NCAA Football Rankings 2017: Hits and Misses from Week 7 Polls
Mama told us there'd be weeks like this.
Overall, the Week 6 college football schedule didn't look like much, certainly not a slate that had the potential to turn the national polls on their heads. Then Iowa State shocked Oklahoma—and the world—in Norman to get the ball rolling on a weekend full of surprises.
Michigan falling at home to Michigan State, Utah getting upended by visiting Stanford, and Florida coming up short against a reeling LSU squad were among the other games that resulted in nearly every spot in both the Associated Press and Amway coaches rankings held by a different team than a week ago. Well, except for No. 1 (Alabama) and No. 2 (Clemson), who held firm at the top after both moving to 6-0.
How did the voters in these polls do with their team placement? We'll break it down below.
Hit: Penn State Moves into Wingman Spot Ahead of Key Stretch
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It was around this time last year that Penn State began to make its move, shaking off a 2-2 start that included a 39-point loss at Michigan to become a comeback master en route to nine straight wins. The Nittany Lions haven't had similar early-season struggles this season, and the polls are showing their love for James Franklin's team.
Penn State's 31-7 win at Northwestern, combined with Oklahoma falling to Iowa State, enabled it to climb to No. 3 in both the Associated Press and Amway polls. It's the Lions' highest ranking since November 2008 and puts them in position to grab one of the top two spots if either Alabama or Clemson falter.
Their next two games could force the voters to consider them for a higher ranking. After having a bye this week, they host Michigan and then visit Ohio State, a gauntlet that could sew up the Big Ten's East Division before getting to November.
Miss: Michigan State Moves into Polls After Michigan Win, but There's a Twist
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It definitely looked like fall in Ann Arbor on Saturday night as heavy rain made it so Michigan and Michigan State had to play the annual battle for the Paul Bunyan Trophy on a 100-yard sponge. The visiting Spartans handled the conditions slightly better, winning 14-10 for their eighth victory in the last 10 seasons over the Wolverines.
Associated Press and Amway voters rewarded MSU by putting them in the Top 25 for the first time in more than a year. Which is great...until you see how that compares to the Michigan team it just beat. Sports writer Matt Smith tweeted: "AP Poll: Michigan 17, Michigan State 21"
Yep. MSU is four spots behind the team it just beat in the Associated Press poll and six spots behind Michigan in the Amway rankings. Makes sense, right?
About as much sense as coaches not only keeping Utah (23rd) ranked after losing at home to Stanford but also having them two spots ahead of the Cardinal (25th).
Hit: Come for #Pac12AfterDark, Stay for the Top 10 Teams
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Washington coach Chris Petersen drew much attention this past week for criticizing the late kickoff times that he and other Pac-12 schools frequently have to deal with, saying "no one wants to watch our game on the East Coast that late, and we all know it" per Jason Gold of Pac-12 DieHards.
It should no longer be a matter of want when it comes to Washington and rival Washington State, both of whom are ranked in the Top 10 for the first time since 1997. Washington moved up to fifth in the Associated Press poll and fourth in the Amway poll after a 38-7 win over California, while WSU's 33-10 win at Oregon bumped it to eighth and ninth, respectively.
For WSU, it's the highest AP ranking since November 2003.
With all 12 teams playing one or two time zones away from the East Coast, it makes sense to have the Pac-12 on TV so late, regardless of what Petersen and other coaches might think. Those games become more enticing when they involve ranked foes, and with the league back to five ranked squads (USC is No. 13 and Stanford is No. 23 in the AP, while USC is 13th, Utah 23rd and Stanford 25th in the Amway), there's more reason to tune in.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Miss: Few Teams Ranked in Same Spot in Both Polls
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The Associated Press and Amway polls have 24 similar teams in their rankings this week, with AP voters choosing to rank Texas Tech for the first time since 2013, while Amway coaches opted to keep in a Utah team that lost at home Saturday. In the grand scheme of things, that's not that big of a deal.
But it does speak to the overall difference of opinions between the polls, as only seven schools find themselves ranked in the same spot in each. Both have Alabama No. 1, Clemson No. 2 and Penn State No. 3, but after that, it gets really scrambled.
In most cases, the discrepancies are just one place here and there, with a few teams in a two-spot spread. Then there's Notre Dame and South Florida, both of which are ranked three spots higher (or lower) in one poll than the other.
AP voters are much bigger on Notre Dame (16th) than the coaches (19th), even though Michigan State's Mark Dantonio and North Carolina's Larry Fedora—both of whom have a vote—got to see up close and personal what the Fighting Irish are capable of. Consequently, the coaches think much more highly of South Florida (15th) than the AP's media voters did in keeping the Bulls 18th.
Hit: Navy Gives AAC 3 Ranked Teams for 1st Time
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Borne from the ashes of the heavily raided Big East in 2013, the American Athletic Conference has been trying to get noticed alongside the power leagues. Having 25 percent of its members in the rankings should help with that effort.
South Florida is the top AAC team, sitting 15th in the Amway rankings and 18th in the Associated Press poll. UCF is 21st in the Amway and 22nd in the AP, and Navy, fresh off a 48-45 win over Air Force, moves into both polls at 24th (Amway) and 25th (AP).
It's the first time since the final regular-season poll in 2015 that the league has had that many ranked squads. And that also happens to be the number of ranked teams from the SEC, though the Alabama/Georgia/Auburn trio are all ranked higher than any AAC team.
The American is also the only league with three unbeaten teams but that won't be for long. Navy hosts UCF on Oct. 21, and UCF will host South Florida to end the regular season.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
