Division II expands football playoffs from 28 to 32 teams to accommodate automatic qualifiers
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The NCAA Division II football playoffs will expand from 28 to 32 teams beginning this season to accommodate the format change that will award 16 conferences automatic bids.
According to Division II policy, bracket expansion must be considered when automatic qualifiers make up more than 50% of the field. That prompted the expansion to 32 teams, the NCAA announced Wednesday.
Division II football schools in January approved a proposal that requires all conferences be represented in the championship bracket. Division II football was the only team sport across all three divisions that did not use automatic qualification.
The playoff schedule will remain the same, except that the four No. 1 seeds will no longer receive first-round byes. The championship game is Dec. 20 in McKinney, Texas.
During Elections
Get campaign news, insight, analysis and commentary delivered to your inbox during Canada's 2025 election.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Toronto Star
43 minutes ago
- Toronto Star
Cricket fans in India were celebrating their team's win. A stampede turned that joy into tragedy
Asia BENGALURU, India (AP) — A sea of cricket crazy fans were packed inside the Indian stadium, celebrating a long-awaited victory of their favorite team. Outside, more crowds were pushing at the gates, hoping to catch a glimpse of their cherished cricket stars. More from The Star & partners
Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Cricket fans in India were celebrating their team's win. A stampede turned that joy into tragedy
BENGALURU, India (AP) — A sea of cricket crazy fans were packed inside the Indian stadium, celebrating a long-awaited victory of their favorite team. Outside, more crowds were pushing at the gates, hoping to catch a glimpse of their cherished cricket stars. The turnout of the crowd was far more than expected. Tens of thousands tried to force their way inside. Then tragedy struck. Panic and a chaotic run toward the stadium gates turned into a deadly crowd crush in India's southern Bengaluru city Wednesday, leaving at least 11 people dead and more than 30 others injured. Most of the victims, including young students, were trampled upon or suffocated after getting caught in crowds that swelled beyond control. The stampede was yet another incident of a crowd crush in a country where poor crowd management often leads to accidents. It also underscored that passion for cricket stars in India — where fans of the game closely follow the players' every move — can easily turn deadly if crowds are not managed properly. The incident took place when crowds outside the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium began swarming into the premises, where state authorities were celebrating the Royal Challengers Bengaluru cricket team. The team had on Tuesday finally won the final of the Indian Premier League — the world's most popular T20 cricket tournament — after 18 years. Joyful crowds had poured into the city streets all night. By late afternoon on Wednesday, tens of thousands began moving toward the stadium. City police later said around 50,000 people had gathered within the stadium's 1-kilometre radius, and more crowds were continuing to stream in. Some fans scaled over stadium gates and outer walls. Others tried to break the metal gates. Soon, people began falling on each other. B.V. Shivkumar's 14-year old daughter, Divyanshi Shivakumar, was with her mother and aunt. The three women approached the gate, but fans jostling to enter the stadium caused them to collide with each other, Shivkumar said. Then a crush followed. Divyanshi suffered head injuries. Her mother and aunt rushed her to the hospital, where she later died. 'My wife begged the police and everyone there, but nobody helped,' Shivkumar, who uses only one name, said at his Bengaluru home, surrounded by relatives who were there to offer condolences. Shivkumar said he was particularly incensed by the fact that while people were getting caught in a crush outside, the ceremony inside the stadium continued. 'Who cares about the people's loss?' he asked. Cricket is followed by hundreds of millions of people in India, where it draws record television and digital viewership. For decades, it has also been a crucial part of India's global brand. For many fans, catching a glimpse of their favorite cricketer is no less than a dream come true, even if it means risking their lives. Karnataka state's Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who only uses one name, said at least 200,000 cricket fans were out on the city streets on Wednesday, at least four times more than what authorities had expected. His deputy, D.K. Shivakumar, said that 5,000 police officers had been deployed to provide security, but the 'young, vibrant crowd' grew 'uncontrollable.' 'This tragedy has overshadowed the joy of the victory,' he said on social platform X. The incident has since turned into a political tug-of-war, with opposition parties raising questions about hasty arrangements. India's cricket management authorities have said they did not know who planned the event and that players inside the stadium were not aware of the crush until they began receiving phone calls. Meanwhile, India's top cricketers and franchise teams have shared their condolences. The tournament's biggest star player, Virat Kohli, wrote on Instagram: 'At a loss for words. Absolutely gutted.' Families of the victims are grappling with a sense of disbelief and anger as to how a scene of celebration spiraled into a tragedy. Divyanshi's father said authorities should have prepared better so that lives lost could have been saved. 'It's the parents who will suffer now,' he said. —— Saaliq reported from New Delhi.
Winnipeg Free Press
2 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Texas Tech's NiJaree Canady faces toughest challenge yet after Game 1 heartbreak
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — NiJaree Canady has achieved almost everything since transferring to Texas Tech from Stanford and signing an NIL deal worth just over $1 million. She led the Red Raiders to three firsts — the Big 12 regular season and tournament titles and a berth in the Women's College World Series. She was the National Fastpitch Coaches Association's Pitcher of the Year for the second straight year and leads the nation in wins (33) and ERA (0.94). The only thing missing is a national championship and that goal will be the toughest to reach after she gave up a late lead in Game 1 of the best-of-three championship series to Texas on Wednesday. After the 2-1 loss, the Red Raiders must beat the Longhorns in two straight to win the national title. Canady, who threw 88 pitches in Game 1, is battling a soft tissue injury on her left leg suffered in the preseason that has severely limited her practice time. She still expects to be ready for Game 2 on Thursday. 'I'm fine,' a dejected Canady said. 'I have all summer to rest. I'm ready to play softball.' Canady lost the lead when she threw what was supposed be ball four and an intentional walk close enough for Texas' Reese Atwood to make contact. Atwood knocked in what turned out to be the game winning runs in the sixth inning, putting the Longhorns one win from their first national title. Atwood knew she was fortunate to get that pitch from Canady. 'Props to NiJa, because she definitely kept us real tight throughout that game,' she said. 'She's a great pitcher. I saw my opportunity and I took it.' Canady has thrown every pitch for the Red Raiders during the World Series, but Tech coach Gerry Glasco did not guarantee his ace would start on Thursday, saying he needs to watch out for her long-term health. Glasco said Canady is such a competitor that she might not be fully honest about her condition. 'If you know NiJa, she's not going to complain, she's not going to tell you,' he said. 'We'll have to really dig, and hopefully the trainer can get her to communicate enough that he'll get a good assessment. I want to win, but also I want to be sure we leave this season healthy for the future.' That being said, Glasco expects Canady to be ready. Her competitive drive is one of the reasons recruiting her was a priority when he became Tech's coach before this season. Canady has been on the hot seat before. She led Stanford to the national semifinals the previous two seasons and was the winning pitcher on Monday when Tech knocked out four-time defending national champion Oklahoma. 'As far as NiJa tomorrow, if you've got to pick a pitcher in America to come back and win two games in a row with — I'll take NiJa,' he said. 'If anybody can do what we need to do to come back, I'm thrilled to have NiJa do it.' ___ AP sports:
