NCAA Football: Changes in AP Poll, First BCS Rankings
Last Saturday was a day of upsets and from this, it is reflected in this week’s new AP Poll. It was the second consecutive week that numerous top five teams lost and saw their ranking shuffled.
Adding another level of rankings and the start of numerous debates around water coolers, is the first BCS rankings. These came out on Sunday.
AP Top 25 Poll
Kansas State QB Collin Klein
This week, two teams jumped into the Top 5 for the first time: Notre Dame and Kansas State while it was business as usual for the fourth straight week for Alabama (No. 1) and Oregon (No.2).
But then change began. Florida moved to No. 3 while Kansas State (No. 4) and Notre Dame (No. 5) each rose two spots.
For South Carolina, their win streak was snapped after its 23-21 loss to LSU and their Top 5 ranking ended as they fell to No. 9 while the Tigers moved up to No. 6.
One of the greatest upsets on Saturday, former No. 5 West Virginia’s 49-14 spanking by Texas Tech, pushed them down to No. 17. With the fall, the Red Raiders not only got bragging rights but entered the top 25 at No. 18.
Also entering the poll for the first time this season is the Ohio Bobcats (7-0).
Top Heisman contender West Virginia’s Geno Smith’s defense didn’t show up on Saturday and the usually high-performing quarterback saw his stats plunge. For the day, he was 29 for 55, 275 yards and one touchdown.
On a bright note, Smith still does not have an interception this season. Is the beginning of his fall? Bettors still give Smith 1-2 odds to win the Heisman.
Ohio State kept its perfect record with a win over Indiana and took over the No. 7 spot while Oregon State also managed to hold on to its no-loss season even with a quarterback who had not started since 2010. They are No. 8.
Rounding out the Top 10 thanks to another surprising rout is Oklahoma. The Sooners defeated Texas 63-21 and after sitting at No. 15, the loss ushered the Longhorns out of the Top 25.
BCS Rankings
Alabama QB A.J. McCarron
In the first BCS rankings, the SEC again sat at the top with the No.1 and No. 2 teams of Alabama and Florida, respectively. Oregon came in at No. 3, followed by Kansas State and Notre Dame.
According to AP, Alabama has never been No. 1 in the rankings for the first week. It is not a bad thing since the BCS has been implemented in 1998, there have been seven instances that the No. 1 team in the first standings made it to the BCS title game.
Looking ahead to their schedule, Alabama has some upcoming challenges against the ranked teams of Mississippi State, LSU and Texas A&M.
Will one of the teams spoil Alabama’s perfect season? Bettors give the team a +125 to win this year’s BCS Championship.
Looking at the remaining rankings, the Gators at No. 2 is a little surprising as it is No. 3 in the AP Poll and No. 4 in the USA Today Coaches Poll but we know a computer does the rankings while the other polls have good old-fashioned personal voting.
As for an SEC finale, this may not happen as Oregon could be a spoiler thanks to its remaining schedule (see USC and Oregon State).
Florida could find itself down a notch as it faces South Carolina this Saturday and the number of undefeated teams could join the larger list of one loss including LSU (No. 6), South Carolina (No. 7), Oklahoma (No. 9) and USC (No. 10).
Oregon State at No. 8 is the lowest rated of the unbeaten teams.
Throwing a wrench in the BCS standings is Ohio State. While ranked No. 7 in the AP, the undefeated team won’t have a bowl game this year thanks to NCAA sanctions.
Also absent from the BCS is Michigan (4-2) who is No. 23 in the AP poll.
