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DeceptiveSpeed Ballot for 2018 Week 4

Ballot Type: Computer

Submitted: Sept. 17, 2018, 5:54 p.m.

Rank Team Reason
1 Alabama Crimson Tide Yeah.
2 Ohio State Buckeyes
3 Penn State Nittany Lions Maybe a little higher than I'd personally put them, but they've impressed after an early scare from App State.
4 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Again, a little higher than I'd personally put them, but the win over Michigan is good for the Irish's argument despite a couple ugly wins in the past two weeks.
5 Oklahoma Sooners
6 Georgia Bulldogs Should be higher IMO, game vs Austin Peay is holding back their increase in rating, should level out in coming weeks
7 Clemson Tigers Same issue as UGA, should be higher IMO, just being held back by a game vs FCS which brings down the increase in rating
8 Oklahoma State Cowboys Won big in all of their games, including against Boise State.
9 Duke Blue Devils Here's a fun one. Duke has won all three of their games- all of which were against FBS opponents. They beat Army (Rating: 1029), Northwestern (1048), and Baylor (1032). The average rating is currently 1027, three above average wins leads to a big gain for Duke. A game vs NC Central next week, regardless of outcome, should bring the Blue Devils down in the rankings.
10 LSU Tigers
11 Iowa Hawkeyes Two wins over FBS teams and a solid win over an FCS team brings the Hawkeyes higher than most teams would put them. My computer also had them ranked higher in the preseason than most others which adds to their current high ranking.
12 Mississippi State Bulldogs
13 UCF Knights
14 Stanford Cardinal Lower than some people have them, again because of a game vs an FCS team. Sensing a theme here?
15 Minnesota Golden Gophers Another interesting one from the computer here. Yes, they struggled to beat Fresno State but a win is a win in the eyes of the computer. Again we see the three FBS wins bringing a team higher than they usually would be
16 NC State Wolfpack Again, a team that my computer had ranked higher than most in the preseason (tied for 15th) that has an FCS win and a dominating win over Georgia State. For the time being, the computer does take into account the number of games a team has played so they were not punished for the cancelled game. I do think it's perfectly reasonable for NCSU to be in the top 25, just perhaps not as high
17 USF Bulls Similar scenario as what we saw with NC State and Iowa. A team that my computer liked more than others in the preseason and has picked up some early wins. Maybe not against the greatest opponents but winning nonetheless.
18 Virginia Tech Hokies A little lower than they should be due to one of their two games being against an FCS opponent, 3-0 still keeps the Hokies fairly high.
19 Washington State Cougars Washington State is pretty high here, but they have beaten two FBS teams fairly handily which is what the computer likes about them
20 Indiana Hoosiers Another fun one. Indiana entered the season in my rankings at tied for 66th in the country. They also have three wins over FBS teams which is what's putting them so much higher than others would have them.
21 Boston College Eagles
22 Kentucky Wildcats
23 Oregon Ducks
24 Missouri Tigers Started 45 in the preseason, still undefeated. Solid case for the Tigers.
25 North Texas Mean Green This is really interesting, UNT has gained 37.2 points over the course of two weeks - the 14th highest jump in points out of all 130 teams. Incarnate Word actually held them back a little, but good performances against SMU and Arkansas(!) is the reason why the Mean Green are up to 25.

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