The Miami (Ohio) Redhawks are 29-0 and ranked number 19 in the latest AP Top 25 Poll, and have been one of the best stories in all of college sports this year. However, one hypothetical question has left many fans and media members at odds with one another over their stance.
If the Redhawks do not win their conference tournament (Mid-American Conference) and the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament that comes with it, would/should they still make it to the big dance?
To me the question is both ridiculous and indicative of a developing conundrum in college sports.
It’s ridiculous because a season’s body of work — for the Red Hawks spotless thus far — should have concrete significance and not be overshadowed by hypothetical swapping of schedules/conferences,i.e., “if the Redhawks played in the SEC or if they swapped places with Auburn, would they seem so good?”?.
The question is indicative of the developing conundrum in college sports that is the money of the larger/power conferences and their brand, unjustly shoving the little guy like the Redhawks aside, for the sake of ratings; in reality, what makes college sports so great are the Redhawks of the world, not a .500 SEC school taking a place they did not earn.
Ryan Fahey 
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