Ballot Type: Hybrid
Submitted: Sept. 3, 2019, 7:07 p.m.
Overall Rationale: My poll is a hybrid. I take the results of a computer poll of my own creation and split the teams into tiers based on where it makes sense to break the values. I then look at just the teams within the tiers and re-rank within them based on my observations and feelings of the teams.Computer poll has a preseason component and a performance-based component. I phase the preseason component out as the season goes along. For this week, the preseason component is still 85% of the overall calculation.
| Rank | Team | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Clemson Tigers
|
1/1 in Tier Aa: Only team in tier and who I would rank first even if I was doing a human poll. |
| 2 |
Alabama Crimson Tide
|
1/1 in Tier Ab: Only team in tier |
| 3 |
Georgia Bulldogs
|
1/1 in Tier Ac: Only team in tier |
| 4 |
Auburn Tigers
|
1/3 in Tier B: Beat the best opponent (Oregon) of the teams in this tier, so they get to be here for now. |
| 5 |
LSU Tigers
|
2/3 in Tier B: Really think LSU may be better than Auburn, but need to see them replicate their offensive performance against a better quality opponent. We'll see what they do against Texas this weekend. |
| 6 |
Ohio State Buckeyes
|
3/3 in Tier B: A little concerning that they went quiet after a big 1st quarter against FAU. Not sold on this team as a playoff contender. |
| 7 |
Michigan Wolverines
|
1/4 in Tier C: Actually think they're better than Ohio St., but they fall in the next tier down. Still appear to have kinks to work out on offense, but I still think they're best team in this group. |
| 8 |
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
|
2/4 in Tier C: Got off to a slow start against a team that they should have blown off the field puts them behind Michigan. |
| 9 |
Michigan State Spartans
|
3/4 in Tier C: Sloppy game against Tulsa. Not sure they have much of an offense. |
| 10 |
Penn State Nittany Lions
|
4/4 in Tier C: Despite big win, it came against FCS Idaho. Need to see how they do against real competition before they get any higher. Already think they're in too high of a tier. |
| 11 |
Oklahoma Sooners
|
1/2 in Tier D: Actually won in Week 1 and still the Big 12 favorite, so they slot ahead of the Ducks. |
| 12 |
Oregon Ducks
|
2/2 in Tier D: Blew lead late against Auburn |
| 13 |
Washington Huskies
|
1/3 in Tier E: took care of business against EWU. Gonna be fun to see who wins the Pac12 North between them and Oregon. |
| 14 |
UCF Knights
|
2/3 in Tier E: Didn't really learn anything from beating up on FCS opponent.  |
| 15 |
Florida Gators
|
3/3 in Tier E: Looked very sloppy against Miami. |
| 16 |
USC Trojans
|
1/2 in Tier F: Beat a good Mountain West team (Fresno State) |
| 17 |
Oklahoma State Cowboys
|
2/2 in Tier F: Wouldn't even rank if I did a human poll. Won a barn-burner over one of the worst P5 teams in the country (Oregon St.) |
| 18 |
Texas Longhorns
|
1/4 in Tier G: Big game coming up against LSU gives them a great opportunity to move up. |
| 19 |
Utah Utes
|
2/4 in Tier G: Stuck it to their in-state rivals (BYU). Pac-12 contender. |
| 20 |
Wisconsin Badgers
|
3/4 in Tier G |
| 21 |
TCU Horned Frogs
|
4/4 in Tier G |
| 22 |
Texas A&M Aggies
|
1/3 in Tier H |
| 23 |
Iowa Hawkeyes
|
2/3 in Tier H |
| 24 |
Mississippi State Bulldogs
|
3/3 in Tier H: Only beating a Sun Belt team (Louisiana-Lafayette) by 10 puts them at the bottom of this tier. |
| 25 |
Washington State Cougars
|
1/5 in Tier I: Of the 5 placed in this tier, two lost (MiamiFL & South Carolina), one needed 3OT against an FCS opponent (Iowa St.), and I have no idea why another one is rated so highly by my computer (Marshall). Washington State was left and they beat NMSU handily. |
Teams Ranked:
| Rank | Team | Unusualness |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Clemson Tigers
|
0.00 |
| 2 |
Alabama Crimson Tide
|
0.00 |
| 3 |
Georgia Bulldogs
|
0.00 |
| 4 |
Auburn Tigers
|
0.87 |
| 5 |
LSU Tigers
|
0.00 |
| 6 |
Ohio State Buckeyes
|
0.00 |
| 7 |
Michigan Wolverines
|
0.00 |
| 8 |
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
|
0.00 |
| 9 |
Michigan State Spartans
|
2.59 |
| 10 |
Penn State Nittany Lions
|
0.31 |
| 11 |
Oklahoma Sooners
|
-1.01 |
| 12 |
Oregon Ducks
|
0.98 |
| 13 |
Washington Huskies
|
0.00 |
| 14 |
UCF Knights
|
0.28 |
| 15 |
Florida Gators
|
0.00 |
| 16 |
USC Trojans
|
8.75 |
| 17 |
Oklahoma State Cowboys
|
3.46 |
| 18 |
Texas Longhorns
|
-1.21 |
| 19 |
Utah Utes
|
-0.55 |
| 20 |
Wisconsin Badgers
|
-0.04 |
| 21 |
TCU Horned Frogs
|
3.88 |
| 22 |
Texas A&M Aggies
|
-1.48 |
| 23 |
Iowa Hawkeyes
|
0.00 |
| 24 |
Mississippi State Bulldogs
|
0.23 |
| 25 |
Washington State Cougars
|
-0.17 |
Omissions:
| Team | Unusualness |
|---|---|
Boise State Broncos
|
0.28 |
Syracuse Orange
|
0.46 |
Stanford Cardinal
|
0.25 |
Total Score: 26.79