It's the final blogpoll ballot before the postseason, and my hope is that some sanity prevails and we give Oklahoma State a shot rather than have a farce of a team in the title game that couldn't even win its own division, let along its own conference.
Hammer & Rails Ballot - Week 15
| Rank | Team | Delta |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | LSU Tigers | -- |
| 2 | Oklahoma St. Cowboys |
 4 |
| 3 | Alabama Crimson Tide |
1 |
| 4 | Oregon Ducks |
6 |
| 5 | Stanford Cardinal | -- |
| 6 | Boise St. Broncos |
1 |
| 7 | Wisconsin Badgers |
4 |
| 8 | Arkansas Razorbacks |
5 |
| 9 | TCU Horned Frogs |
5 |
| 10 | Michigan Wolverines |
7 |
| 11 | Houston Cougars |
 -8 |
| 12 | Michigan St. Spartans |
-3 |
| 13 | Clemson Tigers |
10 |
| 14 | Baylor Bears |
1 |
| 15 | Virginia Tech Hokies |
-13 |
| 16 | Georgia Bulldogs |
-8 |
| 17 | South Carolina Gamecocks |
-1 |
| 18 | Oklahoma Sooners |
-6 |
| 19 | Kansas St. Wildcats |
-1 |
| 20 | Southern Miss. Golden Eagles |
-1 |
| 21 | Nebraska Cornhuskers |
-1 |
| 22 | Arkansas St. Red Wolves |
-1 |
| 23 | Northern Illinois Huskies |
1 |
| 24 | Cincinnati Bearcats |
-2 |
| 25 | Penn St. Nittany Lions | -- |
| Dropouts: Ohio Bobcats | ||
SB Nation BlogPoll College Football Top 25 Rankings "
Explanations again after the Jump:
- The only people who want an Alabama-LSU rematch are SEC fans and LSU. There is no question that LSU is the No. 1 team in the nation. They are the only undefeated team and they did it against probably the toughest schedule. If we have a rematch and Alabama wins by three, what then? Do they play a third time? Do they fight to the death? Do we split the title? Do they play a rematch on an aircraft carrier in international waters, outside the jurisdiction of the NCAA?
- Let's compare schedules: Alabama beat exactly one team that finished int he final top 25, and that is Arkansas. Florida was ranked at game time, but they are awful now. Auburn was overrated all year. Penn State is probably their next best win, and that is not saying much. As for Oklahoma State, their lone loss was in double overtime on the road the day a major tragedy struck their campus. OSU beat three teams that finished in the top 25 (Baylor, Oklahoma and Kansas State) and crushed two of them. They actually won a major conference too. Their lowest scoring output was 30, while Alabama's OMG TOTALLY AWESOME TRENT RICHARDSON IS A GOD offense was held under 30 three times. They couldn't even manage a touchdown at home in the biggest game of the year, and missed four field goals.
- My final argument is simply that Alabama had its chance, and they lost. I would say the same about LSU had Alabama won. I said the same thing in 2006 when people wanted a Michigan-Ohio State rematch after Michigan lost.
- As for the other rankings, they are only numbers at this point. Virginia Tech was overrated in a crappy conference. Stanford could be a true No. 2 team in the country, but they couldn't beat Oregon at home. Oregon, USC, and Stanford are probably the best top three in any conference. Even if Oregon had beaten USC and their only loss was to LSU I still would prefer Oklahoma State get a shot than Oregon a rematch.