Win and You’re In
With a tip of the jockey’s cap to the year-end world championship of Grade I Thoroughbred horse racing, the Seeders’ Cup invites Analysts to bring the best and brightest steeds to the races. While Home Teams compete for playoff seeding, Analysts compete for winning trifectas that include teams that clinch playoff positions worth increasing bonus values.
Analysts compete for *lame* and *base* trifecta points as defined by the General Rules 2.0. In addition, As teams move up the in the playoff seeding from wildcard to conference home field advantage, the Analysts win bonus points for their accurate predictions of which teams make the playoffs. In four brutal legs – weeks 15 to 18 – the Analysts battle to predict the top seeds – ergo, the Seeders’ Cup.
Race Rules
Each week, Analysts predict three teams to win from the slate of games that include at least one Home Team. An Analyst may Pick any team EXCEPT the opponent of the game that includes their own Home Team. Correctly Picking three winners earns an Analyst *base* Trifecta Points for a week. Correctly Picking two winners earns an Analyst *lame* Trifecta Points for a week.
In addition, Analysts earn *bonus* Trifecta Points for Picking winning teams that clinch a playoff seed during the same week. The point value of the Seeder points increases as the teams clinch higher playoff seeds over the four Legs of the Seeders’ Cup. Analysts are NOT required to Pick teams playing for playoff berths. Un-claimed opponents on the Slate of Games may earn *bonus * Seeder points when Correctly Picked.
Over the four week sprint to the finish, the total Trifecta Point value for a winning trifecta increases as teams play to secure division titles and home field advantages. In the final weeks, a winning Trifecta may include three teams that secure bye weeks or home field advantages!
Trifecta Point System
Per the General Rules 2.0, in The Seeders’ Cup, the *base* Trifecta for Correctly Picking three teams to win their respective games is worth six (6) points and the *lame* Trifecta for Correctly Picking two teams to win is worth three (3) points.
In addition, the Analyst who correctly picks a *lame* or *base* Trifecta will earn *bonus* Trifecta Points according to the strength of the playoff seeding secured by each team. For the new playoff format with 14 teams adopted in 2020
Clinch playoff berth (wildcard) = 1 point.
Clinch division title = 3 points.
Clinch a first-round bye in the playoffs (#1 seed) = 7 points.
“Seed” points are earned from any team in the available games (with the usual exception that an Analyst may not pick against his or her own team). The *bonus* Seeder points are not cumulative in the same week — the bonus points are awarded according to the most valuable seeding secured in the week.
The total points possible in the Seeders’ Cup depends on which teams secure the available playoff seeds during the Race. Overall, Analysts can earn 24 *base* Trifecta points. Plus, 14 playoff berths (14 points), 8 division titles (24 points), and 2 first-round byes (14 points) – 52 incremental points possible.
That adds up to 76 possible points total, but teams on the Slate of Games may earn the higher seeds without first securing a lower seed (for example, winning a division title without first having earned a playoff berth in an earlier week). Also, un-Claimed teams not on the Slate of Games may secure playoff seeds during the Crown Race. The actual possible points total will depend on how the final weeks of the professional football season unfolds!
Third Tiebreaker
If the Seeders’ Cup ends in a Trifecta Point tie between two or more Analysts AND the first two tiebreaker criteria do not determine a winner, then the third tiebreaker is:
3. The total number of *bonus* “Seeder” points earned by an Analyst for all teams regardless of whether s/he won the Trifecta in the week. Note that teams can lose games and clinch playoff seeds, so tie-breaking “seed” points can be earned from losing trifectas.
If there is no clear winner after the third tiebreaker, the Seeders’ Cup Purse is split evenly.
Seeders’ Cup Scoring Example (Not Updated)
In the final week of the Seeders’ Cup, Big Tuna and Kal Krome are tied for the lead with 28 Trifecta Points. In the Slate of Games available for picks, two Home Teams and an un-Claimed team are vying for the two first-round byes in the two conferences. In addition, one Home Team is contending for a division title and another game features a Home Team that reaches the playoffs as a wildcard with a win unless one un-Claimed team ties in their final game of the season. In total, there are at least 18 *bonus* or “seed” points in play.
Kal Krome’s Home Team is one of the three vying for a bye week and home field advantage throughout the playoffs. If his Home Team wins, it secures the top seed in the conference without help, so he takes his Home Team (+7 bonus points). He picks one of the other two teams to win the other conference bye week (+7 points) and a third team not in contention for a playoff seed he is sure will win. He can win 20 points possible with a winning trifecta – 6 *base* and 14 *bonus*.
Big Tuna’s Home Team is the lone contender for the bye week in the other conference, and he takes his Home Team (+7 points). His best hope is that Kal’s Home Team loses so he picks the other team to win the conference (+7 points). As insurance, Big Tuna believes he will need one more *bonus* point to force a tie if Kals’ Home Team does win home field advantage. He picks the Home Team in contention for a division title (+3 point) to bring his potential trifecta winner to 23 points – 6 *base* and 17 *bonus* points.
Both Analysts correctly pick three winners. Kal Krome’s Home Team takes home field advantage (7) and he earns 7 more *bonus* Seeder points from the second Pick for a total of 20 Trifecta Points. Big Tuna’s Home Team wins for 7 *bonus* points while the Home Team he picked to win home field advantage in the other conference finishes behind Kal Krome’s team. His pick to win a division title won the game and took the division on tiebreakers. Without the 7 *bonus* Seeder points in Kal’s conference, Big Tuna earns 16 Trifecta Points total in the final week – four points less than Kal Krome!
