The top of the poll is solidifying, with the top 5 teams being pretty clear-cut. Beyond that, there are a few teams that are looking good but not elite. Beyond that, you’re playing roulette. So without further adieu, here goes nothing.
- LSU (NC)
- USC (+1)
- Oklahoma (-1)
- Florida (+1)
- West Virginia (-1)
- Penn State (NC)
- California (NC)
- Ohio State (+2)
- Boston College (+3)
- Rutgers (+3)
- Wisconsin (-3)
- Texas (-3)
- South Florida (+1)
- Oregon (+4)
- South Carolina (+3)
- Kentucky (+11)
- Alabama (+10)
- Virginia Tech (+2)
- Louisville (-8)
- Georgia (+1)
- Cincinnati (+3)
- Hawaii (+4)
- Texas A&M (+3)
- Clemson (+2)
- Arkansas (-9)
Dropped Out: Georgia Tech (-11), Tennessee (-7), Nebraska (-4), Washington (-3), Auburn (-1)
LSU retains the top spot for beating MTSU 44-0 despite injuries. USC moves up a spot since its best opponent is better than Oklahoma’s best opponent. Oklahoma and Florida are really 3a and 3b, and it’s hard to say at this point who is better between Miami and Tennessee. Inertia takes hold, and OU keeps 3rd. West Virginia doesn’t drop a spot so much as Florida took 4th from them.
Tim Tebow fakes a handoff to Percy Harvin in Florida’s 59-20 win over Tennessee.
Penn State holds steady after a solid but unspectacular win over Buffalo. California stays at 7, though I was really tempted to drop the Bears. Their big win over Tennessee doesn’t look so big anymore, and beating Colorado State and Louisiana Tech doesn’t carry much weight. This is a team primed for a fall. Ohio State climbs two spots after Jim Tressel signaled that he is ready to win methodically and win ugly, but most of all just win. Since most of that defense is back, and Tressel knows how to win without a real quarterback, it’s far too early to dismiss Ohio State. Boston College is no longer overrated, with 3 conference wins under its belt, including an impressive one over Georgia Tech. Rutgers at 10 has been nothing but impressive, but it hasn’t played much of anyone either.
Penn State’s defense is one of the many reasons it’s running away with the 6th spot.
Wisconsin falls to 11 after struggling with the Citadel. Either Bret Bielema is trying to win like Jim Tressel does, or Wisconsin is very overrated. We shall see. Texas falls a bit after it should have lost at UCF. South Florida moves up a spot thanks to some other teams falling, though its signature win over Auburn is looking less impressive by the week. Oregon jumps a couple spots for looking impressive in defeating a fading Fresno State team. South Carolina also bumps up a few places, but mostly because of teams ahead of it falling. Its game against LSU this weekend will tell us a lot more about this team.
This guy is about the only duck that didn’t show up against Fresno State.
Kentucky leaps into the poll in 16th for its win over Louisville. I’ve kind of been looking for a good reason to rank the Wildcats because I think they’re better than most people think. This is probably too high, but we’ll see. Alabama comes in next because Nick Saban has them more ahead of schedule than I thought. This also is perhaps too high, but there’s not a lot of teams I like right now. Virginia Tech moves up a little because the Hokies had a nice victory over Frank Solich’s Ohio team and aren’t as bad as a lot of people say. Louisville lands at 19, and had better find a defense if it plans on being ranked all year. Georgia clocks in at 20, which is about right.
Andre Woodson has Kentucky ranked for the first time in my lifetime.
Cincinnati moves up to 21, and Brian Kelly is doing a fantastic job there. Hawaii reappears after a penalty week for needing overtime to beat Louisiana Tech. Texas A&M debuts at 23 since it’s a solid team and hasn’t lost yet. Clemson is now 24, based almost solely on James Davs and C.J. Spiller. It’s not for Tommy Bowden, I’ll tell you that. We round it out with Arkansas at 25. This is probably too low, but the Pigs played more bad than good in its game, and squandered the lead that Darren McFadden lead them to.
These guys may not be buying, but I am.
As an aside, I feel vindicated for having never had UCLA in my poll. A lot of people were high on the Bruins because they returned 20 starters. Well, those 20 starters went 7-6 last year, and the only way they’d get significantly better is with good coaching. I’m just not sure that Karl Dorrell is that good.
Any other hot tips, guys?
