Pre-Season Select 17
Posted by Brett Kincaid on August 20, 2009
Each Monday during the season we will release our Select 17. This is our little attempt to provide yet another voice to the lingering debate over who has the best team in college football. Obviously our voice will be far superior to anyone else’s. Adam and I have pulled together 5 other football minds to join ours, all of whom spend far too much time thinking about college football. We’ll update these rankings as needed before the season starts, but you can count on a new poll each Monday morning. We will announce it every week on The Jon Williams Morning Show (93.3 The Eagle, KIGL-FM) in northwest Arkansas around 8:00am.
| Rank | Team | Total |
| 1 | Florida (7) | 119 |
| 2 | Texas | 109 |
| 3 | Oklahoma | 99 |
| 4 | USC | 92 |
| 5 | Alabama | 90 |
| 6 | Ohio State | 78 |
| 7 | Penn State | 76 |
| 8 | Oklahoma State | 64 |
| 9 | Virginia Tech | 56 |
| 10 | LSU | 52 |
| 11 | Mississippi | 46 |
| 12 | Oregon | 45 |
| 13 | California | 31 |
| 14 | Boise State | 30 |
| 15 | Georgia | 20 |
| 16 | Utah | 13 |
| 17 | Georgia Tech | 11 |
Others receiving votes: TCU 10, Nebraska 7, Florida State 6, Cincinnati 5, North Carolina 4, Texas Tech 4, BYU 3, Michigan State 1
10 Responses to “Pre-Season Select 17”
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jstrom said
I think it’s amazing but standard and predictable for people to pick programs. However, to think, after last year’s head to head matchup and results of Ga Tech over thUGA, any panel of 5 could put thUGA over Ga Tech is taking it to another level. Stafford and Moreno are gone, a new QB (who, by the way, is struggling somewhat w/ INTs in practices) while Tech brings back their primary players in an offense that’s in only it’s second year (players should get better after the first year of a system). I don’t get it.
Adam Butler said
I think you a reading too much into it. There were a small number of pollsters. Georgia and Geaorgia Tech were ranked 15th and 17th, respectively. One person could have made the difference. I personally think both teams are going to be very good.
Randle Reece said
The idea of a top 17 is inspired. In the world of arbitrary cutoffs, yours is a nice curveball.
Ohio State-Penn State at 6-7 is plausible but maybe a little farfetched considering that they play in mid-November. They did, though, finish 8-9 in last year’s AP final poll. You expect at team no better than third in the SEC West to be in the top 11. But maybe that’s the way college football is these days. Oklahoma State, 8th ranked and third in the Big 12 South. Cal, 13th and third in the Pac 10. Georgia, 15th and fifth in the SEC.
Last year, all of the top 12 ranked teams finished at least second in their conferences. Big 12 had a three-way tie for first; all three ended in the top 12. The lowest finishers in the top 17 of the AP poll were Ole Miss (fourth in the SEC) and Oklahoma State (tied for fourth in the Big 12, and really smashed in its bowl game).
I can see four SEC teams in the top 17, not five.
Brett Kincaid said
You bring up (in a round-about way) an interesting point. Well, two actually.
1) What criteria do pollsters use? I think all 7 of us use the “best team” model. Others try to predict how they will finish. Like Hall of Fame voters, it seems everyone has a unique way to look at it. For me, though, there really is only one way: Who has a better team. In a head-to-head matchup, who would win.
2) Should conference rank determine overall rank? I suggest that the Big XII, SEC, and Pac-10 are deep enough to justify those teams loading the polls. My guess is the fifth-best SEC team could beat the third-best Big 10 team (or best Big East team) on a neutral field.
JUJU said
all i know is that we’re lucky Spurrier (or his gopher) does not get a vote in the poll…
Signed,
Jesus from Florida
afrankangle said
One question … what has Florida done this season to deserve #1?
Brett Kincaid said
Show up to camp
afrankangle said
Brett,
Sorry to see that you give so little credit to playing and winning games.
LittlePope said
What has anyone done to deserve to move ahead of them? Are there games being played I am missing?
afrankangle said
Little Pope,
Or is the question what has anyone done to be #1?