NCAA Football Rankings 2014: Predicting the Top 25 After Week 15
It was championship week and fans expected plenty of playoff drama to unfold. We all wanted chaos.
While chaos may still ensue with six teams having legitimate claims to four spots, most games ended up being blowouts this week with the exception of the ACC Championship Game, which Florida State won 37-35 to earn itself an undefeated season for the second-straight year.
Only 13 teams in the Week 15 AP Poll were in action—nearly all of them in conference title games. That'll create some interesting poll shuffles, as six of the 13 ranked teams lost.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
So how will the season's penultimate AP Poll pan out? Here's our best crack at figuring that out.
| 1. Alabama | 12-1 | 1 | def. Missouri 42-13 |
| 2. Florida State | 13-0 | 2 | def. Georgia Tech 37-35 |
| 3. Oregon | 12-1 | 3 | def. Arizona 51-13 |
| 4. TCU | 11-1 | 4 | def. Iowa State 55-3 |
| 5. Ohio State | 12-1 | 6 | def. Wisconsin 59-0 |
| 6. Baylor | 11-1 | 5 | def. Kansas State 38-27 |
| 7. Michigan State | 10-2 | 7 | BYE |
| 8. Mississippi State | 10-2 | 10 | BYE |
| 9. Ole Miss | 9-3 | 13 | BYE |
| 10. Kansas State | 9-3 | 9 | lost to Baylor 38-27 |
| 11. Arizona | 10-3 | 8 | lost to Oregon 51-13 |
| 12. Georgia | 9-3 | 15 | BYE |
| 13. UCLA | 9-3 | 16 | BYE |
| 14. Arizona State | 9-3 | 17 | BYE |
| 15. Clemson | 9-3 | 19 | BYE |
| 16. Georgia Tech | 10-3 | 12 | lost to Florida State 37-35 |
| 17. Auburn | 8-4 | 20 | BYE |
| 18. Louisville | 9-3 | 21 | BYE |
| 19. Boise State | 11-2 | 22 | def. Fresno State 28-14 |
| 20. Missouri | 10-3 | 14 | lost to Alabama 42-13 |
| 21. Wisconsin | 10-3 | 11 | lost to Ohio State 59-0 |
| 22. LSU | 8-4 | 23 | BYE |
| 23. Utah | 8-4 | 24 | BYE |
| 24. Marshall | 12-1 | UR | def. Louisiana Tech 26-23 |
| 25. USC | 8-4 | UR | BYE |
Risers
Clemson
Despite having the week off, the Clemson Tigers should move up quite a few spots in this week's poll. They were positioned right behind the Oklahoma Sooners, who coughed it up against Oklahoma State this week. Couple that with the other teams losing in conference championship games, and the Tigers should be a Top 15 team heading into bowl season.
Marshall
Rakeem Cato and Co. avenged last week's loss to Western Kentucky with a win over a decent Louisiana Tech team in the C-USA Championship Game. Not exactly a Power Five title, but the Thundering Herd still have 12 wins on the year and should climb back into the polls after falling out last week.
Fallers
Oklahoma
Saturday's home loss in the Bedlam game to Oklahoma State in Norman was not only embarrassing for the Sooners, it was also its fourth of the season. Oklahoma was pegged as the Big 12 favorite at the start of the season—instead it has been turned into a mediocre team at best. Losing to Oklahoma State to give the Cowboys bowl eligibility was a huge blow that should knock the Sooners out of the polls altogether.
Wisconsin
The Badgers won't be punished for losing to Ohio State—they'll be punished for how they lost. A 59-0 shutout victory for the Buckeyes put Wisconsin, which had been rolling since Melvin Gordon's massive game against Nebraska a few weeks ago. Now the Badgers will be reeling from a morale-crushing defeat heading into bowl season and will suffer in the polls because of it.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
