Item: Call it MIPA. Missing In (Postseason) Action. Syracuse is one of three ACC schools, four from the Pac 12, two from the Big Ten, and one from the SEC in this unflattering group during the 2021-22 academic year.
Like millions of others, we always enjoy participating in annual college football bowl game pools and March Madness brackets, looking to outduel friends, co-workers, or even strangers, and maybe even win a buck or two.
If there’s any season in which the school name “Syracuse” does not appear in either prognostication challenge, it never feels the same, a huge disappointment not having our alma mater among the programs competing to win on their respective sport’s biggest stage.
Here’s a look at the 10 major conference schools that either did not qualify for one of the 43 scheduled bowl games (five were canceled) with a .500 or winning record, and did not earn one of the 68 invitations to March Madness:
| School | Football Record | Basketball Record | Note |
| California | 5-7 | 12-20 | 2013 NCAA ‘Cuse beat Cal in San Jose on route to FF. |
| Colorado | 4-8 | 21-11 | Buffaloes did get an invite to the NIT. |
| Florida State | 5-7 | 17-14 | Florida State! With all of those state resources? |
| Georgia Tech | 3-9 | 12-20 | The spotlight is on Geoff Collins and Josh Pastner. |
| Nebraska | 3-9 | 10-22 | Nebraska! With all of those state resources? |
| Northwestern | 3-9 | 15-16 | Chris Collins has struggled since leaving Coach K in ’13. |
| Stanford | 3-9 | 16-16 | Must be something in the Bay Area drinking water. |
| Syracuse | 5-7 | 16-17 | It is going to change in 2022-23, right, John Wildhack? |
| Vanderbilt | 2-10 | 17-16 | Commodores did get an invite to the NIT. |
| Washington | 4-8 | 17-15 | Mike Hopkins is 85-75 in his five seasons in Seattle. |
» Related: An early look at the 2022-23 Syracuse basketball team
Expanding on the situation with the Orange athletic department, if ‘Cuse lacrosse (currently 2-4) fails to finish with at least a .500 record to be eligible for the NCAA Tournament, it will cement the worst sports calendar year at SU since 1981-82.
During those nine months four decades ago, football had a losing record (4-6-1), basketball finished 16-13 and lost in the second round of the NIT, and lacrosse ended at 6-4 and also failed to make the NCAA Tournament, all three sports competing under the direction of their respective future Hall of Fame coaches Dick MacPherson, Jim Boeheim, and Roy Simmons Jr.
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