The ballot below was submitted to the Associated Press on Monday night, following the final championship game of the College Football Playoff’s four-team era.
I spent significant time on teams in the No. 11 through 25 positions, shifting through bowl results and opt-out situations. But the top 10? That was easy.
No. 1 was easy after Michigan dominated Washington 34-13 to win the national title.
No. 2 was easy given that Alabama pushed Michigan to overtime in the Rose Bowl.
And No. 3 was easy, as Georgia’s only loss came to Alabama (by three points) in the SEC championship.
What of the Huskies, who finished 14-1?
We assessed Washington’s performance against Michigan and compared it to Alabama’s showing against the Wolverines in that pulsating semifinal matchup. Whereas the Crimson Tide pushed Michigan to the brink (in overtime), the Huskies trailed throughout and lost by three touchdowns — they were not competitive in the final minutes.
(Yes, Washington beat Texas, while Alabama lost to Texas. But in our view, the Week 2 result in Tuscaloosa carries limited relevance for an end-of-season ballot.)
Next up, in the No. 5 position, was Oregon, which lost just two games — both to Washington, both by three points.
The rest of the top 10 fell neatly into place.
The ballot …
1. Michigan
2. Alabama
3. Georgia
4. Washington
5. Oregon
6. Florida State
7. Texas
8. Missouri
9. Mississippi
10. Ohio State
11. LSU
12. Arizona
13. Tennessee
14. Penn State
15. Notre Dame
16. Oklahoma
17. N.C. State
18. Clemson
19. Oklahoma State
20. Oregon State
21. Kansas State
22. Louisville
23. Iowa
24. SMU
25. Kansas
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