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College Football Rankings: 4 Most Underrated College Football Teams in Week 8 AP Poll

Another week, another group of teams thinking they got a raw deal from the AP voters.
Kalani Sitake and BYU got a tough break from the AP poll voters ahead of Week 8. Aaron Baker-Imagn Images
Kalani Sitake and BYU got a tough break from the AP poll voters ahead of Week 8. Aaron Baker-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

In the world of college football, each week carries an aggrieved group of college football fans. The AP poll-- at least until the College Football Playoff rankings start-- is the measuring stick of the sport. The problem is that it is tended by an altogether human group of sports media people, many of whom struggle to keep up with an entire nation of college football results while performing their paid day jobs. This always leads to a handful of teams with genuine greievances-- and here are this week's crew.

BYU

Holy Kalani Sitake! What do the Cougars have to do to get the No. 1 nod? While Miami needed double overtime to escape from a now 3-4 Florida State team that was a three-touchdown underdog, the Cougars took down No. 2 Notre Dame.... and were rewarded with the No. 2 ranking. It's not a bad consoluation prize, but BYU fans were not unreasonable to think that perhaps they-- and not a Miami team whose prime moment of the season is a 13-point win over Wake Forest-- should be No. 1. 20 AP voters placed them there, but the other 50 didn't. Two voters somehow landed BYU at 4th, which alone might be what kept them out of 1st place overall.

Texas Tech

Maybe it's just Big 12 greivance week. TTU is an impressive 6-0. Their only close call so far came against a ranked Houston team, and otherwise, they've delivered plenty of beat downs. That got them to No. 5 in the coaches poll. But the writers were less impressed, with a No. 8 ranking, below Indiana and Ole Miss teams that haven't really done that much heavy lifting themselves. Three voters even somehow placed Tech outside the Top 10.

Oklahoma State

Morris
Eric Morris and Oklahoma State took a tough week 6 loss and unduly dipped in the AP poll. (Troy Taormina-Imagn Images) | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Yes, the Cowboys lost in Week 6-- by three points at a Houston team now ranked No. 14. The Cowboys were four-point underdogs and very slightly overperformed, only to be dropped from No. 18 to outside of the top 25. On a week when Arizona didn't play, No. 24 Northwestern eeked past an awful Michigan State team, and No. 23 SMU won against a putrid Virginia team by 10, Oklahoma State took some tough treatment. A dozen poll voters still have Oklahoma State in their top 20. But 42 voters have OK State outside the top 25,

James Madison

The Dukes are 7-0, remain by far the G5 team with the best College Football Playoff odds per ESPN's FPI ratings... and continue to not stiff the top 25. Sure, the JMU schedule isn't anything super exciting. But as two loss teams litter the top 25, a thought of the unbeaten Dukes would be worthwhile. At this point, 21 poll voters would rank the Dukes... but that leaves 49 who are still needing convincing.

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Joe Cox
JOE COX

Joe is a journalist and writer who covers college and professional sports. He has written or co-written over a dozen sports books, including several regional best sellers. His last book, A Fine Team Man, is about Jackie Robinson and the lives he changed. Joe has been a guest on MLB Network, the Paul Finebaum show and numerous other television and radio shows. He has been inside MLB dugouts, covered bowl games and conference tournaments with Saturday Down South and still loves telling the stories of sports past and present.