The FCS playoff hopes for both UT-Martin and Southeast Missouri State came down to a coin flip. No, literally. A flip of the coin determined which team advanced to the FCS Playoffs with the league’s automatic berth and as a result, SEMO will be the Ohio Valley Conference’s automatic qualifier.
Here’s the coin flip in all of its bush league glory:
Coin Flip for AQ https://t.co/HJRMPZidAm
— Ohio Valley Conference (@OVCSports) November 19, 2022
As explained by the OVC itself, this scenario came about as a result of complications of the schedule due to Lindenwood joining as a new member this season. To fit the newcomers into the slate, each team played one less conference game than it was scheduled to and guess which pair of opponents didn’t play each other? That’s right, UT-Martin and SEMO. So with both teams finishing 4-0 in conference play and being declared co-champs, the OVC decided that the best course of action to determine a playoff representative was a flip of the coin.
This is absolutely terrible and unless they earn an at-large bid, UT-Martin’s season will end because they called heads instead of tails. There has to be a more professional way for these administrators to handle scenarios like these.