The argument has been more than upheld this season that we should wait until after 3 weeks of college football before presenting the Top 25. After looking at the crash and burn of ‘media darlings’ and looking through the eyes of one particular AP voter we’d all be better off analyzing and perhaps re-configuring these polls. Nothing is perfect though there are some who want to go back to the good old days of the BCS and to you we say, you ‘cray-cray’.
Change for the sake of change isn’t particularly wise, in fact it’s usually held out to be excellent examples of the blind leading the blind. We’ve seen the on-again, off-again train-wreck effect of changes over the past few years in college sports. Some, what’s not to like and others…OMG what were you thinking? Now, with almost everyone but the water boys and girls getting a taste of the financial incentives pie there seems to be an evening out on the field. BTW, we’re all here for assisting aforementioned in unionizing and getting their share, too.
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When we published, ‘Top 25 | One More Week And They May Get It Right‘ it resonated with quite a few of you and the article still has legs. Thus, the need to follow-up to see if the voters are indeed going in the right direction. One of the most interesting side stories here is the AP placing this nice link on top of their rankings that is for fans to vote with the challenge, ‘think you can do better’? We have confidence in you.
Top 25
Let’s take a look at college football rankings in Week 4 and see if we have a better grasp of what teams are made of. ‘Brother, Where Art Thou’ comes to mind with Clemson and SMU, two teams riding high at the end of last season with the ACC Championship Game and playoffs under their belts. Oh did we ever ‘ass-u-me’ about what these teams would be this season, especially Clemson. We readily admit to placing the crown on their heads pre-season and the crow was almost palatable with some BBQ sauce.
Several teams have had us all hot and bothered so far. Louisville, who failed to land a knock-out on JMU is languishing in the Receiving Votes category. We’ll get to see if the Cardinals have enough gumption to crash the party by handling Pitt. The Panthers have other ideas and want to join in the Top 25 fun as well.
What’s up with Syracuse? Nowhere to be found in the AP the Coaches’ give a nod in the Top 25 Receiving Votes category. Are we going to have a loss of confidence in a team because of a quarterback situation again, ala Florida State? We’ll see how Cuse does against Duke who demonstrated they have moxie with a come from behind win over NC State after being dubbed ‘The Big Easy’ by Tulane. Can the Pack ever get a break? What will Florida State and Virginia do to upset the ACC apple cart this week? The Noles may fully emerge as a serious CFP team or the Hoos may show us they are an offensively dynamic bowl-bound team. Better yet, why not both?
Before looking at the two Top 25 rankings let’s talk about Miami and Georgia Tech. In the AP the Canes moved up to the No. 2 spot after taking care of Florida. The folks voting in the coaches’ poll (are we 100% sure it’s the coaches?) say Miami is holding steady at No. 6. I guess because it wasn’t a blowout win it held voters back.
For the Yellow Jackets their ascension continues to be slow and steady. Georgia Tech is, unfortunately at a point where they must prove themselves. The schedule is mostly to their advantage this season and a truly big game doesn’t come until they face Georgia on Friday, November 28. Until then, take no one for granted.
| AP TOP 25 | TEAM | USA TODAY TOP 25 | TEAM |
| #1 | Ohio State | #1 | Ohio State |
| #2 | Miami | #2 | Penn State |
| #3 | Penn State | #3 | Georgia |
| #4 | LSU | #4 | LSU |
| #5 | Georgia | #5 | Oregon |
| #8 | Florida State | #6 | Miami |
| #16 | Georgia Tech | #8 | Florida State |
| RV | #17 | Georgia Tech | |
| #32 | Louisville | RV | |
| #28 | Louisville | ||
| #37 | Syracuse |