ESPN bracketology pioneer Joe Lunardi in 2011. Sunday, March 13, 2011 — Bristol, CT — Studio E — Men’s college basketball “Bracketologist” Joe Lunardi
College BasketballBy Sam Neumann on

The NCAA Tournament Selection Committee always faces scrutiny, but this year’s controversy was practically gift-wrapped.

Bubba Cunningham, the committee’s chair and North Carolina’s athletic director, watched his Tar Heels sneak into the field despite a brutal 1-12 record in Quad 1 games. Now, they’ll have to survive the First Four against San Diego State for a shot at Ole Miss, but that doesn’t make their selection any less suspect.

As you might imagine, that didn’t exactly sit well with the masses. The backlash? Immediate.

When pressed by Seth Davis, committee vice chair Keith Gill — commissioner of the Sun Belt — insisted that all policies and procedures were followed and that everything was kosher. Cunningham recused himself when UNC was discussed, checking the necessary boxes. But even if everything was done by the book, that’s done little to quiet critics wondering why sitting ADs and conference commissioners had a hand in picking the bracket in the first place.

Well, the chairman’s team made the tournament. And not for nothing, there’s real money on the line here — Cunningham stands to make an extra $104K just for UNC getting in.

Alongside Cunningham, the selection committee included Mark Coyle (Minnesota), Greg Byrne (Alabama), Lee Reed (Georgetown), Martin Newton (Samford), Arthur Johnson (Temple), Irma Garcia (Manhattan), Zack Lassiter (Abilene Christian), and Chad Weiberg (Oklahoma State). Only two of the nine sitting athletic directors had their teams make the tournament. A 22 percent representation hardly makes for a strawman argument, but UNC’s inclusion — while West Virginia and Indiana were left out — raises questions about the process.

So, what’s the solution?

How about adding media members to the committee? Sure, there are plenty of jokes to be made about Syracuse and Northwestern getting favorable treatment, but the best approach might be to include a panel of bracketologists — experts who spend all season analyzing the field objectively.

That’s not to say those like Jon Rothstein, Jay Bilas, Bill Raftery or Mark Titus wouldn’t bring valuable insight to a hypothetical media member-led selection committee. But we should be rewarding those who dedicate their entire season to studying the bracket from every angle.

Let’s get Joe Lunardi, Jerry Palm, Bauertology, Chris Dobbertean of SB Nation’s Blogging the Bracket, college hoops personality Ryan Hammer, T3 Bracketology, Yago Brackets, 1-3-1 Sports, Dominic Lese of Bracketometry, Hoops HD’s Jon Teitel and a few wild cards or newcomers on the committee.

While Bracket Matrix ranks Lunardi and Palm near the bottom of its accuracy ratings, you’d have to imagine that two of college basketball’s biggest media partners — ESPN and CBS — would want their guys in the mix.

With sitting athletic directors on the selection committee, the current system is inherently prone to conflicts of interest. This year’s controversy with UNC’s inclusion only highlights those flaws. While recusal may technically satisfy the requirements, it does little to quell the growing perception of bias and the doubts about the process’s fairness.

Switching to a panel of bracketologists would eliminate these issues. These experts are immersed in the data, objectively tracking every team’s performance without personal or conference-based biases clouding their judgment. By focusing solely on merit, they would restore credibility to the selection process and ensure that the best teams make the field — without the politics.

It’s time for the NCAA to prioritize integrity over influence and let the experts who live and breathe college basketball take the reins.

About Sam Neumann

Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.

View all posts by Sam Neumann