....why Bill....would you buy Lindy's when Athlon and Phil Steele have UF at #1 and Lindy's only at #6? Actually I bought Athlon's and it is a pretty good preseason magazine but I have bought Lindy's too in the past. I usually do prefer one that has Florida rated higher because....hey because it's more fun to read! Imagine that..... :shock: Check out this composite rankings site that will only fill in with more rankings as they become known: http://www.collegefootballpoll.com/preseason_comparison.html UF is now at #1 in Athlon and in Phil Steele. I am starting to think the Gators will start off the season higher ranked than I anticipated.
I'm really surprised that USC isn't the consensus #1 this year. They have out recruited everybody over the last 5 years, their roster is deep, big,fast, talented and experienced plus Pete Carroll has proved himself to be one of the best coaches around. Not that being consensus #3 is chopped beef though.
well Terry <t>Some folks like their football played on the field, while others play it out in the world of hyperbole and marketing campaigns.<br/> <br/> You can't always get what you want.</t>
Preseason ranking really do not amount too much, except for the media. Once the games have been played, then the ratings will begin to make some sense. Don
hey don <r>A couple of guys named Pete and Mark are on the phone for you..... I think they wanna tell you something <E></E></r>
I used to think that we shouldn't have a poll before the last Sat in Sept. But then the made a new poll where the voters were former famous football coaches and players, Harris Poll? That poll didn't come out till the first week in Oct. I figured finally a poll that will be relevant. Well the first one that comes out virtually mirros the AP and Coaches polls. Proving that it really didn't matter, the problem people have with the early polls is that inevitably some teams who are ranked bomb in Sept and that for some reason pisses (many of) us all off.
One of the big problems with ANY poll is the mindset that teams can't be moved without losses. You can watch games and clearly see that some teams are much better than originally thought, and others are not but unless the teams in front of them lose, they can't move up... Of course, then there's the fact that the voters don't see half the teams play! :roll:
You are correct George. As a fervent college football fan I have always eagerly anticipated the arrival of the preseason magazines because they discuss in detail the teams I love and loathe and it is always great to get a preview of the sport I love to watch the most in early June. September doesn't come early enough for me because frankly baseball doesn't hold a candle to college football in my opinion. But hey...that is my opinion.
I am in total agreement with MCG here. I love seeing the preseason magazines start appearing on the shelf. that means college football's kickoff is less than three months away. True, the rankings in many of these magazines mean very little. However, I would argue that rankings do mean something even though some hate that fact. College football without rankings would not be college football. Whetther you like it or not, college football is the only sport whose champion is decided largely by public opinion. You can't tell me the press and the preseason rankings don't influence the voters whose vote DOES mean A LOT. Besides, many of these magazines provide a form of cliff notes on teams that you may not normally be able to follow. Perhaps, they'll even make MCG appreciate the Ohio State University and the Big 10. Doubtful............
LOL. Excuse me for one second, please. I need to look out my window to see if pigs are flying...............Nope, not yet. :lol:
I used to read the mags, every one of them. But because of the Internet I don't read them anymore. But even for all it's flaws, I couldn't imagine (anymore) starting the season without rankings. Terry
Uh...pigs are not flying....yet. Otherwise Aquila I agree with everything you are saying. The rankings are a big reason college football has the interest it does and it sells TV ads and tickets. When ABC can trumpet #1 Ohio State vs. #3 USC on September 13th and run promos for that all week it creates an audience much more so than "unranked" teams playing. It also creates debate and creates the huge upsets we all love to see....like #5 Michigan going down to App St. This year the Wolverines are most likely to be unranked heading into their game with Utah so a loss...while a pretty big upset will not get the same ink as if UM were #5 in the land. These preseason rankings do set the table for the real rankings and provide a decent sneak preview of what will come out in September.
Here's one place where we are certainly in agreement... Teams get ratings boosts when a big matchup is coming so that it can be promoted as a hugely important game.
Street and Smiths/Sporting News has Georgia at #1 followed by Ohio State...check the link and click on one of the mag covers: https://www.streetandsmiths.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=store.covers&catid=2&year=2008#