The ballot received a couple tweaks from the draft; Auburn moves ahead of LSU, Arkansas was bumped above South Carolina, and the bottom four get shaken up. Auburn and LSU were effectively tied in the computer, so this was really nothing more than enforcing an order. The bottom four were changed mostly due to feedback from the draft.
- Alabama Crimson Tide
- Florida Gators
- Auburn Tigers
- LSU Tigers
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Arkansas Razorbacks
- South Carolina Gamecocks
- Kentucky Wildcats
- Mississippi St. Bulldogs
- Vanderbilt Commodores
- Tennessee Volunteers
- Georgia Bulldogs
- Mississippi Rebels
I still struggle with the bottom four, especially since I ended up inverting them from the draft. But Vandy has only played three games, and their schedule can be thought of as analogous to Tennessee's without UT-Martin, in which case both are 1-2. Looking at it that way, I can easily make an argument for either order; I chose Vandy for #9 simply because I want to see Tennessee work out some of their inconsistencies. In the long run, I fully expect Tennessee to be the better team; they're just still in growing pains.
And honestly, I think Georgia is a more polished team than Tennessee as well. It's just really hard to ignore three conference losses in a power poll. In fact, it'd take a loss to and FCS team and a home loss to Vandy to outdo Georgia's run of luck (thanks, Mississippi!).
So there you have it. I'll never be happy with any order in this week's edition, but this is probably the fairest one.