My final Associated Press top 25 ballot put a quarterback from Tampa in the top 10, Florida State just outside a milestone ranking and two former Bucs assistants in higher-than-expected finishing spots.
Let’s start with the 10-3 Seminoles, which entered bowl season with a viable shot at their first top-10 finish since 2016. They didn’t get there, at least in my rankings. I kept FSU at No. 13.
Though the record and season-ending six-game winning streak are impressive, I couldn’t get past FSU’s weak strength of schedule. The Seminoles only beat three teams that finished with winning records (LSU, Louisville and Syracuse), and only the Tigers finished ranked.
Compare that stat to some of the other teams in the 8-17 tier on my ballot. USC beat four teams that finished in my final rankings. Utah and Washington beat three each, while Tulane beat two in my top 15. FSU deserves credit for rallying to beat Oklahoma, but this was also the worst Sooners team this century. That wasn’t enough to vault FSU past some of the other comparable teams, including Clemson (which beat FSU in Tallahassee).
Elsewhere on my ballot:
The top five was straightforward: Georgia, TCU, Michigan, Ohio State and Alabama, in that order. I briefly thought about moving the Horned Frogs out of No. 2 during Monday night’s blowout loss, but who would take their place? Not Michigan; TCU beat the Wolverines. Not Ohio State. The Buckeyes lost handily to Michigan, which lost to TCU. The Crimson Tide looked great in the Sugar Bowl, but I couldn’t justify moving Alabama up from No. 5 after the top four all acquitted themselves well in the semifinals.
Utah moved up two spots to No. 8 despite losing in the Rose Bowl to Penn State. That’s a product of two factors: other comparable teams losing, too (somebody must be eighth), and the fact that I underrated the Utes on my last ballot.
Washington finishes ninth after beating Texas in the Alamo Bowl. Tampa Bay Tech product Michael Penix will enter next season as a Heisman Trophy contender, and his Huskies will have a shot at winning the Pac-12.
Tulane took the final spot in my top 10. Head-to-head victories were a main reason why; I wasn’t going to put the 12-2 Green Wave behind USC or Kansas State (two teams they beat).
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Explore all your optionsThough Mississippi State didn’t look great in the ReliaQuest Bowl at Raymond James Stadium, I gave the Bulldogs credit for beating a solid Illinois team less than a month after the death of coach Mike Leach. Mississippi State earned its spot at No. 19, up two from my last ballot.
Texas dropped two spots to No. 21 after losing to the Huskies. If you think that’s too high for the 8-5 Longhorns, that’s fair. But advanced metrics, including the Sagarin Ratings, SP+ and ESPN’s FPI, all view Texas as a top-10 team. That fact stood out as I considered 10 teams for my final few slots.
Fresno State entered my ballot at No. 20. The Bulldogs — coached by one-time Bucs assistant Jeff Tedford — won their final nine games to give themselves a shot at finishing ranked for the fourth time ever. Pitt also joined my rankings after edging UCLA in the Sun Bowl.
UTSA and South Carolina both dropped out after losing to Troy and Notre Dame. Former Bucs assistant P.J. Fleck and his Golden Gophers took the final spot. Minnesota had a quiet 9-4 season by avoiding notable upsets and not upsetting anyone, and its top-25 status in advanced metrics won out over the resumes of Duke, Air Force, Texas Tech, Louisville and Iowa, among others.
Final AP top 25 ballot
1. Georgia
2. TCU
3. Michigan
4. Ohio State
5. Alabama
6. Tennessee
7. Penn State
8. Utah
9. Washington
10. Tulane
11. USC
12. Clemson
13. Florida State
14. Kansas State
15. LSU
16. Oregon State
17. Oregon
18. Notre Dame
19. Mississippi State
20. Fresno State
21. Texas
22. Troy
23. Pitt
24. UCLA
25. Minnesota
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