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thatoneguyD13 Ballot for 2025 Week 2

Ballot Type: Human

Submitted: Sept. 1, 2025, 11:16 p.m.

Overall Rationale: Early season rankings are based largely on expected results versus other ranked teams, and as the season goes leans more heavily on actual resume. By the end of the season, rankings are based entirely on resume. I lean heavily into head to head results and results against common opponents. I also sort teams into 6 tiers based on championship/playoff likelihood. Tier 1: Championship Frontrunners, near lock to make playoffs Tier 2: Championship Contenders with excellent chance of making playoffs Tier 3: Decent possibility to make playoffs, unlikely to compete for championship Tier 4: Outside playoff shot Tier 5: Unlikely to make playoffs but not quite eliminated Tier 6: No shot at playoffs

Rank Team Reason
1 Ohio State Buckeyes Tier 1. Excellent defensive performance and the offensive pieces are there. The Death Star should be fully operational by the time they play anyone else who's any good.
2 Penn State Nittany Lions Tier 1.
3 Oregon Ducks Tier 2.
4 Georgia Bulldogs Tier 2.
5 LSU Tigers Tier 2. Played an imperfect game and still beat Clemson on the road. Nussmeier looks good and the defense seems to be much improved.
6 Texas Longhorns Tier 3. The defense is still very good, and Arch showed flashes of brilliance. Not a championship contender right now, but they can get there.
7 Michigan Wolverines Tier 3. Underwood looks like the real deal. If the defense is anywhere near as good as it has been the last few years then watch out.
8 Miami Hurricanes Tier 3. Not perfect, but escaping with a win against a top ten team is always good. Beck's steady hand might be exactly what they need.
9 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Tier 3. Things to work on, but it's hard to knock a team for a three point loss on the road to a top ten team. They can bounce back next week. But if not...
10 Clemson Tigers Tier 3. Defense wasn't great, but offense was terrible. Klubnik didn't look like a Heisman candidate and the Tigers couldn't run the ball at all. I still expect them to improve but I may change my mind.
11 Florida Gators Tier 4.
12 Florida State Seminoles Tier 4. Great win, and Florida State should absolutely be better than last year. But is FSU good or is Bama bad?
13 South Carolina Gamecocks Tier 4. Defense and Special teams lead the way with Beamer Ball 2.0. Offense needs work but this is a good team. Maybe the best in SC?
14 Illinois Fighting Illini Tier 4.
15 Alabama Crimson Tide Tier 4. Yikes. This team has way too much talent to be down here. Need more info before I can determine exactly where this team belongs.
16 Arizona State Sun Devils Tier 4. Was hoping for a stronger performance, but this team should still be good. Big 12 wide open.
17 Texas A&M Aggies Tier 4.
18 Oklahoma Sooners Tier 4.
19 Tennessee Volunteers Tier 4.
20 Utah Utes Tier 4.
21 Indiana Hoosiers Tier 4. A bit of a disappointing start considering the Hoosier's hopes.
22 Ole Miss Rebels Tier 4.
23 Iowa State Cyclones Tier 4. Win against KSU doesn't look quite as good as it did a week ago.
24 SMU Mustangs Tier 4.
25 Texas Tech Red Raiders Tier 4.

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