Ballot Type: Human
Submitted: Oct. 2, 2023, 8:31 p.m.
Overall Rationale: Wins and losses matter most. With this many undefeated teams still, no 2-loss team is gonna get ranked, and really there wasn't one that deserved it anyway (yes, looking at you, LSU). There are still a handful of undefeated teams left out, and those that are mostly have not impressed overall, either by lack of quality opponents, struggling in games, or both. Even so, as more teams lose, the first ones considered to fill in will be undefeateds (welcome to the party, Maryland, Air Force, and Kentucky). The level of parity this year is unreal, and no one looks unbeatable. The top 20ish teams I could see beating each other, and it's not like the ones after 20 are too shabby, either. Georgia fell a few spots this week due to an unimpressive performance for the 5th week in a row. Frankly, they could've dropped down to #8. Michigan FINALLY got a great performance vs Nebraska, and Washington FINALLY had a bad performance vs Arizona. Now that Washington has looked mortal, I can safely say that no team has looked great through every game this year. Rank teams where you want within the top 10 (and even a little beyond it) and I won't argue. There's just so much uncertainty this year it's really hard to make any declarations. Utah PLUMMETED out of my rankings from all the way up at #8, and the reason for that was a noncompetitive game vs Oregon State where once again Utah's offense was completely missing. I kept comparing their résumé and level of play to other teams on the list and asked myself if the other teams were better, and I kept coming away with "yes" as my answer. It won't take much for them to rejoin the top 25, but with so many undefeated and good 1-loss teams, a bad loss will cause anyone to drop a lot faster than later in the year. Texas vs Oklahoma is (deservingly) the headline game this weekend, but Ohio State vs Maryland, Georgia vs Kentucky, Louisville vs Notre Dame, and Wyoming vs Fresno State are all seemingly fantastic games in the making, and could really shake up these rankings once again. Right outside the top 25: Louisville, Utah, Texas A&M, Memphis, Kansas State, Kansas, West Virginia, James Madison, Miami (OH), Marshall, Liberty
Teams Ranked:
Rank | Team | Unusualness |
---|---|---|
1 | Michigan Wolverines | 0.30 |
2 | Washington Huskies | 0.53 |
3 | Texas Longhorns | 0.00 |
4 | Ohio State Buckeyes | 0.00 |
5 | Georgia Bulldogs | 0.00 |
6 | Florida State Seminoles | 0.00 |
7 | Penn State Nittany Lions | 0.00 |
8 | Oregon Ducks | 0.00 |
9 | Notre Dame Fighting Irish | 0.15 |
10 | Oklahoma Sooners | 0.00 |
11 | North Carolina Tar Heels | 0.25 |
12 | Miami Hurricanes | 0.00 |
13 | Alabama Crimson Tide | 0.00 |
14 | Washington State Cougars | 0.00 |
15 | Oregon State Beavers | 0.00 |
16 | USC Trojans | -0.80 |
17 | Ole Miss Rebels | 0.00 |
18 | Duke Blue Devils | 0.00 |
19 | Wyoming Cowboys | 6.16 |
20 | Fresno State Bulldogs | 0.02 |
21 | Maryland Terrapins | 0.00 |
22 | Tulane Green Wave | 3.11 |
23 | Air Force Falcons | 0.07 |
24 | Missouri Tigers | -0.47 |
25 | Kentucky Wildcats | -0.77 |
Omissions:
Team | Unusualness |
---|---|
Utah Utes | 0.78 |
Louisville Cardinals | 0.22 |
Tennessee Volunteers | 0.18 |
Total Score: 13.80