NCAA Football Rankings 2013: Hits and Misses from Week 14
Putting together a college football Top 25 at this point in the season could drive you mad. Upsets are happening so much that they no longer feel like upsets. Teams are falling victim to the trap and proving they really weren't worth the hype they had just a few weeks ago. There are also a few squads that have come out of left field and think they deserve a fair shot at a BCS bowl.
Where do you begin?
Luckily, I don't have to put together a complete list. Instead, I can critique others and point out a select few that don't deserve their current ranking in ether the AP poll or USA Today coaches poll.
The team that beat Oregon deserves a tad bit more love, and another Pac-12 team is worthy of all the credit it is getting this week.
Note: Here are the AP poll and the USA Today coaches poll in their entirety.
Hit: Texas A&M
1 of 10
Ranking Last Week: USA Today, No. 10; AP, No. 9
Current USA Today Coaches Poll: No. 21
Current AP Poll: No. 19
Overall Record: 8-3
You can't be considered a Top 10 team when you don't play defense whatsoever. The Aggies defensive unit is so soft you could fall asleep right away. LSU's offense is pretty good, but 517 yards good?
Get out of here.
It also turns out Johnny Manziel is human after all. The once-explosive Texas A&M offense scored only 10 points and rushed for only 75 yards. That's now three losses to some of college football's best.
Les Miles and Co. exposed the Aggies in a big way.
Miss: Arizona
2 of 10
Ranking Last Week: USA Today, NR; AP, NR
Current USA Today Coaches Poll: NR
Current AP Poll: NR
Overall Record: 7-4
The Arizona upset over Oregon may come as a surprise to some, but the writing may have been on the wall if you've been watching the Wildcats closely.
This team has come close to earning a marquee win all season long. From losing a heartbreaker on the road against USC to barely losing to UCLA a couple of weeks ago, Arizona is a program that's moving in the right direction and has promising pieces on both sides of the ball.
Rich Rodriguez's club shouldn't be ranked, but it certainly deserves more than two votes in the coaches poll and six votes in the AP poll. It also wouldn't be surprising if Arizona State fell victim next week.
Hit: Oklahoma State
3 of 10
Ranking Last Week: USA Today, No. 9; AP, No. 11
Current USA Today Coaches Poll: No. 7
Current AP Poll: No. 7
Overall Record: 10-1
Well, hello.
Oklahoma State had the most impressive win of Week 13 with a 49-17 blowout over Baylor. The offense racked up 594 total yards, and the defense held an explosive Baylor offense to 7-of-18 on third-down attempts.
Talk about impressive.
The Cowboys have now won seven straight games, three of the last four against ranked teams. The offense is firing on all cylinders, and the defense has done a fair job of holding up as well.
This is a team peaking at the right time.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Miss: Clemson in the Coaches Poll
4 of 10
Ranking Last Week: USA Today, No. 6; AP, No. 7
Current USA Today Coaches Poll: No. 4
Current AP Poll: No. 6
Overall Record: 10-1
Did Clemson win a rematch against Florida State?
That must be the case for the Tigers to still be ahead of Missouri and Auburn.
Nope, Clemson just beat up on poor Citadel. Nothing to see here.
Besides a Week 1 victory over Georgia, the Tigers have not beaten a ranked opponent all season long. If the coaches feel this strongly about the ACC, then Florida State should have surpassed Alabama for the top spot. With that not being the case, you have no choice but to question this ranking.
Hit: Auburn in the AP Poll
5 of 10Ranking Last Week: USA Today, No. 7; AP, No. 6
Current USA Today Coaches Poll: No. 5
Current AP Poll: No. 4
Overall Record: 10-1
Auburn is the real team that deserves to be behind Alabama, Florida State and Ohio State. The Tigers have been consistent all season long and have wins over three ranked opponents. The only loss of the year came to a respectable LSU squad.
The offense is averaging a mind-boggling 320 rushing yards per game, and the defense has forced 17 turnovers to make up for the yards per game allowed.
Auburn is a team that should be starting to grow on you. With a matchup against Alabama this week, the Tigers may shockingly have a shot to compete for a national championship.
Who would have thought that would be the case at the beginning of the season?
Miss: Arizona State in the Coaches Poll
6 of 10
Ranking Last Week: USA Today, No. 22; AP, No. 19
Current USA Today Coaches Poll: No. 18
Current AP Poll: No. 13
Overall Record: 9-2
I nearly fell out of my chair when I saw Arizona State ranked No. 18 in the coaches poll. The Sun Devils clinched the Pac-12 South Division with an impressive victory over UCLA in the Rose Bowl.
It was the sixth straight win for the program and another performance where both sides of the ball played at a high level. The offense scored at least 30 points for the seventh time in eight games, while the defense continues to pressure the quarterback and even scored a touchdown in the win over the Bruins.
Sleep on this team if you'd like, but the Sun Devils are for real.
Hit: Northern Illinois
7 of 10
Ranking Last Week: USA Today, No. 21; AP, No. 20
Current USA Today Coaches Poll: No. 20
Current AP Poll: No. 18
Overall Record: 11-0
It isn't much movement, but Northern Illinois moving up just a couple of spots makes a world of difference in hopes of qualifying for a second straight BCS bowl.
The Huskies beat an underrated Toledo team pretty convincingly on the road. Jordan Lynch further improved his Heisman stock with 363 total yards and three touchdowns, and the Huskies defense forced four turnovers.
OK, it's still tough for you to believe in Northern Illinois due to the lack of top-tier competition. But if any non-AQ deserves a trip to a big-boy bowl, it's the team led by a surefire Heisman candidate.
Miss: Notre Dame in AP Poll
8 of 10
Ranking Last Week: USA Today, NR; AP, NR
Current USA Today Coaches Poll: NR
Current AP Poll: No. 25
Overall Record: 8-3
Here we go again.
Quick, Notre Dame won a game—let's throw it back into the rankings.
Uh, I'll pass.
The Irish beat a solid defensive BYU team, but the Cougars couldn't score 20 or more points if they were playing against themselves. The win really isn't that impressive, especially when you consider the game took place in South Bend. Notre Dame still lost to Pittsburgh and nearly lost to Navy.
Voters should really make the Irish work a little harder to crack the Top 25. At least the coaches did for once.
Hit: Florida State's Four First-Place Votes
9 of 10
Ranking Last Week: USA Today, No. 2; AP, No. 2
Current USA Today Coaches Poll: No. 2
Current AP Poll: No. 2
Overall Record: 11-0
Although Alabama is finally starting to play like Alabama, it's nice to see that a few voters are still hanging in there with Florida State as the top team. However, four first-place votes is one fewer voter than last week.
The Seminoles beat the brakes off Idaho by dropping 80 points.
Beating the Vandals isn't newsworthy, but it sure beats scoring only one touchdown in the first quarter against Chattanooga.
The Seminoles just have that flashiness to them and play at a ridiculous level on both sides of the ball. Is Alabama saving its best football for the next couple of weeks?
Whatever you call it, Florida State still looks like the top team in the country.
Miss: Baylor
10 of 10
Ranking Last Week: USA Today, No. 4; AP, No. 3
Current USA Today Coaches Poll: No. 8
Current AP Poll: No. 9
Overall Record: 9-1
Heading into the matchup against Oklahoma State, Baylor had played only one ranked team all season (Oklahoma). The Bears then proceeded to get creamed by the Cowboy 49-17.
Uh, how is this still a Top 10 team?
Sure, the offense is fun to watch, and it's a team you probably find yourself rooting for. But there are plenty of other teams that wouldn't have received the benefit of the doubt if they were put in the same situation.
Baylor proved it wasn't ready for the big stage.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
