My AP Poll Week 7
Folks, if you still somehow think that AP voting is an easy task, may I direct you to poor Stewart Mandel of SI.com, whose head exploded on Saturday night while pondering who to put in his top 25.
Every week, I too put my head on the line. Why? For you, gentle readers. For you.
Okay, on to the polls. One little twist - I'm including this week's vote then a / then where I voted that team last week, then the AP final tally for this week in parentheses. Got it? (Example, 1/5 South Florida (2).
1/5 South Florida (2) - Yep, I was one of 11 brave voters who put the Bulls on top of the polls. Remember, voting is a mix of the resume as well as the "who would win on a neutral field question." I'd probably make Ohio State a slight favorite on a neutral field, but I absolutely know the Bulls have a better resume. That's why they're No. 1 on my ballot.
2/3 Ohio State (1) - Here's what happens when your non-conference schedule is weak and the Big Ten is also lame: you can go through an entire season unbeaten and still be a bit of an unknown. That's sort of how I feel about Ohio State. Well, at least about its offense. I firmly believe in the Buckeyes' D.
3/6 Oklahoma (4) - In "The Year of The One-Loss National Title Contenders" (or TYOTOLNTC) the Sooners are at the head of the pack, thanks to their recent wins over Texas and Missouri.
4/1 LSU (5) - Call me a softie, but I just didn't feel like I should penalize LSU for losing in triple overtime at Kentucky a week after playing a gut-wrenching game against Florida. Again this is TYOTOLNTC, folks. Should be an easy enough to remember acronym.
5/5 Boston College (3) - No, I just didnt feel like the Eagles deserved to be placed ahead of one-loss Oklahoma and LSU. Not after a wholly unimpressive win over Notre Dame (anybody else pumped for that Notre Dame-Duke matchup? I know I am.)
6/2 Cal (10) - Don't get me wrong. A home loss to Oregon State is nothing to be proud of. But when you lose without your starting quarterback, you get a soft landing, in my book. Cal remains a part of TYOTOLNTC.
7/9 Oregon (7) - I felt a little funny about this. Something tells me that Ducks are probably better than the Bears. But I just can't ignore that home loss to Cal. That's why Oregon's one spot lower. But I reserve the right to leapfrog them over Oski and Co. later if I so choose. I have that power ... don't mess with me.
8/7 West Virginia (9) - Bye week so there's nothing pithy to say here.
9/8 South Carolina (6) - Is there another top 10 team that can look as impressive and as vulnerable as the Gamecocks all in the same game? If this team ends up playing for the SEC title, better keep the portable defibrillators handy at Williams-Brice Stadium, because the number of last-second outcomes will be very high.
10/12 Florida (14) - If this was "The Year of the Two-Loss National Title Contenders", or TYOTTLNTC for short, the Gators would be at the head of the list.
11/13 Arizona State (12) - Yes, the Sun Devils got a vote for first in the nation, from Neal McCready of the Mobile (Ala.) Press-Register. . Seems a little bizarre to me, but no more bizarre than the way this season has played out, I guess.
12/17 Kentucky (8) - What's weird is that I got a little flack for having Kentucky too high before they lost to South Carolina. Now those same people will probably say I have the Wildcats too low. I'm telling you, this poll stuff isn't easy.
13/15 Virginia Tech (11) - What's the best way to restore Sean Glennon's fragile confidence? Have Tyrod Taylor go out with an "injury" against Duke and then have Glennon come in to save the day against the Blue Devils. Well played, Frank Beamer. Well played.
14/18 Kansas (15) - Finally, a team follows up its entry into the polls with an emphatic win. Thank you, Jayhawks. Thank you. By the way, think Baylor coach Guy Morris wishes he'd stayed at Kentucky?
15/10 USC (13) - I wanted to give the Trojans the benefit of the doubt after their shocker against Stanford, I really did. But after struggling against nondescript Arizona, they left me no choice but to boot them out of the top 10.
16/11 Missouri (15) - The Tigers' big win over Nebraska holds less weight now, but keep in mind Mizzou had a lead against Oklahoma heading into the final quarter in Norman.
17/23 Auburn (18) - When these guys play LSU, the first team to 10 wins. The Tigers' D is that good. The offense? Not so much.
18/NR Kansas State (25) - In this new age of college football, smacking around Colorado at home gets you right back in the top 20.
19/25 Texas (19) - Am I comfy with the Longhorns here? Not really. Do I like asking rhetorical questions? Most definitely.
20/NR Texas Tech (22) - When I found out the Red Raiders' lone loss was to Oklahoma State, I threw up my arms and shouted "That's not true!" (Mike Gundy joke, in case you were wondering).
21/NR Tennessee (20) - In the old days, teams that lost games by 39 never made it back into the top 25. I kinda miss those days.
22/14 Cincinnati (23) - Don't worry Bearcats, your BCS dreams are still alive. I can't believe I just wrote that.
23/24 Boise State (NR) - Someone please tell the Broncos to stop playing on Sunday night. This just has to stop. As I type this, Boise St. is tied at 41 with Nevada in the 4th quarter.
24/NR Georgia (21) - Lose by 21 to a team that lost by 39 and then barely survive Vanderbilt and ... return to the top 25. I'm getting numb to this ...
25/NR Michigan (24) - ... and if I wasn't numb before, welcome back Wolverines!
Dropped out: Hawaii; Illinois; FSU; Wisconsin; Colorado
Addendum: Thank you ESPN for showing the Hawaii game on Friday night. I was finally able to see that, despite that unblemished record, the Warriors just aren't a top 25 team - at least when they're on the main land. I may have to wait until the Boise State/Washington games at the end of the season before I consider bringing them back in. I was that unimpressed.