College Football Ratings Week 7 2023
We’re roughly halfway through the season and we’re down to 11 unbeatens- 8 from the Power Five and 3 mid majors. No team has a greater than 50/50 shot at making it to 12-0, but the most likely case is that 2 teams make it there. I will take a wild guess and say that Michigan and Air Force are our two lucky teams who make it to 12-0.
Top 25
Numbers in parentheses indicate (a) ranking change from last week and (b) a team’s current betting odds of making the playoff.
Michigan (0, -155)
Ohio State (+1, +170)
Georgia (-1, -195)
Washington (+1, +125)
Texas (-1, +240)
LSU (+2, +1800)
Oregon (-1, +500)
Alabama (-1, +400)
Penn State (+6, +250)
Oklahoma (-1, +160)
Texas A&M (0)
Florida State (-2, -150)
Notre Dame (0, +2500)
Clemson (0)
Tennessee (-3, +2200)
Miami (+2)
Oregon State (+3, +1400)
Louisville (-2)
North Carolina (-2, +750)
USC (-1, +900)
Arizona (+7)
Kansas State (+8)
Missouri (+3)
Wisconsin (-3)
Utah (+2)
Washington won an all time classic against Oregon. Given how close the game was, they don’t move much in my ratings, but they do make a massive jump in playoff odds from +250 to +125. I have been lower than most on Penn State for most of the season but they shot up my ratings after evaporating UMass. Oregon State continued their solid season with a win over UCLA and has a good chance at their first major bowl bid in twenty years.
Moving Up
Unlike most, I had James Madison as the best team in the Sun Belt in the preseason but they have surpassed even my expectations. The Dukes beat a good Georgia Southern team by 28 and are neck and neck with Air Force and Tulane for the best team in the Group of Five. Vanderbilt was a 30 point underdog against Georgia and played the Bulldogs much closer than anyone could have expected. I’ve bet against Iowa each of the last two weeks but have been punished for it and the Hawkeyes have entered my top 40.
Moving Down
Unfortunately for those who follow my picks, the bottom might have fallen out for UMass as they lost 63-0 to Penn State. They have two more realistic chances at wins against Merrimack and UConn in November. South Florida has been on a roller coaster this year- they were the biggest surprise team of September before coming crashing down to earth with blowout losses to UAB and FAU, in games that were supposed to be coin flips. Washington State lost by 38 at home to Arizona and likely won’t sniff the top 25 for the rest of the season.