College Football Top 25 Heading into Bowl Season

A little bit of a shakeup in the Top 25 this week after a great weekend of College Football. These will be the last rankings until after the National Championship game in January.

1.     Alabama (13-0) (3): The Tide went out and earned this number 1 ranking. Just beating Florida in every aspect of the game. Extra points for making Tim Tebow cry.

2.     TCU (12-0)(4): TCU is a great team and I’m not sure what more they have to do to prove to everyone that they are for real. Unfortunately the BCS won’t allow them to go out and beat one of the traditional big powers but beating Boise State will have to be a consolation.

3.     Texas (13-0)(2): Texas didn’t do anything that warrants them playing Alabama in January. Though they were completely unimpressive, they better be more prepared for Alabama than they were for the Huskers, or the National Title game will be a snoozer.

4.     Cincinnati (13-0)(5)

5.     Boise State (13-0)(6)

6.     Florida (12-1)(1)

7.     Oregon (10-2)(9)

8.     Ohio State (10-2)(7)

9.     Iowa (10-2)(8)

10.  Georgia Tech (11-2)(11)

11.  Penn State (10-2)(10)

12.  Virginia Tech (9-3)(13)

13.  BYU (10-2)(15)

14.  LSU (9-3)(16)

15.  Miami (9-3)(18)

16.  Pittsburgh (9-3)(12)

17.   West Virginia (9-3)(NR)

18.  Oregon State (9-3)(14)

19.  Stanford (8-4)(23)

20.  Oklahoma State (9-3)(21)

21.  East Carolina (9-4)(25)

22.  Northwestern (8-4) (24)

23.  Nebraska (9-4)(22)

24.  Wisconsin (9-3)(NR)

25.  Central Michigan (11-2) (NR): The Chippewas won the MAC Championship this weekend and are led by Dan LeFevour. LeFevour will certainly become a notable draft prospect, as the draft experts will call him the likely sleeper of the draft.

Dropping Out: USC (17), Houston (19), California (20)

College Football Top 25 Heading into Week 14

It's Championship weekend for the major conferences. The Pac-10 gets a pseudo championship game with Oregon and Oregon State, here's the rankings:

1. Florida (12-0)(1): The Gators put together an all around impressive performance against Florida State. They look to be prepared for Alabama this weekend.

2. Texas (12-0)(2)

3. Alabama (12-0)(3): Took a comeback and some resillency but the Crimson Tide pulled it out and remain undefeated. They have some work to do but they’ll be prepared for the Gators.

4. TCU (12-0)(4): Complete the first undefeated season in school history and the Horned Frogs have likely become the only Nebraska fans in the state of Texas this weekend. A Texas loss puts TCU in the National Title game.

5. Cincinnati (11-0)(5)

6. Boise State (12-0)(6)

7. Ohio State (10-2)(8)

8. Iowa (10-2)(10)

9. Oregon (9-2)(11): The Ducks face off with Oregon State this weekend and the winner gets to play in the Rose Bowl.

10. Penn State (10-2)(13)

11. Georgia Tech (10-2)(7)

12. Pittsburgh (9-2)(8)

13. Virginia Tech (9-3)(15)

14. Oregon State (9-2)(16)

15. BYU (10-2)(18)

16. LSU (9-3) (12)

17. USC (8-3)(19)

18. Miami (9-3)(21)

19. Houston (10-2)(23)

20. California (8-3)(22)

21. Oklahoma State (9-3)(14)

22. Nebraska (9-3)(NR)

23. Stanford (8-4)(NR)

24. Northwestern (8-4)(NR)

25. East Carolina (8-4)(NR)

Dropping Out: Utah(24), North Carolina (25), Mississippi(20), Clemson(17)

Top 25 heading into week 13, the Big Ten is done with league play but everyone else still has big football remaining:

1. Florida (11-0) (1)

2. Texas (11-0) (2)

3. Alabama (11-0) (3)

4. TCU (11-0) (4)

5. Cincinnati (10-0) (5)

6. Boise State (11-0) (6): The Broncos have been campaigning very hard so the BCS Bowls don’t forget about them come
selection time, but if they aren’t careful they could lose against Nevada this weekend.

7. Georgia Tech (10-1) (7)

8. Ohio State (10-2) (8)

9. Pittsburgh (9-1) (10)

10. Iowa (10-2) (11)

11. Oregon (9-2) (12): Won a great game against Arizona on Saturday night. If the Ducks can beat Oregon State in the Civil War, they will represent the Pac-10 in the Rose Bowl.

12. LSU (8-3) (9)

13. Penn State (10-2) (14)

14. Oklahoma State (9-2) (15): The Cowboys are still alive for a BCS Bowl if they beat Oklahoma this weekend and Texas
keeps winning.

15. Virginia Tech (8-3) (17)

16. Oregon State (8-3) (19)

17. Clemson (8-3) (NR)

18. BYU (9-2) (18)

19. USC (7-3) (20)

20. Mississippi (8-3) (NR)

21. Miami (8-3) (24)

22. California (8-3) (NR)

23. Houston (9-2) (22)

24. Utah (9-2) (25)

25. North Carolina (8-3) (NR)

Dropping Out: Rutgers (23), Arizona (21), Wisconsin (16), Stanford (13)

College Football Top 25 Heading into Week 12

The top nine have remained the same but here is the Top 25 heading into week 12:

1. Florida (10-0) (1)

2. Texas (10-0)(2)

3. Alabama (10-0)(3)

4. TCU (10-0)(4): TCU is proving to be just a dominate team in my mind. I wish they had the chance to play for the National Title but it doesn’t look like it’s going to work out that way.

5. Cincinnati (10-0)(5)

6. Boise State (10-0)(6)

7. Georgia Tech (10-1)(7)

8. Ohio State (9-2)(8)

9. LSU (8-2)(9): Talk about bad luck, if LSU wins out their only two losses will be against two of the top three teams in the nation and they’ll be left out of the BCS. This is why we need a playoff folks.

10. Pittsburgh (9-1)(12)

11. Iowa (9-2)(11): James Vandenberg showed a lot of poise going into Ohio Stadium for his first career start. It’s unfortunate
Kirk Ferentz didn’t give him the chance to win the game, but they know now they have a viable backup if Stanzi has another 5 interception game.

12. Oregon (8-2)(14)

13. Stanford (7-3)(25)

14. Penn State (9-2)(18)

15. Oklahoma State (8-2)(19)

16. Wisconsin (8-2)(20)

17. Virginia Tech (7-3)(23)

18. BYU (8-2)(22)

19. Oregon State (7-3)(24)

20. USC (7-3)(10): This is clearly not one of Pete Carroll’s better teams and he didn’t like Stanford running up the score late in
the game. If you don’t like it, you have to stop it. USC is struggling but I have a feeling it won’t last a long time.

21. Arizona (6-3)(13)

22. Houston (8-2)(17)

23. Rutgers (7-2)(NR)

24. Miami (7-3)(15)

25. Utah (8-2)(17)

Dropping Out: West Virginia (23)

College Football Top 25 Heading into Week 11

Here’s the top 25 for the week, the analysis has a Big Ten flare to it as the Big Ten title and Rose Bowl berth is on the line this weekend in Columbus:

1. Florida (9-0) (1)
2. Texas (9-0) (2)
3. Alabama (9-0) (3)
4. TCU (9-0) (5)
5. Cincinnati (9-0) (6)
6. Boise State (9-0) (7)
7. Georgia Tech (9-1) (11)
8. Ohio State (8-2) (14): The Buckeyes have become the team to beat in the Big Ten, a big test remains this weekend with Iowa coming to town.
9. LSU (7-2) (9)
10. USC (7-2) (12)
11. Iowa (9-1) (4): Heartbreaking loss for the Hawkeyes, but they still control their own destiny and must fight adversity again this week against Ohio State without quarterback Ricky Stanzi.
12. Pittsburgh (8-1) (13)
13. Arizona (6-2) (16)
14. Oregon (7-2) (8)
15. Miami (7-2) (18)
16. Houston (8-1) (17)
17. Utah (8-1) (15)
18. Penn State (8-2) (10): Many questioned how good Penn State was this year thanks to their nonconference schedule being about as difficult as playing in the North Suburban Conference and in their two tests of the season they come out short.
19. Oklahoma State (7-2) (22)
20. Wisconsin (7-2) (21)
21. Virginia Tech (6-3) (23)
22. BYU (7-2) (NR)
23. West Virginia (7-2) (NR)
24. Oregon State (6-3) (NR)
25. Stanford (6-3) (NR)

Dropping out: California (19), Notre Dame (20), Oklahoma (24), South Florida (25)

College Football Top 25 Heading into Week 10

Not much change in the Top 10 except USC dropping out, we now have the 7 undefeated schools in the Top 7:

1. Florida (1)
2. Texas (3): They dominated Oklahoma State on Saturday night and have become the first of the “Big 3” to really start playing like a National Title contender.
3. Alabama (2)
4. Iowa (4)
5. TCU (6)
6. Cincinnati (7)
7. Boise State (8)
8. Oregon (9): The dismantling the Ducks did of the Men of Troy was something to be seen, unfortunately their loss to Boise State keeps them from soaring up the rankings. They’re a dangerous team with an outside shot at the National Championship Game as the best 1-loss team in the nation.
9. LSU (10)
10. Penn State (11)
11. Georgia Tech (12)
12. USC (5)
13. Pittsburgh (15)
14. Ohio State (16): A huge matchup for the Buckeyes this weekend as they travel to Happy Valley to take on Penn State. If Ohio State pulls out a win there will certainly be talk of them beating Iowa in two weeks and then going to the Rose Bowl instead of the Hawkeyes.
15. Utah (18)
16. Arizona (17): The Wildcats definitely hold their fate in their own hands with games still against Cal, Oregon, and USC.
17. Houston (19)
18. Miami (21)
19. California (25)
20. Notre Dame (22): A Notre Dame rout keeps the door open on a possible BCS Bowl for the Irish as the BCS would likely take a 2-loss Notre Dame squad over a Non-AQ School, however unfair that may seem.
21. Wisconsin (NR): Probably a little overrated but the Badgers are a good team and will probably being playing on January 1st come Bowl Season.
22. Oklahoma State (14)
23. Virginia Tech (13)
24. Oklahoma (NR)
25. South Florida (NR)

Dropping out: West Virginia (20), South Carolina (23), Idaho (24)

College Football Top 25 Heading into Week 9

Well there wasn’t much change in the top 10 of my Top 25 but TCU jumped up and Oregon joined the party.

1. Florida (1)
2. Alabama (2)
3. Texas (3)
4. Iowa (4)
5. USC (5)
6. TCU (9): The biggest win this weekend in College Football, TCU is forcing the voters to notice that it will likely be them and not Boise State as the Non-AQ school to be in a BCS Bowl.
7. Cincinnati (7)
8. Boise State (6): The Broncos will unfortunately be left out of the BCS this year and the reason is the schedule just isn’t good enough to warrant a BCS berth.
9. Oregon (12)
10. LSU (10)
11. Penn State (13): The Nittany Lions are starting to hit on all cylinders which could get the Big Ten two representatives in the BCS for another season.
12. Georgia Tech (11)
13. Virginia Tech (14)
14. Oklahoma State (15)
15. Pittsburgh (17)
16. Ohio State (22): Terrelle Pryor and the Buckeyes look like they found some offense in the second half against Minnesota, and if they did the stretch run for the Big Ten Title will be very interesting.
17. Arizona (NR): The Wildcats might be the best team no one is talking about.
18. Utah (19)
19. Houston (18)
20. West Virginia (21)
21. Miami (8)
22. Notre Dame (NR): With their 2 losses the Fighting Irish can still make a BCS Bowl much to the chagrin of the millions of fans who hate Charlie Weis and the Irish.
23. South Carolina (23)
24. Idaho (25)
25. California (NR)

Dropping Out: BYU (16), Texas Tech (20), Kansas (24)

Top 25 College Football Picks

Let’s see how I fare when it comes to picking college football games for this week:

Wednesday Game

Tulsa over Boise State

Thursday Game

South Florida over Cincinnati: South Florida is a good team that will finally get a lot of recognition after Thursday night, if they were at home I’d say Cincinnati pulls it out but on the road on Thursday night it just reeks of an upset.

Saturday Games

Iowa over Wisconsin: The Vegas oddsmakers have the Hawkeyes as at least a 2 ½ point underdog going into Madison, the Hawkeyes defense will step up and stop John Clay and force Scott Tolzien into bad decisions all day, Hawks with the win.

Florida over Arkansas: This game could possibly be closer than the 24 point line Vegas is giving the Gators, but Florida should pull it off.

Alabama over South Carolina: Alabama is just too good for even one of the best Spurrier teams in recent memory to pull the upset.

Texas over Oklahoma: The Red River Shoot Out should be a good one, Texas had to be looking ahead to this game last week when they played Colorado and they’ll hit on all cylinders this weekend and provide an entertaining game with the Sooners.
Virginia Tech over Georgia Tech: Virginia Tech will be able to contain the triple option attack of Georgia Tech and continue to open eyes as they win on the road.

Notre Dame over USC: The Irish actually have a legitimate shot at winning this game this weekend in South Bend. They have as good of an offense as ever and they’ll be going up against one of Pete Carroll’s weaker USC teams. Charlie Weis will get his first signature win for the Irish and start to validate that insane contract that he signed when he “almost beat USC.”

Ohio State over Purdue

Miami over Central Florida

TCU over Colorado St.

Penn State over Minnesota

Nebraska over Texas Tech

Oklahoma State over Missouri

Kansas over Colorado

BYU over San Diego State

Houston over Tulane

Utah over UNLV

My College Football Top 25

Well with the College Football regular season 6 weeks old I figure it's as good of time as any to lay out what I think the top 25 teams in the nation are, here it is:

1. Florida – This is really close between the Gators and Alabama, but there is just so much talent on that Florida team and combined with Tebow’s determination they would probably beat any team on any day.
2. Alabama
3. Texas
4. Virginia Tech – They certainly benefit from playing in the ACC, but in a year where it’s Florida, Alabama, Texas and then everybody else, they’re right there.
5. Iowa – Now I’ll come right out and say I’m probably biased with ranking the Hawkeyes this highly. That being said, I know how this team is capable of playing and the defense and special teams have been outstanding so far and the offense should continue to get better as most Kirk Ferentz teams do.
6. USC
7. Boise State – Being undefeated is worth something, even if you play in the WAC. They’ll be in a BCS game as long as their record stays unblemished.
8. Ohio State
9. Miami
10. TCU – Great defense and a good team, they probably won’t make a BCS bowl if Boise State stays undefeated but they’re a good team.
11. Cincinnati
12. LSU
13. Oregon – Their matchup with USC in two weeks will likely determine the Pac-10 champ. A win against the Trojans could give the Big Ten a new opponent in the Rose Bowl.
14. Penn State
15. Kansas – Undefeated gets you ahead of other schools in your conference.
16. Nebraska
17. Oklahoma State – inconsistency paired with the possible ineligibility of Dez Bryant could put a damper on the Cowboys’ season.
18. BYU – They beat an OU team with great expectations but then got blown out by a bad Florida State team, not sure what BYU can bring to the table.
19. Georgia Tech
20. South Florida – consistent success coupled with Florida State failure could vault USF ahead in terms of Florida schools.
21. South Carolina
22. Notre Dame – People hate on Notre Dame way too much. They’re 4-1, playing respectable schools, the defense still has questions to be answered but a win against USC would legitimize Notre Dame’s season.
23. Houston
24. Utah
25. Pittsburgh

Compare it to the real polls: www.espn.go.com/college-football/rankings