With the first College Football Playoff Rankings being
announced Tuesday, I wanted to release my Rant Rankings beforehand.
These rankings are 100% based on what I have seen watching
college football to this point of the season.
These are not projections for what I think the committee rankings will
be or should be.
1. Georgia Bulldogs
(8-0) Georgia has answered the bell every Saturday they have played, and
they have done it in dominating fashion.
The Bulldogs closest game was their opener, which was a 21-point win vs
Appalachian State. Georgia held a 31-0
lead in that game with 6 minutes remaining.
Georgia edges out Alabama for the #1 spot due to their quality win, on
the road over #3 Notre Dame.
2. Alabama Crimson
Tide (8-0) Bama has the undefeated record like Georgia, but has played a
bunch of nobodies. That Week 1 win over
then #3 Florida State was supposed to be a statement non-conference win for
Bama, but Florida State now sits at 2-5 and might not even get bowl eligible
this season. Alabama has only 3 wins
over teams with winning records, and two of the three were Group of 5 teams in
non-conference games.
3. Ohio State Buckeyes
(7-1) When the Buckeyes are playing well, they are dangerous. The downfall is that they aren’t very
consistent. We saw this Saturday. They mucked it up and played bad football
into the 3rd quarter against #8 Penn State before finally putting
their foot down and dominating the final 20 minutes or so of the game.
4. Notre Dame
Fighting Irish (7-1) The Irish have the best loss in college football, a
1-point loss to #1 Georgia. They have
also dominated every other opponent they have faced. Unfortunately for them, the once vaunted 2nd
half of the schedule suddenly doesn’t look so tough. The good news is that they should run the
table. The bad news is that the Irish
could end the season without a win over a Top 20 team. They also will not have a conference
championship to sell to the selection committee, which we know they like.
5. Clemson Tigers (7-1)
Clemson’s only loss the season came when their starting QB got hurt in the 1st
half the game. When full healthy we have
seen the Tigers beat #18 Auburn, #9 Virginia Tech & the reigning Heisman
Trophy winner Lamar Jackson and his Louisville Cardinals. And they beat all of them with relative
ease. No other team in the country has
those types of wins. They get another
chance this week when they go to Raleigh to face #19 NC State in a battle for 1st
place in the ACC Atlantic.
6. Oklahoma Sooners
(7-1) Suddenly that loss to #10 Iowa State doesn’t look so bad, does
it? And that win at #3 Ohio State looks
even better. The Sooners have another
stiff test this Saturday when they go to Stillwater for a rivalry game against
#7 Oklahoma State.
7. Oklahoma State
Cowboys (7-1) The Cowboys have not been the Cowboys most have expected this
season. While they have just flat-out
outscored some opponents, they have also needed their defense to win other
games. With no wins over Top 20 teams
currently, the Cowboys face two in their next 2 games. This week vs #6 Oklahoma, then next week at
#10 Iowa State. These two games will
make or break Oklahoma State’s season and playoff hopes.
8. Penn State Nittany
Lions (7-1) The Nittany Lions finally played a tough opponent on Saturday
and took their 1st loss in the process. While it was only a 1-point loss on the road,
it was also the only time the season that Penn State will face a ranked
team. It is tough to build a resume when
you have nothing impressive to put on it.
I really do think Penn State is a good football team, but I just haven’t
seen them prove it on the field. Based
on the rest of their schedule, we probably won’t get that opportunity until
Bowl Season.
9. Virginia Tech
Hokies (7-1) The Hokies get this Top 10 spot based on potential. They do have a non-conference win at a
neutral site over West Virginia, but other than that, there isn’t much. That is life in the ACC Coastal for you. Their 13-point win over Boston College,
although perplexing at the time, is
looking much better as each week goes by.
The Hokies lone loss was to #5 Clemson, a team they may get a rematch
with in the ACC Championship game if they can get by #12 Miami this week and
finish the rest of the season with just that 1 loss.
10. Iowa State
Cyclones (6-2) A 2-loss Cyclone team over some undefeated teams you might
ask… YES! The Cyclones have given both
#6 Oklahoma and #11 TCU their only losses of the season, with the OU win coming
in Norman. I forgive close losses, when
you can counter them with big wins.
After upset win last week vs TCU, it doesn’t get any easier as they go
on the road vs WVU this week, before taking on #7 Oklahoma State in 2 weeks.
11. TCU Horned Frogs
(7-1) Taking their 1st loss of the season on Saturday to #10
Iowa State brought the Horned Frogs back to the pack in the Big XII, but their
road win in Stillwater over #7 Oklahoma State is what put them on the map this
season. Still in good position to make
the Big XII Championship game, the Horned Frogs need to take care of business
the next two weeks vs Texas and #6 Oklahoma to secure a spot in Arlington.
12. Miami Hurricanes
(7-0) All they do is win, but that isn’t always enough. The Hurricanes offense has struggled all
season, allowing inferior opponents to stay in games. Only 2 of the 7 wins have come against teams
with winning records (Toledo 7-1 & Georgia Tech 4-3).
13. Wisconsin Badgers
(8-0) Remember the Iowa Hawkeyes team from 2015 that drove everyone crazy
being ranked so high because they were an undefeated Big Ten team? Welcome to
the 2017 Wisconsin Badgers. It’s not
that Wisconsin is a terrible team, it’s just that they haven’t played a good
team yet this season. The Badgers are
5-0 in the Big Ten, those 5 opponents have a combined record of 18-22 on the
year. There is a good chance Wisconsin
will not play a ranked team until the Big Ten Championship Game.
14. Washington (7-1)
It tells you something about the Pac12 when their top ranked team is #14. The Huskies seem to be the best of the bunch
out west, but that isn’t anything worth bragging about this season. With no wins to write home about to this point
in the season, the Huskies will get a chance to prove themselves against better
opponents the final month of the season.
It starts with Oregon this week followed by #17 Stanford, Utah and rival
Washington State to end the season.
15. UCF Knights (7-0)
Hello Group of 5!!! Central Florida is
the class of the Group of 5 this season with a dynamic offense that leads the
nation in scoring. Their undefeated
record includes a win over a Power 5 opponent in Maryland. As long as they don’t trip up in the final
month, the Knights should find themselves in a New Year’s 6 Bowl Game.
16. LSU Tigers (6-2)
Don’t look now, but LSU controls their own destiny in the SEC West. Winners of three straight, if they get their
4th straight it will come against #2 Alabama in Tuscaloosa on
Saturday.
17. Stanford Cardinal
(6-2) After opening the season dropping two of their first three games, the
Cardinal have run off five straight and have resume wins available in their
upcoming games. Stanford still has
Washington State, #14 Washington and #4 Notre Dame remaining of the schedule.
18. Auburn Tigers
(6-2) Likely out of the SEC West race after losing to LSU two weeks ago,
the Tigers still have a chance to make an impact on the overall rankings, as
they are the only team in the country that still had to play #1 Georgia and #2
Alabama.
19. NC State Wolfpack
(6-2) Two non-conference losses have probably taken the Wolfpack out of the
playoff conversation, but they remain undefeated in the ACC going into their
game with #5 Clemson on Saturday. A win
over the defending national champs and a trip to the ACC Championship Game is
likely, as is a New Year’s 6 Bowl Game.
20. Arizona Wildcats
(6-2) It is as simple as Khalil Tate.
Tate took over QB duties 4 games ago.
Since that point the Wildcats are 4-0 and have scored 45. 47. 45 &
58 points in those games. The Wildcats go to LA this week to play USC for the
top spot in the PAC12 South.
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