An important match for Michigan looms. /// Photo: Carolyn Dimitry •
The DI college fall championships begin at the quarterfinals, which don’t take place until the weekend of Nov. 19 in Cincinnati and Poughkeepsie, N.Y. But the bracket (as released during the summer) is filling out.
The BIG TEN will decide its top four this weekend. The conference, which divided into eastern and western pools to ease travel burdens, has narrowed down its post-season to one day: November 12 at Penn State. The title will be contested between east pool winner Penn State and west pool winner Notre Dame.
It’s the third-place game that is up for contention. Depending on what Michigan does this weekend against Penn State, either the Wolverines or Rutgers could feature against the west’s runner-up.
Penn State will not compete in the DI fall championship and defer to the new spring Round of 16 that intertwines DI Elite and DI colleges (read more). That means that Notre Dame is guaranteed the conference’s automatic qualifier spot and will play the winner of the Illinois champion (also decided this weekend) vs. at-large team. The conference’s third-place team will take “Big Ten #2” to a quarterfinal play-in match against an at-large team.
The NORTHEAST contests its final week of league and is highlighted by Boston College vs. UConn. Both are 4-0 and will take the top seeds into the conference playoffs held Nov. 5 and Nov. 12. The conference winner will play the Ivy champion in the DI fall quarterfinals.
The IVY LEAGUE hosts semifinals this weekend, but only Princeton is eligible for the fall regionals. Brown, Dartmouth and Harvard will follow the NIRA post-season. It’s Dartmouth vs. Brown, and Harvard vs. Princeton this weekend. Final’s held on Nov. 6 at Harvard.
The University of Minnesota clinched the MIDWEST’s seed to playoffs and will play the winner of Big Ten #2 vs. at-large. Northern Iowa finished second, playing the Gophers to a 27-25 loss in the final week of league, and has applied for an at-large bid.
Texas A&M went undefeated through the SOUTHWEST season and will play ROCKY MOUNTAIN leader Air Force in the fall quarterfinals. The Zoomies have one more game against Colorado State but the result won’t affect the post-season berth.