AP Poll College Football 2011: 5 Teams That Should Be Ranked in Week 7

The new rankings are out, and there are several questionable decisions that were made by the AP pollsters. There are a few teams that should easily be ranked, but somehow they were left out of the latest AP Poll. 

Come on, man! I have five teams that should surely be ranked in the latest Top 25 of the Associated Press.

We are just in early October, but nothing beats water cooler talk about the latest rankings. 

Georgia Bulldogs

In case nobody has paid attention, one of the hottest teams in the nation is Mark Richt's Georgia Bulldogs. Since losing their first two games to Boise State and South Carolina they have been unstoppable.

Georgia went into Neyland Stadium and thumped the Volunteers 20-12 in a game where they knocked out Tyler Bray (thumb). Tennessee ran for -20 yards thanks in large part to the stout defense of the Bulldogs.

Their 3-4 run defense is extremely talented, and if you don't look, Georgia may be favored in all of their games for the rest of the season.

The true development has been the improved play of signal-caller Aaron Murray, who quietly threw for 227 yards. The Dawgs throttled the run-defense of the Volunteers, with Isiah Crowell rushing for two touchdowns. The team combined to run for 139 yards, and if they can keep it up, nobody will stop them.

Not only are they a Top 25 team at the moment, but Georgia has a legit chance at cracking the Top 10 if they are able to run the table and appear in the SEC Championship.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish

The Irish are lighting up scoreboards, and their schedule will continue to allow them to beat up on every single opponent they play.

Air Force was no match for the Irish, as their 59-33 beatdown proved why Notre Dame should be ranked.

Plus, they have not had a close contest in weeks (and quite frankly, they won't for a few more weeks). 

USC comes calling, but the offense of Notre Dame is too balanced for any team on their schedule to limit, outside of perhaps Stanford at the end of the season.

Cierre Wood may be the most underrated back in the nation, as he has now rushed for 584 yards and five touchdowns. He only ran for 603 yards as a backup last season, so I would look for a double in productivity this year.

Wood is explosive and may reach pay dirt 10 or more times this season for a Notre Dame offense that is ranked 31st in rushing offense (194 YPG). Their total offense is 21st, averaging a whopping 467 yards per game! 

Tommy Rees has really matured in recent weeks, and their offense might be unstoppable with studs like Michael Floyd, Kyle Eiffert, Theo Reddick and TJ Jones.

Not only are they worthy of being ranked in the Top 25, but the Irish should soon crack the Top 15 in the next few weeks.

Florida Gators

The Gators have been thumped two weeks in a row by the top two teams in the nation.

If you are going to drop a team, do it with a team that has lost to a team that is not ranked!

The LSU Tigers and Alabama Crimson Tide are arguably the best two teams in the nation, and it might not even be that close. The SEC is still the king of the castle, and playing without your top signal-caller against LSU was expected to become a disaster.

Florida's defense still ranks 11th in the nation, allowing only 291 yards per game. Will Muschamp has a brutal schedule with Auburn on the road next weekend, along with Georgia and South Carolina down the road as well.

The Gators beat up Tennessee to go along with their victories over UAB, Florida Atlantic and Kentucky. The injuries have been a factor in their beatdowns in recent weeks, but to put a Houston team who has played nobody ahead of a Gators team that has destroyed teams is nearly absurd.

Florida could romp Houston in their own backyard, and it is a bit bothersome how the Gators are behind Auburn! 

The Gators will be able to back my argument up if they can knock off Auburn on the road next weekend.

Penn State Nittany Lions

The Nittany Lions are coming off a dominating defensive performance over Iowa in their 13-3 victory.

They shut down the Hawkeyes' ground game, limiting them to 84 yards rushing.

They also sacked Iowa quarterback James Vandenberg five times and harassed him all game long. Penn State's defense struggled against Trent Richardson and Alabama, but have been rolling along ever since.

Matt McGloin has the look of a legit Big Ten starter, and backfield mate Silas Redd went bonkers, rushing for 142 yards on 28 carries.

I would bank on Penn State cracking the Top 25 next weekend if they blowout Purdue, but they have a better case for being ranked than half the teams ranked outside the Top 15.

Note: AP Poll and Harris I refer to not Coaches.

Washington Huskies

If you throw out a tough loss to Nebraska, the Huskies have been fairly impressive the entire season. The play of quarterback Keith Price has been remarkable, and in his last game against Utah he for 226 yards with three touchdowns.

The Huskies have one of the best backs in the country, and Chris Polk is a man among boys. He toted the rock 29 times for 189 yards, and he is currently the eighth-leading rusher in the nation, averaging 122 yards a game.

UW is nearly unstoppable on offense, and their defense is surely better than you anticipate them to be. They have three crucial games down the road against the Oregon, Stanford and USC. If they can find a way to win two of those games, they will likely be ranked not only in the Top 25, but perhaps inside the Top 15 as well. 

The Huskies are deserving of being ranked, especially since their one loss was on the road to a solid Nebraska squad. It is amazing since many of the teams that are ranked from 20-25 have accomplished nearly nothing.