BlogDavidsonDaytonDuquesneFordhamGeorge MasonGeorge WashingtonLa SalleRhode IslandRichmondSaint LouisSt. BonaventureSt. Joseph'sUMASSVCU

The One with the Too Early Tiers

Thursday night, we published our too-early rankings, but why should the fun stop there? The offseason is also a great time to divide the A10 into tiers. So without further ado, here are the too-early tiers. (Please note we did this in order of size and nothing else. All A10 schools are great and we love you all, except for the team you personally root for, which we hate with the fiery passion of 10,000 burning suns)

Tier I: The Catholic Schools

Dayton

Duquesne 

Fordham

La Salle

St. Bonaventure

St. Joe’s 

Saint Louis 

The Catholic schools are the largest tier in the A10, boasting 7 different schools. There is a natural tension between these schools and the conference, due to their rejection of the authority of Commissioner Bernadette McGlade, and their assertion that the only true authority of the Atlantic 10 Conference is Pope Francis. However, the A10’s fear of Jesuit priest-assassins ensures that these schools will never be ousted from the conference. 

 

Tier II: The Public Schools 

George Mason

Rhody

UMass

VCU

While only 4 strong, each school boasts a mighty alumni base that would make this tier a tough customer in an Anchorman-style parking lot fight among the tiers. 75% of these schools have been to a Final Four, and the other is the flagship school of a state that, while named after an island, mostly isn’t an island. 

Tier III: The non-Catholic Private Schools 

Davidson

George Washington 

Richmond

With only 3 schools, the non-Catholic private schools make up our last tier. ‘Sup guys

 

 

Jack Godar covers Saint Louis University for A10Talk. He is a St. Louis native who grew up rooting for SLU, but is a graduate of College of the Holy C...