Mark Dantonio, Dana Holgorsen Vote Michigan State No. 2 over Auburn

There's little doubt about Florida State and Auburn being the best two teams in the country. They're pretty much a lock to appear in this year's national championship and have shown the most throughout the year while other teams have stubbed their toes at one point or another.

And while you can nitpick about which team is better, Michigan State's Mark Dantonio and West Virginia's Dana Holgorsen have voted the Spartans over Auburn in the latest USA Today Coaches Poll.

Uh, what?

Dantonio has every right to pick his team because it's his team. But Holgorsen? That ranking isn't adding up.

Give credit to Michigan State for beating Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship Game. It will be rewarded with a trip to a BCS bowl. But as far as being the second best in the country? Um, no.

First off, Ohio State wasn't even as good as its ranking, as it nearly lost to Michigan the week before and was over-matched against Michigan State. Also, the Spartans had a chance to run the table but came up short against Notre Dame. The Irish were a subpar team that lost four games this season. A national championship contender doesn't lose those types of games.

Besides that contest, the Spartans have only beaten two ranked teams (Michigan and Ohio State). Meanwhile, Auburn has beaten Texas A&M, Georgia, Alabama and Missouri. That doesn't include beating a tough Ole Miss team and keeping up with LSU on the road.

Sure, it's taken a couple of fluke plays to make the 12-1 record possible, but the Tigers earned their stripes and deserve to be playing for all of the marbles. Picking Michigan State as the second-top team in the country is cute, but it's more of an overreaction than anything.