College Football Rankings 2015: Hits and Misses from the Week 6 Polls
Now that Week 5 is over, we have one question: Now what?
As the season progresses, ranking teams becomes harder and harder, because, well, teams are becoming harder and harder to predict. After looking lifeless against Northwestern in Week 1, Stanford now appears to be the best team in the Pac-12 North. Conversely, Ole Miss got demolished on the road at Florida just two weeks after recording a signature win against Alabama.
Truth is, no one knows for sure how things are going to shake out. Every team has flaws, if not major flaws. Still, we'll try to make sense of it all by digesting everything that happened in Week 5 and evaluating the recent USA Today coaches poll and the Associated Press Top 25.
Where did pollsters get it right? Where did they swing and miss? We give our two cents in the following slides based not only on Saturday's action but what has transpired so far this season.
Miss: Notre Dame
1 of 6
USA Today Amway Coaches Poll: No. 15 (previously No. 7)
Associated Press Top 25: No. 15 (previously No. 6)
And, now, in this week's edition of punishing teams for losing close games to playoff-caliber opponents, we present to you, Notre Dame.
The Irish needed a fourth-quarter rally—a rally that ultimately fell short—to come within two points of tying Clemson. The 24-22 loss was a bit misleading in that sense. Still, Notre Dame's defense tightened up after allowing touchdowns on the first two opening series. Certainly, it played well enough to win for much of the game.
The offense was disjointed, though. That's a problem, for sure. The number of injured starters is staggering as well, but Notre Dame still looks like it can compete with just about anyone. Slow starts have been the Achilles' heel for this team, which proved costly this time around. Talent-wise, however, this is a top-10 team. Performance-wise, the Irish didn't do much to suggest they deserved to drop seven to nine spots, even in a loss. Certainly not when Ole Miss got blown out yet somehow still ranks ahead of Notre Dame.
Hit: Florida
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USA Today Amway Coaches Poll: No. 12 (previously No. 23)
Associated Press Top 25: No. 11 (previously No. 25)
Just how crazy is this season becoming? Florida looks like the SEC East favorite after dismantling Ole Miss at home 38-10. And, if you're asking the opinion of Bleacher Report SEC Lead Writer Barrett Sallee, Florida is the best team in the SEC.
That's quite a statement.
The Gators escaped East Carolina and Kentucky and needed a come-from-behind effort to beat a sliding Tennessee team. But it's hard to argue against what they did to the Rebels. The defense is as advertised, but the offense is light-years better than the one former head coach Will Muschamp produced.
Whether you believe Florida is a top-10 team or not, the win over Ole Miss earned this program a lot of cache. Putting the Gators right outside the top 10 is a huge compliment considering they were barely a top-25 team a week ago in the polls.
Miss: Ohio State
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USA Today Amway Coaches Poll: No. 1 (previously No. 1)
Associated Press Top 25: No. 1 (previously No. 1)
Indiana is improved—there's no doubt about that. But doesn't escaping Bloomington with a 34-27 win feel like the latest underwhelming performance for Ohio State?
If it wasn't for Buckeyes running back Ezekiel Elliott putting the team on his back with 274 yards and three touchdowns, who knows how this game could have gone. All three of his touchdowns were of at least 55 yards, and two took place on either third or fourth down.
Ohio State should be past the point of playing lethargic, lost and generally uninspired. As such, voters should be past the point of simply anointing the Buckeyes as the No. 1 team. The loss of offensive coordinator Tom Herman is proving to be a bigger issue than perhaps expected. Speaking of issues, where's defensive end Joey Bosa? The junior has been quiet with just a half-sack on the season.
If Michigan State can drop down the polls for a poor showing in a win over Purdue, why can't Ohio State? The body of work isn't all that impressive, and other teams, such as Clemson, have looked better in big games.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Hit: Oklahoma
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USA Today Amway Coaches Poll: No. 9 (previously No. 14)
Associated Press Top 25: No. 10 (previously No. 15)
Let's officially welcome Oklahoma to the top 10—and to the Big 12 title race. The Sooners already had some steam in the latter area after beating Tennessee. But given the Vols' recent slide, there's a case to be made now that Saturday's 44-24 win over West Virginia was every bit as good.
The biggest surprise is that the defense is stepping up in big games. The Sooners stuffed Tennessee's offense after getting behind early and forced West Virginia's offense into five turnovers. Linebacker Eric Striker was the player of the game with 13 tackles, three tackles for loss, two sacks and one forced fumble. He has always been a feared pass-rusher, but now he's morphing into a true difference-maker.
"He was huge. He's hard to block. Even, a time-or-two, he was held and he would've had the sack if they didn't hold him," head coach Bob Stoops said, per OU on Twitter.
With Striker on defense and quarterback Baker Mayfield running the offense, Oklahoma has big-time playmakers on both sides. That makes the Sooners one of the better teams in the country, and the results have backed it up so far.
Miss: Clemson
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USA Today Amway Coaches Poll: No. 6 (previously No. 11)
Associated Press Top 25: No. 6 (previously No. 12)
This time last week, Notre Dame was considered a top-10 team. So, after beating the Irish 24-22, how is Clemson not in college football's top four?
This wasn't some fluke win. The Tigers defense absolutely manhandled the Irish on all three levels—save for a fourth-quarter rally—in an unexpected storyline. Defensive end Shaq Lawson, linebacker Ben Boulware and cornerback Mackensie Alexander were the MVPs of the game. Lawson earned a helmet sticker from ESPN for going up against Irish tackle Ronnie Stanley, Boulware was everywhere, and Alexander shut down one of the best wide receivers in the country, Will Fuller.
"[We proved] that we can play with anybody in the country, and that we can beat anybody in the country," Lawson said, according to Chris Low of ESPN.com.
Clemson didn't just win with offense. Defensive coordinator Brent Venables took a new-look defense and coached an unbelievable game. This was one of the most impressive wins of the season in one of the most unbelievable fashions. Voters needed to treat it like one.
Hit: UCLA
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USA Today Amway Coaches Poll: No. 20 (previously No. 10)
Associated Press Top 25: No. 20 (previously No. 7)
One week after recording its best win of the season against Arizona, UCLA dropped a curious home game against Arizona State. The Sun Devils, for reference, had already lost big to USC and Texas A&M.
Defensive injuries have been mounting up for UCLA, and they proved costly. ASU quarterback Mike Bercovici accounted for more than 300 yards of offense and three touchdowns in the 38-23 win. When the Bruins desperately needed a stop, they instead gave up a touchdown run to Kalen Ballage late in the fourth quarter that iced the game.
Freshman quarterback Josh Rosen continues to have his good and bad moments. That's going to be the theme for him this season.
UCLA isn't out of the playoff picture yet, not by a long shot. But its hopes definitely took a hit. Now, Utah takes its turn atop the Pac-12 South.
Ben Kercheval is a lead writer for college football. All quotes obtained firsthand unless cited.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
