Quote:
Originally Posted by AcesPease
A few thoughts and a conclusion:
1. Logistically 360 is probably the right number of teams for Championships.
2. Eventually all those spots will be taken by qualifiers under the current system.
3. But with some teams earning multiple championship qualifications and some choosing not to go there will always be room for some from a wait list.
4. There was no announced merit system for moving teams from this wait list.
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Looking ahead a merit system for filling out the Championships field makes a lot of sense. It needs to be announced in the Fall so we can all make appropriate plans. I think the system should involve order of finish (finalists, semifinalists) as the primary criteria.
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At the risk of a me-too post, me too. The number of open-registration slots will get tighter and tighter, but is highly unlikely to be zero in any given year. I'm not sure how you balance the regional-vs-district part out, but I think Championship would benefit from trying to get in the teams that performed admirably over the season but didn't earn an automatic bid.
Consider 1319 (who registered for Championship on an open slot this year, but roll with this). Their trophy cabinet
this year?
Smoky Mountains Industrial Design Award
Smoky Mountains Finalist
Peachtree Engineering Excellence Award
Peachtree Industrial Safety Award
Peachtree Finalists
Palmetto Industrial Safety Award
Palmetto Innovation in Control Award
Palmetto Quality Award
Palmetto Semifinalists
That's
eight trophies this year, and two silver medals...but nothing that punches their ticket to St. Louis. In a perfect world (and one where they weren't registered), they'd be one of the top contenders for an open slot.
Or consider 343, who collected two regional finalists this year and is not set to go to Championship this year. Obviously, 1319 would be the higher priority to get in...but two medals should get you pretty far up the list.
Other notions:
1) WFA should remain not an automatic qualifier, but it should have a heft to it compared to other awards.
2) Every animation or website team that complains that their competition is meaningless would get something to hustle over. I don't know whether it'd draw the award back to the regional level as in years past, but imagine if even the top X teams in the contest as it sits got a rub. What bubble team fighting for a spot in the show
wouldn't give it their best shot?
3) This system should lead to the end of the restrictions on rookie teams at Championship only getting there through RAS or a championship. If a rookie team can produce at the level that gets them in, they deserve the spot.
4) Performance from the prior year should be a tiebreaker across points. If one team has 30 points and earned 30 the year before, they should be offered the spot ahead of a team that earned 30 this year and nothing the year before.