YFTS Top Twenty...something

Four years ago, I created a formula that attempted to rank teams similarly to how AP voters would vote.  The experiment yielded some successes and some failures.  But rather than revisit that odd math, I thought I might just come up with my own Top 20-something rankings based solely on 2012 on-field performance.  Novel concept, I know.  But seeing how coaches (or their assistants, ADs, or SIDs) voted after Week 2 caused me to blow a fuse.  Wisconsin barely beat UNI in Week 1 and was made completely inept by Oregon State in Week 2.  But Wisconsin remains ranked, and Oregon State remains unranked.  Which means coaches (or their assistants, ADs, or SIDs) believe that Wisconsin is a top team based on nothing that has actually occurred in the 2012 season.  And this is a third of how the national championship is determined.  And we have two more years of this.

Anyway, onto the arbitrary rankings:

1a. Alabama - outscored Big Ten and Sun Belt opponents 76-14.
1b. LSU - outscored Pac-12 and Sun Belt opponents 82-17.

[dead space]

3. Oregon - up 50-3 and 35-3 in the 2nd quarter of last two games.
4. USC

two wins against FBS competition without looking awful:

5. Georgia
6. Michigan State
7. Clemson
8. UCLA
9. Texas
10. Ohio

two wins against FBS competition with at least one shaky win:

11. South Carolina
12. Stanford
13. Notre Dame
14. Iowa State
15. Arizona
16. Florida
17. Northwestern

only one win against FBS competition, in order of impressiveness:

18. Kansas State
19. West Virginia
20. BYU
21. Mississippi State
22. Arizona State
23. Tennessee
24. Virginia Tech
25. Louisville


The unwashed masses:

Baylor - impressive win over SMU
Utah State - nice win over Utah, I-AA
Oklahoma - shaky, shaky win, I-AA
Florida State - lots of points, no I-A opponents yet
TCU - points, no I-A
Oregon State - nice win, but no real data on Wisconsin yet
ULM -again, nice win, but no real data on Arkansas yet

* not including Ohio State in any rankings since they can't advance to the postseason