Playoff Format

Conversations around the league have taken on a confused and perplexed tone when the subject of the post season arises. Players, chairmen and coaches alike are lost in a sea of words like "tie breaker", "conference rankings" and "free draw".

League chairman/owner/commissioner/god Andy Fuller sent out this email clarifying the situation and giving clear outlines on the tiebreakers and ranking formulas that will be in use.

Read on weary baller, read on!


Championship and Challenge Trophy (Plate) rankings

The BUCS American Football National Championship sees teams compete over an 8 game regular season in one of seven regional Conferences. The final standings within these Conferences will determine which teams progress to the two Post Season National Playoffs – the Championship Playoffs and the Challenge Trophy Playoffs.

The Post Season consists of four rounds: Round One, Round Two, Semi Finals, Finals.

The seven Conference winners will go through to the Championship Playoffs along with those teams posting the next best five records from the second place teams. The best four Conference winning teams nationally will get a first round bye and home field status for Round Two.

In the Challenge Trophy Playoffs the best two (remaining) second place teams get a First Round bye. The best two third place teams will join them on a bye whilst the other five third place teams plus the three teams with the best fourth place records will contest Round One.

The teams progressing to the Playoffs will play each other according to national ranking. The team with the highest ranking will play the team with the lowest ranking and so on, with the higher ranked team playing at home.

Conference Ranking, Bye Week Selection and Tie breakers

All results from games count towards each team’s standings which will be determined initially by the overall won-lost-tied percentage of the teams.

In the instance where two or more teams are tied for a place in the Conference the higher ranked team will be decided through the following process:

• Competitive record for both teams when facing each other during the season – win / loss / tied record
• Competitive record for both teams when facing common opponents during the season – win / loss / tied record
• Lowest average points conceded per game in games played during the regular season against common opponents (excludes awarded games).
• Lowest points conceded averaged per game played across the regular season (excludes awarded games).
• Coin toss 

It is of note that where there are more than two teams requiring a tie breaker, the process will start until one team is eliminated. The process will then begin again for the remaining teams. The term common requires ALL teams in contention to have faced the same opponents.

The top team from each Conference will then be considered for one of the four allocated bye weeks. The teams (four from seven Conferences) will qualify for a bye based upon their topping their Conference and then their competitive record.

• Competitive record during the regular season – win / loss / tied percentage.
• Average points conceded per game against the top four ranked teams from within their Conference and excluding awarded games (i.e. teams placed 2, 3, and 4).
• Average points conceded per game played during the entire regular season (excludes awarded games).
• Free Draw by the BUCS Office

The remaining three Conference champions will enter the first round of the playoffs where they will be designated Home Team status.

Those teams allocated bye weeks will be ranked nationally 1 through to 4 based upon the application of the above criteria.  The three remaining champions who will not receive a bye will be ranked 5 through to 7 based upon the application of the above criteria.

The three remaining champions will be joined by five of the best ranked Conference runners-up. These will be determined by their position (coming second) and then their competitive record:

• Competitive record during the regular season – win / loss / tied percentage.
• Average points conceded per game against the top four ranked teams from within their Conference and excluding awarded games (i.e. teams placed 1, 3, and 4).
• Average points conceded per game played during the entire regular season (excludes awarded games).
• Free Draw by the BUCS Office

Of the five teams which finished in a runners-up place, the top ranked (as per the application of the above criteria) will be nationally ranked 8 and receive Home Team status in Round One of the Playoffs.

The remaining four teams will be nationally ranked 9 through to 12 by application of the above criteria.

The team ranked 12 will travel to the team ranked 5. The team ranked 11 will travel to the team ranked 6. The team ranked 10 will travel to the team ranked 7. The team ranked 9 will travel to the team ranked 8.

Once Round One is complete the lowest ranked team remaining will travel to the team ranked 1 and so forth.

Each round will see the lowest remaining ranked team travel to the highest remaining ranked team.

The Challenge Trophy

The format for the Challenge Trophy will echo that described above.

The remaining two Conference runners-up will be afforded a bye in Round One of the Playoffs and will be ranked 13 (top ranked for the Challenge Trophy) and 14 according to the application of the process used to identify which five runners-up progress to the Championship Playoffs.

Those two teams will be joined in the bye week by the top two ranked third place teams from across the Conferences (and they will be ranked 15 and 16 respectively).

The third placed teams will be ranked according to the following criteria:

• Competitive record during the regular season – win / loss / tied percentage.
•  Average points conceded per game against the top four ranked teams from within their Conference and excluding awarded games (i.e. teams placed 1, 2, and 4).
• Average points conceded per game played during the entire regular season (excludes awarded games).
• Free Draw by the BUCS Office

The remaining five third-placed teams will be ranked 17 through to 21.

These teams will be joined by the three teams with the best records from fourth place in their Conference. Their records will be determined by the application of the following criteria:

• Competitive record during the regular season – win / loss / tied percentage.
• Average points conceded per game against the top four ranked teams from within their Conference and excluding awarded games (i.e. teams placed 1, 2, and 3).
• Average points conceded per game played during the entire regular season (excludes awarded games).
• Free Draw by the BUCS Office

These teams will be ranked 22 through to 24.

In Round One of the Playoffs the team ranked 24 will travel to the team ranked 17. The team ranked 23 will travel to the team ranked 18. The team ranked 22 will travel to the team ranked 19. The team ranked 21 will travel to the team ranked 20.

Once Round One is complete the lowest ranked team remaining will travel to the team ranked 13 and so forth.

Each round will see the lowest remaining ranked team travel to the highest remaining ranked team.

For the finals the team designated ‘Home’ status (for uniform and sideline purposes etc) will be determined by a coin toss by the Governing Body.

Free Draw refers to the process of the team names being placed into a hat and a team being drawn to progress.

Clear as mud?