We will know for sure what seed Bucknell will be when the field for the NCAA Tournament is announced this evening.

Until then, though, there is time for one last look at the cult of bracketologists on the Web.

Looking at the predictions, it is obvious this is not an exact science. It's more like hoops feng shui, with different "experts" all having a different sense of where to position the 64 teams to achieve the best basketball chi (there's a reason some folks consider bracketologists "ying yangs").

At Bracketology 101, the Bison are forecast as an 8 seed. So does Stewart Mandell at Sports Illustrated's Web site. That could be good news for Bison fans in Pennsylvania, since many forecasters expect UConn and Villanova, both anticipated No. 1 seeds (that is not rocket science) to be placed in Philadelphia for the first round. Where there is a one, there is an eight (and nine), so the chances of Bucknell being within driving distance of their fan base would look good in that scenario.

An eight or nine would also, theoretically, give Bucknell its best shot at a first round win. The downside is, it also would present the most difficult scenario in terms of making it further than they went last year, since any first round win would almost certainly bring one of those one seeds in the second round. In that scenario, it would most likely be UConn, since the committee does not allow first and second round rematches of regular season games and Bucknell has already played Villanova (that link, by the way, goes to a list of all the rules used in setting up the brackets).

Bracketology 101 does not predict actual matchups or first round sites, but they list Kentucky, UAB, Arizona and California as projected No. 9 seeds. Mandel goes further, placing the Bison in Philly against Cal in the first round, with UConn awaiting the winner (assuming they don't become the first one seed in history to lose to a 16 when they meet the play-in winner).

Greg Doyel, CBS Sportsline's bracketeer, also projects the Bison in an 8-9 game in the first round, though Doyel says as a No. 9 seed. Doyel does not project matchups or destinations, but his No. 8 seeds are Marquette, North Carolina State, Arizona and Northern Iowa. That would mean the Bison would likely meet one of those first three mentioned.

The guy most folks credit with starting this whole bracketology fad is ESPN's Joe Lunardi. Lunardi's latest prediction, posted Saturday, has Bucknell seeded 11th, and headed to Jacksonville to meet No. 6 seed Georgetown. Under that scenario, fans might want to use the day off between rounds to get a rental car and catch some spring training baseball before returning to Jacksonville for a second round game against the winner of Lunardi's projected (3) LSU - (14) Winthrop game.

For those who think Bucknell has a chance to get to the Sweet 16 this year, Lunardi's projections would have the Bison move on to Minneapolis where they would face the survivor of (7) Nevada (25-5), (10) Northern Iowa (21-9) (who wouldn't like to see that one again on a neutral floor?), (2) Texas (26-5) and (15) MEAC champ Delaware St. (20-12). Another win and the Bison could get a rematch with Villanova with a trip to the Final Four to the winner.

Maybe Lunardi is on to something. Or maybe the guys at Bracketography.com were looking over his shoulder while he was filling out his bracket. Bracketography also projects a Jacksonville meeting between the (11) Bison and the (6) Hoyas. All similarities end there, though. Bracketography would have the winner of the game meet the winner of (3) UCLA and (14) NW State, the Southland champs, en route to the Oakland, Calif. regional.

Also placing Bucknell as an 11 in the Oakland regional is FoxSports.com's Michael Lazarus, who includes the comment: "Syracuse win wound up looking good after all."

Lazarus has the Bison in Dayton the first round, with the (2) Ohio State-(15) Davidson winner awaiting if they get past (6) Arizona.

Somehow Jacksonville holds a special fascination for the bracketology gurus. Bracket Racket also has the Bison playing there as an 11, though they project Michigan State as a first round opponent, with the Washington, D.C. regional in the sweet 16 should the Bison get past the (3) LSU - (14) Pacific winner.

And then there's Bracket Express, the bracketology page of the Draft Express Web site. They also have Bucknell headed to Jacksonville. The difference there is, they say the Bison will be a No. 12 seed, meeting No. 5 Boston College in a first round game that will certainly have all the Holy Cross fans on Bucknell's side.

Like Bracket Racket, Draft Express has the Bison in the D.C. regional if it advance to the Sweet 16. To do that, they say the Bison would need to beat winner of (4) Florida and (13) South Alabama.

Of course all speculation will end this evening at 6 p.m., when the real experts pick the real field and set the real matchups.

As an aside, we will once again hold the Hoop Time Brackets Challenge. The site we used for last year's contest is defunct, so we are still searching for the best option for hosting the contest. We will announce details Monday.