25-3 Utah State in 2003-2004 and, more ominously, a 23-9 SMU in 2013-2014. They were excluded because of their 114th ranked SOS. We are on pace for a SOS of 158th in the nation. It still remains highly unlikely that a 25-6 USF ends up making the Big Dance. The saving grace with regard to comparing us to that SMU team is that they lost their last 3 games of the season, two to ranked teams and then to Houston in the first-round of the AAC tournament. I don't believe the NET was yet a thing, but their RPI was #46 in the nation. That was a season where the American boasted tournament teams with RPI #5 - UCONN, #16 - Louisville, #22 - Cincy, and #25 - Memphis. This year's AAC, while competitive, is nowhere near that level.
The more I look at the numbers, the more I am growing more comfortable with the fact that USF's only path to the Big Dance is to win the AAC tournament. The teams on the Bubble are currently too strong this year.