Here’s the latest AP Top 25. I’ve added a few of my ACC-centric thoughts on it below.
SCHOOL |
RECORD |
POINTS |
PREVIOUS |
| 1. Alabama (55) | 8-0 | 1,495 | 1 |
| 2. Oregon (3) | 8-0 | 1,432 | 2 |
| 3. Florida St. (2) | 7-0 | 1,390 | 3 |
| 4. Ohio St. | 8-0 | 1,317 | 4 |
| 5. Baylor | 7-0 | 1,223 | 6 |
| 6. Stanford | 7-1 | 1,189 | 8 |
| 7. Miami | 7-0 | 1,149 | 7 |
| 8. Auburn | 7-1 | 1,022 | 11 |
| 9. Clemson | 7-1 | 1,007 | 9 |
| 10. Missouri | 7-1 | 873 | 5 |
| 11. LSU | 7-2 | 818 | 13 |
| 12. Texas A&M | 6-2 | 811 | 14 |
| 13. Oklahoma | 7-1 | 791 | 17 |
| 14. South Carolina | 6-2 | 701 | 20 |
| 15. Texas Tech | 7-1 | 579 | 10 |
| 16. Fresno St. | 7-0 | 510 | 15 |
| 17. UCLA | 5-2 | 489 | 12 |
| 18. Oklahoma St. | 6-1 | 483 | 19 |
| 19. UCF | 6-1 | 464 | 21 |
| 20. Louisville | 7-1 | 417 | 18 |
| 21. N. Illinois | 8-0 | 290 | 23 |
| 22. Wisconsin | 5-2 | 262 | 22 |
| 23. Michigan | 6-1 | 199 | 24 |
| 24. Michigan St. | 7-1 | 166 | NR |
| 25. Arizona St. | 5-2 | 133 | NR |
OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES:
Notre Dame 132, Georgia 24, BYU 22, Texas 22, Mississippi 21, Oregon St. 17, Florida 14, Washington 6, Ball St. 4, Minnesota 4, Arizona 2, Duke 2.
NOTES:
* Florida State remained stationary here, but unfortunately dropped down to No. 3 behind Oregon in the all-important BCS rankings. The Seminoles could hop back over the Ducks this week with a win over No. 7 Miami. So much can change between now and the end of the regular season, but it probably didn’t help FSU’s cause that Virginia Tech went down in stunning fashion to Duke. Assuming FSU gets past Miami this Saturday (and I am making that assumption) Noles fans are going to turn into HUGE Stanford fans on Thursday, Nov. 7, when the Cardinal hosts the Ducks.
* Miami’s proving another truism about the AP poll: Once you get ranked high in the poll, you’ll stay there as long as you keep winning – even if those wins are underwhelming. In their last three games, the Canes have had to rally for wins against Georgia Tech, UNC and Wake Forest. In the last two, Miami needed touchdowns in the final minute to win. Hardly top-10 caliber performances. And since the Canes have failed to impress three weeks running thats a large enough sample size to question whether Miami really is all that and a bag of chips. But the AP pollsters? They reward that zero in the loss column. So the Canes stay at No. 7. Not that I’m complaining, – having Miami in the top 10 gives the matchup with FSU more heat – just making an observation.
* Both Miami and Clemson benefited from the usual weekly chaos as well. It didn’t match the carnage of the previous week, but two top 10 teams – No. 5 Missouri and No. 10 Texas Tech – both lost. So the Tigers held their spot despite trying to resurrect the tired phrase “Clemsoning” with their subpar performance at Maryland. The Tigers waited until the fourth quarter to pull away from an injury-riddled Terps squad. Again, thanks to the wonders of the BCS system, no one was happier for Clemson than FSU fans.
* Another poll truisim: If you lose at home to Duke, you will be punished severely. Such was the case for 6-2 Virginia Tech, which fell from No. 14 all the way out of the polls. Seriously though, this is the addendum to the “just win and you’ll rise” theory of polls. If you are winning ugly and then you finally lose, you’ll get dinged heavily for that loss.
* Speaking of other receiving votes, is that Duke receiving two votes? *rubs eyes … It is!!! I’m sure some of you will roll your eyes, given that this same Duke team got rolled at home by Georgia Tech and lost in a shootout to Pitt – which just lost to Navy, #goacc. But remember that starting QB Anthony Boone wasn’t available for either of those losses. Would Boone have made a difference against the Yellow Jackets? I doubt it. But Pitt? Perhaps.