paragraph_text: The College Football Playoff system was used to determine a national champion of Division I FBS college football. A 13 - member committee of experts ranked the top 25 teams in the nation after each of the last seven weeks of the 2017 season. The top four teams in the final ranking played a single - elimination semifinal round, with the winners advancing to the National Championship game.

paragraph_text: The team was founded in 1972 as part of the NHL's maneuvers to keep a team from rival league World Hockey Association (WHA) out of the newly built Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in suburban Uniondale, New York. After two years of building up the team's roster, they found almost instant success by securing fourteen straight playoff berths starting with their third season. The Islanders won four consecutive Stanley Cup championships between 1980 and 1983, the seventh of eight dynasties recognized by the NHL in its history. Their 19 consecutive playoff series wins between 1980 and 1984 is a feat that remains unparalleled in the history of professional sports.

paragraph_text: Roy Justin Thomas (born June 22, 1953) is an American former professional baseball pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Houston Astros, St. Louis Cardinals and Seattle Mariners in all or parts of eight seasons spanning 1977–1987. Listed at 6' 5" , 215 lb. , Thomas batted and threw right-handed. He was born in Quantico, Virginia.

paragraph_text: Football in Tuvalu is played at club and national team level. The Tuvalu national football team trains at the Tuvalu Sports Ground in Funafuti and competes in the Pacific Games. The Tuvalu National Football Association is an associate member of the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) and is seeking membership in FIFA. The Tuvalu national futsal team participates in the Oceanian Futsal Championship.

paragraph_text: The team was founded in 1959 as the Titans of New York, an original member of the American Football League (AFL); later, the franchise joined the NFL in the AFL -- NFL merger in 1970. The team began to play in 1960 at the Polo Grounds. Under new ownership, the current name was adopted in 1963 and the franchise moved to Shea Stadium in 1964 and then to the Meadowlands Sports Complex in 1984. The Jets advanced to the playoffs for the first time in 1968 and went on to compete in Super Bowl III where they defeated the Baltimore Colts, becoming the first AFL team to defeat an NFL club in an AFL -- NFL World Championship Game. Since 1968, the Jets have appeared in the playoffs 13 times, and in the AFC Championship Game four times, most recently losing to the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2010. However, the Jets have never returned to the Super Bowl, making them one of three NFL teams to win their lone Super Bowl appearance, along with the New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

paragraph_text: The first use of the best - of - three playoff was in Major League Baseball; the National League authorised such a playoff to be held if two teams ended the season in a tie for first place; the American League used a single game in this situation. Since 1969 both leagues have used only a one - game playoff for all playoff positions which are tied if only one team can advance to the playoffs. Since 1995, a tie - breaker based on season performance can be used only to seed teams.

paragraph_text: Roy Gregory (born March 6, 1990) is an Antiguan footballer who currently plays for Antigua Barracuda FC in the USL Professional Division and the Antigua and Barbuda national team.

paragraph_text: During the Original Six era, the top four teams made the playoffs, with the first and third place teams battling in one semifinal series, while the second and fourth place teams battled in the other. And from 1975 to 1981, all the playoff teams were seeded regardless of division or conference. Since 1982, the NHL's final round has pitted the league's two conference playoff champions.

paragraph_text: From 1969 through 1993, division leaders in each league advanced to the League Championship Series, with the winners of each LCS meeting in the World Series. However, an expanding number of teams over the years made making the playoffs increasingly difficult. The new system was instituted in 1994 (but first used in 1995 because a players strike canceled the 1994 playoffs) when Major League Baseball expanded from two to three divisions per league. In the new three - division leagues, each league had four teams in the playoffs. In addition to the three division winners, a wild - card team made the playoffs as the fourth seed. This was the team with the most wins amongst non-division winners. The wild - card matchup was played in the first round between the League leader in wins and the wild - card team, unless both teams were in the same division, which resulted in the wild card facing the second - best division winner in the league.

paragraph_text: The team was founded in 1959 as the Titans of New York, an original member of the American Football League (AFL); later, the franchise joined the NFL in the AFL -- NFL merger in 1970. The team began to play in 1960 at the Polo Grounds. Under new ownership, the current name was adopted in 1963 and the franchise moved to Shea Stadium in 1964 and then to the Meadowlands Sports Complex in 1984. The Jets advanced to the playoffs for the first time in 1968 and went on to compete in Super Bowl III where they defeated the Baltimore Colts, becoming the first AFL team to defeat an NFL club in an AFL -- NFL World Championship Game. Since 1968, the Jets have appeared in the playoffs 13 times, and in the AFC Championship Game four times, most recently losing to the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2010. However, the Jets have never returned to the Super Bowl, making them one of three NFL teams to win their lone Super Bowl appearance, along with the New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Apart from the Cleveland Browns and Detroit Lions, who have never reached the Super Bowl (although both won NFL championships prior to 1966), the Jets' drought is the longest among current NFL franchises.

paragraph_text: The Vegas Golden Knights are a professional ice hockey team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. The team began play in the 2017 -- 18 NHL season, and is a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL). The team is owned by Black Knight Sports & Entertainment, a consortium led by Bill Foley, and plays its home games at T - Mobile Arena on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada.

paragraph_text: The Astros clinched their first division title as a member of the American League West division, and first division title overall since 2001. They also became the first team in Major League history to win three different divisions, the National League West in 1980 and 1986, the National League Central from 1997 -- 1999 and 2001, and now the American League West in 2017. On September 29, the Astros won their 100th game of the season, the second time the Astros finished a season with over 100 wins (the other time was in 1998). They finished 101 -- 61 (with a 21 - game lead in the division), and faced the Red Sox in the second round of the AL playoffs. The Astros defeated the Red Sox three games to one, and advanced to the American League Championship Series against the New York Yankees. The Astros won the ALCS four games to three, and advanced to the World Series to play against the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Astros defeated the Dodgers in the deciding seventh game of the World Series, winning the first championship in franchise history.

paragraph_text: The 1951 through 1953 playoffs changed the division finals into a best - of - five playoff. With only nine league members in 1953 -- 54, the NBA cut its postseason tournament field from eight teams to six (from 1954 through 1966, the period of eight to nine league members). Round robins were played in 1954, uniquely in NBA history -- a three - team round robin among the three playoff teams in each division. From 1955 to 1966, the first - place team in each division was idle while its two runners - up faced played a best - of - three. Division finals were expanded to best - of - seven in 1958 and division semifinals to best - of - five in 1961.

paragraph_text: Finally in 1984, the tournament expanded to its present 16 - team, four - round knockout, and the now - complete set of first - round series were expanded to a best - of - five. In 2003 the first round was changed to also be best - of - seven. (Thus all playoff teams from 2003 to present, same as the two Division champions in 1947 and 1948, continue to play at the close of the regular season without idle team (``bye '') and may be certain of four playoff games including two at home.)

paragraph_text: 1947: The playoffs were instituted with a three - stage tournament, similar to the Stanley Cup playoffs of the 1930s; the two first - place teams qualified directly to one semifinal where they played each other in a best - of - 7 series. Teams finishing second & third qualified for the best - of - 3 quarterfinals, where the two second - placed teams were paired in one quarterfinal, as were the two third - placed teams, and the two quarterfinal winners played each other in a best - of - three semifinal. The two semifinal winners played each other in the Basketball Association of America (BAA) best - of - 7 final series.

paragraph_text: The team was founded in 1959 as the Titans of New York, an original member of the American Football League (AFL); later, the franchise joined the NFL in the AFL -- NFL merger in 1970. The team began to play in 1960 at the Polo Grounds. Under new ownership, the current name was adopted in 1963 and the franchise moved to Shea Stadium in 1964 and then to the Meadowlands Sports Complex in 1984. The Jets advanced to the playoffs for the first time in 1968 and went on to compete in Super Bowl III where they defeated the Baltimore Colts, becoming the first AFL team to defeat an NFL club in an AFL -- NFL World Championship Game. Since 1968, the Jets have appeared in the playoffs 13 times, and in the AFC Championship Game four times, most recently losing to the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2010. However, the Jets have never returned to the Super Bowl, making them one of three NFL teams to win their lone Super Bowl appearance, along with the New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Apart from the Cleveland Browns and Detroit Lions, who have never reached the Super Bowl, the Jets' drought is the longest among current NFL franchises.

paragraph_text: Hiro Nicolas Vallar (born 22 October 1983) is a footballer from Papeete, Tahiti currently playing for A.S. Central Sport. He is a member of Tahiti national football team.

paragraph_text: The New York Giants are an American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey. They are a member of the National Football League (NFL) and play in the NFL's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. In 93 completed seasons, the franchise has won eight NFL championships, including four Super Bowl victories. The Giants have won more than 600 games and appeared in the NFL playoffs 32 times. Though the Giants play home games in East Rutherford, they draw fans from throughout the New York metropolitan area. In 2010, the team began playing in MetLife Stadium, formerly New Meadowlands Stadium.

paragraph_text: Stanley Cup playoffs Current season, competition or edition: 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs Sport Hockey Founded 1927 No. of teams 16 Most recent champion (s) Pittsburgh Penguins (5) Most titles Montreal Canadiens (24) TV partner (s) Canada Sportsnet / TVA Sports United States NBC / NHL Network / Univision Official website Stanley Cup Playofffs

paragraph_text: This is a list of first overall National Football League draft picks. The National Football League draft is an annual sports draft in which NFL teams select newly eligible players for their rosters. To be eligible, a player must be out of high school at least three years. Each NFL franchise seeks to add new players through the annual NFL draft. The draft rules were last updated in 2009. The team with the worst record the previous year picks first, the next - worst team second, and so on. Teams also have the option to trade with another team to move up to a better draft position. Teams that did not make the playoffs are ordered by their regular - season record, with any remaining ties broken by strength of schedule. Playoff participants are sequenced after non-playoff teams, based on their round of elimination (wild card, division, conference, and Super Bowl).

Question: In 2017, who did the team that formerly employed Roy Thomas meet in the playoffs?
Answer: Red Sox