Pound for Pound: Polling data

Published 10:30 am Tuesday, August 6, 2024

I was sitting at my desk Monday afternoon kicking around some ideas for this space when I suddenly received a gift from above.

USA Today released its first coaches poll of the top 25 college football teams heading into the 2024 season, giving writers something to talk about as we navigate these last few painful weeks while we wait for games to kick off.

Yes, they have no bearing on playoff berths, but preseason polls are part of the hype machine that makes college football great. Who’s too high? Who’s too low? Who’s where they should be? How did the coaches do with their prediction last preseason? These are all things we look at as the countdown draws closer to zero.

Starting at the top, the Georgia Bulldogs stand tall at No. 1 after having earned 46 of 55 first-place votes. Based on the poll’s point system and my exceedingly average math skills, the Dawgs were voted either No. 1 or No. 2 in just about every submission. It was a very similar story last year as just one conference championship loss kept the Bulldogs from making the four-team playoff in a year where there were too many worthy teams and not enough slots. That won’t happen in 2024 as the playoff has been expanded (too far) to 12 teams. If Georgia doesn’t make that cut, this season isn’t just a disappointment, it’s an abject failure.

Ohio State enters at No. 2 with seven first-place votes. The Buckeyes, in my opinion, are too high. While they do own one of the more talented rosters in all of college football, they’re likely starting Kansas State transfer Will Howard at quarterback. He’s going to have to show me something in order to make me believe OSU is the second best team in the country. Also, two of their three toughest games are on the road. Watch out for that defense, though.

Oregon, one of Ohio State’s opponents and new Big Ten member, comes in at No. 3. Don’t hate it. Texas is fourth, Alabama is fifth, and Ole Miss is sixth, giving the SEC four of the top six teams and six of the top 12 in the country (with No. 11 Missouri and No. 12 LSU) according to college football coaches. Four of the top 12 are from the Big Ten. No. 7 Notre Dame and No. 10 FSU are the other two teams. Remember, only the top four ranked conference champs will receive a first-round bye in the new 12-team playoff. You could have 1 versus 2 meet in a conference championship game and both would make the playoff, but only one is rewarded with an extra week of rest in this new, extended format.

What’s more, Florida State is the highest-ranked non-SEC or Big Ten member that’s part of a conference at No. 10. The Seminoles could enter the ACC Championship with that same ranking, but with a win come away with a top-four slot and a playoff bye.

It’ll be interesting to see how this 12-team playoff experiment that puts so much emphasis on conference championships works out. For now, we’ve got semi-meaningless polls to argue about.