Wednesday CARDINAL COUPLE -- Ratings and rankings...McFerran receives FH honors

WHAT DOES A NUMBER MEAN? 

Al Parrish ranked me as the 39th. best bus-rider on this trip.
Sonja was unranked. (and asleep) 

Yes...dear readers...tis the season for WBB preseason rankings and ratings. The Associated Press has weighed in on the upcoming NCAA WBB season. They think Louisville is the 8th best team in the nation. Before that...Athlon Sports, ESPNW, USA Today and countless others have offered their rankings. Got a laptop, you're an expert.

I talked to the guys who change my oil and provide car maintenance. They think Louisville is seventh. They don't like Tennessee very much. They also rated my car as the 198th. best they've worked on this month. An unofficial poll conducted by the CARDINAL COUPLE Staff Chimps ranked UofL WBB #2 in the nation....going with Syracuse as #1 because they love "Q"'s antics on the sidelines. 

What are the numbers worth?

Sure, they give you a general idea what a group of writers and coaches think about what is going to happen in the months ahead. If a team is high in the rankings, it certainly is useful on the recruiting trail and in generating good fan feelings about the program.

Will it help Taja Cole drive by an opposing guard in conference play...simply by telling her:

"Hey, I play for the 8th best team in the country and you all aren't ranked."

Auburn's football program was considered a top ten preseason program before they played Louisville in Atlanta. The Tigers are 4-4 now. That worked out well, didn't it?

If anything, a high ranking puts a bulls-eye on your team's collective backs when an opponent squares off on you. Beating the 139th. ranked team in the nation? Not so big a deal....unless you're the #245th. ranked. Beating the #3 squad? It'll get you noticed. 

I understand the hard work put into ranking and rating a school. Hours of countless thought had to go into everyone placing UConn #1. And what is the deciding factor that makes a group decide UNC is #22 and George Washington #21? Maybe I'm wrong here...but I think that if the two schools played tomorrow morning, I'd have to go with the TarHeels.


Consider that there are only 52 AP Poll points that separate #6 (Ohio State) from #10 (Maryland). #1 UConn and #2 South Carolina have a 42 point differential. It seems South Carolina gets ranked sky high every season. How many Final Four games have they won in the last 32 years? (Think of a number between...well....0 and 0). 


Coach Walz has a philosophy that it is more important who finishes a game than who starts...if it's a close contest. It's a good philosophy for rankings and ratings as well. 

I'll keep the AP Poll from Nov. 3rd. and look at it on Easter Sunday. For entertainment purposes only.  

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MCFERRAN NAMED ACC FIELD HOCKEY DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

UofL Field Hockey freshman goalkeeper Ayeisha McFerran has been one of the biggest and pleasant surprises for the squad this season. Her guarding of the net has provided Louisville with nine shutouts this season. The school record is 10. 

She allowed one goal in 140 minutes of action in Louisville's two wins last week and that performance got her ACC FIELD HOCKEY DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK accolades yesterday. Knowing her, she'd attribute it to her teammates. In any event, Louisville's 13-5 record and #9 ranking is there partially because of her stops, saves and shutouts. 

Louisville faces UNC Thursday at 4 p.m. in the quarterfinals of the ACC Field Hockey Tournament. It'll be on ESPN3. We wish McFerran and the squad the best of luck and a bit of revenge for the beating the TarHeels put on them during regualr season play.

We also have Coach Justine Sowry's thoughts on the conference tournament and beyond that we'll play for you on our Saturday radio show....THE CARDINAL COUPLE RADIO HOUR. To hear the interviews from last week's broadcast....click the link below:

SYD, DAKOTA, ERIN,ERICA, CORTNEE, MYSHIA, MARIYA and MORE!


WE'RE GONNA GET THIS THING FIGURED OUT.

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Help us solve this if you would. Leave a comment today. Something simple, if you like, like HI WORLDWIDE...and if you are unable to...shoot Paulie an e-mail and briefly tell us what browser you are using to access the site...(like Google Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, Bing, Safari, or another).

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Thank ya!

paulie
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