“Magic Numbers:” What the Diamond Rebels Need to Win to Make the SEC Tournament
OXFORD, Miss. — Baseball fans start looking at magic numbers towards the end of every season. A magic number is the mathematical formula used to determine how many wins a team must secure combined with an opponent’s losses, with the total being the “magic number” that will clinch a division championship or, in the case of the seven SEC teams currently with losing records, a berth in the SEC Tournament.
The simplest way to derive this number is to add all possible wins to the trailing team’s current win total. Next, see how many wins it will take for each front runner to beat that number by one win, or in the case of a head-to-head advantage that’s already secured, to tie that number. That’s your “magic number.”
In SEC tiebreaker rules, head-to-head is the first decider. If no winner is determined, it then goes to each team’s record against the No. 1 seed, then the No.2 seed, progressing on down until there’s a distinct winner. If there’s still no winner, the commissioner flips a coin.
But for the moment, let’s concern ourselves with the “Qualifier” situation in the SEC. A Qualifier MAKES the the SEC Tournament, while the two teams with the fewest wins and/or lost tiebreakers are eliminated and miss the opportunity to play post-season baseball.
Missouri is the “Magic Number” matchup for all the teams that have yet to qualify because Auburn’s record has them at a tremendous disadvantage. “Mathematically eliminated” is likely just one game away for the Auburn Tigers. Auburn’s only way in is to win all six remaining games while either Ole Miss, LSU, Florida, or Alabama loses all of theirs.
Missouri did not play Alabama and Ole Miss this year so the second tiebreaker will come into play should they finish with identical records.
To avoid such scenarios, we’ve noted the teams who need an extra win or an extra Missouri loss in order to eliminate the Tigers and qualify for the tournament. “MN” is the magic number needed for the listed teams to eliminate Missouri as a threat and become Tournament Qualifiers, assuming of course that Auburn doesn’t pull off the impossible.
Magic Numbers (in relation to Missouri): These combinations of wins and Missouri losses could send teams to SEC Tournament
Going into this weekend’s SEC action:
Vanderbilt 11-13: 2 (needs two wins or combination of wins and Missouri losses that equals 2)
Alabama 10-14: 4 (avoids tiebreakers, needs four wins or combination of wins and Mizzou losses that equals 4)
Florida 10-14: 4 (lost head-to-head; needs four wins or combination of wins and Missouri losses that equals 4)
LSU 9-15: 4 (needs four wins or combination of wins and Missouri losses that equasl 4)
Ole Miss 9-15: 5 (avoids tiebreakers; needs five wins or combination of wins and Missouri losses that equals 5
Missouri 7-17: –
Auburn 4-20: – one loss eliminates Auburn
Stay tuned!
David Walker
David Walker was named Louisiana’s High School Player of the Year at just 16 years old and, at 17, became college football’s first quarterback to earn Freshman of the Year honors. He remains the NCAA’s youngest-ever starting quarterback, a distinction that has stood for decades.
Transitioning from a wide-open high school offense to Emory Bellard’s renowned wishbone triple option, Walker excelled as a dual-threat quarterback. He graduated as Texas A&M’s all-time winningest quarterback and served as a two-time team captain, helping to transform a program that had endured 15 losing seasons in the previous 16 years.
After his playing career, Walker coached and taught algebra at six Texas high schools before moving into private business. In 2011, he published his memoir, “I’ll Tell You When You’re Good,” a title inspired by the coaching philosophy of Shannon Suarez, the Sulphur High and Louisiana High School Hall of Fame coach who was a significant influence on Walker’s life and career.
Walker’s compelling storytelling in his autobiography reflects the breadth of his experiences in high school and college football, and it is an undeniable fact that he saw more action than any athlete in the history of the NCAA. Since 2013, he has contributed to The Rebel Walk, sharing his insights and expertise with readers.
