Brewhouse Bias – Half a Major, But Just as Good

An article by scottysbrewhouse    No Comments

As defined by Wikipedia, “The term ‘mid-major’ was originally coined by the sports media and has no official status. The NCAA recognizes no distinction between so-called “major” and “mid-major” conferences in basketball.

Then I found these 6 other definitions, by random bloggers:

Definition: A “mid-major” is any team outside of the Big 6 power conferences.

Definition: Any team outside the 11 Division 1-A football conferences is a mid-major.

Definition: Any team in a conference that is below the red line drawn on Mid-Majority.com (the premier small conference basketball site on the web) is a mid-major. The red line is the dividing line between conferences whose members have an average annual athletic budget of $20 million or more and those conferences who don’t. Thus, there are 8 conferences that are considered high-majors, the big 6 conferences, the Mountain West, and C-USA.

Definition: Mid-major conferences can be determined quantitatively in many different ways. Example # 1: If your conference has averages less than 2 tourney bids per year, then it is a mid-major. Example # 2: If your conference averages less than 1 tourney win per year, then it is also a mid-major.

Definition: There are 31 conferences in Division 1, and there are 3 categories we much create. Therefore, it makes perfect sense to me to divide the conferences in thirds. The top 10 RPI conferences are the high-majors, the next 10 are the mid-majors, and the final 11 are the low-majors.

Definition: Quite simply, a “mid-major” is any underdog that we fall in love with in March. There are no exact specifications or parameters. We just know it when we see it.

So, what is the true definition? Or, more to the point, why does it have to be defined? Argumentatively: Cornell, Butler, Northern Iowa and Saint Mary’s are all “mid-majors.” I would include Baylor and Xavier in this classification. Six of the “Sweet Sixteen” are “mid-majors.”

Maybe it helps us tell the story better. David vs. Goliath. Little guy vs. the big guy. But, if almost half the teams left in the tournament field are from a “mid-major” classification, isn’t it time to start re-classifying them as just “another team from the Horizon League,” or, “another team from the Ivy League.” Just like, “another team from the Big 10?”

It just seems like using the term “mid” is attempting to place a degree of inferiority upon these teams. I’d even wager to say that these teams and schools probably like that label going into a big game. I’m sure the pep talk is very “Hoosier-esque” ala’ Gene Hackman wanting his players to know what flavor of gum their opponents are chewing from guarding them so closely. (Or, another favorite scene… measuring the height of the goal in a different gym. I get chills just thinking about it. Ahhhh, Class basketball, I digress, that is a debate for another day…)

I think the best argument to be made about a mid vs. a major is all about the “dolla’ dolla’ bills ya’ll.” More scholarships, more TV exposure, better facilities, etc. But, when I see a field of 16 filled with almost 50% from “lesser facilities, with less scholarships and less TV exposure,” it sure makes me think… maybe there is more than corn in Indiana. There are actually a lot of great ballers that just don’t pick a school because Lebron and the President come talk to your team. There are a lot of kids that didn’t go to private High School Basketball U’s. There are a lot of kids that stand out on their driveway and shoot free throws as the sun sets and their mom calls “time for dinner.” For every Lebron and Durant, there are 10 more kids that just want the opportunity to play in college at a “mid” university.

Regardless of classification, this has been one of the best NCAA Tournaments I’ve seen in years and the reason for this is the fact that it is not “all chalk.” Mid-majors remind me of kids with dreams and aspirations… proving that they can come true with hard work, desire and dedication.