Power Rankings (Week 1)  

Welcome to the Power 10

We both believe that a power rankings is the way to go, since polls are simply too stagnant. Also, we've listed only ten, since those are the ones that really matter, we don't want to be listing three loss teams with no shot at the title by the end of the year. With these rankings a bad win won't drop you all the way out, but an excellent streak of games will definitely propel you towards the top. This is all about who is the best football team right now, who you definitely wouldn't want to face, not just a bunch of inertia from intense marketing in the offseason. The first edition is strongly influenced by who played whom, so this isn't to say that Florida St. is definitively better than Texas, but they sure as hell get more credit for beating Miami in Miami than the Longhorns do for beating up on the Mean Green. So, without further ado, the inaugral 323 power rankings.

#1 Florida State

Walter - The Seminoles take the top spot thanks to a dominating defensive performance led by middle linebacker Buster Davis, who played as complete a game as I have ever seen a linebacker play.

Frazier - It's impossible to not add to the praises of Buster Davis and the dominating Seminole defense, winning in Miami, and giving up 17 yards in the second half, is definitely worthy of the top spot.

#2 Tennessee

Walter - The jury is still out for me on the Vols since California played about as horribly as a top 10 ever has (I could watch 100 years of football and never see a worse tackling team in my life), but Tennessee dominated a top 10 team and that gets you pretty high in the power rankings.

Frazier - Nightmare game for Cal, but credit where credit is due, the Vols looked legit on both sides of the ball, and pasted the highly regarded Golden Bears.

#3 Southern California

Walter - The names on the back of the jerseys may change but one thing is clear, there is still a ton of all-american talent on the Trojans. It is interesting to note that the John David Booty era kicked off in eerily similar fashion to the Matt Leinary era (a 20-0 win at Auburn).

Frazier - The Trojans absolutely dominated an experienced SEC team in a difficult environment, and showed no signs of a letdown after losing so much talent to the NFL. The rest of college football is on notice that USC isn't going anywhere.

#4 Auburn

Walter - The Tigers featured a dominant running game and a physically punishing defense in dominating Washington State. Needless to say I'm feeling great about my preseason national title pick.

Frazier - Kenny Irons is probably near the top of everyone's Heisman lists right now, and for good reason, he was both bruising and blazing in a severe beatdown of a solid PAC 10 team.

#5 Ohio State

Walter - It's nice that they beat up on a strong Northern Illinois team, but the facts remain that the Huskies ran up and down the field on the young Buckeye defense. Texas is going to be bigger, faster, and more physical and must be licking their chops after watching the OSU defense stink up the field on Sat.

Frazier - Ohio St. looked like exactly the team we expected in their first game, dominant on offense, with loads of talent, but lots of inexperience on defense. Allowing Texas to push them around in a similar way could derail any national title hopes.

#6 Texas

Walter - They took care of business against N Texas, but for Colt McCoy it's one thing to look good against the Mean Green and another to look good against the Buckeyes. We'll know just how good Texas is on Sunday.

Frazier - What did you expect from this game? Texas looked excellent, and their defense will be a strength this year, although some recent legal troubles could present a problem. McCoy and the offense looked very good against a very bad defense. This team simply took care of business.

#7 Nebraska

Walter - They looked great against an always tough Louisiana Tech team, and with Colorado looking so terrible in their opener (losing to 1AA Montana State) there shouldn't be anything standing between the Cornhuskers and a Big 12 North title.

Frazier - The 330 passing yards and 4 TDs through the air were impressive, but the 250 rushing yards were exactly what the doctor ordered for this team looking to break out in 2006.

#8 Louisville

Walter - Losing Michael Bush is devestating. Let me repeat that, devestating. That said, the Cardinals had rolled up a 31-0 lead before they called off the dogs in the first half so they deserve some props here.

Frazier - The loss of Bush definitely hurts them in the long run, but the offense is still exceptional, and the way they came out and dominated a rival Kentucky program was impressive.

#9 Notre Dame

Walter - I have to give credit where credit is due. Even though they looked eminently beatable, the Irish did come away with a win against an ACC opponent in hostile territory. They'll have to play much better to go undefeated though.

Frazier - They didn't look great, or even particularly good at times, but they beat a bowl team in a tough road contest, so they sneak in this week, with a huge game looming against Penn St.

#10 West Virginia

Walter - They get no respect for beating a terrible Marshall team, but the Mountaineers rolled up over 300 rushing yards and dominated the Thundering Herd (just as they should have).

Frazier - Marshall is a pretty lousy program, but the Mountaineer offense was firing on all cylinders, and they have plenty more cupcakes, and a gift in the Bush injury, to look forward to.