Blogpoll Ballot – Week 14
14 comments so far
December 4, 2007 by
Here again we present the Big Red Network ballot for the college football top 25 poll at M Go Blog.
I consider it a moral victory that Hawaii got paired up with Georgia in the Sugar Bowl. Not a small number of people thought that Georgia deserved to play for a national title so it’s conceivable that if Hawaii just trounced the Bulldogs, the AP could vote Hawaii #1. The odds of that are on par with the odds of Northwestern winning the national title next year. But the door is open. Not unlike USC getting a share of the title in 2003. Once Georgia beats them, this poll will look a lot more like everyone else’s.
Aside from the people upset about LSU going to the national championship game, the team that really seems hosed is Missouri. 11-1 is a great season for KU, but beating that team on a neutral field late in the season, only to lose a second time to a team that surely would have beaten KU is a crime. Missouri belongs in the BCS before Kansas. They even beat Illinois. I’d weep for Arizona State too except I think they’ll get beat by Texas.
1. Hawaii
2. Ohio State
3. LSU
4. Oklahoma
5. Southern Cal
6. Virginia Tech
7. Georgia
8. Missouri
9. West Virginia
10. Kansas
11. Arizona State
12. BYU
13. Boise State
14. Florida
15. South Florida
16. Illinois
17. Boston College
18. Clemson
19. Cincinnati
20. Texas
21. Connecticut
22. Wisconsin
23. Virginia
24. Central Florida
25. Air Force
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Husker Mike Dec 04 07
I'm not upset about LSU being in the title game. I'm upset about Ohio State being in the title game.
TLC Dec 04 07
Thought I might see a post on the assistants today.
James Moore Dec 04 07
Hawaii? Again? You guys party hard on the blogpoll selection circles. . .
WOW Dec 04 07
Steve,
Not seeing anything that indicates sarcasm/tongue in cheek, I'm puzzled.
"Not a small number of people thought that Georgia deserved to play for a national title..."
Number of "First Place votes for Georgia by Poll.
AP = 1
USA Today Coaches = 0
Harris = 1
Master Coaches = 0
As to Hawaii being number 1.
Their opponents combined records are 53 - 92
9 had losing seasons, 1 was .500 and two won more than 8 games.
Not sure how going undefeated against that kind of competition warrants being rated above 10.
Oh, wait a minute. Forgot who I was 'talking' to. A Nebraska fan.
With 800 wins comprised of:
Doane(10), Lincoln High(5), Grand Island(3), Creighton(3), Peru State(3), Knox(5), Bellevue(3), Nebraska Wesleyan(5), South Dakota(14), as well as 82 wins against Division 1A opponents.
So, my bad. A "W is a W is a W"
JR
Steve Dec 04 07
WOW/JR,
Calm yourself before you get hurt. There are less than 120 voters in those polls so each vote might be worth 100,000 people. Also, the FOX broadcast announcing the championship game held out to the very end to reveal whether it would be LSU or Georgia playing. Why? Because Georgia was ranked ahead of LSU before the SEC championship game and no one knew if a 7-point win over Tennessee after losing their regular-season finale would leapfrog LSU ahead. So yes, some people think Georgia is better than LSU. I'm sorry that idea offends you.
Hawaii's case doesn't seem that much weaker than OSU's (as Husker Mike points out). They haven't lost and last year we saw Boise State beat an OU team that was some bad calls against Oregon away from playing for the National championship.
I said at the outset of the season, this poll isn't handicapping odds. It's about what spot do you earn based on results. One team in the country went undefeated. With everyone else losing (and most losing twice), it's not the craziest thing in the world to say give them a shot. I'm not disgruntled because Georgia is a great test. But I think Hawaii earned it by not falling prey to the upsets that were absolutely everywhere.
WOW Dec 04 07
Steve,
You take my words and point a bit skewed.
I was not commenting on whether Georgia was better/worse than LSU.
I was merely taking exception to your choice of words e.g. "Not a small number of people"
The number you offered is indeed a large number of people when compared to say, Lincoln's population.
When compared to the entire number of people represented by the 120 voters it's but a mere 1.7%
So saying that ~1.7% of voters were able to sway/delay the outcome of the BCS is exactly why I feel the Polls should go away.
Nope, not a Playoff whiner here.
Take the personalities out of it.
Write a simple algorithm for "Who played the best against the better?" and it's over.
That way when an 'upset season' comes along those losses are weighted based on performance.
Oh, and in the event of a tie for a spot the winner is decided by the offensive & defensive performance.
I mean "based on results" has to have a quantifier doesn't it?
Is it simply your position that Hawaii's 12 wins are more than Ohio States 11 and they should be playing for the title?
Surely it is not your view that a "W is a W is a W" and that a teams Strength Of Schedule should carry no weight?
JR
PS
As to the calming before I get hurt goes.
I'm the one being calm and rational.
ze bop Dec 04 07
These pollsters need 'services', w/o a doubt...
Look, I can go kick the a$$es of a bunch of 8th grade kids, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna get in the ring with Mike Tyson--even if he's lost a few fights.
Such is HI.
GA is just going to roll right over them, though I will say that Brennan and a few of receivers are as good as I've seen this year, once they start clicking. But still, it was against cr@p competition. HI would be 6-6 in the SEC, at best.
Mizzou did get screwed big time, objectively speaking. But it makes me laugh 'cause I'm not a Fan of the Tigs. They're still rated above KU in the real polls: how does that work?
ILL shouldn't be in there with 3 losses, and yeah, especially when Mizzou beat them.
I don't want to watch OSU either in the NC, though I think they can beat LSU.
Really, I'd rather see OU or USC in there vs LSU, but you can't lose to Puffs and Cards, respectively, plus another loss, and expect to trump a one loss OSU.
Steve Dec 04 07
JR
Thank goodness we've got you to set the tone. I was afraid things might get rude.
I too love the purity of an algorithm. But it encourages running up the score. Take out margin of victory and you're likely to get...wait for it...Hawaii in the national championship game.
Sagarin's predictor ratings would put Oklahoma (reasonable) against Florida (What?!)
This year a win means more than any season I can remember. Stanford beats USC, Appalachian State over Michigan, Pitt over WV, Georgia loses at home to S. Carolina, Kentucky over LSU, Colorado over OU and on and on. The only thing that seems to separate anyone anymore is the bounce of the ball. I still don't know how NU hung 70 on KSU.
If Boise State and Utah hadn't won BCS bowls, I wouldn't try to give Hawaii so much credit for 12 wins (some too narrow) over weak opponents. Except Ohio State's resume is pretty shabby too. Heck Hawaii even tried to schedule Michigan State but got hosed on the deal. I remember Texas pulled something like that on them a few years ago too. When a team can avoid the upset in a year when seemingly no one else can, they deserve to be on the short list of teams to play for it all. We'll see against Georgia whether they deserve it or not.
ze bop Dec 04 07
'Altoidrid'em', isn't that something you take for your breath?
Really, isn't an algorithm type thingy basically what the computer is all about?
I think they gotta get a playoff: pick the two best teams from each conference and see who's left standing.
They could still do some token bowls for other teams with decent records from each conference.
OU7times Dec 04 07
BRN, Thanks for a great season of "debate" and some good natured ribbing. I hope all of you have a great holliday and I'm signing out til spring. Hope no one got to riled up at any comments I made and hope someday to take in a game at Memorial Stadium and meet some of you "Yahoos". I'm looking forward to our teams meeting next season. "GO BIG REDS" forever.
James Moore Dec 04 07
ze Bop,
loooooooool everytime I see 'Puffs'. What up in the Berkshires? We're getting our first snow down here in Washington, D.C.
OU7, take care bro and have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year too. Yall should put a hurting on West Virginia and the now undurable Pat White. . .
ze bop Dec 05 07
JM,
Temperature has been dropping of late and we got some of that ice storm followed by a few inches of snow. Looks like a post card here at all times, though, and the fall colors were spectacular!
My bro and sis-in-law live in Fredericksberg, VA. She's gotta a job with the feds. My bro's 'job' is Big Red! Sometimes I get down there.
OU7, you DA MAN! Good luck to Sooners and you 'owe' me for the last OU/Tig prediction--uh, I think I said 20 points, right?!
I think the LSU/OSU matchup looks suspiciously like MIZ/OSU back in '02, or whatever it was.
Don't be a stranger.....
ze bop Dec 05 07
Correction: *MIA/OSU*
doombob Dec 05 07
It's good that you guys can try back up your opinions with logic. Because I've got to tell you, 4 guys in the Coaches Poll are stark raving MAD. After losing 2 times by double digits to Oklahoma, Mike Bellotti of Oregon, Bobby Bowden of Florida State, Terry Bowden of Clemson, and Howard Schellenberger of Florida Atlantic ranked Mizzou ahead of the Sooners this week. See for yourself. In this blogpoll ballot, at least you ATTEMPT the semblence of respectability. Your ballot doesn't even bother me. When I think about how weighted the coaches poll is in the BCS, I am OUTRAGED. If someone has enough buddies or family members to screw your team over because they don't like your coach it will happen some day. Now I didn't crunch the numbers, but it may have made a difference in the Sooners getting into the BCS Championship game!