After the first weekend of the season, Stephen Means’ AP Top 25 ballot got a serious reset.
The biggest change at the top was LSU moving into the No. 1 spot after its primetime thrashing of Clemson. Means said the Tigers “looked the part of a legitimate title contender in Lane Kiffin’s debut.”
Ole Miss also climbed sharply in his view, thanks to the best resume win on his ballot: a neutral-site victory over Louisville, a team he said “more than proved it belonged.”
Ohio State settled in right behind LSU at No. 2.
Means put the Buckeyes in the “best of the rest” category after a Week 1 showing that matched the level of opponent in front of them. He grouped them with Miami as teams that “dominated opponents they should’ve dominated while showing off just how explosive both teams can be.”
Oregon, which started the weekend at No. 1 in Means’ previous thinking, slipped to No. 5 after what he viewed as a less convincing win over Boise State. Notre Dame stayed in the upper tier at No. 8, but Means didn’t come away ready to label the Fighting Irish a major threat after their win over Wisconsin. He called it a Notre Dame-style result and said it looked more like a team with “an ideal path to the College Football Playoff” than one that scared anyone.
The most notable drop-off on his ballot was Michigan, which disappeared entirely. Means pointed to Western Michigan controlling the game for 59 minutes and 59 seconds before getting a second chance at a win. He called the performance “underwhelming to the highest degree” and said a team that should be chasing a CFP spot looked “far away from being one that should be taken seriously.”
Means’ full ballot had LSU at No. 1, followed by Ohio State, Miami, Ole Miss, Oregon, Indiana, Texas, Notre Dame, Georgia and USC in the top 10. The rest of the list included Texas A&M, BYU, Oklahoma, Alabama, Iowa, Washington, Texas Tech, Utah, Tennessee, Penn State, SMU, Louisville, Virginia, Illinois and Houston.
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The more interesting part for Ohio State is what all of that means down the road, because Smith may have to weigh the possibility of entering the draft after his junior season. Miami is one of the teams being linked to that kind of scenario, and the fit would make some sense for a franchise that has been reshuffling its offensive identity and looking for more high-end weaponry. For the Buckeyes, it is another reminder that Smiths ceiling is already creating questions that normally do not arrive this early. [Read more 🡒]