Unlike the AP and Coaches' polls, we base our rankings on logic. Undefeated teams are ranked by the highest impressive win and number of impressive wins. Generally, a big win places a team over another with a loss to a ranked team, unless there are other big wins and losses to look at. A bad loss will hurt a team much more than a big win will help it. On the other hand, a loss to a Top 25 team will not hurt a team, other than its comparison to other teams' losses to Top 25 teams and in the number of total losses.
A team that beat another head-to-head will always be ranked ahead of that team as long as they have the same or better record. The mistake that voters in most polls (both AP and Coaches) is that they are swept up in emotion and forget logic.
2022 is proving to be a year in which there are not a lot of really good teams but a lot of parity. The SEC, Big 12 and ACC in particular, are down. It is difficult this week to find 25 teams that are truly worthy of that lofty recognition. Three losses is now "good".
Michigan and TCU were in line for #1 with Tennessee's loss but their top wins are looking less and less impressive.
Washington was the top team outside of the Top 25 in last week's rankings and proved that position with a win over Oregon State. Neither the Coaches' Poll nor the AP believed the Huskies were that close to being Top 25. We did.
You will probably see Notre Dame ranked in the "polls" after its win over Clemson. The press and coaches will be swept up in emotion, while forgetting that the Irish lost to both Stanford and Marshall. Not one but two very bad losses. The win over Clemson is more a sign that the ACC is weak than the Irish are strong.
The playoff committee is also not without flaw--they had 6-3 Texas ranked in the Top 25 last week. There were three unranked teams better than Texas.
They also rank UCF, which, despite a fine 7-2 record, lost to both Louisville and East Carolina. Plus, the committee had Wake Forest ranked ahead of North Carolina State last week. The two teams had the same record and the Wolfpack's two losses were to Top 25 teams while one of Wake Forest's losses was to Louisville. It was illogical for the committee to rank the Demon Deacons ahead of NC State, as the Pack proved on the field Saturday with a 30-21 win over Wake Forest.
Clemson fell from 1-10 this week. Remember that a bad loss affects the ratings (as it should) more than big wins, everything else being equal. Clemson is the only Top 10 team that has lost to another outside of the Top 10.
Even Boise State, with a lackluster showing against a team with a four-game losing streak, stayed on the "Also considered" list, as there just aren't enough good teams to consider.
The Top 25:
3-1 Georgia (9-0) proved themselves with a 27-13 win over #4 Tennessee; Beat #4 Tennessee 27-13, #6 Oregon 49-3 and South Carolina 48-7
5-2 Michigan (9-0) destroyed Rutgers 52-17 ; Beat #13 Penn State 41-17 and Maryland 34-27
4-3 TCU (9-0) came from behind to beat Texas Tech 34-24; Beat Kansas State 38-28 and Oklahoma State 43-40
2-4 Tennessee (8-1) was no match for #1 Georgia, losing 27-13; Beat #11 LSU 40-13, #12 Alabama 52-49 and Kentucky 44-6; Lost to #1 Georgia 27-13
7-5 Ohio State (9-0) got by Northwestern 21-7; Beat #13 Penn State 44-31
8-6 Oregon (8-1) blasted Colorado 49-19; Beat #7 UCLA 45-30; Lost to #1 Georgia 49-3
11-7 UCLA (8-1) ran away from Arizona State 50-36; Beat #14 Utah 42-32; Lost to #6 Oregon 45-30
12-8 Mississippi (8-1) nudged Texas A&M 31-28; beat #22 Troy 28-10 and Kentucky 22-19; Lost to #11 LSU 45-20
13-9 USC (8-1) survived California 41-35; Beat #24 Oregon State 17-14; Lost to #14 Utah 43-42
1-10 Clemson (8-1) ran into suddenly hot Notre Dame 35-14; Beat #17 North Carolina State 30-20, #23 Wake Forest 51-45, #25 Florida State 34-28 and Syracuse 27-21; Lost to Notre Dame 35-14
17-11 LSU (7-2) notched a 32-31 win over #12 Alabama in overtime; Beat #8 Mississippi 45-20, #12 Alabama 32-31, and Mississippi State 31-14; Lost to #4 Tennessee 40-13 and #25 Florida State 24-23
6-12 Alabama (7-2) lost a 32-31 heartbreaker to #11 LSU in overtime; Beat Mississippi State 30-6 and Texas 20-19; Lost to #4 Tennessee 52-49 and #11 LSU 32-31
15-13 Penn State (7-2) rebounded to pummel Indiana 45-14; No significant wins; Lost to #2 Michigan 41-17 and #5 Ohio State 44-31
16-14 Utah (7-2) whipped Arizona 45-20; Beat #9 USC 43-42 and #24 Oregon State 42-16, lost to #7 UCLA 42-32 and Florida 29-26
17-15 North Carolina State (7-2) scored a 30-21 victory over #24 Wake Forest; Beat #24 Wake Forest 30-21 and #25 Florida State 19-17; Lost to #10 Clemson 30-20 and Syracuse 24-9
22-16 Liberty (8-1) toppled Arkansas 21-19; No significant wins; Lost to #24 Wake Forest 37-36
#24-17 North Carolina (8-1) survived a scare at Virginia, 31-28; No significant wins; Lost to Notre Dame 45-32
21-18 Tulane (8-1) upended Tulsa 27-13; Beat Kansas State 17-10; Lost to Southern Mississippi 27-24
----19 Washington (7-2) edged #24 Oregon State 24-21; Beat #24 Oregon State 24-21; Lost to #7 UCLA 40-32 and Arizona State 45-30
24-20 Illinois (7-1) did not play; No significant wins; Lost to Indiana 23-20
---21 Coastal Carolina (8-1) was able to defeat Appalachian State 35-28; No significant wins; Lost to Old Dominion 49-21
---22 Troy (7-2) defeated Louisiana 23-17; No significant wins; Lost to #8 Mississippi 28-10 and Appalachian State 32-28
15-23 Oregon State (6-3) lost to #19 Washington 24-21; Beat Boise State 34-17; Lost to #9 USC 17-14, #14 Utah 42-16 and #19 Washington 24-21
19-24 Wake Forest (6-3) lost again to #15 North Carolina State 30-21; Beat #16 Liberty 37-36 and #25 Florida State 31-20; Lost to #10 Clemson 51-45, #15 North Carolina State 30-21 and Louisville 48-21
---25 Florida State (6-3) routed Miami of Florida 45-3; Beat #12 LSU 24-23; Lost to #10 Clemson 34-28, #15 North Carolina State 19-17 and #24 Wake Forest 31-21
Dropped Out: Kansas State, Syracuse, Maryland and Oklahoma State
Also Considered:
Texas (6-3) prevailed over Kansas State 34-27; Beat Kansas State 34-27 and Texas-San Antonio 41-20; Lost to #12 Alabama 20-19, Oklahoma State 41-34 and Texas Tech 37-34
22--- Kansas State (6-3) saw its hopes dashed by Texas 34-27; Beat Oklahoma State 48-0; Lost to #3 TCU 38-28, #18 Tulane 17-10 and Texas 34-27
South Carolina (6-3) defeated Vanderbilt 38-27; Beat Kentucky 24-14; Lost to #5 Georgia 48-7, Missouri 23-10 and Arkansas 44-30
Kentucky (6-3) squeaked by Missouri 21-17; Beat Mississippi State 27-17; Lost to #5 Tennessee 44-6, #9 Mississippi 22-19 and South Carolina 24-14
Mississippi State (6-3) nudged Auburn 39-33 in overtime; Beat Arkansas 40-17; Lost to #11 LSU 31-14, #12 Alabama 30-6, and Kentucky 27-17
16--- Syracuse (6-3) was outclassed by Pittsburgh 19-9; Beat #15 North Carolina State 24-9; Lost to #10 Clemson 27-21, Notre Dame 41-24 and Pittsburgh 19-9
23--- Oklahoma State (6-3) lost again to Kansas 37-16; Beat Texas 41-34; Lost to #4 TCU 43-40, #24 Kansas State 48-0 and Kansas 37-16
Notre Dame (6-3) ripped #5 Clemson 35-14; Beat #10 Clemson 35-14, #23 Syracuse 41-24 and #22 North Carolina 45-32; Lost to #5 Ohio State 21-10, Stanford 16-14 and Marshall 26-21
25---Maryland (6-3) lost to Wisconsin 23-10; No significant wins; Lost to #5 Michigan 34-27, Wisconsin 23-10 and Purdue 31-29
Louisville (6-3) ran over James Madison 34-10; Beat #24 Wake Forest 48-21 and UCF 20-14; Lost to #23 Syracuse 31-7, Florida State 35-31 and Boston College 34-31
UCF (7-2) edged Memphis 35-28; Beat Cincinnati 25-21; Lost to Louisville 20-14 and East Carolina 34-13
Cincinnati (7-2) got by Navy 20-10; No significant wins; Lost to Arkansas 31-24 and UCF 25-21
South Alabama (7-2) rallied past Georgia Southern 38-31; No significant wins; Lost to #8 UCLA 32-31 and #23 Troy 10-6
Minnesota (6-3) beat Nebraska 20-13; No significant wins; Lost to #14 Penn State 45-17, #20 Illinois 26-14, Purdue 20-10
Texas-San Antonio (7-2) escaped with a 44-38 win over UAB in double overtime; No significant wins; Lost to Houston 37-35 and Texas 41-20
Baylor (6-3) beat Oklahoma 38-35; Lost to Oklahoma State 36-25, BYU 26-20 and West Virginia 43-40
Boise State (6-3) lost to BYU 31-28; No significant wins; Lost to #24 Oregon State 34-17, UTEP 27-10 and BYU 31-28
San Jose State (6-2) turned back Colorado State 28-16; No significant wins; Lost to Fresno State 17-10 and Auburn 24-16
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