My top 25 ballot: Arkansas keeps on winning, Baylor checks in and Clemson drops out
I didn’t expect this.
Of all the wild and crazy scenarios I envisioned for college football this season, none of them included Clemson losing a pair of early games. Sure, I knew the Tigers might lose to Georgia in the opener. But they would almost certainly take care of business in their other September games, right?
Turns out they would struggle against every team not named South Carolina State.
Clemson lost to North Carolina State 27-21 in overtime on Saturday. That result came a week after it barely beat Georgia Tech 14-8. And let’s not forget it also lost 10-3 to Georgia.
The Tigers aren’t doing much of anything on offense right now, and they already have two losses. It’s hard to justify a ranking for a 2-2 team, and Clemson doesn’t look like a top 25 team right now.
I’m sure some will continue to vote for Clemson this week because of the team’s name and playoff history. I get that. Dropping a preseason top 5 team completely out of the rankings is hard for some to do after just four games. I had the Tigers ranked seventh last week, but I see no reason to continue voting for the Tigers until they start playing better.
So you won’t find them on my ballot this week.
On the rise
Arkansas is starting to look like the surprise team of the SEC, if not the country.
I admittedly wrote off the Razorbacks’ victory over Texas a few weeks ago as the Longhorns being overrated. But it seems I didn’t give Arkansas enough credit for that beat down. Texas has responded and won a pair of blowouts since. And Arkansas has just kept on winning.
The Razorbacks beat Texas A&M 20-10 on Saturday and moved up to No. 9 on my ballot. That is a big climb after flying under everyone’s radar in the preseason.
Oklahoma State also made a nice jump to No. 14 (up from 19) following its 31-20 victory over Kansas State.
New arrivals
I welcomed five new teams to my top 25 this week.
Baylor crashed the party at No. 19 following its victory over Iowa State. The Bears are 4-0 and seem as well positioned as any team to take advantage of a wide open Big 12.
Texas returned to the top 25 after it dropped 70 points on Texas Tech. I don’t know if that means the Longhorns “are back,” but they have legit talent. The Red Raiders were previously unbeaten.
North Carolina State checks in at No. 23 after knocking off Clemson and SMU is now at No. 24 thanks to its 4-0 start. The Mustangs beat TCU on Saturday.
I put a great deal of thought into which team I should rank at No. 25, but ultimately settled on UTSA. Why? Well, the Road Runners are off to a 4-0 start. They have beaten Illinois and Memphis. And, honestly, I would rather give a Conference USA team some love than a power conference team like Kentucky, Maryland or Wake Forest.
On my radar
If Army, Kentucky, Maryland, San Diego State and Wake Forest keep winning, they will earn a spot on my ballot in the near future.
MY AP TOP 25 BALLOT
Last week’s ranking in parentheses.
1. Alabama (1)
2. Georgia (2)
3. Oregon (4)
4. Oklahoma (3)
5. Iowa (5)
6. Cincinnati (6)
7. Penn State (7)
8. Notre Dame (9)
9. Arkansas (14)
10. BYU (13)
11. Florida (11)
12. Ohio State (12)
13. Ole Miss (15)
14. Oklahoma State (19)
15. Coastal Carolina (18)
16. Michigan State (21)
17 Fresno State (20)
18. Michigan (23)
19. Baylor (NR)
20. UCLA (24)
21. Texas (NR)
22. Texas A&M (10)
23. North Carolina State (NR)
24. SMU (NR)
25. UTSA (NR)
Dropped Out: Clemson, Iowa State, Kansas State, TCU, Wisconsin.
This story was originally published September 26, 2021 at 8:44 AM.