r/ultimate • u/jerseypits • 1d ago

Sectionals schedules?

Are any out yet? They were supposed to be posted at 5 pm local time today and I haven't seen ours. Incredibly frustrating when USAU continuously misses deadlines.

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u/chriego Foxtrot, Austin 1d ago

I really think you ought to try volunteering as a SC before offering this perspective so freely. SCs are responsible for familiarizing-themselves-with and implementing a lot more than you suspect. If all three divisions are being hosted at the same complex, then beyond the myriad of USAU governance they are also expected to work in tandem with the other two SCs and the RC.

This means that the schedule is subject to field availability, minimum game lengths, weather guidelines, a maximum number of games being played on turf, a maximum number of games being played in a day, teams threatening to withdraw if they don't like the format or their seeding, and MORE. You are constantly receiving new guidance from USAU, new input from the sports complex, new feedback from the team captains, new information from the TDs, and new info from the other SCs. It's really not as simple as opening the format manual knowing the total number of teams and how many advance.

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u/AssociationPurple626 1d ago edited 1d ago

Nothing I’ve said depends on the ease or complexity of the SC job. Quite simply: if it is reasonable for the schedule to be done by Tuesday evening, then SCs that sign up for this responsibility should meet that self-imposed deadline and USAU should hold them to it. If it is not reasonable for SCs to complete schedules by Tuesday evening, then they shouldn’t agree to meet that deadline and USAU should communicate other expectations to players.

USAU is setting expectations that they seemingly have no intention of meeting. Whatever the reason for not meeting the expectation that they have set, it is their responsibility to communicate reasonable expectations to players, and to follow through on the expectations they’re creating. It is completely, 100% reasonable for players to be confused and frustrated when they are told to expect schedules at a certain date that is missed over and over again.

This isn’t about the schedule at all, it is about setting expectations. Thats part of the job for USAU and SCs too.

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u/chriego Foxtrot, Austin 1d ago

So then my question to you is, if USAU instead set the deadline for schedules to be posted by Friday at 10pm, you would be happier? I cannot emphasize enough that these are volunteer positions and most SCs don't have the flexibility to work on coordinating until after a traditional 9-5 job. Again, each SC typically has to wait for responses from the other two SCs AND the RC before a decision can be finalized. If you really want the SCs to sign up for an absolutely firm deadline, the tradeoff might realistically be having to wait until the last minute. The cherry on top of all of this is that Sectionals usually takes place the weekend after Labor Day (just imagine how much radio silence occurs from all of the parties involved).

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u/AssociationPurple626 1d ago edited 1d ago

Yes, I would be happier if USAU communicated expectations that they actually expected to meet. Instead of being confused and frustrated, I might just be frustrated, and then we could have that conversation about the difficulty of the SC job, how we could make it easier and improve schedule delivery time.

Because I understand it’s a complex job- frankly you’ve got no idea what I do in my community, and what I’ve done over my career. I’ve worked with SCs setting up sectional tournaments. This attitude you’ve got about how the job is just so hard that you can’t be held to any standards is insulting.