A word before we begin.
I realize I haven't really discussed what my "ranking method" is for the BlogPoll, and the best I can say is "a meld."
I don't go by the straight resume ranking method, at least as practiced by Sunday Morning QB. I cannot quibble with his choices as a straight resume ranking, but I don't believe that Georgia is the best team in the country (which would be my criteria for ranking them No. 1), nor do I think Cal is the No. 2 school in the nation.
This isn't to say that SMQ's method is wrong, per se. Rather, it's not the way I vote.
But I also think who you play and how well you play them is significant. It has to be factored into the equation. A team that plays 12 cupcakes has not done anything to prove how good a team it is.
So my voting method, in short, is a meld of power poll and resume ranking. I will push a team up or down from time to time based on who they play.
That said, the Week 3 ballot currently looks thusly:
Rank | Team | Delta |
---|---|---|
1 | LSU | 2 |
2 | Texas | 1 |
3 | Southern Cal | 1 |
4 | Oklahoma | 8 |
5 | West Virginia | 1 |
6 | California | 1 |
7 | Florida | 1 |
8 | Rutgers | 2 |
9 | Nebraska | 2 |
10 | Wisconsin | 3 |
11 | Penn State | 10 |
12 | South Carolina | 4 |
13 | UCLA | 4 |
14 | Boston College | 9 |
15 | Louisville | 2 |
16 | Ohio State | 2 |
17 | Georgia Tech | 8 |
18 | Oregon | 8 |
19 | Arkansas | -- |
20 | Georgia | 5 |
21 | Hawaii | 1 |
22 | Tennessee | 4 |
23 | Texas A&M | 3 |
24 | Clemson | 2 |
25 | South Florida | 1 |
Justifications, clarifications, explanations:
--LSU at No. 1. Screw Les Miles; this is a ferocious team that has rolled over two teams from BCS league, thanking Michael Henig for his help in their first game before thrashing VT so soundly I dropped the Hokies out of the poll.
--USC, back at 3. They beat up on Idaho and then took a week off, while Texas rebounded nicely from a near disaster against Arkansas State. So I'm back to my belief that the Longhorns are better. The Nebraska game could change that.
--Oklahoma. I'm a skeptic no more.
--Wisconsin. The close game against UNLV scares me.
--Penn State. Looking better every day.
--Louisville. I dropped them because of the atrocious defensive performance against Middle Tennessee State. Even in the Big East, you have to be able to play some defense.