Synan Says: The Real Top 25 in College Football, Week 7

By
MIKE SYNAN
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After a rash of upsets this past weekend, who is still in the national title hunt?  The answer: most teams (maybe even Miami). Several teams choked away their opportunity to run the table this past week but hope remains eternal, especially as more bizarre things are about to happen before we get through the first weekend in December.

I really enjoyed watching UCF come from behind in a rain storm to beat a barely above average Memphis team. This was the exact type of game that other teams chasing the national title have lost this year. This UCF team has something special going again this season. After getting torched on the ground in the first half, the defense stiffened in the second half and McKenzie Milton made clutch plays late. The Hawaiian native is a special player that deserves Heisman (or as UCF likes to call it HIesman) consideration.

I’ve asked myself each week: what is the most impressive win you’ve seen in college football? For several weeks the title was held by LSU, first for the thrashing they put on Miami, then by winning at Auburn. Those two wins took a hit this week but, lo and behold, the title still belongs to LSU. The Tigers pounded UGA over the weekend by being the more skilled and the more physical team. Other wins this season to consider? How about Ohio State at Penn State and Texas on a neutral field over Oklahoma? All of the sudden, Notre Dame’s Week 1 win over Michigan is looking a lot better. If they faced off again, do you think Notre Dame would still be favored?

Are you down and dejected because your Georgia Bulldogs lost? Your West Virginia Mountaineers coughed it up too may times at Iowa State? What if you are a dejected Miami Hurricane fan wondering if either quarterback you have can get you to the ACC  championship game? My advice to you is take a deep breath and recalibrate. Your season is not over. There is a path to the National Championship for all of the teams above except the Hurricanes and even they can make the big boy bowl games if they get on a winning streak. West Virginia still has Texas and Oklahoma. UGA still plays Florida, Kentucky and potentially Alabama in the SEC title game.

Here is my Top 25 for the week beginning October 14th.

  1. Alabama (7-0) Handled a pretty high flying offense in Missouri.
  2. Notre Dame (7-0) Still have wins over Michigan, Stanford and Virginia Tech even if they barely survived Pitt.
  3. Ohio State (7-0) Kept Minnesota in the game for too long but, boy, is Haskins good.
  4. Clemson (7-0) Get undefeated NC State at home next week.
  5. LSU (6-1) They win out, they go to BCS playoffs.
  6. UCF (6-0) Knights should feel lucky to have escaped Memphis.
  7. Texas (6-1) They are not winning the Big 12 with Shane Buechele at quarterback.
  8. NC State (5-0) Their resume is horrible, but they haven’t lost. Likely won’t be here next week.
  9. Florida (6-1) LSU win looks better this week and they made a nice comeback to control Vandy.
  10. Michigan (6-1) Only loss to Notre Dame and now have a big win over Wisconsin.
  11. Kentucky (5-1) How can they be behind Florida? They haven’t beaten LSU.
  12. Oregon (5-1) Thrilling overtime victory over Washington finally gives them a good win.
  13. USF (6-0) If you saw them escape at Tulsa you won’t question why all those one loss teams are ahead of them.
  14. Georgia (6-1) No quality wins for Dawgs but can get one when they play Florida.
  15. Oklahoma (5-1) At Iowa State is their best win, something WVU could not do.
  16. Cincinnati (6-0) They may be an underdog this week at Temple.
  17. West Virginia (5-1) The wheels fell off in Ames thanks to turnovers.
  18. Washington St. (5-1) Wins are not good but Utah win looks better this week.
  19. Texas A&M (5-2) Only losses to Bama and Clemson.
  20. Colorado (5-1) Best win is against an average Arizona State team.
  21. Iowa (5-1) Only loss is to Wisconsin, best win over Iowa State.
  22. Mississippi State (4-2) Best win–over Auburn–not very good but only losses are to Florida and Kentucky.
  23. Stanford (4-2) Lost to Utah without Bryce Love. Have beaten Oregon and USC.
  24. Duke (5-1) Not a full believer but they can win ACC Coastal.
  25. Utah State (5-1) Why rank Utah State? I’ve seen them play twice. They are actually as good as many Power 5 schools.

 

 Reach Mike Synan at Mike.Synan@floridadaily.com.

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