The @NAIA’s first National Selection Committee polls came out and are a meaningful step forward. Moving to administrator-only selection committees is a positive change for the integrity of the process. As a coach, I served as our conference’s rater and participated in national tournament selection. Before my very first rating, a veteran coach called to explain an “unwritten rule”: rank teams from our region a little higher to counteract perceived bias from coaches in other regions. This was one of several requests I received from different coaches during my five years in the role. I did not adopt any of them. I also participated in selection committee meetings where coaches didn’t want to consider another team from a particular conference because they felt that conference already had too many teams in the national tournament. Every team deserves to be evaluated on its own merits against the established criteria. As an athletic director, I knew of coaches receiving information from selection committees that should have remained confidential, including matchups and locations. Across all three roles, I constantly heard from coaches in these key positions that programs deserved extra respect in the ratings because of their history. I respect that history. But a team’s opportunity to compete for a national championship should be earned through its current results and the established criteria. I’ve always believed the majority of coaches serving in these roles approached the responsibility with integrity. But a process this consequential needs consistent criteria application, objectivity and confidentiality throughout. It has to be 100%. Administrator-only selection committees won’t eliminate every challenge, but it is a meaningful step toward a fairer process…one that gives student-athletes confidence their teams are being evaluated on what they’ve earned. Credit to the @NAIA National Office and leaders in the association like @DrewWatsonAD for spearheading this needed change.