BAMANEWSBOT
Staff
Now that we have had time to digest the first Top 25 from the College Football Playoff Committee, it is pretty obvious the group delivered on the promises it made before the process began.
Strength of schedule matters. Quality wins matter.
The AP and coaches poll do not.
One glance at the College Football Playoff Top 25 and the other rankings clearly illustrates the committee truly started with a clean slate.
There are several discrepancies that illustrate this point:
The biggest is Ole Miss at No. 4. After a down-to-the-wire 10-7 loss at LSU this past weekend, the AP voters dropped the Rebels to No. 7; the coaches to No. 9. Headed into the rankings release Tuesday night, few expected them to be in the College Football Playoff Top 4. Yet there they are, earning recognition from the committee for their quality wins, most especially a head-to-head victory over Alabama on Oct. 4. Those wins clearly outweighed a tough road loss. Ole Miss deserves a spot ahead of Alabama for that reason alone.
Notre Dame checked in at No. 10, virtually irrelevant. The AP has the Fighting Irish at No. 6; the coaches at No. 7. The Irish were one offensive pass interference call away from upsetting No. 2 Florida State on the road. They have the "best" loss of any team in the country, but just one quality win -- Stanford, a team that is falling fast (and unranked in all three polls). Still, the low ranking surprised just about everybody -- even Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops.
We can look at a similar strength-of-schedule problem plaguing the Big Ten, in the worst spot among the power-five conferences. Michigan State sits at No. 8, three spots lower than the coachesā poll. Ohio State is No. 16, also three spots lower than the coachesā poll. Their nonconference losses are an absolute killer, especially for the Buckeyes. How did they lose to 4-4 Virginia Tech again?
While No. 2 Florida State and the ACC have been derided for its weakness, ranking last in the ESPN.com conference power rankings, the committee has four league teams ranked in the Top 25. The big surprise is Louisville at No. 25. The Cardinals are two plays away from being unbeaten but have only one win over a team with a winning record. They have the chance to prove themselves Thursday night against the Seminoles. The point to be made here, however, is the committee might not judge Florida State's record/schedule as harshly as everyone else.
A few more national takes on the rankings:
ESPN's SEC BlogāContinue reading...
Strength of schedule matters. Quality wins matter.
The AP and coaches poll do not.
One glance at the College Football Playoff Top 25 and the other rankings clearly illustrates the committee truly started with a clean slate.
There are several discrepancies that illustrate this point:
The biggest is Ole Miss at No. 4. After a down-to-the-wire 10-7 loss at LSU this past weekend, the AP voters dropped the Rebels to No. 7; the coaches to No. 9. Headed into the rankings release Tuesday night, few expected them to be in the College Football Playoff Top 4. Yet there they are, earning recognition from the committee for their quality wins, most especially a head-to-head victory over Alabama on Oct. 4. Those wins clearly outweighed a tough road loss. Ole Miss deserves a spot ahead of Alabama for that reason alone.
Notre Dame checked in at No. 10, virtually irrelevant. The AP has the Fighting Irish at No. 6; the coaches at No. 7. The Irish were one offensive pass interference call away from upsetting No. 2 Florida State on the road. They have the "best" loss of any team in the country, but just one quality win -- Stanford, a team that is falling fast (and unranked in all three polls). Still, the low ranking surprised just about everybody -- even Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops.
We can look at a similar strength-of-schedule problem plaguing the Big Ten, in the worst spot among the power-five conferences. Michigan State sits at No. 8, three spots lower than the coachesā poll. Ohio State is No. 16, also three spots lower than the coachesā poll. Their nonconference losses are an absolute killer, especially for the Buckeyes. How did they lose to 4-4 Virginia Tech again?
While No. 2 Florida State and the ACC have been derided for its weakness, ranking last in the ESPN.com conference power rankings, the committee has four league teams ranked in the Top 25. The big surprise is Louisville at No. 25. The Cardinals are two plays away from being unbeaten but have only one win over a team with a winning record. They have the chance to prove themselves Thursday night against the Seminoles. The point to be made here, however, is the committee might not judge Florida State's record/schedule as harshly as everyone else.
A few more national takes on the rankings:
- Berry Tramel writes in The Oklahoman that the Top 25 shows "it's all about the losses."
- The importance of head-to-head wins was not universal across the rankings.
- No surprise the SEC West ruled supreme -- for this week, anyway.
- Dennis Dodd makes the best point of all. Let's talk in December.
ESPN's SEC BlogāContinue reading...
