Sunday, November 3, 2013

College Football Power Rankings

A.J. McCarron
1. Alabama This a pivotal stretch for the 8-0 Crimson Tide. They get LSU at home this next week and their Iron Bowl rivalry with Auburn on the 30th has huge SEC West implications.
2. Florida State Jameis Winston showed signs of being human with 2 interceptions against Miami but the ground attack picked up the slack and the defense continues to impress.
3. Oregon This Thursday night, the 8-0 Ducks and Marcus Mariota will square off in the Pac-12 game of the year. This one could well help push Oregon over FSU in the title picture or drop them out of it like last season.
4. Ohio State The Buckeyes continue to embarrass the rest of the Big Ten, beating up on Purdue. Though, Michigan is their only big opponent remaining and they played terrible against Michigan State.
5. Stanford The Cardinal still have an outside shot at a title run, especially if they can beat Oregon, but their offense needs to find its stroke again, it has struggled since their loss to Utah.
6. Baylor The 7-0 Bears are leading the nation in pass yards, points per game and are seventh in the nation in rushing yards per game. Needless to say, Oklahoma has a tough task handling the Bears this week.
7. Clemson Ever since their embarrassing loss to Florida State, Clemson has responded putting 40 on Maryland and nearly putting up 60 on Virginia.
8. Auburn What Gus Malzahn is doing with this group is amazing as the Tigers sit at 8-1 thanks to a dominant rush attack. They have to prove they are legit though, in a brutal stretch that includes Tennessee, Georgia and Alabama.
9. Missouri The Tigers kept themselves in the BCS title picture by handling Tennessee and they have an easier finish to the year than a lot of other top SEC teams.
10. Oklahoma The Sooners are winning, but in a different way than usual. A team that usually airs the ball out, is averaging 234 yards on the ground this season, 17th in the nation.
11. LSU After coming so close to beating the Tide last year, the 7-2 Tigers hope to finish the job this year. If they don't turn the ball over they could end Alabama's hopes of a third straight championship.
12. Texas A&M Johnny Football threw and ran all over UTEP for six touchdowns but can he carry them to victories over LSU and Missouri?
13. Miami Although they don't play very good against Florida State that wasn't the only bad news for the 'Canes. Star back Duke Johnson is out for the year meaning an ACC championship just got even tougher.
14. South Carolina This season hasn't been what many Gamecocks' fans would have liked, they are 7-2 and need to end the year strong to have any shot at a SEC Championship appearance but if Connor Shaw can stay healthy they aren't completely out of it.
15. Oklahoma State The past two weeks, the Cowboys have looked very good, putting up 50+ in the last two and have shot themselves right back into the Big 12 picture.
16. Fresno State The Mountain West is just not enough competition for Derek Carr and the Bulldogs as they won again late last night, dominating Nevada from start to finish.
17. Michigan State Once more, the Spartans defense was dominant, holding Michigan to negatives in the rushing department. With that win, they just might have the Legends Division in the Big Ten.
18. UCLA Sophomore QB Brett Hundley is playing great right now and he could help the Bruins run the table. Other than Arizona State, they have a pretty unimpressive schedule to end the season.
19. UCF Blake Bortles and the 6-1 Knights clearly are the favorite now in the American Athletic but they should be nervous about their next meeting with Houston. The 7-1 Cougars continue to score points and could surprise.
20. Louisville Teddy Bridgewater and the Cardinals are out of the title picture, if they ever were in it, but they could still win the American if they can finish strong against UConn, Houston, Memphis and Cincinnati.
21. Northern Illinois Although they will likely end up 13-0, it will be very difficult for the Huskies to climb into another BCS bowl. They are winning but against MAC schools it just doesn't cut it.
22. Wisconsin The Badgers were far from dominant against Iowa but they continue to win thanks to a run game that appears nearly impossible to completely stop.
23. Notre Dame With their win over Navy by just 4, it was the fifth game that they managed to win by just a touchdown or less. They are winning but they still have a lot to prove.
24. Arizona State  The Sun Devils improved to 6-2 with a Halloween beating of Washington State and could still find their way into the Pac-12 championship game if they can handle Hundley and the Bruins.
25. Texas Tech Many questioned the Red Raiders ever climbing to the Top 10 and it is clear they were overrated, losing two straight. But, their offense still is playing well and they have nothing to lose now.

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