals
Richmond over Montana
Villanova over William and Mary
Championship game
Villanova over Richmond
Each participant’s final four picks:
Mike Barnes
Stephen F. Austin, Richmond, Villanova, William and Mary
Champion: Villanova over Richmond
Chris Weidman
Montana, Appalachian State, Villanova, William and Mary
Champion: Appalachian State over Villanova
Andrew Pike
Montana, Richmond, Villanova, William and Mary
Champion: Villanova over Montana
Matt Poms
Montana, Richmond, Villanova, William and Mary
Champion: Villanova over Richmond
Your thoughts? Can anybody knock off Villanova or Richmond early? Will one team surprise everybody?
