Ohio State’s victory over Penn State moved the Buckeyes to the top of my new Associated Press Top 25 ballot.
Following the Buckeyes is No. 2 Florida State, No. 3 Georgia, No. 4 Michigan and No. 5 Oklahoma. FSU, with two top-25 wins, got the slight nod over Georgia.
There’s only one new team on my ballot this week: No. 25 Tulane. The Green Wave replace Iowa, which lost to Minnesota.
Here's my Week 9 AP ballot compared with Action Network senior writer Collin Wilson’s betting power ratings.
1
AP
Ohio State Buckeyes
3
PR
2
AP
Florida State Seminoles
7
PR
3
AP
Georgia Bulldogs
2
PR
4
AP
Michigan Wolverines
1
PR
5
AP
Oklahoma Sooners
10
PR
6
AP
Washington Huskies
6
PR
7
AP
Texas Longhorns
8
PR
8
AP
Alabama Crimson Tide
5
PR
9
AP
Oregon Ducks
4
PR
10
AP
Oregon State Beavers
20
PR
Ohio State, with its win vs. Penn State, and Alabama, with its win vs. Tennessee, made the biggest jump among teams in my top 10.
Collin and I nearly have the same 10 teams, just ranked in a different order. We both have Washington at No. 6 after the Huskies’ escape vs. Arizona State and Alabama at No. 8.
The biggest difference is Oklahoma. I ranked OU No. 5, while Collin has the Sooners at No. 10.
11
AP
Utah Utes
16
PR
12
AP
Ole Miss Rebels
13
PR
13
AP
Penn State Nittany Lions
9
PR
14
AP
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
12
PR
15
AP
LSU Tigers
11
PR
16
AP
Missouri Tigers
22
PR
17
AP
Duke Blue Devils
26
PR
18
AP
Air Force Falcons
40
PR
19
AP
North Carolina Tar Heels
23
PR
20
AP
Louisville Cardinals
33
PR
Collin’s betting power ratings only have five of my next 10 teams in the grouping. We both have Utah, Ole Miss, Notre Dame and LSU ranked between Nos. 11-20.
The biggest disparity is Air Force. I ranked the undefeated Falcons at No. 18, but Collin’s power ratings have Air Force at No. 40.
21
AP
UCLA Bruins
17
PR
22
AP
James Madison Dukes
51
PR
23
AP
Tennessee Volunteers
14
PR
24
AP
Tulane Green Wave
42
PR
25
AP
USC Trojans
21
PR
USC is the only team both Collin and I ranked between Nos. 21-25. I dropped the Trojans to No. 25 after their second consecutive loss, while Collin has them at No. 21.
Unbeaten James Madison is our biggest disagreement: I ranked the Dukes at No. 22, but Collin rates them at No. 51.
Collin also has five schools in the top 25 of his betting power ratings that I didn’t rank: No. 15 Texas A&M, No. 18 Clemson, No. 19 Kansas State, No. 24 Miami and No. 25 Washington State.
