The updated AP Poll was released Sunday afternoon and the Clemson football team dropped yet another spot, but Alabama stayed the same.
The AP Poll doesn’t matter, but it certainly creates narratives that the CFB Playoff committee will consider when they come up with their poll in just a few weeks.
In the latest AP Poll, the Clemson football team dropped yet another spot down to No. 4 despite blowing out Louisville on the road by 35 points.
The Tigers covered the spread comfortably for a second-straight week, but dropped due to narrative that they are somehow not as dominant as last year’s National Championship team.
Clemson football coach Dabo Swinney told the media Sunday night that the team is beating opponents by 28.0 points per game this year, but was beating teams by 28.7 points per game at this time last season. Somehow that 0.7 has cost the Tigers votes in the AP Poll.
The problem with the AP Poll is the clear bias of its voters. Everyone says that they look at the overall body of work of this season. They talk about how they don’t take last season into account.
Well, then how can you justify Alabama being No. 1?
The Crimson Tide have played absolutely no one with a pulse this season. The best opponent Alabama has played is either Duke or Texas A&M to this point. Clemson football beat Texas A&M, as well.
Alabama just struggled mightily in a home game against Tennessee. Had the SEC officials not called a fake roughing the passer call in the third quarter against the Volunteers, Tennessee would’ve gotten the ball with a chance to tie the game up with all the momentum on their side. Instead, the roughing the passer call allowed Alabama to score a touchdown and take a 28-13 lead.
But, do the Crimson Tide get punished for it? No. Why? Because AP Voters are looking at last season and year’s past. Because Alabama is traditionally dominant, they get the benefit of the doubt.
For some reason, that doesn’t apply to Clemson football, though.
You can’t justify keeping Alabama at No. 1 if you’re going to drop the Tigers. The clear bias and disdain for the Clemson football program among many media members is alive. While it might not seem like that big of a deal to Tiger fans, the narratives that these biased ‘analysts’ are creating will find a way to creep into the minds of members in the CFB Playoff committee.
Maybe Clemson football struggled offensively for a while against Louisville, but the Tigers still won the game by 35 points- five touchdowns. That’s absolute dominance. But, for a second week, analysts are more concerned about the Tigers’ ‘weak schedule’ and scare against UNC three weeks ago rather than what happened this week.