By Chris Williams, CycloneFanatic.com Publisher
The fact that the Associated Press doesn’t give me a vote in the AP Top 25 is a crime isn’t it? I mean come on! Who is more qualified to vote for the nation’s top 25 teams than the publisher of CycloneFanatic.com? (JIMLAD)
Regardless, I am going to start posting my "ballot" here once a week. My thought is that you all will submit yours as well. This way, we can hash it out and show those big boys at the AP who the real "experts" are. Here’s my ballot for Sunday, Sept. 19.
1 – Alabama, 3-0 – Kinda of tough to not put the Tide here.
2 – Ohio State, 3-0 – Flawless so far in 2010 with an impressive win over Miami (Fla.). Expect the Bucks to feast on cupcake Easter Michigan next Saturday.
3 – Boise State, 2-0 – Went on the road to spank Wyoming 51-6 on Saturday.
4 – Oregon, 3-0 – The Ducks have outscored their first three opponents 189-13.
5 – Nebraska, 3-0 – Washington was no test for redshirt freshman QB Taylor Martinez. Bo Pelini’s defense might be the best in America.
6 – Oklahoma, 3-0 – After some close calls, the Sooners are still 3-0. They’ll be tested again this week with a road trip to Cincinnati.
7 – Texas, 3-0 – Great road win at Lubbock on Saturday night, despite Garrett Gilbert’s three interceptions. Opponents are averaging only 44 rushing yards per game against the Horns.
8 – TCU, 3-0 – A 45-10 win over Baylor was impressive but I still don’t think this team is better than the bad boys of the Big 12.
9 – South Carolina, 3-0 – I love the fact that the Ol’ Ball Coach is calling plays again. The Cocks rank ninth in America in scoring defense.
10 – Arkansas, 3-0 – Ryan Mallett could be the best quarterback in America. He’s averaging 359.33 yards of total offense per game in wins over Tennessee Tech, Louisiana-Monroe and Georgia (road game). Top-ranked Alabama comes to town this week.
11 – Florida, 3-0 – This young Gator team should get better by the week. Still, they’ve had some scary moments over the first three weeks.
12 – Arizona, 3-0 – Nick Foles threw for 303 yards and two touchdowns against a salty Iowa defense. This team does the little things right. Ranked third nationally in total defense.
13 – Wisconsin, 3-0 – Struggled with Arizona State at home this week, winning 20-19.
14 – Utah, 3-0 – After their season opening win over Pitt, the Utes have dominated the likes of UNLV and New Mexico. San Jose State is their only game before heading to Ames on Oct. 9.
15 – Auburn, 3-0 – Quarterback Cam Newton has been fantastic, accounting for nine touchdowns (7 passing, 2 rushing) and only 3 interceptions. South Carolina comes to town next Saturday.
16 – LSU, 3-0 – The Tigers have something that few programs can claim right now. That is three quality wins against North Carolina (road game), Vanderbilt (road game), and Mississippi State.
17 – Iowa, 2-1 – The Hawks are the first team with a loss on my ballot. Just like every Kirk Ferentz team does, they’ll get better as the season rolls along. That defense is too good to count Iowa out of the Big Ten title picture after losing a road game to a quality team like Arizona.
18 – Stanford, 3-0 – The Cardinal rank third nationally in scoring offense averaging 51.67 points per game in wins over Sacramento St., UCLA and Wake Forest. They’ll travel to South Bend next week.
19 – Michigan, 3-0 – UMASS gave the Wolverines a scare on Saturday. This team apparently knows how to win though. Quarterback Denard Robinson ranks first nationally in total offense averaging 410 yards per game.
20 – Miami, 1-1 – The Canes will be tested on Thursday night with a road trip to Pitt. That game could set the tone for the rest of their season.
21 – Michigan State, 3-0 – Sparty proved that he has stones on Saturday with an amazing fake field goal overtime win over Notre Dame.
22 – USC, 3-0 – This team hasn’t had a comfortable win yet. They don’t appear to be really good at anything either. Still, the Trojans will be 4-0 after next week with Washington State next on the schedule.
23 – Nevada, 3-0 – The Wolf Pack rank third nationally in total offense. A 52-31 win over CAL on national television helped their cause in week three.
24 – Florida State, 2-1 – The Seminoles impressed my by bouncing back to a bad loss to Oklahoma to beat BYU by 24. The Florida State defense is much improved this season in a weak ACC.
25 – Air Force, 2-1 – Can a team enter the rankings after a loss? In my mind, yes. As you’d expect, the Falcons lead the nation in rush offense averaging 399 yards per game.
