C-USA hopes flex schedule boosts seeds, at-large bids

Frustrated mid-major conference officials are taking drastic action they hope will nudge the selection pendulum in their direction when it comes to NCAA Tournament at-large invitations and seeding. Leading the way is Conference USA, which has dumped a conventional league schedule in favor of a more radical one based on results.

C-USA’s 14 teams won’t know whom they’ll be playing during the final two weeks of the regular season until mid-February, when the standings will determine the final matchups. The move is to ensure the league’s best teams are playing each other in hopes of improving their tournament profiles. C-USA Commissioner Judy MacLeod said the league could no longer stand idly by after watching Middle Tennessee and its 25-win season get snubbed on Selection Sunday last year.

“It’s never been done, so we’re a little wary,” MacLeod said. “But we felt like it was an opportunity we had to try. If we keep doing the same thing, nothing’s going to change.”

A handful of other mid-major conferences are altering their schedules in an effort to improve their NCAA Tournament success rate. Next year, the Sun Belt will debut a schedule very similar to C-USA’s.

Other leagues, like the West Coast Conference, have implemented a more predictive schedule that tries to pinpoint which teams will be good and makes sure they have a tougher league schedule with the opportunity for more quality wins.

Conference USA hasn’t committed to the schedule beyond this season, and ESPN’s Joe Lunardi is intrigued by the idea, though he isn’t sold that the league’s bold move will be a cure-all for the challenges mid-majors face.

“It can’t hurt to try and do everything in your power to make sure your best teams have an opportunity for the highest-quality wins that they can get and similarly avoid the bad loss that can be a pothole,” said Lunardi, who analyzes and predicts the NCAA Tournament bracket.

Mid-major officials have long said it’s difficult to schedule nonconference games against Power Five schools, so improving their conference schedules is an attractive option to help improve their profile.

“We struggle getting top 50 and top 100 games in the nonconference, and when we do get them, they’re usually on the road or at neutral sites,” MacLeod said. “We just wanted to make sure we’re giving our top teams the opportunity to play as many good games as they can.”

Here’s how C-USA’s new schedule works:

■ The first 14 league games are predetermined, with each of 14 schools playing 12 teams once and a regional travel partner twice. After those games, all teams will be placed into one of three pods based on the conference standings.

■ Two of the pods will have five teams (first-fifth and sixth10th), while the last pod will have the league’s bottom four teams. The final four games will all be played within those pods. The idea is that the league’s top five teams would be playing more games against opponents with solid computer profiles, possibly swaying the NCAA Tournament’s selection committee.

ESPN’s Lunardi said NCAA Tournament “bids for nonpower leagues are evaporating at a rapid rate,” and while he isn’t convinced C-USA’s move will work, “a lot of nerds like me are watching.”

Mid-majors are hoping everyone likes what they see.