Week 5 Rankings

It's getting harder for me to post rankings on here, mainly due to lack of time and dial-up internet. These rankings are valid through this past week's (9/27) games. I had to do something I have never done before and vault a team from outside my previous top 15, all the way to #1. But when you consider all the upsets last week, and the fact that this team has just dominated highly ranked teams this year, I could not think of a more deserving #1 team. So here ya go...

Rank	Previous	Team	Record
1	16	Alabama	(5-0, 2-0)
2	2	Missouri	(4-0, 0-0)
3	6	Oklahoma	(4-0, 0-0)
4	5	Texas Tech	(4-0, 0-0)
5	11	Texas	(4-0, 0-0)
6	13	Penn State	(5-0, 1-0)
7	14	LSU	(4-0, 3-0)
8	8	BYU	(4-0, 1-0)
9	9	Utah	(5-0, 2-0)
10	17	South Florida	(5-0, 0-0)
11	3	Georgia	(4-1, 1-1)
12	1	USC	(2-1, 0-1)
13	10	Ohio State	(4-1, 1-0)
14	4	Florida	(3-1, 0-1)
15	20	Oklahoma State	(4-0, 0-0)
16	19	Auburn	(4-1, 2-1)
17	18	Kansas	(3-1, 0-0)
18	7	Wisconsin	(3-1, 0-1)
19	22	Boise State	(3-0, 0-0)
20	24	Tulsa	(4-0, 1-0)
21	26	Vanderbilt	(4-0, 2-0)
22	28	Connecticut	(5-0, 1-0)
23	27	Virginia Tech	(4-1, 2-0)
24	25	Fresno State	(3-1, 0-0)
25	33	Kentucky	(4-0, 0-0)
26	29	Oregon	(4-1, 2-0)
27	21	Illinois	(2-2, 0-1)
28	12	Clemson	(3-2, 1-1)
29	23	TCU	(4-1, 1-0)
30	NR	Maryland	(4-1, 1-0)
31	30	Georgia Tech	(3-1, 1-1)
32	NR	Mississippi	(3-2, 1-1)
33	15	Wake Forest	(3-1, 1-0)
34	47	North Carolina	(3-1, 1-1)
35	NR	Michigan	(2-2, 1-0)
36	35	Air Force	(3-1, 1-1)
37	36	Arizona State	(2-2, 1-0)
38	39	Boston College	(3-1, 0-1)
39	NR	Houston	(2-3, 1-0)
40	NR	Notre Dame	(3-1)
41	NR	Oregon State	(2-2, 1-1)
42	41	Central Michigan	(3-2, 2-0)
43	43	California	(3-1, 1-0)
44	44	Ball State	(5-0, 2-0)
45	45	Michigan State	(4-1, 1-0)
46	31	Purdue	(2-2, 0-0)
47	32	East Carolina	(3-2, 1-1)
48	46	Pitt	(3-1, 1-0)
49	34	Miami (FL)	(2-2, 0-1)
50	NR	Florida State	(3-1, 0-1)

So many things that strike me when looking at my rankings:

• Alabama is #1! Who'da thunk it?
• 4 Big 12 teams in the top 5...unheard of!
• Penn State at #6, taking care of business
• Defending champs, LSU, still undefeated AND 3-0 in the SEC
• MWC teams BYU and Utah still in the top 10
• Oklahoma St. #15
• Tulsa, Vandy, UConn, and Kentucky all in the Top 25

For another view on the top 25, as well as THE MOST IN-DEPTH insight into college football today, go the J-Factors Sports Blog.

Week 3 Rankings

Rank	Previous	Team	Record
1	1	USC	(2-0, 0-0)
2	3	Missouri	(3-0, 0-0)
3	2	Georgia	(3-0, 1-0)
4	5	Florida	(2-0, 0-0)
5	6	Texas Tech	(3-0, 0-0)
6	7	Oklahoma	(3-0, 0-0)
7	8	Wisconsin	(3-0, 0-0)
8	12	BYU	(3-0, 0-0)
9	10	Utah	(3-0, 1-0)
10	4	Ohio State	(2-1, 0-0)
11	13	Texas	(2-0, 0-0)
12	17	Clemson	(2-1, 1-0)
13	18	Penn State	(3-0, 0-0)
14	15	Wake Forest	(2-0, 0-0)
15	20	LSU	(2-0, 0-0)
16	29	South Florida	(3-0, 0-0)
17	22	Alabama	(3-0, 0-0)
18	16	Auburn	(3-0, 1-0)
19	9	Kansas	(2-1, 0-0)
20	25	Oklahoma State	(3-0, 0-0)
21	19	Illinois	(2-1, 0-0)
22	21	East Carolina	(3-0, 1-0)
23	23	Fresno State	(1-1, 0-0)
24	26	Boise State	(2-0, 0-0)
25	30	TCU	(3-0, 1-0)
26	27	Tulsa	(2-0, 1-0)
27	28	Tennessee	(1-1, 0-0)
28	33	Virginia Tech	(2-1, 1-0)
29	32	Vanderbilt	(3-0, 1-0)
30	40	Oregon	(3-0, 1-0)
31	11	Arizona State	(2-1, 1-0)
32	34	Central Michigan	(2-1, 1-0)
33	46	Connecticut	(3-0, 0-0)
34	43	Kentucky	(3-0, 0-0)
35	35	Georgia Tech	(2-1, 1-1)
36	61	Air Force	(3-0, 1-0)
37	57	Southern Miss.	(2-1, 0-0)
38	38	Purdue	(1-1, 0-0)
39	39	Miami (FL)	(1-1, 0-0)
40	36	Arkansas State	(2-1, 0-0)
41	41	Boston College	(1-1, 0-1)
42	42	Arkansas	(2-0, 0-0)
43	44	Minnesota	(3-0, 0-0)
44	14	California	(2-1, 1-0)
45	45	West Virginia	(1-1, 0-0)
46	31	Houston	(1-2, 0-0)
47	NR	Notre Dame	(2-0, 0-0)
48	NR	North Carolina	(2-0, 0-0)
49	47	Bowling Green	(1-2, 0-0)
50	49	Pitt	(1-1, 0-0)

Week 2 Rankings

Rank	Previous	Team	Record
1	1	USC	(1-0, 0-0)
2	2	Georgia	(2-0, 0-0)
3	4	Missouri	(2-0, 0-0)
4	3	Ohio State	(2-0, 0-0)
5	5	Florida	(2-0, 0-0)
6	6	Texas Tech	(2-0, 0-0)
7	7	Oklahoma	(2-0, 0-0)
8	8	Wisconsin	(2-0, 0-0)
9	9	Kansas	(2-0, 0-0)
10	10	Utah	(2-0, 1-0)
11	12	Arizona State	(2-0, 1-0)
12	11	BYU	(2-0, 0-0)
13	13	Texas	(2-0, 0-0)
14	15	California	(2-0, 1-0)
15	14	Wake Forest	(2-0, 0-0)
16	16	Auburn	(2-0, 0-0)
17	17	Clemson	(1-1, 0-0)
18	21	Penn State	(2-0, 0-0)
19	19	Illinois	(1-1, 0-0)
20	20	LSU	(1-0, 0-0)
21	28	East Carolina	(2-0, 0-0)
22	22	Alabama	(2-0, 0-0)
23	23	Fresno State	(1-0, 0-0)
24	25	UCLA	(1-0, 0-0)
25	46	Oklahoma State	(2-0, 0-0)
26	27	Boise State	(1-0, 0-0)
27	31	Tulsa	(2-0, 1-0)
28	29	Tennessee	(0-1, 0-0)
29	32	South Florida	(2-0, 0-0)
30	33	TCU	(2-0, 1-0)
31	26	Houston	(1-1, 0-0)
32	52	Vanderbilt	(2-0 1-0)
33	34	Virginia Tech	(1-1, 0-0)
34	24	Central Michigan	(1-1, 0-0)
35	75	Georgia Tech	(2-0, 1-0)
36	41	Arkansas State	(2-0, 0-0)
37	39	Michigan	(1-1, 0-0)
38	42	Purdue	(1-0, 0-0)
39	37	Miami (FL)	(1-1, 0-0)
40	45	Oregon	(2-0, 1-0)
41	36	Boston College	(1-1, 0-1)
42	40	Arkansas	(2-0, 0-0)
43	58	Kentucky	(2-0, 0-0)
44	64	Minnesota	(2-0, 0-0)
45	18	West Virginia	(1-1, 0-0)
46	43	Connecticut	(2-0, 0-0)
47	35	Bowling Green	(1-1, 0-0)
48	38	South Carolina	(1-1, 0-1)
49	44	Pitt	(1-1, 0-0)
50	49	Rutgers	(0-1, 0-0)

9/5 College Football Poll

Rank Previous Team Record
1 1 USC (1-0, 0-0)
2 2 Georgia (1-0, 0-0)
3 3 Ohio State (1-0, 0-0)
4 5 Missouri (1-0, 0-0)
5 7 Florida (1-0, 0-0)
6 6 Texas Tech (1-0, 0-0)
7 9 Oklahoma (1-0, 0-0)
8 10 Wisconsin (1-0, 0-0)
9 12 Kansas (1-0, 0-0)
10 11 Utah (1-0, 0-0)
11 13 BYU (1-0, 0-0)
12 17 Arizona State (1-0, 0-0)
13 18 Texas (1-0, 0-0)
14 19 Wake Forest (1-0, 0-0)
15 16 California (1-0, 0-0)
16 21 Auburn (1-0, 0-0)
17 4 Clemson (0-1, 0-0)
18 20 West Virginia (1-0, 0-0)
19 15 Illinois (0-1, 0-0)
20 23 LSU (1-0, 0-0)
21 22 Penn State (1-0, 0-0)
22 43 Alabama (1-0, 0-0)
23 25 Fresno State (1-0, 0-0)
24 24 Central Michigan (1-0, 0-0)
25 28 UCLA (1-0, 0-0)

26 27 Houston (1-0, 0-0)
27 29 Boise State (1-0, 0-0)
28 NR East Carolina (1-0, 0-0)
29 26 Tennessee (0-1, 0-0)
31 31 Tulsa (1-0, 1-0)
32 32 South Florida (1-0, 0-0)
33 33 TCU (1-0, 1-0)
34 8 Virginia Tech (0-1, 0-0)
35 NR Bowling Green (1-0, 0-0)
36 37 Boston College (1-0, 0-0)
37 40 Miami (FL) (1-0, 0-0)
38 41 South Carolina (1-0, 0-0)
39 35 Michigan (0-1, 0-0)
40 39 Arkansas (1-0, 0-0)
41 NR Arkansas State (1-0, 0-0)
42 42 Purdue (0-0, 0-0)
43 44 Connecticut (1-0, 0-0)
44 14 Pitt (0-1, 0-0)
45 46 Oregon (1-0, 1-0)
46 47 Oklahoma State (1-0, 0-0)
47 48 Nevada (1-0, 0-0)
48 NR Stanford (1-0, 1-0)
49 34 Rutgers (0-1, 0-0)
50 50 Central Florida (1-0, 0-0)

College Football 08!

Since pre-season rankings are a joke, I projected out the records of every team I felt could be bowl-eligible. In the end, I projected records for 80 teams, 8 of which I feel will fall one win shy of becoming bowl eligible. Next I ranked the teams based on my projected final record for each team using the following parameters, in order:

1. Record
2. Quality of Wins
3. Relative amount of improvement/regression over the final half of the season (i.e. 2007 South Carolina Gamecocks scenario)

In the end, I do not expect any undefeated teams. I do expect chaos this season with not one, not two, not three, but 7 one-loss teams! Those teams are: USC, Georgia, Ohio State, Missouri, Clemson, Texas Tech, and Utah. Based largely on quality of wins, I have USC vs. Georgia in the National Championship. In case you're interested, here are the losses for those one-loss teams:

• USC losing at UCLA (12/6)
• Georgia losing at Auburn (11/15)
• Ohio State losing at USC (9/13)
• Clemson losing vs. South Carolina (11/29)
• Missouri losing at Texas (10/18)
• Texas Tech losing at Oklahoma (11/22)
• Utah losing at Michigan (9/30)

My other 3 BCS teams will be Florida, Virginia Tech, and Pitt. So, here is my top 50:

Rank	Previous	Team	Record
1	4	USC	(11-1, 7-1)
2	2	Georgia	(11-1, 7-1)
3	3	Ohio State	(11-1, 8-0)
4	15	Clemson	(11-1, 8-0)
5	5	Missouri	(11-1, 7-1)
6	17	Texas Tech	(11-1, 7-1)
7	20	Florida	(10-2, 7-1)
8	8	Virginia Tech	(10-2, 7-1)
9	9	Oklahoma	(10-2, 6-2)
10	23	Wisconsin	(10-2, 7-1)
11	24	Utah	(11-1, 8-0)
12	6	Kansas	(9-3, 5-3)
13	22	BYU	(10-2, 7-1)
14	NR	Pitt	(10-2, 6-1)
15	21	Illinois	(9-3, 6-2)
16	48	California	(10-2, 7-2)
17	16	Arizona State	(9-3, 7-2)
18	13	Texas	(9-3, 5-3)
19	29	Wake Forest	(9-3, 6-2)
20	7	West Virginia	(8-4, 4-3)
21	14	Auburn	(9-3, 5-3)
22	31	Penn State	(9-3, 5-3)
23	1	LSU	(8-4, 4-4)
24	NR	Central Michigan	(10-2, 8-0)
25	40	Fresno State	(9-3, 7-1)
26	12	Tennessee	(8-4, 5-3)
27	NR	Houston	(10-2, 7-1)
28	49	UCLA	(8-4, 5-4)
29	34	Boise State	(9-3, 7-1)
30	36	Texas A&M	(9-3, 5-3)
31	46	Tulsa	(9-3, 6-2)
32	35	South Florida	(8-4, 4-3)
33	38	TCU	(8-4, 5-3)
34	44	Rutgers	(8-4, 3-4)
35	19	Michigan	(7-5, 4-4)
36	NR	Miami (OH)	(9-3, 8-0)
37	11	Boston College	(7-5, 3-5)
38	27	Oregon State	(7-5, 6-3)
39	28	Arkansas	(7-5, 4-4)
40	NR	Miami (FL)	(7-5, 5-3)
41	39	South Carolina	(7-5, 4-4)
42	NR	Purdue	(7-5, 4-4)
43	NR	Alabama	(7-5, 4-4)
44	33	Connecticut	(7-5, 3-4)
45	10	Hawai'i	(7-6, 5-3)
46	25	Oregon	(6-6, 4-5)
47	41	Oklahoma State	(7-5, 3-5)
48	NR	Nevada	(8-4, 6-2)
49	NR	Florida Atlantic	(8-4, 6-1)
50	42	Central Florida	(7-5, 6-2)

Next Updates

By the end of the weekend, I will attempt to post some thoughts and predictions for the upcoming NFL and College Football Seasons. Until then, enjoy the new baseball post below.

2 Months Later...Updated MLB Ranks

Rank	Pre.	Team	Record	Run Diff.	SOS
1	1	Chicago Cubs	73-47	155	17
2	3	Los Angeles Angels	75-44	63	10
3	4	Tampa Bay Rays	72-47	65	1
4	2	Boston Red Sox	70-51	118	1
5	7	Chicago White Sox	67-52	74	5
6	25	Minnesota Twins	67-53	40	9
7	10	New York Yankees	64-57	38	3
8	12	Milwaukee Brewers	70-51	50	18
9	13	Toronto Blue Jays	62-59	40	7
10	22	New York Mets	64-56	48	27
11	6	St. Louis Cardinals	67-56	38	19
12	5	Philadelphia Phillies	64-56	71	21
13	18	Detroit Tigers	58-62	20	12
14	24	Los Angeles Dodgers	61-59	30	24
15	9	Arizona Diamondbacks	61-59	19	29
16	11	Florida Marlins	63-58	-21	27
17	19	Houston Astros	61-59	-24	15
18	15	Texas Rangers	61-60	-45	11
19	16	Baltimore Orioles	57-62	-14	3
20	8	Oakland Athletics	55-64	4	8
21	29	Kansas City Royals	54-66	-93	5
22	23	Cleveland Indians	54-65	9	12
23	20	Atlanta Braves	55-65	9	23
24	27	Colorado Rockies	54-68	-72	25
25	14	Pittsburgh Pirates	55-65	-81	16
26	17	Cincinnati Reds	53-68	-99	19
27	30	Seattle Mariners	46-74	-84	12
28	26	San Francisco Giants	50-69	-106	26
29	21	San Diego Padres	46-74	-109	29
30	28	Washington Nationals	44-77	-143	21

With approximately 40 games remaining for each team, here are my projected final standings:

AL EAST
Team	Record	GB	Win %
Boston Red Sox	93-69	0	0.574
*Tampa Bay Rays	92-70	1	0.568
New York Yankees	88-74	5	0.543
Toronto Blue Jays	84-78	9	0.519
Baltimore Orioles	71-97	22	0.438
AL CENTRAL
Team	Record	GB	Win %
Chicago White Sox	87-75	0	0.537
Minnesota Twins	84-78	3	0.519
Detroit Tigers	83-79	4	0.512
Cleveland Indians	79-83	8	0.488
Kansas City Royals	73-89	14	0.451
AL WEST
Team	Record	GB	Win %
Los Angeles Angels	97-65	0	0.599
Texas Rangers	80-82	17	0.494
Oakland Athletics	73-89	24	0.451
Seattle Mariners	72-90	25	0.444
* = Wildcard Winner
NL EAST
Team	Record	GB	Win %
New York Mets	88-74	0	0.543
Philadelphia Phillies	86-76	2	0.531
Florida Marlins	79-83	9	0.488
Atlanta Braves	79-83	9	0.488
Washington Nationals	62-100	26	0.383
NL CENTRAL
Team	Record	GB	Win %
Chicago Cubs	97-65	0	0.599
*Milwaukee Brewers	93-69	4	0.574
St. Louis Cardinals	84-78	13	0.519
Houston Astros	78-84	19	0.481
Pittsburgh Pirates	74-88	23	0.457
Cincinnati Reds	73-89	24	0.451
NL WEST
Team	Record	GB	Win %
Los Angeles Dodgers	85-77	0	0.525
Arizona Diamondbacks	83-79	2	0.512
Colorado Rockies	74-88	11	0.457
San Francisco Giants	69-93	16	0.426
San Diego Padres	68-94	17	0.420
* = Wildcard Winner
ALDS	Result
Rays @ Angels	LAA 3-2
White Sox @ Red Sox	BOS 3-2
NLDS	Result
Brewers @ Mets	MIL 3-2
Dodgers @ Cubs	CHC 3-1
ALCS	Result
Red Sox @ Angels	LAA 4-1
NLCS	Result
Brewers @ Cubs	CHC 4-3
World Series	Result
Angels vs. Cubs	CHC 4-2