4 weeks in is enough time to get a decent read on teams, so here is my top ten after 4 weeks.  This is based mostly on results on the field and how good I think a team is (generally) and does account for other subjective factors to a small degree.

1. Alabama
2. Oregon
3. Kansas State
4. Florida State
5. Louisiana State
6. South Carolina
7. Georgia
8. Stanford
9. Oregon State
10. Notre Dame
9/24/2012 12:02 PM

I'd take out Oregon State and Notre Dame.   Put WV and USC in there.

I think AL and OR are clear 1-2.   3-9(leaving USC at 10 until they get an impressive win) could be randomly drawn from a hat.

9/24/2012 12:35 PM
Not buying Kansas State that high... at least not yet.  Good game against the Sooners for sure... top 10 quality, maybe.  But #3 seems like a desperate grab at picking some team that isn't in West or South. Notre Dame has played Navy, Purdue, Michigan State, and Michigan.  Its a solid start but with the Big10 down this year, I don't think they have quite changed my mind about them yet... but they are close!  Here's mine. 

1. Alabama
2. Oregon
3. LSU
4. Florida State
5. South Carolina
6. Georgia
7. USC
8. Stanford
9. Kansas State
10. West Virginia

Apparently I pretty much agree with MikeT!
9/24/2012 1:31 PM
USC ahead of Stanford is plain silly.

Stanford not only beat them last week but the 3 wins USC have are all against teams who have only one win. Syracuse beat FCS Stoneybrook; Hawaii beat FCS Lamar, and then California beat FCS Southern Utah. Cal gave Ohio St a run, and should've won, but that's the best thing you can say about a USC victory thus far.

Stanford's 2 wins are much more impressive. San Jose St is 3-1 and only one of their Ws came against an FCS school. Same for Duke.
9/24/2012 2:46 PM
Syracuse played USC awfully tough, too; that game was very close until the end (score was 21-16 USC going into the 4th). USC has a poor defense, little depth, and playmakers on offense. That's about it. If Lee, Woods, or Barkley get hurt, that team is in serious trouble. Best thing they have is a weak schedule.
9/24/2012 2:59 PM
Posted by cydrych on 9/24/2012 1:31:00 PM (view original):
Not buying Kansas State that high... at least not yet.  Good game against the Sooners for sure... top 10 quality, maybe.  But #3 seems like a desperate grab at picking some team that isn't in West or South. Notre Dame has played Navy, Purdue, Michigan State, and Michigan.  Its a solid start but with the Big10 down this year, I don't think they have quite changed my mind about them yet... but they are close!  Here's mine. 

1. Alabama
2. Oregon
3. LSU
4. Florida State
5. South Carolina
6. Georgia
7. USC
8. Stanford
9. Kansas State
10. West Virginia

Apparently I pretty much agree with MikeT!
Kansas State not only won at Oklahoma but also crushed Miami 52-13.  And sure this isn't Miami from the early 2000's, but Miami is 3-1 with 2 ACC wins thus far this year.  Collectively those are the two best wins any team has this year.  Thus, plenty of reason to have them at #3 and frankly I wouldn't be surprised if the computers had them at 1 (right now).  Now granted I do not believe Kansas State is better than some of the teams I have behind them, but based on the season thus far Kansas State is more than deserving of #3 at this point.

And it is absolutely ridiculous to have USC ahead of Stanford right now.  Sure by the end of the year USC might have proven itself more worthy, but right now, totally and utterly ridiculous. 
9/24/2012 3:10 PM
1- ALABAMA
2-LSU
3-SOUTH CAROLINA
4-GEORGIA
5-OREGON
6-KANSAS ST.
7-FLA ST
8-W.VIRGINIA
9-STANFORD
10-TEXAS
9/24/2012 3:12 PM
Yeah, I see what you guys are saying.  I am ranking teams based on how good I think the teams are... not what they deserve after 4 weeks of the season.

If I were ranking teams based on what they deserve just by the games they have already played, I'd go with:

#1 Florida
#2 Alabama
#3 Notre Dame
#4 Stanford
#5 Oregon
#6 LSU
#7 Kansas State
#8 Georgia
#9 Florida State
#10 South Carolina

Now obviously I don't think that's how its going to play out in 3 months so you get a completely different set of picks.

9/24/2012 3:23 PM
K-State has been pretty impressive but they haven't faced a real D.   The B12 just doesn't play D.    I think they'd find themselves in the same boat as Mizzou in SEC.   Good enough to hang around but eventually beaten down by the bigger, superior athletes. 

I can find something wrong with everyone on the 3-9 I listed.
9/24/2012 3:34 PM
cydrych, while I understand people use rankings differently, I am still at a loss as to what exactly USC has done to make you feel USC is "better" than Stanford.

I mean Stanford just beat USC last week. Now in November, that won't mean nearly as much, but right now I can't think of a single reason you could possibly think USC is better than a team that just beat them.

The struggles vs Syracuse, the beat down of Hawaii? Or do you feel California is so good that an 18 point win at home is more telling than the loss at Stanford?

9/24/2012 5:18 PM
1 game is one game - a 7 point home victory is hardly conclusive proof of supremacy.  Almost everything is still ultimately eye test at this point because there has been so little in the way of meaningful competition.   I mean, moranis has Oregon State at #9 based on 1 win over a Wisconsin team that everyone expected to be good but that has shown zero evidence that it is, and UCLA team that people believed was good based primarily on a victory over a Nebraska team that again, everyone thought was good but hasn't demonstrated that against anyone worthwhile.  And maybe he's right.  

I wouldn't put USC above Stanford at this point either, but I don't find it preposterous if the ranking is literally how good he thinks the teams actually are.
9/24/2012 8:39 PM
Not done... will do.  If we are going by what they have done, they aren't in my top 10 (my 2nd rankings).  But I expect USC to win the rest of their regular season games.  I don't think Stanford will. 
9/24/2012 8:41 PM
Isn't most of this based on where they started and what they've done?   Has anyone mentioned a team that didn't start in the top 25?   Does LSU's two point win over Auburn, who lost to Clemson, who got smoked by FSU, keep them at the top?
9/24/2012 10:37 PM
1. Minnesota
2. Alabama
3. Oregon
4. LSU
5. Notre Dame
6. South Carolina
7. Stanford
8. Florida St.
9. Georgia
10. West Virgina
9/24/2012 10:59 PM
1.Alabama
2. LSU
3. Oregon
4. Florida
5. Florida State
6. Georgia
7. Kansas State
8. Stanford
9. South Carolina
10. Notre Dame

9/25/2012 12:49 AM
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