The first week (or two) of college football is over, and we are already learning a lot about what this season will look like. While there weren’t any massive upsets of FCS schools taking down P4 powerhouses, plenty of performances still showed that teams are, or are not, where the preseason expectations were.
AP Poll is Still Very Important
Some people don’t seem to believe that the AP poll carries any weight anymore since the the final rankings and playoff spots are now determined by the College Football Playoff rankings that come out in October. Yes, this is technically true, but it doesn’t mean the AP poll no longer matters.
The AP Poll is perhaps the most influential tool that the College Football Playoff committee considers when making its own ranking later in the season. Although the committee claims that the AP poll is entirely independent, when a team is highlighted on TV with a certain ranking and talked about on college football programs, it’s impossible to think it doesn’t have a big impact.
For example, if Georgia is viewed and talked about as the number one team in the nation (due to the AP poll ranking), the CFP committee will hear and see the top ranking next to Georgia. That will influence their opinion when they get into the discussion room to make the rankings.
Projecting the AP Top 25
- Georiga
- Ohio State
- Texas (+1)
- Alabama (+1)
- Notre Dame (+2)
- Ole Miss
- Penn State
- Oregon (-5)
- Michigan
- Missouri
- LSU (+1)
- Utah
- Tennessee (+2)
- Oklahoma State (+3)
- Oklahoma (+1)
- Miami (+3)
- Kansas State (+1)
- Georgia Tech (NR)
- Arizona (+2)
- Kansas (+2)
- Iowa (+4)
- Louisville (NR)
- Boise State (NR)
- NC State
- Florida State (-15)
Dropped Out: Clemson (14), Texas A&M (20) and USC (23)
Reasoning
Three bold changes to the polls should be looked at.
- Florida State will still be ranked – Florida State is now 9 days removed from their tough loss to Georiga Tech. Voters are less likely to react as harsh to the loss and drop them completely out of the poll. Their brand should be enough to keep them either in or just barely outside the Top 25.
- Georgia Tech will have a big ranking: While voters may be forgiving to Florida State, they will still reward the Yellow Jackets for their big win in Ireland.
- Oregon is a mystery: Oregon had to sweat it out against FCS foe Idaho. Was this looking ahead? Probably. But with other teams blowing out their FCS opponents by 60+, it’s tough to keep the Ducks ranked in the top five. It will be interesting to see what the voters think.
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