Phil Steele is one of the most respected names in college football when it comes to rankings and opinions. On Thursday, he posted his 128-team "Power Poll" on his website, which is a ranking based off an aggregate of computer rankings that Steele uses.
Here's what Steele has for his Top 25:
(2014 record in parentheses)
1. Ohio State (14-1)
2. TCU (12-1)
3. Alabama (12-2)
4. USC (9-4)
5. Baylor (11-2)
6. Oregon (13-2)
7. Georgia (10-3)
8. Stanford (8-5)
9. Florida State (13-1)
10. LSU (8-5)
11. Michigan State (11-2)
12. UCLA (10-3)
13. Notre Dame (8-5)
14. Auburn (8-5)
15. Ole Miss (9-4)
16. Oklahoma (8-5)
17. Wisconsin (11-3)
18. Arkansas (7-6)
19. Tennessee (7-6)
20. Virginia Tech (7-6)
21. Utah (9-4)
22. Clemson (10-3)
23. Oklahoma State (7-6)
24. Georgia Tech (11-3)
25. Miami (6-7)
To no surprise, the defending national champs in Ohio State are No. 1. TCU — which finished last season 12-1 and returns quarterback Trevone Boykin — ranking in at No. 2 is hardly shocking, either.
The good stuff starts to come in at No. 3 with Alabama. Many outlets — including Phil Steele — have said that Alabama has the toughest schedule this season. While others have predicted the Crimson Tide to lose as many as five, Steele has some confidence in Nick Saban to keep the ship sailing by putting them at No. 3.
USC at No. 4 seems really high, especially over teams like Baylor, Georgia, Oregon, and UCLA that had more success last year than the Trojans did.
Steele also took to ESPN earlier today to release his predictions for the College Football Playoff rankings, which have quite a few differences. You should check it out as well.
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