Dawgs enter playoffs as top seed
By KEVIN BERCHOU
Sports Writer
The much-anticipated interhall football playoffs kick off this weekend, and for the first time in recent memory, a change has occurred at the top of the seeding.
The Keenan Knights, owners of an 18-game unbeaten streak that spans three years, find themselves in an unfamiliar position — seeded third among the eight playoff squads, rather than first, the pole position they had grown accustomed to.
The Alumni Dawgs instead occupy the top spot based on the strength of their impressive 4-0 record, which was just enough to secure the Blue League championship. The Siegfried Ramblers, who amassed a strong 2-0-2 record, come in as the second seed by way of their first place finish in the Gold League.
But a higher seed does not necessarily mean a better team, according to Siegfried head coach Jamie Bordas.
"Every team in the playoffs is high quality," Bordas said. "The rankings aren't always indicative of who is going to come out on top."
The RecSports department, which runs and regulates interhall play, seeds teams systematically using a point system. The top two slots are automatically awarded to the two league champions. Two points are allotted for a victory and one for a tie. Alumni, by accumulating the most points overall, was seeded first.
Siegfried and Knott were tied for Gold League champions, but Siegfried was declared winner as a result of its victory over Knott. The rest of the seeding is done in much the same fashion. Keenan and Knott each finished second in their respective leagues, but Keenan's 3-0-1 record was good enough to earn a third seed and Knott fourth.
Alumni players believe they deserve the lofty ranking.
"We enjoy being seeded where we are," said Dawgs captain Pat Paquette. "Obviously we feel some pressure, but I don't think there's necessarily a big advantage. Every game is going to be tough. We're going in with the attitude that were the team to beat."
Siegfried is thrilled to be seeded second.
"Our goal at the beginning of the season was to make the playoffs as a high seed, and we've done that," said Bordas. "Now it's anybody's to win."
Popular sentiment has the Blue League, comprised of the larger dorms and boasting higher level of competition, slated to produce the champion, but Bordas doesn't think that's necessarily the case.
"I think they have a slight advantage, simply because they draw from a bigger pool of kids," the Ramblers coach said. "This year I think play has leveled off though. Teams like us, Knott and Sorin are all very strong."
All Sports Stories for Thursday, October 28, 1999
