I may be the only one interested in this but I'll give it a shot and start a thread to see.
National Media Poll for 2/6/18
http://www.offtheblockblog.com/2018...ollege-mens-volleyball-national-media-poll-3/
1 Long Beach State 10-0 107 (8) 1
2 UCLA 10-1 102 (3) 2
3 Hawai’i 8-1 86 3
4 UC Irvine 10-2 75
5 Ohio State 7-2 66
6 Loyola 7-2 51 7
7 BYU 6-4 43 6
8 Lewis 6-3 29 8
9 Penn State 5-2 21 9
10 Grand Canyon 10-2 13 10
------------------------------------
Long Beach hasn't really played anyone good yet. They have looked really good against mediocre teams. They play UCLA on 2/17(home) and 2/21 (at UCLA). That will be a big test to see if they deserve the number 1 spot.
UCLA has improved a lot from the start of the season. The thing with them is they gamble with their serving. They are okay with a lot of service errors as long as they get some aces and make teams get out of system. It is a risky system if they have a bad serving night. The other big question is Arnitz. He was a considered the best high school player when he went to UCLA was on the All American freshman team and all American his sophomore and junior years but there is something really wrong with his game this year. They will need him to perform at a higher level than he has to win a NCAA championship. I don't see them winning with two small outsides. Daenan Gyimah is the best middle in the college game right now. He still isn't as skilled as some but his athleticism is off the charts. When he gets his serve going, it really can give UCLA a big advantage. He was the difference maker in the UCLA vs UCI last week.
Hawaii is very solid. The split with UCLA in their two matches giving UCLA their only loss. They have a huge advantage this season where all the top teams have to travel to play them at home. And they have a good amount of support for their home games. They don't really have any big holes. I am looking forward to seeing their two matches against UCI on Feb 23 and Feb 25.
UCI can compete but I think they are a stop behind UCLA, Hawaii and Long Beach State. They took UCLA at UCLA to 5 sets losing 14-16. They are young and have an outstanding sophomore middle and probably the best freshman this year in college at outside. If they can stay healthy, they should be a wildcard to the NCAA tournament. But two losses to UCLA, they have to hope UCLA wins their conference and they don't have to compete for the wildcard vs UCLA. Big matches coming against Long Beach State on February 23 and February 25th.
Ohio State doesn't look as good as the last two seasons. They were the NCAA Champions in 2016 and 2017. Unless they get going they aren't going to win it in 2018.
National Media Poll for 2/6/18
http://www.offtheblockblog.com/2018...ollege-mens-volleyball-national-media-poll-3/
1 Long Beach State 10-0 107 (8) 1
2 UCLA 10-1 102 (3) 2
3 Hawai’i 8-1 86 3
4 UC Irvine 10-2 75
5 Ohio State 7-2 66
6 Loyola 7-2 51 7
7 BYU 6-4 43 6
8 Lewis 6-3 29 8
9 Penn State 5-2 21 9
10 Grand Canyon 10-2 13 10
------------------------------------
Long Beach hasn't really played anyone good yet. They have looked really good against mediocre teams. They play UCLA on 2/17(home) and 2/21 (at UCLA). That will be a big test to see if they deserve the number 1 spot.
UCLA has improved a lot from the start of the season. The thing with them is they gamble with their serving. They are okay with a lot of service errors as long as they get some aces and make teams get out of system. It is a risky system if they have a bad serving night. The other big question is Arnitz. He was a considered the best high school player when he went to UCLA was on the All American freshman team and all American his sophomore and junior years but there is something really wrong with his game this year. They will need him to perform at a higher level than he has to win a NCAA championship. I don't see them winning with two small outsides. Daenan Gyimah is the best middle in the college game right now. He still isn't as skilled as some but his athleticism is off the charts. When he gets his serve going, it really can give UCLA a big advantage. He was the difference maker in the UCLA vs UCI last week.
Hawaii is very solid. The split with UCLA in their two matches giving UCLA their only loss. They have a huge advantage this season where all the top teams have to travel to play them at home. And they have a good amount of support for their home games. They don't really have any big holes. I am looking forward to seeing their two matches against UCI on Feb 23 and Feb 25.
UCI can compete but I think they are a stop behind UCLA, Hawaii and Long Beach State. They took UCLA at UCLA to 5 sets losing 14-16. They are young and have an outstanding sophomore middle and probably the best freshman this year in college at outside. If they can stay healthy, they should be a wildcard to the NCAA tournament. But two losses to UCLA, they have to hope UCLA wins their conference and they don't have to compete for the wildcard vs UCLA. Big matches coming against Long Beach State on February 23 and February 25th.
Ohio State doesn't look as good as the last two seasons. They were the NCAA Champions in 2016 and 2017. Unless they get going they aren't going to win it in 2018.
