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RTT BlogPoll Computer Rankings: Week 11 Draft

Here is the rough draft for RTT's BlogPoll Ballot.  As always, the rough is taken straight from the computer rankings.  We will then use feedback and human judgment to make adjustments - and there are some adjustments that will be virtually mandatory this week.

RankTeamDelta
1 Florida
2 Texas
3 Alabama 1
4 TCU 1
5 Georgia Tech 2
6 Cincinnati
7 Boise State 2
8 Ohio State 6
9 Virginia Tech 9
10 Penn State 5
11 Pittsburgh
12 Oregon 2
13 Iowa 5
14 Brigham Young 3
15 Oklahoma
16 LSU 3
17 Arizona 8
18 Miami (Florida) 5
19 Oklahoma State 5
20 Nebraska 3
21 Oregon State
22 Wisconsin
23 Clemson
24 Southern Cal 12
25 Stanford
Last week's ballot

Dropped Out: Houston (#16), Utah (#20), West Virginia (#25).

 

Wow.  Lots of movement.  Topics of discussion follow, as well as all of the computer data.

Continue reading this post »

14 comments  |  0 recs |

Evening Games and Open Discussion Thread

It's been a while since we've had an early game, so we're not exactly used to having games after the Vols play.  If you're still watching, feel free to give us some thoughts.  Also feel free to exhale about the Tennessee Volunteers loss some more if you haven't already done so.  Just remember:  it's never a good idea to go to bed angry.

Also on tap is the Auburn Tigers / Georgia Bulldogs tilt, which has huge implications for Tennessee's divisional standings:  a loss by Georgia re-establishes Tennessee in the driver's seat for second place - a feat that very few people thought was possible at the beginning of the season.

Other topics:

  • Upsets.  What are your thoughts on USC or Houston?
  • Bowl Standings.  Where do you see Tennessee going?  What about the rest of the SEC?
  • BlogPoll Rankings.  How do you see teams moving?  Which teams will give the computers problems?

309 comments  |  0 recs |

ESPN College GameDay and late games open thread

Brace yourself, Vol fans. GameDay may be in Fort Worth, Texas for TCU-Utah, but you can expect much discussion of our little journey into the bizarre this week.

Leave your thoughts on the show below. We'll bump this puppy back to the top after the Tennessee game so it can serve as the open thread for the rest of the day as well. Here's the suggested schedule again:

Watch these live

Saturday, 11/14/09
Tennessee
@
Mississippi 12:00 p.m. CBS
Florida
@
South Carolina 3:30 p.m. CBS
Auburn
@
Georgia 7:00 p.m. ESPN2

Flip between/DVR these

Saturday, 11/14/09
Iowa
@
Ohio State 3:30 p.m. ABC

All times EST

 

11 comments  |  0 recs

What Tennessee Volunteer fans should watch, record this week

Watch these live

Thursday, 11/12/09
Bowling Green
@
Miami of Ohio 6:00 p .m. ESPNU
Friday, 11/13/09
West Virginia
@
Cincinnati 8:00 p.m. ESPN2
Saturday, 11/14/09
Tennessee
@
Mississippi 12:00 p.m. CBS
Florida
@
South Carolina 3:30 p.m. CBS
Auburn
@
Georgia 7:00 p.m. ESPN2

Flip between/DVR these

Saturday, 11/14/09
Iowa
@
Ohio State 3:30 p.m. ABC

All times EST

2 comments  |  0 recs |

RTT BlogPoll Computer Rankings: Week 10 Final Ballot

After thinking the rankings through, here is this week's final BlogPoll ballot with the human overrides in place.  Houston comes up, and Ohio State and Penn State sink.  Iowa didn't slide, and I'll explain why in the following section.  And I'm sure I've made everybody just a little disappointed, which probably means that game theory is happy.

RankTeamDelta
1 Florida
2 Texas
3 TCU
4 Alabama
5 Boise State 1
6 Cincinnati 1
7 Georgia Tech 3
8 Iowa 3
9 Arizona 6
10 Oregon 2
11 Pittsburgh 2
12 Southern Cal
13 Miami (Florida) 6
14 Ohio State 2
15 Penn State 6
16 Houston
17 Brigham Young 1
18 Virginia Tech 1
19 LSU 8
20 Utah 6
21 Oregon State
22 Wisconsin
23 Nebraska
24 Oklahoma State
25 West Virginia 4
Last week's ballot

Dropped Out: Oklahoma (#20), Notre Dame (#25).

Continue reading this post »

2 comments  |  0 recs |

SEC Power Poll: Rocky Top Talk Ballot

Powerpoll2009logo_medium

  1. Florida Gators
  2. Alabama Crimson Tide
  3. LSU Tigers
  4. Tennessee Volunteers
  5. Auburn Tigers
  6. Mississippi Rebels
  7. Georgia Bulldogs
  8. South Carolina Gamecocks
  9. Arkansas Razorbacks
  10. Kentucky Wildcats
  11. Mississippi St. Bulldogs
  12. Vanderbilt Commodores

Explanations after the jump, as well as the computer numbers that defined the rankings.  (And yes, there are already human overrides in effect based on previous trends.)

Continue reading this post »

9 comments  |  0 recs |

SEC Bowl Tie-Ins: It's good to be king

We use this picture because it's awesome.  And because LSU still has a $4.25 million dollar payday waiting for them in Orlando.

More photos » by Dave Martin - AP

We use this picture because it's awesome. And because LSU still has a $4.25 million dollar payday waiting for them in Orlando.

As we enter the final three weeks of the regular season, thoughts turn to the holidays and potential bowl destinations across the country.  In the SEC - where we're the best and we know it - everyone in the conference not named Vanderbilt is still in the hunt for bowl eligibility.  And though Mississippi State will need to go 2-1 against Alabama, Arkansas and Ole Miss to get there, the other ten teams still left in the hunt should all find their way to the six wins necessary to become bowl eligible. 

Five teams are already there, Arkansas should make six when they play Troy on Saturday, and Tennessee and Kentucky can both get there by beating Vanderbilt (among others).  Ole Miss needs just one win against the Vols, LSU or Mississippi State.  The toughest road may belong to Georgia at 5-4, who will host Auburn and Kentucky before traveling to Georgia Tech.  But as John Adams pointed out two weeks ago, nothing strange has to happen for the conference to get ten, the favorites simply need to win.

And if the conference gets two teams in the BCS as expected, the league will have a bowl tie-in ready and waiting for the other eight.  And as we'll see, there's a huge division between the top half of the conference and the bottom when it comes to bowl placement, which will be especially interesting in a crowded middle of the pack this season.  The difference between Shreveport and January could come down to one loss.

Getting ten teams bowl eligible is an incredible accomplishment, and speaks highly in its own right of the conference's strength from top to bottom.  The SEC has sent nine teams to bowls before, including last year, but never ten - only recently could teams like Kentucky be counted on for consistent bowl eligibility, and outside of trusty Vanderbilt you can make the argument that there's really not a bad team in this conference.  

But it's not just the presence of eight bowl tie-ins outside the BCS that makes the SEC special, it's which bowls against which opponents: 

Continue reading this post »

19 comments  |  0 recs |

RTT BlogPoll Computer Rankings: Week 10 Draft

Here are the raw computer rankings for week 10.  This is, as always, a draft for the RTT BlogPoll Ballot.  Explanations and the full computer data follow after the jump.  Human intervention will be applied based solely on feedback.  I have my thoughts, but I'm hesitant to apply any changes without verification.  This late in the season, it's pretty well certain I won't change a number without support.

Continue reading this post »

24 comments  |  0 recs |


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