Inside the AP Poll: Ohio State shouldn't be over-penalized for going toe-to-toe with Texas

Arch Manning didn’t run around the sidelines and onto the field of an exuberant Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium as much as he floated. Pure joy radiated off Manning as he celebrated the Longhorns’ win over then-No. 1 Ohio State, a signature come-from-behind victory authored by the most scrutinized quarterback in the country.

I don’t think the moment is quite the same if Texas beats Abilene Christian. (No offense to the Wildcats.)

“We could be like other teams and play Jones Junior High tonight and win 66-0,” Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said late Saturday night. “I don’t know what that does for us. Tonight we found out we can (win big games).”

That’s why you schedule a series like this. Yes, you could always lose the game with millions of people watching. But what if you win? What if you prove something to yourself and the country in the process? What if you’re Sark, beating the bluest of bluebloods for the biggest win you’ve had in years? What if you’re Arch, finally delivering under the brightest of spotlights?

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These games must matter. If they don’t, no one is going to schedule them moving forward. Sarkisian himself parroted that line all last year, when his Longhorns lost to the Buckeyes and he felt the College Football Playoff selection committee wasn’t giving his team credit for playing a game like that and losing by just seven points on the road. He, like other SEC coaches, has been vocal about concerns that the quality of the opponent isn’t being taken into account — just the total number of wins and losses.

We’ve seen a not-insignificant number of Power 4 programs cancel marquee home-and-home series in recent months. Some were axed simply because both the SEC and ACC went to nine conference-game schedules. But others noted that the CFP hasn’t penalized teams for weak nonconference schedules in the past. Why put yourself at risk of picking up an extra loss (or two) by scheduling tough?

I get the line of thinking, even though I hate it. So, I want to do everything I can to support games like Ohio State-Texas in the hopes that they’ll continue. Which brings me to my AP ballot.

I put the Longhorns as my No. 1 team, and it’s not because I think they have been the most impressive team in the country through two weeks. It’s not because I think they’ve been the most consistent or well-rounded, either. You could argue they were outplayed for three quarters on Saturday night and be right. But erasing a 20-point deficit and delivering an epic win over a true national title contender is more than enough to deserve the top spot on my ballot. These games have to matter. Beating one of the top teams in the nation absolutely should catapult you to No. 1.

The flip side is, of course, Ohio State. I only dropped the Buckeyes to No. 7 for similar reasons, and my fellow voters felt similarly. They chose to schedule and play this game. They didn’t go play Florida A&M and beat them by 70 points, like Miami did this weekend. They went toe-to-toe with Texas and lost by one point in the final seconds. It was a crushing defeat but hardly the kind of loss that should knock this team out of the Top 10. And I don’t want the loser of a tight game like this (on the road) to be penalized so severely that it becomes a message to other coaches and athletic directors.

I’m doing my part as one poll voter to try to make a statement. But the important message will be the one that the selection committee sends a few weeks from now when we see how the committee members evaluate Ohio State. Here’s hoping they reward teams for choosing to challenge themselves — and make that crystal clear, so college football receives the right message, too.

Stray thoughts/observations:

• I cannot believe Boise State is still unranked. Playing Oregon close in Week 1 is perhaps slightly less impressive now, but that’s still a significant data point for a Group of 6 team. And the Broncos then went out and crushed a very good Memphis team, 38-20, in Week 2.
• Even though I kept Washington in my Top 25, I understand why other voters didn’t. The Huskies have not inspired much confidence through two weeks. They certainly haven’t played like a CFP/Big Ten dark horse like I thought they could be.
• I cannot wait until teams like Indiana, Miami and Georgia start playing opponents with a pulse. I believe all three of these teams are very, very good. But I also believe that game results should matter, and that’s why I have Texas above all three for now. We’re at that part of the season where it’s hard to compare teams that play overmatched opponents and those who play true measuring-stick games. I expect the order of my top 10 or 15 teams to shift pretty regularly over the next month or so.