Alex Schiffer’s AP Ballot: Why I dropped Alabama to No. 4, UCF falls, Wisconsin rises
The latest AP Top 25 college football poll came out on Sunday.
The poll saw a lot of attrition after multiple top-25 matchups. I’m also the current Twitter enemy of Alabama fans for ranking the Tide fourth, the lone voter to do so this season. Here’s who I moved and why.
Trending up
Georgia, Wisconsin, Florida and Auburn. The Bulldogs got one of the best wins of the season on Saturday by narrowly beating a Notre Dame team that came into Athens as two touchdown underdogs. I moved Georgia ahead of Alabama because the Bulldogs, along with LSU and Clemson, all have better wins than the Tide this year. Clemson beat A&M, LSU and beat Texas on the road and Georgia just beat then-No. 7 Notre Dame at home. The Tide have played no one comparable to those three. When they do, they’ll get moved back up.
Wisconsin handled Michigan easily in what has become the story of Jim Harbaugh’s tenure there. Beat all the teams that aren’t any good. Florida looked like it will be able to host its own without starting quarterback Felipe Franks and Auburn beat Texas A&M, as the Aggies continue to struggle with the nation’s toughest schedule.
Trending down
UCF, Michigan, Utah and Notre Dame. The Irish only fell to 10 after what I thought was an impressive showing on their part. I already talked about Michigan, and Utah fell to a USC team that I still can’t figure out. The Trojans have Washington and Notre Dame the next two weeks so I should get my answer quickly.
As for UCF, I’ll be honest, had the Knights beaten Pittsburgh I would have ranked them either No. 9 or 10. I think they deserve it and have been undersold for a bit. Until Saturday.
Say hello to...
California, SMU and Wake Forest. The Golden Bears will likely be higher in next week’s poll as I undersold them. They have better wins than my ranking reflects and I’ll likely give them another bump if they beat Arizona State this weekend. The Mustangs are 4-0 and just upset TCU, and Wake Forest is also 4-0. Given how bad Wake’s division is in the ACC, I would not be stunned if the Demon Deacons flirt with 10 wins.
Say goodbye to ...
Washington State, TCU and Oklahoma State. The Cougars lost to a UCLA team that came back from a 30-point deficit and ranked among the nation’s worst offensive teams. TCU lost to SMU, but could get ranked again given the Big 12’s schedule. Same goes for Oklahoma State.
My AP Top 25 ballot:
Clemson
LSU
Georgia
Alabama
Oklahoma
Auburn
Ohio State
Florida
Texas
Notre Dame
Penn State
Wisconsin
Oregon
Iowa
Michigan
Utah
Boise State
Virginia
Washington
Texas A&M
UCF
Kansas State
California
SMU
Wake Forest