I have written in the past that Notre Dame could go 4-6 and some sportswriters would rank them #1. I was only half kidding.
But the computers?
Despite Notre Dame’s 0-2 record, Sagarin’s system ranks them #5 in the nation. OK, they have played an ambitious schedule, hardest of anyone, I get that, but … they’re ahead of the two teams that beat them.
It can be interesting to compare the polls to the computer rankings.
Overrated teams o’ the week:
Florida State: #29 or #7
Illinois: #22 or #9
Iowa State: #34 or #12
Texas Tech: #31 or #17
BYU: #44 or #26
South Florida: #68 or #27 (#18 last week!!)
Illinois in the top ten in the polls? I don’t buy them as #9. I think that will end when conference play gets going.
I suppose it will be at least another week before Florida State’s equally unlikely #7 ranking is challenged, given that their next opponent is everyone’s favorite punching bag, Kent State.
Ridiculous they were ranked 8th at 0-1 which included a bye week, and even sillier they are still ranked at all at 0-2, ahead of a 3-0 USC.
The Gipper is the ghost in the machine flipping bits for the Irish.
A computer program is only as good as the people who write it. And they don’t appear to be very good.