AP Top 25 Poll Released, Makes More Sense than Coach’s

The AP has released their Top 25 and, while some fans will certainly have their complaints, it makes much more sense than the Coach’s Poll that was released earlier today.

For starters, Auburn is not ranked.  While I love to see SEC teams ranked, Auburn has done absolutely nothing to stay in the rankings so far.  They’ll have plenty of opportunities to prove themselves again with their SEC schedule.  But right now the best place for them is outside the Top 25.

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Another interesting difference is Mississippi State is the default #26 team, leading the pack of other teams in the receiving votes category.  Mississippi State’s only loss on the year was to LSU.  While it was a respectable loss to begin with, it looks even better after LSU destroyed Auburn in week 3.  While it was not enough to spring MSU back into the top 25, it strengthens the respectability of Mississippi State’s loss and will make it easier for them to regain a ranking.

Other Notable Movements . . .

-Ole Miss is tied with TCU for the #3 spot, rising 12 spots from #15.  Rebel fans will undoubtedly hear how it was unfair to jump Baylor, Notre Dame and Georgia.  Many ESPN personalities would disagree, however, as the talk on watching their variety of platforms has pushed Ole Miss deserving to be in the top 4.

-Georgia beat South Carolina in impressive fashion but failed to move the AP’s needle in terms of rankings.  They held steady at #7.

-LSU destroyed Auburn and jumped into the top 10 (from #13 to #8).  With their schedule setting up nicely, LSU has a chance to crack the top 4 with a couple of losses from teams ahead of them.

-Alabama holds the same spot in both polls at #12.  Alabama, like in the Coach’s Poll, is the highest ranked team with a loss.  The Tide will not have a problem returning to the top 10 with a quality win.

-Texas A&M continues to win and slowly grind their way up the rankings (up 3 spots to #14).  Before the season started their week 4 matchup with Arkansas was thought to be an early game war.  Now it is a game that A&M cannot afford to lose and remain ranked with how Arkansas has played the last 2 weeks.

-Missouri, just like in the Coach’s Poll, fell 3 spots despite winning (to #25).  They were expected to dominate UConn and instead had to have help in beating them.

The full poll follows with SEC teams in bold.

AP Top 25

1.  Ohio State

2.  Michigan State

3.  TCU

3.  Ole Miss

5.  Baylor

6.  Notre Dame

7.  Georgia

8.  LSU

9.  UCLA

10.  Florida State

11.  Clemson

12.  Alabama

13.  Oregon

14.  Texas A&M

15.  Oklahoma

16.  Arizona

17.  Northwestern

18.  Utah

19.  USC

20.  Georgia Tech

21.  Stanford

22.  Wisconsin

22.  BYU

24.  Okahoma State

25.  Missouri

Next: Headscratching Week 3 Coach's Poll

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