The first week of the college football season has concluded, and this still isn't any easier. BlogPoll ballot below, and explanations after the jump.
The Only Colors Ballot - Week 1
| Rank | Team | Delta |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alabama Crimson Tide | -- |
| 2 | USC Trojans | -- |
| 3 | Oregon Ducks | -- |
| 4 | West Virginia Mountaineers | -- |
| 5 | Georgia Bulldogs | -- |
| 6 | LSU Tigers | -- |
| 7 | Oklahoma Sooners | -- |
| 8 | Michigan St. Spartans | -- |
| 9 | South Carolina Gamecocks | -- |
| 10 | Clemson Tigers | -- |
| 11 | Florida St. Seminoles | -- |
| 12 | Nebraska Cornhuskers | -- |
| 13 | Ohio St. Buckeyes | -- |
| 14 | Wisconsin Badgers | -- |
| 15 | Oklahoma St. Cowboys | -- |
| 16 | Kansas St. Wildcats | -- |
| 17 | TCU Horned Frogs | -- |
| 18 | Texas Longhorns | -- |
| 19 | Louisville Cardinals | -- |
| 20 | Notre Dame Fighting Irish | -- |
| 21 | Virginia Tech Hokies | -- |
| 22 | Boise St. Broncos | -- |
| 23 | Tennessee Volunteers | -- |
| 24 | Michigan Wolverines | -- |
| 25 | Ohio Bobcats | -- |
SB Nation BlogPoll College Football Top 25 Rankings "
1. Alabama -- pummeled a Top 25 team in a neutral environment. The best win of the week, and the easiest choice I had to make.
2. USC -- A 49-14 win against Hawaii sounds about right for the Trojans.
3. Oregon -- Score seven touchdowns in the first half? That's a paddlin'.
4. West Virginia -- Geno Smith went 32/36? Yikes to the Big 12.
5. Georgia -- Had a bit of trouble with Buffalo, but pulled the game out in the second half.
6. LSU -- A 41-14 win over North Texas means things stay pretty much status quo for the Tigers.
7. Oklahoma -- Let UTEP in the game for way too long to stay at #2.
8. Michigan State -- A small rise for beating Boise State, mainly because of the small margin of victory and uncertainty about Boise's quality this season.
9. South Carolina -- A close but good win on the road against Vanderbilt keeps the Gamecocks in the top 10.
10. Clemson -- Dropped a few spots for needing to come back against Auburn.
Now notes on the rest:
- Nebraska/Ohio St./Wisconsin -- 2nd/3rd/4th Big Ten teams in the ballot due to the first two's great performances against Southern Miss and Miami (OH), and the latter's lackluster showing against Northern Iowa.
- Oklahoma State -- Beat a team 84-0, sure, but how good could Savannah State possibly have been? They get a small bump.
- Louisville -- A win over middling Kentucky, but Kentucky's still a BCS team, and a lot better than most of the other wins this weekend. The Cardinals get a bump.
- Notre Dame -- Navy may not have the caliber of its past teams, but a 40 point win is still a 40 point win, especially when a team has to travel overseas to do it. The Fighting Irish make their ballot debut.
- Virginia Tech -- Nearly did not rank them purely out of spite for keeping me up late. An OT win at home against Georgia Tech isn't the best look to start the season.
- Boise State -- Played well enough on the road to stay on the ballot. Will either rise significantly or drop off the poll altogether in two weeks against BYU.
- Tennessee -- See Louisville: A win over a not great BCS squad stands out this week.
- Michigan -- Because as the 2011 Capital One Bowl taught us, even a Top 25 squad can be atomized by Alabama. Will withhold judgment until next week.
- Ohio - Their presence in this ballot in the future will be partially dependent on Penn State's quality. For now, they slot in in the final position.
Let me know what you think, if I need to add teams, move teams, etc. This is all held up with toothpicks and glue anyway.