Barely a move in the top ten; Oklahoma State drops one spot to #6, behind Oklahoma, another team that lost to #1 Texas. The Longhorns have a lock on the top spot, having defeated two top ten teams and another top 20 team. #2 Alabama also has a top ten win, while #3 Penn State picks up their first top 25 victory of the season. The pecking order in the top three is well-established in rank of schedule difficulty. Should #4 Texas Tech, who smothered ex-#22 Kansas 63-21, defeat Texas next week, they'd have a strong claim to the top spot. In the weeks that follow they face both Oklahoma squads, giving them ample opportunity to relinquish it to the Tide.
#7 Utah was idle, #8 USC had another of their brain fart games against Arizona, winning 17-10. #9 Georgia beat LSU Saturday and has a good argument for belonging ahead of USC if they beat #11 Florida next weekend: two top 25 wins vs. a loss to the #2 team. Florida's argument should they win is less valid, as they previously lost to Mississippi, a team toeing the .500 line. At #10, Boise State looks set to finish in the magical BCS top twelve should they win out, but Utah's presence is a complicating factor, as only one top-12 non-BCS conference team is guaranteed a BCS bowl slot.
SportsRatings Top 25 - Week 9 (10-26-2008) |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
lw |
# |
Team |
Rec |
Big wins/losses |
1 |
1. |
Texas | 8-0 |
w=OK45-35,Mizz56-31,OkSt28-24 |
2 |
2. |
Alabama | 8-0 |
w@GA41-30 |
3 |
3. |
Penn State | 9-0 |
w@OhioState13-6 |
4 |
4. |
Texas Tech | 8-0 |
w@Kansas63-21 |
6 |
5. |
Oklahoma | 7-1 |
L=Tex45-35;wTCU35-7,Cin52-26,KU45-31 |
5 |
6. |
Oklahoma State | 7-1 |
L@Texas28-24;w@Missouri28-23 |
7 |
7. |
Utah | 8-0 |
|
8 |
8. |
Southern Cal | 6-1 |
L@OreSt27-21;wOSU35-3,Oregon44-10 |
9 |
9. |
Georgia | 7-1 |
L Ala41-30;w@LSU52-38 |
10 |
10. |
Boise State | 7-0 |
w@Oregon37-32 |
12 |
11. |
Florida | 6-1 |
L Miss31-30;wLSU51-21 |
15 |
12. |
TCU | 8-1 |
L@OK35-7;wBYU32-7 |
17 |
13. |
Ball State | 8-0 |
|
19 |
14. |
Tulsa | 8-0 |
|
11 |
15. |
Ohio State | 7-2 |
L@USC35-3,PennSt13-6;wMinn34-21 |
21 |
16. |
Missouri | 6-2 |
L OKst28-23,@Tex56-31 |
20 |
17. |
Brigham Young | 7-1 |
L@TCU32-7 |
25 |
18. |
Minnesota | 7-1 |
L@OhioSt34-21 |
-- |
19. |
North Carolina | 6-2 |
L@VA16-13ot,VT20-17;wConn38-12,BC45-24 |
-- |
20. |
Florida State | 6-1 |
L WakeForest12-3 |
-- |
21. |
Connecticut | 6-2 |
L@Rut12-10,@NC38-12;wLou26-21,Cin40-16 |
-- |
22. |
Louisville | 5-2 |
L Kentucky27-2,@UConn26-21;wUSF24-20 |
-- |
23. |
Oregon | 6-2 |
L@USC44-10,BoiseState37-32 |
18 |
24. |
LSU | 5-2 |
L@Florida51-21,Georgia52-38 |
16 |
25. |
Cincinnati | 5-2 |
L@UConn40-16,@OK52-26 |
13 |
-- |
Pittsburgh | 5-2 |
L BowlGr27-17,Rut54-34;w@USF26-21 |
14 |
-- |
South Florida | 6-2 |
L Pitt26-21,@Lou24-20;wKU37-34 |
23 |
-- |
Georgia Tech | 6-2 |
L@VT20-17,VA24-17;w@BC19-16 |
24 |
-- |
Boston College | 5-2 |
L GTech19-16,@UNC45-24 |
22 |
-- |
Kansas | 5-3 |
L@USF37-34,@OK45-31,TTech63-21 |
TCU is another non-BCS school hoping for a BCS bowl bid, despite having a loss. Their only blemish is to Oklahoma, and they beat BYU, so if they can add Utah to their prize list they have a decent shot at making it. Undefeateds Ball State and Tulsa will need a bit more help. Tulsa had another big 2nd half against UCF Sunday evening, and unlike the other polls and the BCS, I actually waited for that game to be played before coming out with my week 9 rankings! Now that all the unbeaten teams are in the top 15, here come the highest-ranked 2-loss teams, #15 Ohio State and #16 Missouri. The Buckeyes have a win over Minnesota and losses to the #3 and #8 team; the Tigers have no big wins—and no more top 25 teams on their schedule—but have lost only to the #1 and #6 team, and if they keeping beating teams 58-0 they'll earn their upward moves despite a weaker schedule. Plus, they'll play their way into the Big Twelve championship game, where they might be the ultimate spoiler. They jump over 1-loss BYU, who struggled to beat UNLV.
#18 Minnesota, 1-11 last year and 7-1 this season, moves up seven spots due to a rash of losses in the lower half of the rankings. #20 Florida State, the final 1-loss team, enters at #20. Neither team has an impressive win.
Several teams entered the rankings by knocking out other teams: #19 North Carolina re-enters after beating Boston College, who drops out; Connecticut comes back at #21, knocking Cincinnati down nine spots; #22 Louisville upset #14 South Florida, who fell out because A) they lost, B)their win over Kansas was diminished by Kansas' big loss, and C) the other team that beat them, ex-#13 Pittsburgh, lost their 2nd game to a losing team and dropped out themselves.
The last few teams, #23 Oregon, #24 LSU, and #25 Cincinnati, each has two losses to teams ranked above them. Oregon lost to the highest-rated teams, Cincinnati the lowest. LSU lost to good teams but was soundly defeated both times.
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