MBB: Bracketology 2019-20

[tbyers11]

I'm curious, where did you "play around with" these things? Not doubting you, just wondering where that tool would be, as it would be fun to play around with.

The TeamCast link on the Duke team page at Barttorvik,com. Direct link here.

Choose your results for remaining games and push the Add Conf Tourney Sim button

[Bluedog]

I'm not doubting that this is the way they do it, but does anybody really think there's a practical difference for SDSU between Indianapolis and New York? Both places involve very long plane trips, they're in the same time zone, and neither place is convenient for their fans. In fact, if you take a commercial plane trip, it takes a little less time to get to New York because all the planes from San Diego to Indianapolis involve a stopover.

Nope, very little practical difference. Except the players I'm sure fly charter.

[Kedsy]

Nope, very little practical difference. Except the players I'm sure fly charter.

I'm sure a lot of teams do. Not sure how big San Diego State's budget is for things like that.

[DU82]

I'm sure a lot of teams do. Not sure how big San Diego State's budget is for things like that.

NCAA pays the travel costs in the tournament.

[Kedsy]

NCAA pays the travel costs in the tournament.

And they fly the teams in private planes?

[Bluedog]

And they fly the teams in private planes?

Hmmm good point and question. Only thing I can find is the NCAA pays $4k per student for travel expenses for Final Four and $3k for each student's family travel (as of 2015). I'd guess the university or student/family would have to cover fees in excess of that and that's just for F4 weekend. Don't know what the policy is for earlier rounds. I assume a private charter jet is more than $4k/person alone for a cross country flight but I honestly have no idea given I've never taken one.

[SCMatt33]

Hmmm good point and question. Only thing I can find is the NCAA pays $4k per student for travel expenses for Final Four and $3k for each student's family travel (as of 2015). I'd guess the university or student/family would have to cover fees in excess of that and that's just for F4 weekend. Don't know what the policy is for earlier rounds. I assume a private charter jet is more than $4k/person alone for a cross country flight but I honestly have no idea given I've never taken one.

At least as of 2009 when I graduated, Duke (both men and women) was traveling to NCAAT games that needed a flight by a chartered 737 (the band and cheerleaders get to hitch a ride on the back of the plane). I know anecdotally from in game commentary they have charters waiting for first four teams to take them to their next destination so I always assumed this was standard tournament travel. From googling, a 737 charter runs about 20k per hour, and after band, cheerleaders and support staff are included, I’d imagine most of these flights have around 100 people, if not more on board, so unless it Hawai’i traveling to the east coast (which I’m sure would get an exemption) you won’t hit 3k per person on these trips.

[DU82]

And they fly the teams in private planes?

Charter flights for the most part.

Flew on one back in 1980 to West Lafayette and Lexington.

[sagegrouse]

Charter flights for the most part.

Flew on one back in 1980 to West Lafayette and Lexington.

Herb the Crazy Towel Guy is taking some hits on this Board. Hey guys! He is who he is.

He once told me that for the 1980 regionals in Lexington, Ky. he went to the airport trying to get a plane ticket to Louisville. None were available. He appealed to a male flight attendant, telling him the reason he "had to" get on the flight. The guy let him on the plane, and he rode in a jump seat. Different era of civil aviation, to be sure.

[WiJoe]

Herb the Crazy Towel Guy is taking some hits on this Board. Hey guys! He is who he is.

Pretty sure Herb shows up for ALL the games ... unlike the students

[uh_no]

Pretty sure Herb shows up for ALL the games ... unlike the students

pretty sure he publicly bailed on the football team a few years back.

And if the students had the amount of commitments as a retired man, and could walk into a game at tip and sit in a seat the whole time, they would show up more often, too.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Pretty sure Herb shows up for ALL the games ... unlike the students

pretty sure he publicly bailed on the football team a few years back.

And if the students had the amount of commitments as a retired man, and could walk into a game at tip and sit in a seat the whole time, they would show up more often, too.

Yep. He totally did. I appreciate his attendance to the basketball games, but that is apples to oranges. He tented next to us on Blue Devil Alley and made a big deal of himself being the ultimate supporter of all Duke athletes, and then he bailed. Silver lining for us was that it brought our current tent neighbors one over to where they currently are, and thus the best tailgate on campus was born.
The irony of him bailing when he did, for me, is that I remember sitting next to or behind him in the bleachers during games because those seats were available. We'd just walk down empty bleachers and pop a squat. He was one of the other 200 fans in the stands. Boggles my mind that he showed up through THOSE years of Duke FB, and then skipped out on the last 8 or 9. I don't know if he's been back, but I hope so.

[duke2x]

At least as of 2009 when I graduated, Duke (both men and women) was traveling to NCAAT games that needed a flight by a chartered 737 (the band and cheerleaders get to hitch a ride on the back of the plane). I know anecdotally from in game commentary they have charters waiting for first four teams to take them to their next destination so I always assumed this was standard tournament travel. From googling, a 737 charter runs about 20k per hour, and after band, cheerleaders and support staff are included, I’d imagine most of these flights have around 100 people, if not more on board, so unless it Hawai’i traveling to the east coast (which I’m sure would get an exemption) you won’t hit 3k per person on these trips.

While that policy postdates me, it depends on demand for the charter and the cost. A trip to Ohio might only have demand for the players and coaches to fly while the support takes a bus. A trip to Florida might have enough Iron Duke demand to fill a charter.

In 2001 as a student, I had enough frequent flyer miles to book in advance on Delta the summer before. There was a labor dispute at the last minute that made getting back a little iffy. I looked into the private travel company the Iron Dukes used as a backup. Their charter price was about $1000 when RT commercial on Northwest was going for $600 at the last minute. I was fortunate I got back on my Delta flight a few hours late.

[Phredd3]

Pretty sure Herb shows up for ALL the games ... unlike the students

Only if the games are played by men. He publicly bailed on the women's team several years ago. Let's just say that my respect for him has been...damaged.

[Acymetric]

At least as of 2009 when I graduated, Duke (both men and women) was traveling to NCAAT games that needed a flight by a chartered 737 (the band and cheerleaders get to hitch a ride on the back of the plane). I know anecdotally from in game commentary they have charters waiting for first four teams to take them to their next destination so I always assumed this was standard tournament travel. From googling, a 737 charter runs about 20k per hour, and after band, cheerleaders and support staff are included, I’d imagine most of these flights have around 100 people, if not more on board, so unless it Hawai’i traveling to the east coast (which I’m sure would get an exemption) you won’t hit 3k per person on these trips.

I doubt the NCAA is giving $4k per person for the band and whatnot. I would expect it is just the players and (maybe) coaches.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

I doubt the NCAA is giving $4k per person for the band and whatnot. I would expect it is just the players and (maybe) coaches.

If I had to guess, and God knows I'm not one to think like your typical NCAA bureaucrat...but I would imagine the NCAA has a formula for how much they pay, and leave it to the school to spend it how they want. LIke I said, that's just a flier, a guess...

[sagegrouse]

If I had to guess, and God knows I'm not one to think like your typical NCAA bureaucrat...but I would imagine the NCAA has a formula for how much they pay, and leave it to the school to spend it how they want. LIke I said, that's just a flier, a guess...

When it comes to hotel rooms, I suspect the Association pre-contracts for a given number of rooms at four hotels at each of the 14 or so sites and covers the costs. There would. I expect, be another hotel or two for NCAA officialdom and yet another for CBS.

When it comes to the Final Four, there is also some allocation of high-end and medium quality hotels to each school for their fans. I dunno about high end, since -- in six FF's, I have never stayed in one, although I did stay, by accident, in the same Marriott as the Georgia Tech team at the 1990 Final Four in Denver.

[DavidBenAkiva]

Just to further muddle the waters and take this discussion well off the rails, what role do conferences play in funding team travel? Conferences get money from the NCAA for their teams. When a bunch of ACC teams go deep into the NCAA Tournament, the conference gets a huge payday. Does the ACC fund part of the travel for bands, teams, etc.

[camion]

Just to further muddle the waters and take this discussion well off the rails, what role do conferences play in funding team travel? Conferences get money from the NCAA for their teams. When a bunch of ACC teams go deep into the NCAA Tournament, the conference gets a huge payday. Does the ACC fund part of the travel for bands, teams, etc.

Let me try to put my self in the shoes of an official in a random conference.

The NCAA gives me a pot of money. Do I:
1. Give some of it to people playing musical instruments that you will see for maybe 5 seconds during a game.
2. Keep it.

Tough choice.

[DU82]

Official hotels with X number of rooms are contracted/reserved for each of the eight teams at each sub regional site. These arrangements are done by the host school/conference. The teams select the hotels in order of seed. (Same number of rooms for each school, and they are obligated to pay for them, even if, say, we’re playing in Raleigh and stay on campus. (The NCAA provides funds for the travel.)

You may remember a 15/16th seed playing us one year got a crappy hotel, and their motto was “you’ll pay for it because of our hotel.”

Back in the late ‘80s, Navy was sent to Boise, I believe, and got the Flying J Truck Plaza as their hotel. And they were the seventh seed. No word on where the eighth team stayed.

Same thing happens at the regionals and Final Four (although only four hotels, of course.)