At this date in the season, there are clearly two great teams and then everyone else. This is not a hot take or a controversial opinion. Coming into this weekend, Bama and Georgia had games which could have been a test and if so, they both aced it. Georgia beat their second top 10 ranked team this season and while Ole Miss wasn't ranked in the top 10, they easily could have been and after last year, Saban definitely said that would not happen again. Neither game appeared to be a contest. Arkansas and Ole Miss are both good teams. Neither looked it yesterday because of who they played. So there is a definitive top 2. And then the rest...
- Alabama (5-0)
- Georgia (5-0)
- Penn State (5-0)
- Oklahoma (5-0)
- Iowa (5-0)
- Cincinnati (4-0)
- Michigan (5-0)
- Oklahoma State (5-0)
- BYU (5-0)
- Michigan State (5-0)
While I might jump Georgia over Alabama due to personal bias, I won't at the moment. I maintain...Bama will be ranked ahead of the Dawgs until Kirby finally beats his mentor (and it will happen...eventually.) As for the rest, I have been high on Penn State all season and remain there. For them, next week will be a real test and we'll see who is who when they face Iowa. Oklahoma won at Kansas State and while it wasn't a blow out, the Sooners remain the Sooners. They face Texas next weekend. No matter where Sark has the Longhorns, it's still Oklahoma vs. Texas.
A small word (and I do mean small) about Cincy...their victory over Notre Dame yesterday vindicates somewhat their lofty ranking. That said...who else have they beat? Who else will they beat that helps their strength of schedule? I do not really think Cincinnati is the top 6 team in the country. But they are ranked high in the national polls and will likely be (if they keep winning) in the playoff poll when it comes out in November. So for now they will remain in this spot.
As for the last four, it is a crapshoot. I dropped Ohio State from the top 10 because I had to drop Oregon out after their loss to Stanford yesterday. Head to head matters and while, in the long term, I think Ohio State is the better team it remains - Oregon beat Ohio State. So let us then bring in some new blood. All four of these last teams have looked good so far this season but even after a month, the season is still early. And at this point, being unbeaten matters as well. That said, you're probably not happy with me if you're a fan of Kentucky (now 5-0 after beating Florida) or SMU (beat USF 41-17 yesterday and remain undefeated so far) or Wake Forest (no...I really don't have anything for here) or whomever else you like. I will stand by this ranking. At the moment. And then watch the rest of the season play out and rank accordingly. I will bet right now...these top 2 will continue to be the top 2 all the way to the SEC Championship Game. And when that is over and one of them has lost? They will still be the top 2. No one else looks close. That is all.
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