My Top 25 and This Week’s Pops ‘n Drops

Well, this is the next to last Top 25 of the regular season. Next week’s poll will have the BCS bowl selections.

Not too many changes this week in the Top 10. A few more winners and losers among the second-tier teams. So, here we go with this week’s...

Pops ‘n Drops

With Alabama’s impressive shutout of Auburn, I placed them in a tie for the top spot. In addition, I thought USC’s defense holding Notre Dame without a first down until the last play of the third quarter deserves the No. 5 spot over idle Utah and Penn State.

But I wasn’t impressed with Texas Tech’s comeback win over Baylor (4-8) while Boise State just blasted Fresno State. So, Boise State moves up to No. 8 and Texas Tech drops to No. 9.

Among the second-tier teams, popping up are TCU, Ball State, Cincy, Oregon (Wow! Laying 65 on Oregon State), Georgia Tech, Boston College, BYU, Ole Miss, and Northwestern.

Dropping are Oklahoma State, Georgia, and Oregon State while dropping out of the Top 25 are Oregon State and West Virginia. Joining the Top 25 are Tulsa and Pittsburgh.

Also, there doesn’t seem to be enough BCS bowls to go around. Not if you have to include the major conference champions. If Boston College and Cincinnati play in the Orange Bowl, for example, that leaves the title game and three other BCS Bowls (Sugar, Rose, and Fiesta) to divide between four other major conference champions, plus three undefeated teams (Utah, Boise State, and Ball State) and at least five other teams ranked ahead of Cincinnati and eight ahead of Boston College.

So, that leaves 12 teams and only eight BCS Bowl slots. It’s a longshot, but should Missouri upset Oklahoma, they would go to a BCS Bowl. That would make it 13 teams and only eight slots.

The BCS has to either elevate two other bowls to BCS status or drop conference champions that are not ranked in the top 12.

So, if there is a college president out there from any of the major conference schools who is good at math and can tell me how you can divide 12 or 13 into eight and come out even, I would love to hear it.

Here are my rankings...

1. Florida (1)

1. Alabama (2)

3. Texas (3)

4. Oklahoma (4)

5. USC (7)

6. Utah (5)

7. Penn State (6)

8. Boise State (9)

9. Texas Tech (8)

10. Ohio State (10)

11. TCU (14)

12. Ball State (15)

13. Cincinnati (16)

14. Oregon (18)

15. Georgia Tech (19)

16. Oklahoma State (12)

17. Boston College (19)

18. BYU (21)

19. Missouri (13)

20. Ole Miss (25)

21. Georgia (11)

22. Tulsa (UR)

23. Northwestern (23)

24. Pittsburgh (UR)

25. Florida State (22)