Alabama Football: The latest polls and if they matter

After Georgia wallowed around on Saturday against Kent State and Alabama hammered Vanderbilt, some Alabama football fans thought the Crimson Tide might return to No. 1.

There were lots of changes in the latest AP and Coaches Polls, but not much at the top. The top five spots in the AP Poll did not change. In the Coaches Poll, the top six spots were unchanged. Georgia was No. 1 again in both polls.

Let’s consider how much or how little either poll matters.

For Alabama Football and the handful of frequent CFB Playoff contenders, only one set of rankings matters; the one done by the CFB Playoff Selection Committee.

Over the years, the committee has given many explanations of how it ranks teams. Some vagueness remains, whether intentional or not. The committee has said it considers the major poll results, as well as multiple computer ratings.

It is impossible to satisfy every fanbase of every team, every season. Even if the Playoff was expanded to every FBS team, there would be considerable disputes over seeding.

Alabama Football fans have had no complaints

The primary goal of the committee has been choosing the four best teams, leading to the nation’s two best playing for the Championship. Arguably, the committee has done that pretty darn well.

The majority of college football fans appear to trust the AP Poll more than the Coaches Poll. Some fans think one or more of the computer rankings are more accurate.

Let’s compare the first CFB Playoff ranking of the 2021 season and the AP Poll that was released a couple of days before.  Only three teams were ranked the same by the two groups. They were Georgia at No. 1, Oklahoma State at No. 11 and Kentucky at No. 18.

Alabama Football was No. 3 in the AP Poll and at No. 2 by the Selection Committee.

The largest deviations in rankings were for Cincinnati and Oklahoma. The Bearcats were No. 2 in the AP Poll and No. 6 in the CFB Playoff rankings. Oklahoma was No. 4 by the AP, but No. 8 by the Selection Committee.

In addition, six teams ranked in the AP Poll on Oct. 31, 2021 were not included in the Selection Committee’s Top rankings. Those teams were Texas – San Antonio (UTSA), Houston, Coastal Carolina, Penn State, SMU and Louisiana. Instead, the committee ranked Mississippi State, North Carolina State, Minnesota, Wisconsin, San Diego State and Pitt.

Considering that one week example of teams ranked and not ranked begs a question. Do media voters, intentionally or not, overvalue underdogs?

It could be, once the Playoff expands to 12 teams, watching frequent blowouts of underdogs will become less compelling.

Note the sources for the 2021 rankings comparison were: collegepollarchive.com and collegefootballplayoff.com

Do the traditional, major polls still matter? They do, like watching all of a race rather than just the finish. But in the end, only one ranking matters. The first Selection Committee ranking for 2022 will be on Nov. 1.