College Football Rankings: 5 Who Should Be In, 5 Who Should Be out

With another great Saturday of college football in the books and the new polls released today, we now begin the discussion of who made it into polls and shouldn’t have and the teams that got snubbed once again by the voters.

In the following slide show, you will see five programs that just missed either Top 25 by a few votes and the five teams that for some reason still sit among the 25 best teams in all of college football.

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In: Michigan

Last Game: 35-31 win over Notre Dame

After solid wins to start the Brady Hoke era in Ann Arbor, the Wolverines should be considered to be in the Top 25 polls, and with two games against Eastern Michigan and Hoke’s former team San Diego State coming up, Michigan should be in the top 25 in the coming weeks.

Out: Baylor

Last Game: 50-48 win over TCU

While the upset of in-state rival TCU was a great landmark win for the resurgent Bears, Baylor will need to survive the tough Big 12 conference schedule that looms in the distance, so expect to see this team  plummet out of the rankings in the next month or so. 

In: Arizona State

Last Game: 37-30 OT win over Missouri

Just like the Baylor Bears in the previous slide, the Sun Devils will likely be another victim of conference play in the newly expanded Pac-12 as the fancy new Nike uniforms will not save Arizona State from future defeats this season.

Out: Auburn

Last Game: 41-34 win over Mississippi State

Even though Gene Chizik and Auburn have found a way to extend the longest winning streak in college football, the Tigers have two back-to-back road games to start SEC play at South Carolina and Arkansas that will rain on the parade of the defending National Champions.

In: USC

Last Game: 17-14 win over Utah

Even with sanctions banning the Trojans from postseason play this season, Lane Kiffin and USC can play the part of spoiler for Pac-12 teams like Oregon and Stanford, who are looking to make return trips to the BCS this season.

Out: Penn State

Last Game: 27-11 loss to Alabama

After the second straight defeat at the hands of the Crimson Tide, JoePa and the Nittany Lions must regroup and find an offensive game plan for the remaining part of the season as a three-game set of games against Nebraska, Ohio State and Wisconsin remain in the final stretch of the 2011 season.

In: BYU

Last Game: 17-16 loss to Texas

Yes, the Cougars did lose a tough game against the Longhorns last night, but BYU has shown their team does not need a year or two to adjust to their new independence as they’ve played extremely tough against Ole Miss and Texas. Unfortunately the schedule doesn’t get any easier with games against Utah and UCF in the coming weeks.

Out: Mississippi State

Last Game 41-34 loss to Auburn

After the good run by the Bulldogs in 2010, Dan Mullen and Mississippi State have a tough road to navigate in the rest of the 2011 season, with No. 2 LSU coming to Starksville this week and then a road trip to a disappointing Georgia team in the future, in addition to the difficult SEC West play against Arkansas and Alabama.

In: UCF

Last Game: 30-3 win over Boston College

As one of the quickest-building teams in all of college football, the Golden Knights will definitely be on the radar on a yearly basis as the program continues to gain traction in Conference USA with big wins against BCS AQ teams like Boston College, like they pulled off yesterday.

Out: South Florida

Last Game: 37-7 win over Ball State

The darlings of the early college football season would have to be the Bulls of South Florida, after the team knocked off a ranked Notre Dame team in their first trip to South Bend and a then had a solid win over Ball State this weekend. Even with good wins, USF will have big games against Big East rivals Pittsburgh and West Virginia that will give the young Bulls some trouble as the season continues on into the fall and winter.