Hardest poll ever to pick

[Lehigh Football Nation]

It was killing me to pick my poll this weekend. By far this was the hardest one I've ever had to pick.

How far to drop ASU and Weber State, with two oh-so-close losses? Are they still Top 10?

Is it really fair to drop teams that played less tough teams than others? And does an 0-2 team deserve to be above a 2-0 team that played lesser competition?

How much to read into UNH's win over Ball State? How much to read into a close loss to a FBS school?

At least four schools I had to drop in the rankings, and it killed me to do it, since they didn't deserve to be dropped.

Hardest week ever.

[89Hen]

And does an 0-2 team deserve to be above a 2-0 team that played lesser competition?
Sometimes. 2-0 teams: Gardner-Webb, Hofstra, Old Dominion, NCA&T, Drake, Butler... heck, Alabama State is 3-0. I don't think any of the above should be ranked.

[ToTheLeft]

G-W and Hofstra are the only ones even close to being top 25... and Runnin' Bulldog win over NC State would put them into the top 25 for sure.

[asknoquarter21]

If you don't think ASU is in the top 10 in the country don't put them there.

The season is still young so rankings don't mean much, but if there are 10 teams you would hate to play more than App State then I don't think you can rank them in the top 10.

McNeese looked great and they SHOULD be in the top 10

[89Hen]

and Runnin' Bulldog win over NC State would put them into the top 25 for sure.
No doubt, but I think that's a long shot.

[ToTheLeft]

No doubt, but I think that's a long shot.

Agreed, but crazy things can and do happen. G-W played pretty scrappy against GT last year, so there is precedence.

[smallcollegefbfan]

Sometimes. 2-0 teams: Gardner-Webb, Hofstra, Old Dominion, NCA&T, Drake, Butler... heck, Alabama State is 3-0. I don't think any of the above should be ranked.

Heading into the season I saw six games that I thought Hofstra would lose and they haven't played any of those six yet. We will find out for sure how good they are in the next three weeks. Phil Steele picked them top 10 and I think we are going to know how accurate that was within three weeks for sure.

[89Hen]

Heading into the season I saw six games that I thought Hofstra would lose and they haven't played any of those six yet. We will find out for sure how good they are in the next three weeks.
Four actually. Richmond, Western Michigan, JMU and Maine. I see 0-4. xeyebrowx

[JMU Newbill]

If you don't think ASU is in the top 10 in the country don't put them there.

The season is still young so rankings don't mean much, but if there are 10 teams you would hate to play more than App State then I don't think you can rank them in the top 10.

McNeese looked great and they SHOULD be in the top 10


ASU is a top 10 team.

But I agree... I think the issue is more than McNeese proved they are a top notch team moreso than App showed they are not. Still think App should drop for losing an FCS game, but not out of the top 10 by any stretch.

[BDKJMU]

Heading into the season I saw six games that I thought Hofstra would lose and they haven't played any of those six yet. We will find out for sure how good they are in the next three weeks. Phil Steele picked them top 10 and I think we are going to know how accurate that was within three weeks for sure.

Yep, Oct 3 JMU @ Hofstra.

[smallcollegefbfan]

Four actually. Richmond, Western Michigan, JMU and Maine. I see 0-4. xeyebrowx

I was just talking about elite teams but yeah if you want to include all of the top 25 they have Maine and then UNH and Delaware later in the year. If Hofstra wins 1 of their next 3 then I could see them winning 8 games this year but if they go 0-3 then I think Maine will be tough to win and they will lose 2 more, at least. If they win 2 of their next 4 then they could be the sleeper team that Steele picked. xthumbsupx

[asknoquarter21]

ASU is a top 10 team.

But I agree... I think the issue is more than McNeese proved they are a top notch team moreso than App showed they are not. Still think App should drop for losing an FCS game, but not out of the top 10 by any stretch.

I agree, but they shouldn't be ranked above:

Villanova
Richmond
Northern Iowa
Montana
James Madison
New Hampshire
McNeese State

Other teams that could be ranked above App, but I don't know if they should be:

William and Mary's
Southern Illinois
Elon

[89Hen]

William and Mary's
xlolx Sorry, the 's just made me laugh.

[GrizFanStuckInUtah]

It was killing me to pick my poll this weekend. By far this was the hardest one I've ever had to pick.

How far to drop ASU and Weber State, with two oh-so-close losses? Are they still Top 10?

Is it really fair to drop teams that played less tough teams than others? And does an 0-2 team deserve to be above a 2-0 team that played lesser competition?

How much to read into UNH's win over Ball State? How much to read into a close loss to a FBS school?

At least four schools I had to drop in the rankings, and it killed me to do it, since they didn't deserve to be dropped.

Hardest week ever.

I think you can answer this one for yourself if you ask the following question:

What other FCS team would have done better against these FBS teams? If you can say there are 20 other temas, or 10 or 5, that should help you rank them. I don't think you can make a case that they have played that bad, it is early and they have made mistakes. But their level of competition is pretty high and they have performed pretty well and could be 2-0 with a few more plays going their way. If they were playing FCS, they wouldn't be top 25 for sure. xtwocentsx

[Native]

If you don't think ASU is in the top 10 in the country don't put them there.

The season is still young so rankings don't mean much, but if there are 10 teams you would hate to play more than App State then I don't think you can rank them in the top 10.

McNeese looked great and they SHOULD be in the top 10

Well said!

[Native]

I think you can answer this one for yourself if you ask the following question:

What other FCS team would have done better against these FBS teams? If you can say there are 20 other temas, or 10 or 5, that should help you rank them. I don't think you can make a case that they have played that bad, it is early and they have made mistakes. But their level of competition is pretty high and they have performed pretty well and could be 2-0 with a few more plays going their way. If they were playing FCS, they wouldn't be top 25 for sure. xtwocentsx

I do not blame voters for dropping Weber State a few notches after the close losses to Wyoming and Colorado State. I also dropped Weber on my own ballot.

Actually, the Wildcats' performances against tough competition is highly encouraging! (Beating the Sagarin predictor by a total of 18 points against FBS teams; producing 727 combined yards against tough defenses vs 740 allowed by a very young and inexperienced Weber defense...)

I can't wait to play the rest of the schedule! It will be hard to win 8 of the 9 remaining games and qualify for the post season,and even harder to run the table.

However, based on results so far, I actually think Weber has a chance to run the table and get a seed.

[The Gadfly]

Have I missed something . . . what has Cal Poly done. Not being a smart @ss, just wondering if I missed a big victory that they've won.

[drpnut]

I actually believe that UNI is the best team right now, but it is hard to justify putting them above unbeaten teams with 2 wins.

I feel that if we pollsters really voted who we thoguht the best 25 teams (all things considered: sos, DII teams played, FCS teams played, etc. ) the poll would look a lot different than it does now.

We need to take time to analyze each game, etc. But most of us do not have the time. xreadx

[Native]

I actually believe that UNI is the best team right now, but it is hard to justify putting them above unbeaten teams with 2 wins.

I feel that if we pollsters really voted who we thoguht the best 25 teams (all things considered: sos, DII teams played, FCS teams played, etc. ) the poll would look a lot different than it does now.

We need to take time to analyze each game, etc. But most of us do not have the time. xreadx

I have posted some predictions for Week Three on the AGS poll thread, for the convenience of the voters who use Sagarin's ratings. No sense in every one doing the same math over and over again.

[ngineer]

It was killing me to pick my poll this weekend. By far this was the hardest one I've ever had to pick.

How far to drop ASU and Weber State, with two oh-so-close losses? Are they still Top 10?

Is it really fair to drop teams that played less tough teams than others? And does an 0-2 team deserve to be above a 2-0 team that played lesser competition?

How much to read into UNH's win over Ball State? How much to read into a close loss to a FBS school?

At least four schools I had to drop in the rankings, and it killed me to do it, since they didn't deserve to be dropped.
Hardest week ever.

Then don't do it. A poll vote is one's subjective opinion molded by objective facts. I don't see it fair to penalize a team that 'steps up' and takes on a significant football power, i.e. Colorado State or Maryland, only to lose by eyelashes and reward those who get fat on cupcakes.xnodx