Week 8 NFL

Sorry I missed last week.  But here are the new NFL ranks after eight weeks of play.
 

				OFFENSE RANK	DEFENSE RANK		RECORD	SS
1	DENVER			1	8		6-1-0	1
2	KANSAS CITY			7	2		4-3-0	3
3	ARIZONA			12	5		6-1-0	17
4	DETROIT			25	1		6-2-0	32
5	BALTIMORE			11	3		5-3-0	27
6	SAN DIEGO			4	15		5-3-0	13
7	NEW ENGLAND			3	13		6-2-0	26
8	DALLAS			8	10		6-2-0	28
9	SEATTLE			9	7		4-3-0	8
10	MIAMI			18	6		4-3-0	20
11	SAN FRANCISCO			15	4		4-3-0	2
12	INDIANAPOLIS			2	16		5-3-0	14
13	CINCINNATI			14	14		4-2-1	11
14	GREEN BAY			6	19		5-3-0	22
15	HOUSTON			22	12		4-4-0	29
16	BUFFALO			21	9		5-3-0	12
17	PITTSBURGH			10	18		5-3-0	25
18	CLEVELAND			13	21		4-3-0	31
19	PHILADELPHIA			20	17		5-2-0	24
20	NEW ORLEANS			5	27		3-4-0	19
21	MINNESOTA			28	11		3-5-0	23
22	WASHINGTON			17	23		3-5-0	16
23	CAROLINA			23	26		3-4-1	9
24	NY GIANTS			16	22		3-4-0	6
25	TENNESSEE			26	24		2-6-0	9
26	CHICAGO			24	25		3-5-0	18
27	ATLANTA			19	32		2-6-0	21
28	JACKSONVILLE			32	20		1-7-0	15
29	ST LOUIS			27	28		2-5-0	7
30	TAMPA BAY			30	30		1-6-0	30
31	NY JETS			29	29		1-7-0	5
32	OAKLAND			31	31		0-7-0	4

Right now Denver is so far ahead of the rest of the league it would take something major to pull them off.  The next ten teams all jumble up and down from week to week as one team or another has a good or bad game.  I do find it uncanny that Andy Reid (head coach at Kansas City) again finds his team in the top five.  After analyzing teams back to 1995, Reid's teams seem to always find a way to play at the top of the league.  And while some might disagree with me, Alex Smith is far from an elite QB.  There are just some coaches that get more from their players.

WEEK 9 - College

So the "powers that be" have released their first top four in line for the improved, yet hardly ideal, NCAA football playoff.

The so-called experts tell us that Mississippi St, Florida St, Auburn and Ole Miss round out the top four.  Outside that I have Florida St coming in at tenth overall, I agree at this time.  Instead of Fla St I have Georgia in at three spot, which of course makes the top four an all SEC party.

Now if I had my way we would have an eight team playoff, including the six winning teams from each of the major conferences and two at large conference winners or independent teams.  So only one of the SEC teams would make it.  Which means my real top four are currently Mississippi, TCU, Michigan St and Marshall.  And guessing that there are always teams moving up and down over the course of a season, I'm hoping that we'll see more diverse teams join the party.

So not to be outdone by the national pundits, I've included the entire list of 1A football rankings.  For those of you who don't want to scroll down to number 128, it's Southern Methodist taking up the bottom spot.

RANK	SCHOOL	RECORD		CONFERENCE	OFFENSE RANK	DEFENSE RANK
1	MISSISSIPPI	7 - 1		SEC	21	1
2	MISSISSIPPI ST	7 - 0		SEC	1	21
3	GEORGIA	6 - 1		SEC	4	22
4	AUBURN	6 - 1		SEC	2	15
5	TCU	6 - 1		BIG 12	9	2
6	MICHIGAN ST	7 - 1		BIG 10	12	10
7	MARSHALL	8 - 0		CUSA	5	24
8	ALABAMA	7 - 1		SEC	10	6
9	OHIO ST	6 - 1		BIG 10	7	9
10	FLORIDA ST	7 - 0		ACC	11	33
11	OREGON	7 - 1		PAC 12	6	51
12	DUKE	6 - 1		ACC	33	8
13	LSU	7 - 2		SEC	23	4
14	BAYLOR	6 - 1		BIG 12	3	35
15	KANSAS ST	6 - 1		BIG 12	30	29
16	NEBRASKA	7 - 1		BIG 10	14	32
17	ARIZONA ST	6 - 1		PAC 12	17	38
18	GEORGIA SOUTHERN	6 - 2		SUN BELT	13	49
19	OKLAHOMA	5 - 2		BIG 12	15	20
20	GEORGIA TECH	6 - 2		ACC	8	53
21	CLEMSON	6 - 2		ACC	53	5
22	NOTRE DAME	6 - 1		INDEPENDENT	22	27
23	UTAH	6 - 1		PAC 12	57	18
24	LOUISVILLE	6 - 2		ACC	43	3
25	WISCONSIN	5 - 2		BIG 10	26	41
26	ARIZONA	6 - 1		PAC 12	20	78
27	UCLA	6 - 2		PAC 12	25	46
28	COLORADO ST	7 - 1		MOUNTAIN WEST	39	73
29	W VIRGINIA	6 - 2		BIG 12	32	42
30	KENTUCKY	5 - 3		SEC	50	19
31	USC	5 - 3		PAC 12	29	43
32	MISSOURI	6 - 2		SEC	77	26
33	MINNESOTA	6 - 2		BIG 10	73	30
34	MIAMI	5 - 3		ACC	36	14
35	TEXAS A&M	5 - 3		SEC	18	70
36	BOSTON COLLEGE	5 - 3		ACC	42	63
37	IOWA	5 - 2		BIG 10	79	34
38	ARKANSAS	4 - 4		SEC	24	48
39	WASHINGTON	5 - 3		PAC 12	88	17
40	NEVADA	5 - 3		MOUNTAIN WEST	51	54
41	BOISE ST	6 - 2		MOUNTAIN WEST	34	55
42	AIR FORCE	5 - 2		MOUNTAIN WEST	64	67
43	NORTHERN ILLINOIS	6 - 2		MAC	38	104
44	S ALABAMA	5 - 2		SUN BELT	90	44
45	MEMPHIS	4 - 3		AMERICAN	61	39
46	STANFORD	5 - 3		PAC 12	97	11
47	UCF	5 - 2		AMERICAN	74	37
48	CINCINNATI	4 - 3		AMERICAN	41	72
49	E CAROLINA	6 - 1		AMERICAN	19	118
50	LOUISIANA TECH	5 - 3		CUSA	72	52
51	MARYLAND	5 - 3		BIG 10	58	58
52	NAVY	4 - 4		INDEPENDENT	40	69
53	UTEP	4 - 3		CUSA	59	77
54	WESTERN MICHIGAN	5 - 3		MAC	46	86
55	N CAROLINA ST	4 - 4		ACC	44	75
56	MIDDLE TENNESSEE	5 - 3		CUSA	48	66
57	RUTGERS	5 - 3		BIG 10	54	85
58	RICE	4 - 3		CUSA	56	87
59	PENN ST	4 - 3		BIG 10	94	40
60	HOUSTON	4 - 3		AMERICAN	89	16
61	NORTHWESTERN	3 - 4		BIG 10	83	36
62	S CAROLINA	4 - 4		SEC	27	88
63	FLORIDA	3 - 3		SEC	76	12
64	UTAH ST	5 - 3		MOUNTAIN WEST	87	47
65	TEMPLE	4 - 3		AMERICAN	105	7
66	VIRGINIA	4 - 4		ACC	81	23
67	UAB	4 - 4		CUSA	65	61
68	N CAROLINA	4 - 4		ACC	16	98
69	OKLAHOMA ST	5 - 3		BIG 12	78	83
70	PITTSBURGH	4 - 4		ACC	55	65
71	OREGON ST	4 - 3		PAC 12	66	68
72	VIRGINIA TECH	4 - 4		ACC	100	13
73	LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE	4 - 3		SUN BELT	49	92
74	TOLEDO	5 - 3		MAC	37	121
75	TEXAS ST	4 - 3		SUN BELT	63	90
76	TENNESSEE	3 - 5		SEC	86	45
77	BALL ST	3 - 5		MAC	84	76
78	ILLINOIS	4 - 4		BIG 10	75	62
79	ARKANSAS ST	4 - 3		SUN BELT	52	91
80	WESTERN KENTUCKY	3 - 4		CUSA	35	108
81	BYU	4 - 4		INDEPENDENT	28	109
82	BOWLING GREEN	5 - 3		MAC	69	103
83	SYRACUSE	3 - 5		ACC	104	31
84	CALIFORNIA	4 - 4		PAC 12	31	115
85	SAN DIEGO ST	4 - 3		MOUNTAIN WEST	108	56
86	CENTRAL MICHIGAN	5 - 4		MAC	101	79
87	AKRON	4 - 4		MAC	99	60
88	INDIANA	3 - 4		BIG 10	45	113
89	FLORIDA INT	3 - 5		CUSA	114	25
90	TEXAS	3 - 5		BIG 12	110	28
91	OLD DOMINION	3 - 5		CUSA	68	106
92	PURDUE	3 - 5		BIG 10	70	99
93	SAN JOSE ST	3 - 4		MOUNTAIN WEST	107	57
94	IOWA ST	2 - 5		BIG 12	67	105
95	FRESNO ST	3 - 5		MOUNTAIN WEST	71	112
96	LOUISIANA-MONROE	3 - 4		SUN BELT	113	74
97	WYOMING	3 - 5		MOUNTAIN WEST	103	94
98	NEW MEXICO	2 - 5		MOUNTAIN WEST	82	107
99	MICHIGAN	3 - 5		BIG 10	118	59
100	BUFFALO	3 - 5		MAC	80	116
101	FLORIDA ATL	3 - 5		CUSA	102	111
102	OHIO	4 - 5		MAC	106	97
103	WASHINGTON ST	2 - 6		PAC 12	47	110
104	SOUTHERN FLORIDA	3 - 5		AMERICAN	120	64
105	APPALACHIAN ST	2 - 5		SUN BELT	85	93
106	COLORADO	2 - 6		PAC 12	60	117
107	SOUTHERN MISS	3 - 5		CUSA	111	96
108	KANSAS	2 - 5		BIG 12	121	84
109	TEXAS TECH	3 - 5		BIG 12	62	122
110	HAWAII	2 - 6		MOUNTAIN WEST	119	89
111	MIAMI OHIO	2 - 7		MAC	95	102
112	TULANE	2 - 5		AMERICAN	117	71
113	UTSA	2 - 6		CUSA	122	81
114	N TEXAS	2 - 6		CUSA	116	100
115	WAKE FOREST	2 - 6		ACC	127	50
116	ARMY	2 - 5		INDEPENDENT	91	127
117	NEW MEXICO ST	2 - 6		SUN BELT	115	101
118	IDAHO	1 - 6		SUN BELT	92	119
119	VANDERBILT	2 - 6		SEC	125	80
120	MASSACHUSETTS	2 - 7		MAC	96	126
121	UNLV	2 - 6		MOUNTAIN WEST	109	123
122	KENT ST	1 - 7		MAC	123	95
123	TROY	1 - 7		SUN BELT	112	120
124	GEORGIA ST	1 - 7		SUN BELT	93	125
125	CONNECTICUT	1 - 6		AMERICAN	126	82
126	TULSA	1 - 6		AMERICAN	98	128
127	EASTERN MICHIGAN	2 - 6		MAC	124	114
128	SOUTHERN METHODIST	0 - 7		AMERICAN	128	124

I see you've made it to the bottom, good for you.  Sorry I don't have any more whitty commentary at this time.  So until next week, take care.

Week 8 - College

Another week of college football, and as my friend at work put it (to paraphrase); It's a mess this year.

I haven't really followed collegiate football too closely over the years, so I can't say if that is really the case; but things have a tendency to shake up the national rankings.

Around this place (NE Ohio) the Ohio State Buckeyes tend to be the favorite pick, that is unless you have ties to Michigan; but anyway those Wolverines have more to cry in their beer about since the OSU drubbing of Rutgers has pushed them back up into top five territory.  We can see that since their embarrassment to Virginia Tech the Buckeyes have racked up enough numbers to rank top ten in both offense and defense.  And I was really hoping the Cincinnati might actually be better this year...  oh well...

RANK	SCHOOL	RECORD		CONFERENCE	OFFENSE RANK	DEFENSE RANK
1	MISSISSIPPI	7 - 0		SEC	10	1
2	MISSISSIPPI ST	6 - 0		SEC	1	11
3	AUBURN	5 - 1		SEC	2	12
4	GEORGIA	6 - 1		SEC	6	26
5	OHIO ST	5 - 1		BIG 10	7	7
6	MARSHALL	7 - 0		CUSA	4	21
7	TCU	5 - 1		BIG 12	13	2
8	ALABAMA	6 - 1		SEC	12	6
9	MICHIGAN ST	6 - 1		BIG 10	9	22
10	OREGON	6 - 1		PAC 12	5	49
11	FLORIDA ST	7 - 0		ACC	11	31
12	LSU	6 - 2		SEC	20	5
13	DUKE	6 - 1		ACC	32	14
14	BAYLOR	6 - 1		BIG 12	3	34
15	NEBRASKA	6 - 1		BIG 10	14	25
16	ARIZONA ST	5 - 1		PAC 12	8	62
17	OKLAHOMA	5 - 2		BIG 12	16	19
18	CLEMSON	5 - 2		ACC	43	9
19	KANSAS ST	5 - 1		BIG 12	31	41
20	NOTRE DAME	6 - 1		INDEPENDENT	24	28
21	GEORGIA SOUTHERN	5 - 2		SUN BELT	22	52
22	UTAH	5 - 1		PAC 12	52	32
23	LOUISVILLE	6 - 2		ACC	42	3
24	MINNESOTA	6 - 1		BIG 10	58	23
25	USC	5 - 2		PAC 12	19	38

The top three remain the same teams, but Mississippi has popped up over its in state rival.  Kentucky, Georgia Tech, Washington, Temple, and Iowa all fell out of the top ten to be replaced by USC, Minnesota, Louisville, Utah, and Arizona St.

And as a side note, I ran the numbers without taking win-loss record into account and the top three (in order) are Mississippi, Auburn and Ohio State. 

First NFL posting.

Ranking in the NFL isn't nearly as important as in college, but I still like it more.  Especially now since the Browns actually are interesting, statistically speaking.  We'll have to talk about that in a bit.  But for the moment consider the current power ranks I have after week six.

				OFFENSE RANK	DEFENSE RANK		RECORD	SS
1	DENVER			1	10		4-1-0	4
2	SAN DIEGO			4	8		5-1-0	28
3	BALTIMORE			11	3		4-2-0	18
4	ARIZONA			15	4		4-1-0	3
5	SEATTLE			5	6		3-2-0	1
6	DALLAS			7	5		5-1-0	20
7	DETROIT			23	1		4-2-0	29
8	SAN FRANCISCO			14	2		4-2-0	7
9	INDIANAPOLIS			2	19		4-2-0	10
10	GREEN BAY			6	17		4-2-0	18
11	CINCINNATI			8	14		3-1-1	15
12	NEW ENGLAND			12	11		4-2-0	27
13	KANSAS CITY			10	12		2-3-0	6
14	CLEVELAND			3	23		3-2-0	25
15	PHILADELPHIA			21	13		5-1-0	32
16	HOUSTON			24	9		3-3-0	24
17	CHICAGO			13	18		3-3-0	23
18	CAROLINA			9	26		3-2-1	9
19	BUFFALO			22	7		3-3-0	5
20	MIAMI			17	20		2-3-0	17
21	NY GIANTS			18	22		3-3-0	13
22	NEW ORLEANS			16	25		2-3-0	26
23	PITTSBURGH			26	15		3-3-0	22
24	TENNESSEE			25	21		2-4-0	7
25	MINNESOTA			30	16		2-4-0	21
26	ATLANTA			19	31		2-4-0	31
27	WASHINGTON			20	28		1-5-0	11
28	TAMPA BAY			29	29		1-5-0	29
29	NY JETS			31	24		1-5-0	2
30	ST LOUIS			27	27		1-4-0	14
31	OAKLAND			28	32		0-5-0	12
32	JACKSONVILLE			32	30		0-6-0	16

To nobody's' surprise Denver comes out on top.  Cincinnati started the season in that position, but have slipped with two less than convincing performances.  San Diego is also not so shocking, but I'm certain noone would have Baltimore in at three right now. But they have the spot based on a solid defense and an efficient offense.  Plus they are winning.

Now the really interesting part.  Cleveland's offense shows up at number three overall.  Not to bad I must say.  And higher that even I would have guessed.  Given the level of incredulity on most of your faces, I must take a moment to explain that number in a little  more detail.

The offense category is comprised of a handful of stats.  Most often in the media the pundits will look at one, Total Offensive Yards, and determine the best squad from that one measly data point.  This is the entire reason why I started this hobby.

So for this exercise we look at six categories.  Record, Total Offensive Points, Total Offensive Touchdowns, Total Offensive Yards, Turnovers Committed, and Allowing Opposing Defense to Score.  It is a sliding scale and not all data is weighted the same.  This weighting is where the subjectivity comes into play.  I find that total yards isn't the best indicator of success in the NFL.  Offensive Touchdowns and Turnovers seem to have the highest co-relation with winning.  So they are weighted heavily.  The Browns are third in Offensive TDs and first in committing turnovers (ie the least with two).  In the other categories Offensive scoring they are ninth, in total yards they are eleventh, and also first in allowing opposing defenses to score (which has a smaller weight).

So based on my biases, the Browns are doing well indeed.  They move the ball well (but not great), and they put it into the endzone more often than not and they take care of the ball.  This to me is the first half of the recipe to winning games.  Now if they can work on the defense....