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Blog Poll v8.1 - Week 7

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Here is it and yes, I voted for Minnesota at #23. 

My ballot is unusually different from last week's.  I vaulted teams like Virginia Tech and North Carolina.  Not so much because they had outstanding weeks but because I felt like I had them too low to begin with.  On the flip side I dropped a handful of teams a spot or two despite winning their games, again this was a rethinking of where I had them and feeling as though BYU, Utah, Cal, Wake and Boise State were a bit too high in my week 6 poll.

As far as Minnesota is concerned I have no problem with my current ranking of the Gophers.  I realize there is a lot of discussion surrounding their lack of a difficult schedule.  But take a look at some of the other teams above or near the Gophers in the most recent AP/Coaches' polls and their strength of schedule ranking...

  • Minnesota - 77
  • Ball State - 107
  • TCU - 91
  • Tulsa - 141
  • Florida State - 127
  • BYU - 121
  • Missouri - 87
  • Texas Tech - 105
  • Kansas - 95
  • Georgia Tech - 89

Why do teams like Ball State, BYU, TCU or Texas Tech get ranked as high as they do despite a worse strength of schedule?  I know the Big Ten is down but does it actually deserve less respect than MAC or Mountain West?  BYU is the eithg best team in the country with a SOS ranking of 121? 

Minnesota earned a significant win on the road against a good team.  Their strength of schedule is not in the top 30, but they are winning their games and deserve a top 25 ranking as much as any of the other teams in the 20-27 range.

Rank Team Delta
1 Alabama 1
2 Texas 4
3 Penn State 2
4 Oklahoma 3
5 Southern Cal 2
6 Florida 4
7 Georgia 2
8 Ohio State --
9 Texas Tech 3
10 LSU 6
11 Missouri 8
12 Brigham Young 1
13 Kansas --
14 Oklahoma State 7
15 Virginia Tech 5
16 South Florida 1
17 Utah 1
18 Boise State 1
19 Wake Forest 1
20 California 1
21 Michigan State 1
22 North Carolina 4
23 Minnesota 3
24 Pittsburgh 1
25 Ball State 1

 

Dropped Out: Vanderbilt (#14), Northwestern (#23), Florida State (#24).

Thoughts?