Goz’s College Football Top 25 Poll (Week 9)

This season I’ll be providing my own personal Top 25 poll each week during the college football season. My poll philosophy is ranking the teams I believe are the best twenty five best in the country following that given week’s games. Below are my rankings and comments about each week’ biggest shake up and changes.

1) Alabama

2) Michigan

3) Clemson

4) Louisville

5) Washington

6) Ohio State

7) Baylor

8) Nebraska

9) Texas A&M

10) Florida

11) Wisconsin

12) West Virginia

13) Florida State

14) LSU

15) Boise State

16) Western Michigan

17) Auburn

18) Oklahoma

19) North Carolina

20) Tennessee

21) Utah

22) Navy

23) Penn State

24) Colorado

25) Washington State

Louisville over Washington?!- It’s important to remember that this ranking is about who I believe are the best twenty five teams are in the country. I understand Washington is undefeated and Louisville has one loss but if the Huskies and Cardinals were to play each other, I believe Louisville would win that game. Lamar Jackson is running away with the Heisman Trophy. Washington’s most impressive win was over Stanford which is looking weaker now that the Cardinal are struggling. I believe Jake Browning and company are very good but just not as good as Louisville.

I was right all season about LSU, Auburn and Houston-It’s been written here almost every week and it had become what makes my poll controversial at times during the season. In comparison to the AP Poll results I throughout the season have had LSU and Auburn much higher and Houston much lower. The national poll is now looking more like behind has for weeks as LSU jumped 4 spots to 19 and Auburn jumped seven spots to 17. Both teams are very good and could contend with anyone in the country.

Has Baylor. West Virginia and Nebraska hit their ceiling?  That’s a very interesting question. Nebraska’s two toughest games are approaching. The Cornhuskers get Wisconsin this week and Ohio State next week. However I don’t believe Nebraska could get higher than five if all the teams above them keep winning. Unless these wins are impressive, from my projections Nebraska would need to beat Michigan in the Big Ten title game to get into the college football playoff Baylor and West Virginia are even more complicated. The Bears get Oklahoma (a team that just let up historic numbers on defense) in November then they close out the year with West Virginia. The Big 12 has not been good this season. I don’t believe an undefeated Big 12 team could leap an undefeated SEC, ACC, Big Ten or Pac 12 champion.

Tom “Goz” Goslowski is a Heisman Trophy and College Football Hall of Fame voter. You can hear him every weekday 2-7pm on Levack and Goz on 1045 The Team.