ZN's CFB Top 25 2008 :: Week 15
Only one more week of rankings left. College football is a crazy sport, isn't it?
Rank. Team (LW), [Record, LW Result].
1. Texas (3), [11-1, Won vs Texas A&M 49-9]
2. Oklahoma (2), [11-1, Won at Oklahoma St 61-41]
3. Florida (1), [11-1, Won at Florida St 45-15]
4. Alabama (4), [12-0, Won vs Auburn 36-0]
5. Penn State (5), [11-1, DNP]
6. Utah (6), [12-0, DNP]
7. Ohio State (7), [10-2, DNP]
8. USC (8), [10-1, Won vs Notre Dame 38-3]
9. Boise State (10), [12-0, Won vs Fresno St 61-10]
10. Texas Tech (9), [11-1, Won at Baylor 35-28]
11. Georgia Tech (21), [9-3, Won at Georgia 45-42]
12. Texas Christian (12), [10-2, DNP]
13. Oregon (18), [9-3, Won at Oregon St 65-38]
14. Boston College (23), [9-3, Won vs Maryland 28-21]
15. Cincinnati (17), [10-2, Won vs Syracuse 30-10]
16. Ball State (16), [12-0, Won vs Western Michigan 45-22]
17. Oklahoma State (11), [9-3, Lost vs Oklahoma 61-41]
18. Michigan State (19), [9-3, DNP]
19. BYU (24), [10-2, DNP]
20. Northwestern (20), [9-3, DNP]
21. Georgia (15), [9-3, Lost vs Georgia Tech 45-42]
22. Iowa (22), [8-4, DNP]
23. Missouri (13), [9-3, Lost vs Kansas 40-37]
24. Oregon State (14), [8-4, Lost vs Oregon 65-38]
25. Pittsburgh (NR), [8-3, Won vs West Virginia]
Dropped Out:
Florida State (25), [8-4, Lost vs Florida 45-15]
On the Cusp:
North Carolina (NR), [8-4, Won vs Duke 28-20]
Virginia Tech (NR), [8-4, Won vs Virginia 17-14]
Nebraska (NR), [8-4, Won vs Colorado 40-31]
Florida State (25), [8-4, Lost vs Florida 45-15]
MIssissippi (NR), [8-4, Won vs Miss St 45-0]
Tulsa (NR), [10-2, Won vs Marshall 38-35]
6 Commented on this story:
How do you have Ohio State ranked ahead of USC? What can the justification possibly be? I'm all for supporting the Big Ten, but that is a joke.
We will never know what would have happened in that game, if Ohio State was playing (with a healthy Beanie Wells and more experienced Pryor) like it is now. So, going by how the teams have played since they faced each other in LA, Ohio State has been more impressive, with a more impressive SOS.
i agree with anon, and would have to go by the results of the actual game and not what could have been.
while i agree that wells and an experienced pryor would have influenced the outcome of the game, it's really just not enough to justify the osu over usc ranking.
When making polls, I try to do the following: 1. consider the season as a whole; or 2. consider how they're playing right now.
One thing I never do, is treat the rankings as "standings." Do I think Iowa should be ahead of Penn State, just because they won the head-to-head? No, and you wouldn't either.
College football is so messed up, that it's impossible to really gauge which team is "better" than another. People get caught up in the "they beat them, so they're better," when they should be caught up in "what's their schedule look like, compared to that other team?"
Sorry, I know that's all long-winded, but what I'm saying is that if you look at the two teams Ohio State lost to, USC and PSU, and OSU's strength of schedule, USC should not be ahead of OSU. Could they be? Absolutely, and actually they are in most other polls. But should they, in my opinion? No.
I just don't think you can go to hypothetical when the two teams actually played each other. I know this is similar to the Texas and OU situation, but at least in that case the teams have the same record. With USC and OSU, USC won the game and has a better record.
That's exactly why I mentioned strength of schedule.
-USC's opponent record: (counting a win over UCLA) 62-64, 0.492 win% (No. 71 of 119 teams)
-Penn State's opponent record: 57-57, 0.500 win % (No. 68 of 119 teams)
-Ohio State's opponent record: 66-45, 0.594 win% (No. 11 of 119 teams)
That's why USC should NOT be ranked ahead of Ohio State, or Penn State.
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