The AP Poll came out earlier and they actually had a few things right—having Clemson in the Top 15, giving accolades to Oregon State, and dropping LSU to No. 17. 

But they somehow left the Rebels at No. 20, who just beat LSU, 25-23.  In addition, they dropped Stanford from the rankings, and actually moved Penn State ahead of Iowa.  

But the Coaches Poll actually made things worse.  They moved Texas ahead of Alabama, left Mississippi at No. 25, and left California out of the Top 25.

 

No. 1 Alabama (Prev. No. 1) kept the top spot this week, after shutting out Chattanooga, 45-0.  Alabama will have to face their arch rival Auburn, before meeting Florida in the SEC Championship.

No. 2 Florida (Prev. No. 2) allowed the 3-8 Golden Panthers of Florida International to put up a score, but the Gators blew them out of the water, 62-3.  Florida will meet with Florida State at home this week, a team that just became bowl eligible.

No. 3 TCU (Prev. No. 3) doesn’t have many common opponents with Texas, so it’s very difficult to determine which team deserved to break the tie from last week’s rankings. 

The "Texas Lizards" have arguably the best defense in all of College Football and could have their shot at the Title this season with a little bit of help. 

No. 4 Texas (Prev. No. 3) only fell half a spot this week after bashing Kansas, 51-20.  The Longhorns have always had a prolific offense, but their defense has come to play every week.  But a potential upset lies ahead of Texas in the BIG XII Championship. 

No. 5 Cincinnati (Prev. No. 5) will need a ton of help to get back to the Title discussion.  They come into Week 13 well rested, facing a tough Fighting Illini team that would love nothing more than to spoil a potential BCS Title Contender.

No. 6 Boise State (Prev. No. 6) didn’t have any trouble last week with the Utah State Aggies away from Smurf Turf, beating them to a pulp, 52-21. 

Boise will have their toughest test of the season (since the season opener against Oregon) this week, hosting Nevada. 

No. 7 Georgia Tech (Prev. No. 7) was a sitting duck on Saturday.  The ‘Jackets will have to deal with Georgia this week, before playing Clemson in the ACC Championship. 

No. 8 Oregon (Prev. No. 10) didn’t have a chance to sit down on Saturday, winning a shootout over the ‘Cats of Arizona in second overtime, 44-41.  Since Oregon beat both Purdue and USC (Ohio State’s blemishes), the Ducks moved ahead of the Buckeyes.

No. 9 Ohio State (Prev. No. 8) wouldn’t normally lose a position in my rankings after a comfortable win, but it was the realization that Oregon defeated both of OSU's blemishes that gave Oregon the go ahead of the Buckeyes. 

No. 10 Pittsburgh (Prev. No. 9) is a very impressive team that will have the opportunity to play for a BCS Bowl, if they’re able to pull the upset against the No. 5 Bearcats. 

No. 11 Iowa (Prev. No. 11) got back to their winning ways on Saturday, beating Minnesota in a barn-burner, 12-0.  Iowa’s hopes for playing in a BCS Bowl are rising into discussion.

No. 12 Oregon State (Prev. No. 14) made their way into the top dozen this week after blowing out the Cougars of Washington State, 42-10. 

The “Dam Workers” head to Eugene this week to take on Oregon in the Civil War, which also happens to be the Game of the Week.  The winner will play in the Rose Bowl against the ninth ranked Buckeyes.

No. 13 Clemson (Prev. No. 13) put together another comfortable win on Saturday, 34-21 over Virginia. Their three losses amount to only ten points against TCU (No. 3), Georgia Tech (No. 7), and Maryland. 

Clemson has officailly clinched a spot in the ACC Championship Game against Georgia Tech.

No. 14 Oklahoma State (Prev. No. 17) had another great escape in Week 12 surviving Colorado in comeback fashion, 31-28, which has become the theme for Okey State this season.  

Either they’ve barely escaped by having a short lead, or they had to rally in comeback fashion. 

No. 15 North Carolina (Prev. No. 18) had an explosive victory last week on the road against Boston College, 31-13.  We now know the second-best team in the ACC Coastal (UNC) is better than the second-best team in the ACC Atlantic (Boston College). 

No. 16 Penn State (Prev. No. 19) tore Sparty limb from limb last week in a 42-14 blowout. 

Albeit the Nittany Lions ended the season on a high note, they’ve only been handed cupcakes and unimpressive Big Ten teams this season. 

No. 17 Mississippi (Prev. No. 23) showed LSU they were the better team on Saturday in a thriller, 25-23. 

Mississippi is No. 3 team in the SEC, but it took a while to determine because most of the teams in the SEC cancel each other out. 

No. 18 LSU (Prev. No. 12) somehow remained ahead of Mississippi in the AP and Coaches Poll this week. 

The pollsters are so blind-sided, it’s astonishing.   Mississippi and LSU have identical records and Ole Miss won head-to-head last week, with no strings attached. 

No. 19 California (Prev. N/R) came out of nowhere on Saturday, knocking off Stanford, 34-28 in shootout fashion.  Heading into the week, the Golden Bears had three losses all in blowout fashion to Oregon (42-3), USC (30-3), and Oregon State (31-14). 

No. 20 Stanford (Prev. No. 15) is tied with Virginia Tech, after losing in the Game of the Week, 34-28 to California.  Stanford actually dropped out of the Top 25 in the Coaches and AP Poll this week. 

I can't understand how a team drops out of the Top 25 when they beat a very good Ducks team and blew USC out of the water in back-to-back weeks. 

No. 20 Virginia Tech (Prev. No. 20) put North Carolina State out to dry, 38-14.  VA Tech is the fourth best team in ACC as it stands, behind North Carolina, Clemson, and Georgia Tech. 

It looks like the Hokies will win out, finishing the regular season with a four-game winning streak.

No. 22 Miami (FL) (Prev. No. 21) had trouble the entire game against Duke last week, but the pollsters will only look at a comfortable 34-16 victory. 

No. 23 USC (Prev. No. 22) had the week off and only one can hope that they used it to their advantage. 

The Pac-10 should join in on the “ACC Wheel of Destiny.”  In fact, the BIG XII and SEC could also join in the group as well this season.

No. 24 Houston (Prev. No. 25) got back to their winning ways last week, blowing the Memphis Tigers out of the water in cat fight, 55-14. 

Houston has wins against Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, and Mississippi State, so the C-USA Championship game against East Carolina shouldn't be much more than a cakewalk.

No. 25 Brigham Young (N/R) put away a solid Air Force team last week, 38-21.  I am absolutely on the fence this week with the Utah-Brigham Young match-up. 

But the game will be very competitive, as two Top 30 teams clash for the No. 2 spot in the Mountain West.   

 

Knocking On the Door

Texas Tech (7-4), Northwestern (8-4), Nebraska (8-3), Utah (9-2), Wisconsin (8-4)