Garnet and Cocky’s College Football Top 25 Poll
November 10, 2012; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; Texas A
There was one huge upset this weekend, and another big one. Which of those actually had a bigger impact on Garnet and Cocky’s college football top 25 poll?
Check it out:
25. Oregon State It wasn’t too long ago the Beavers sat in this spot in Garnet and Cocky’s top 25. At that time, no one else had them close to being ranked. Now, they sit here after some tough losses. They’re on the verge of falling out. For their sake, and for my sake, so I can say I saw this team coming before everyone else, I hope they don’t make that drop.
24. Southern California The Trojans will fight for their Rose Bowl lives next week when they take on UCLA. If they lose, I’ll spend most of Saturday night and all of Sunday laughing at Lane Kiffin.
23. Rutgers Rutgers stomped Army this weekend. Big whoop.
22. Louisville I told you guys Teddy Bridgewater wasn’t a Heisman candidate. If Colin Klein played in the Big East, he’d probably put up double the numbers he’s put up in the Big 12.
21. Northern Illinois Over the next few rankings, you’ll find from me a distinct, non-BCS flair. These guys are good, they just don’t get the love they deserve, because of the conference they play in. Which is understandable, I suppose.
20. Kent State For the third straight week, these guys get to stay in our top 25 poll. I can’t kick them out for winning, you know.
19. Michigan A 38-31 win over Northwestern used to not mean much. This year, it means the Wolverines stayed within striking distance of Nebraska for the Big 10 nor… er… lol, lol, lol “Legends” division title. Hahahahahaha.
18. Louisiana Tech That narrow loss to Texas A&M must really be kicking Tech’s players in the butt now. Still, at 9-1, these guys will be a tough out for whichever BCS conference opponent they face this bowl season.
17. Nebraska The Cornhuskers fended off a tough Penn State squad to move to 8-2 and 5-1 in the Big 10. It looks like this might be the team to represent that awful conference in Rose Bowl this year. Then again, I say that almost every week, and the team I say it about loses.
16. UCLA I’m not sure my computer won’t break down while typing this next, seemingly incomprehensible sentence. If UCLA beats Southern Cal next week, they’ll lock up the PAC 12 South, and play for a shot at the Rose Bowl.
15. Texas The Longhorns crushed Iowa State this weekend, 33-7. There’s not much else to say about Texas this week.
14. Stanford The Cardinal is (are? I don’t like their nickname and how it isn’t plural. Very confusing) sneaking back into Rose Bowl consideration. Their most recent win, over the surprising Oregon State Beavers, pushed them to 6-1 in the Pac 12 North. Next weeks matchup with Oregon will all but decide that division.
13. Clemson The Tigers crushed another horrible ACC school this weekend. I’m not even sure which one it is. That’s how bad the teams not named Clemson or Florida State are in that conference. Oh, it was Maryland? Who do they play next week? Another terrible football team? Ok.
12. Florida State The Seminoles nearly lost their grip on the ACC Coastal on Friday, but there was something about teams from Florida getting really (lucky) improbable wins in the fourth quarter this week.
11. Oklahoma A tough win over Baylor might have been reason to celebrate last year. In 2012, though, it’s cause for concern. The Sooners are still in an OK spot for a possible BCS at large bid, but they way the season started, that’s just not good enough for a team like this.
10. Texas A&M Johnny Football set the world on fire last night, and I’m surprised it didn’t burn to the ground after A&M beat Alabama. I knew Texas A&M was a good team after near wins over Florida and LSU this year, but I wasn’t sure they were ready to get a win like this.
9. South Carolina The Gamecocks finally got the razorback of their, well, uh… backs. Carolina has two games remaining that stand in its way of a second straight 10 win season; Wofford and that team from the Upstate.
8. LSU The Tigers stomped Mississippi State Saturday, helping to bring a realization to all of us that the Bulldogs were not deserving of their high ranking a few weeks ago after weak early wins over Byrnes High School and that really good flag football team from my rec league at the YMCA.
7. Florida I don’t know if there’s a luckier team in all of college sports. A blocked punt as time runs out to win a game over a vastly inferior opponent who had a 20-13 lead on you with less than two minutes to go in the game? How did the Gamecock lose to these guys again? Don’t remind me.
6. Ohio State They had a bye week, but they’re still the best team in the Big 10.
5. Georgia Everything I need to say about this team is said below.
4. Alabama I couldn’t drop them any further, because (aside from maybe Texas A&M), no one in the rest of the top 10 is better than them. Especially Georgia, who just backed into their second straight SEC East title.
3. Notre Dame I dropped them below Georgia last week after almost losing to Pitt. This week, they made things a little easier on themselves, handling Boston College on the road. Their strength of schedule, once thought to be the toughest in the nation, keeps taking hits with every loss Oklahoma, Michigan, Michigan State and Southern Cal suffers.
2. Oregon The Ducks are lucky they win the way they do. Well, maybe not lucky, but these blowout wins over inferior opponents are really the only reason they’re ranked this high. Frankly, I’m not sure they’re deserving of this spot, because their toughest previous opponent , Southern Cal, already had two losses, and their hardest remaining foe, Oregon State, keeps losing.
1. Kansas State The Wildcats are definitely the best team in the country now that Alabama has finally lost. With wins over then No. 6 Oklahoma, 14 Texas Tech 24 Oklahoma State and 13 West Virginia, their strength of schedule dwarfs that of Oregon’s.