Introducing the USAFL Top 20 Poll

On October 18th, a new slate of USAFL National Champions will be crowned.  Whoever lifts the John Harrell Cup in the center of Cooper’s Field at Onion Creek Soccer Complex in Austin will lay claim to the title of best footy club in the land.

The path between this day and that one is rather long, however, and in the intervening 27 weeks, each team will take to ovals across the USA and do battle, jockeying for position on the ladder.

But with the spread of the teams as vast as the country itself, and with the schedule of each team equally as diverse, the standard for who the top clubs are tends to vary.

Enter the USAFL Top 20.

Every three weeks during the 2015 season, a panel of anonymous experts from across the country will each select who they think the best twenty footy clubs are up to that point in the season.  The results will be tallied, and the listing will be published, along with commentary from USAFL.com’s Brian Barrish. 

The poll will be similar to those used in college football and basketball; each panelist will rank their picks from 1-to-20, with teams earning points based on where they’re picked by each voter.

The USAFL Top 20 will serve two purposes.  Firstly, it will be a way to drive debate among players and fans, and build intrigue during the regular season in the lead up to October in Austin.

More important than bragging rights, however.  While the seeding committee will have complete and final say as to Nationals divisions and pool seedings, the Top 20 will factor into their decisions.

There will be a total of nine polls, published every three Wednesdays.  The first results will be announced on April 15th, with the final balloting taking place on September 30th.

Buckle up, guys and gals, it’s going to be a fun ride.